Tchaikovsky: Orchestral Works, Symphonies 1-6

Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra; Neeme Järvi, conductor

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.1 in G minor, 'Winter Daydreams', Op.13; Symphony No.2 in C minor, 'Little Russian', Op.17; Symphony No.3 in D major, 'Polish', Op.29; Symphony No.4 in F minor, Op.36; Symphony No.5 in E minor, Op.64; Symphony No.6 in B minor, 'Pathétique', Op.74; The Snow Maiden, Op.12, orchestral excerpts; Romeo and Juliet, fantasy overture; Overture in F major; Festive Overture on the Danish National Anthem in D major, Op.15; The Storm (Groza), Overture, Op.76; Entr'acte and Dances of the Chambermaids from the opera The Voyevoda, Op.3; Dmitri the Pretender and Vassily Shuisky, incidental music; Serenade for Nikolai Rubinstein's Name Day; Entr'acte & Waltz and Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, Op.24; Serenade for Strings in C major, Op.48; Elegy in Memory of I.V. Samarin; The Voyevoda, symphonic ballad, Op.78; Capriccio italien, Op.45; Francesca da Rimini, fantasy for orchestra, Op.32

Released as a boxed set of six discs - for the price of two - the cycle of Tchaikovsky's symphonies with Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra conducted by Neeme Järvi, may be described as resolutely unsentimental, with interpretations aiming to rid these popular scores of the melodramatic excesses that have become part of a century-long performance tradition. At the releases of the individual discs, this quality was remarked upon by reviewers, who described Symphony No.1 as 'superb ... liberated from all the slag of sugary romanticism' (ClassicsTodayFrance.com) and regarding No.4 wrote 'With immense skill and without any concessions to the pathetic, Neeme Järvi grants the work its full magnitude' (Le Monde de la Musique). Other acclaimed instalments were Symphony No.2 'Little Russian', hailed in Gramophone as 'an outstanding performance ... beautifully played and paced and immaculately recorded' and No.3 'Polish' of which, to quote International Record Review, Järvi presented 'a free-flowing account that places choreographic elegance before symphonic muscle.' Besides the six numbered symphonies, this ample selection (more than 7 hours of playing time) includes favourites such as Francesca da Rimini, Capriccio italien and Serenade for Strings as well as rarities, including rarely recorded extracts from the opera The Voyevoda and the incidental music to Dmitri the Pretender and Vassily Shuisky. The recordings remain available on the original discs, as Hybrid SACDs with a Surround Sound option.

Price: $57.98

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