Customer Reviews

Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 / Lounnotar / Pohjola's Daughter, Opp. 43,49,70

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After recently reading this and many other excellent reviews by Mr. Lipscomb (may you quickly vault to "Top Reviewer" status!), I felt I should write an addendum to my earlier review of 2001. In the three years since writing about this Bernstein account of the Sibelius 2nd Symphony, the "classical bug" has bitten me hard, and I now own more than a dozen recordings of this work (and a dozen accounts of most major pieces in the repertoire for that matter). I would like to think my knowledge of classical music has increased in that time due to exposure to more performances. However, I am still quite a novice when it comes to this music, and being neither a musician (other than a decent drummer) nor a lifelong listener, I cannot offer the expertise that reviewers like Mr. Lipscomb can. Of course, I am always willing to listen and learn in the hopes of finding those truly great creations and recreations of music, whether it is classical, jazz, rock or whatever. Therefore, I would like to mention that on the occasion of my dad's 60th birthday, I purchased him Barbirolli's Sibelius 2nd on Chesky. Well, it was a fitting present for this milestone, and both my father and I on one listen (separately I might add) determined this to be a magical version, and it quickly leap-frogged to the top of both our lists. I still love the Bernstein in its own way (as I do the Davis [BSO], Ormandy and Paray, not to mention more recent acquisitions like Beecham [EMI & Biddulph], Ehrling, Hannikainen, Kletzki, Szell and the other Barbirollis [on EMI & 2 on Dutton] -- for the record of less interest are ones by Ashkenazy, Davis [LSO], Kamu, Karajan, Maazel [Vienna & Pittsburgh] and Schippers), but the JB Chesky, as Mr. Lipscomb indicated, is truly extraordinary.

I am gratified to witness the other reviewer's great affection for this wonderful music - but I have to demur when it comes to his recommendations (both this Bernstein and the other readings cited). I don't pretend to have heard every single recorded performance of the Sibelius 2nd out there (who has?), but of the 30 or so that I have heard, this Bernstein strikes me as, at best, a rather middle-of-the-pack account. Neither especially well played nor well recorded, it offers few insights into Sibelius' magnificent score, and it's downright hammy in the last movement.

The competition in this symphony is, in a word, huge. I will pass over fine recordings - all superior, I think , to this Bernstein - from Kletzki, Stokowski, Collins, Koussevitzky, Monteux, Szell/Concertgebouw, Kajanus and Beecham - and focus on just one conductor: Barbirolli. His extraordinary performance with the Royal Philharmonic on Chesky CD 3 simply must be heard: it has gorgeous playing and dramatic committment that are really only rivalled by Barbirolli's later Halle recording on EMI. And Chesky's recorded sound is probably the best this symphony has ever received on records.

While living in Boston 1970-81, I heard Colin Davis guest conduct the BSO in the Sibelius #2 and #7 - I have to confess that I actually fell asleep during the performance. The only other time that has ever happened in my concert-going was during an Ozawa/BSO Bruckner 3rd - what I heard of it was the single worst live Bruckner performance in my experience.

But I digress. Bernstein's performances of the other Sibelius works recorded here are somewhat better than in the Symphony, but, perhaps needless to say, "Pohjola's Daughter" has been more effectively presented by Koussevitzky and Barbirolli, to name just a couple alternatives.

On its own terms, however, this is Bernstein at his best. But with a little effort, discriminating listeners will likely find a whole different level of meaning in the other performances cited above.

It never helps to be too great a celebrity. Leonard Bernstein was so famous that it's tempting to credit his reputation as much to hype as talent. But this CD, which features a superlative Sibelius Seoncd, demonstrates how genuine his gifts were. When this recording came out in 1966, LB was still an untarnished culture hero. The energy, incisiveness, tremendous orchestral playing, and excellent sonics encoutnered here remind us why. Compared to this super-charged performance, Colin Davis is sleepwalking and Barbirolli is maundering. A reviewer below calls this "middle of the pack." He must be traveling in a pack of angels, because such drama and conviction have rarely been heard in Sibelius recordings. Five stars without a doubt.

Sibelius' 2nd Symphony has a lot of history in my family. It was my grandfather's favorite symphony, and still is my dad's favorite. I have grown up hearing it, and hearing the raves about it, so when I started purchasing classical CDs of my own, it was one of the first I got. I started with the Davis/London disc on RCA/BMG. As my dad's Sibelius 2 of choice was the Davis/Boston on Philips, I knew it would be good, but also it would be different than what I heard in my youth. Since that time I have added four other versions of the Sibelius 2nd to my collection -- my own copy of the Davis/Boston, Ormandy's on Sony Essential Classics, Paray's coupled with the Dvorak 9th on Mercury Living Presence, and last this Bernstein Century title. Well, in many ways I saved the best for last. While I love all these versions, Bernstein and the NYPO seem tailor-made for the symphony's sweeping 4th movement finale. This CD is the perfect example of Bernstein's immense talent for bringing out the best in a performance. The inclusion of "Luonnotar" and "Pohjola's Daughter" are just added bonuses. There are many great recordings of the Sibelius 2nd, but Bernstein's is as good if not better than them all.

This CD has great music on it and it is good for anyone who likes emotional soaring classical pieces. Good CD to work/study to.