Four years ago, when this live recording was made in London’s Royal Festival Hall, I was a bit sniffy about Jurowski’s Brahms – a judgment that must be revised in the light of the spruce, transparent and warm performances this CD captures.
The orchestral sound, the opposite of stodgy, has a central European depth that seems echt-Brahmsian. The London Philharmonic’s strings combine passion and poise, the woodwinds are exquisite, and Jurowski accepts the music as a lyrical outpouring. In short, unlike John Eliot Gardiner’s wham-bam approach, the LPO’s principal conductor marries the best of tradition with the best of modern practice.
Brahms
Symphonies Three and Four
Vladimir Jurowski
(London Philharmonic Orchestra)
Get alerts on Arts when a new story is published
