Vladimir Ashkenazy certainly knows his Sibelius, and delivers elegant, idiomatic performances. The Fourth Symphony comes off particularly well, aided by playing of great sensitivity from the Stockholm strings and winds. The Largo is aptly desolate, but Ashkenazy doesn’t go for total stasis (powerful as that can be, it’s neither necessary nor always desirable), while the finale rises to a remarkably clear but still powerful climax. Unfortunately the Fifth Symphony isn’t quite as fine. The big moments–the transition between the first movement’s first and second half, its coda, and much of the finale–lack the requisite heroic grandeur. It’s easy to understand why: timpani are too soft-edged, and the horns don’t ring out as they must. I’m inclined to blame this on the orchestra (and conductor for not correcting the problem), as Exton’s SACD 5-channel sonics are terrific in all formats. Finlandia, while quite well played, also doesn’t convey quite enough menace in its opening section. In short, this is good, sometimes very good, but ultimately not great Sibelius.
