For all its popularity, Sibelius’ Second Symphony probably has more bad performances to its credit than any other work in the series. Now don’t worry, this isn’t one of them, but it’s also not Davis’ best effort: that remains his first, Boston recording for Philips. The LSO plays very well for him, certainly. The woodwinds in the first movement have plenty of character, and Davis builds the climax of the development section very effectively. I do wish the second movement began at a more flowing basic speed. Davis is no Bernstein here (thank God); there’s no insane stretching of tempo as in the latter’s Vienna recording on DG, but the music still needs an extra shot of voltage at the start, a strategy that also would help hold the movement’s sectional form together.
The scherzo similarly could do with more abandon, but Davis’ take on the finale works quite well. He’s slowish, but never too much so. The repetitious second subject has plenty of color and detail to keep the ear engaged, and there’s a really impressive buildup at the end.
Pohjola’s Daughter, though, is quite disappointing when compared to Davis’ earlier effort(s). The problems mostly stem from his stepping on the brakes way too early at the approach of the two big brass chorales. The first time around the effect may be imposing to some listeners (I find it simply tired sounding), but in the recapitulation the music seems to grind almost to a halt, and the ensuing climax, where the musical fabric should tear itself to pieces, lacks any feeling of menace or culmination.
In the final analysis, most of the interpretive challenges in Sibelius concern pacing and the handling of transitions, and the risk in live performance (particularly with Davis, it seems) is that his spontaneity can operate either for good or for ill. Here, unfortunately, it’s the latter. The SACD sonics are typical: clear and somewhat dry, but well-suited to the music. To summarize: the performance of the symphony is certainly better than the Davis/LSO remake for RCA, but it’s still not quite their best, and the tone poem is simply a dud.
