Following an acclaimed debut recording of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake with the Philharmonia in 2020, Santtu-Matias Rouvali returns with a recording of Sergei Prokofiev’s iconic Symphony No. 5.
Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 was first performed in 1944, 14 years after his previous symphony. Prokofiev described his Fifth Symphony as a “hymn to free and happy Man, to his mighty powers, his pure and noble spirit,” explaining that, “I cannot say that I deliberately chose this theme. It was born in me and clamoured for expression. The music matured within me. It filled my soul.”
★★★★★ “It is a magnificent achievement on everyone’s part; the conductor, the players and, not least the outstandingly brilliant sound achieved in what is generally a dry acoustic…[Santtu] judges the finale perfectly too allowing the slow introduction to lead to an exhilarating conclusion” – Musical Opinion
★★★★ Performance ★★★★ Recording “The mildly resonant acoustic allows details of orchestral colour to emerge that I do not recall in other recorded accounts Santtu-Matias Rouvali also draws fascinating parallels between the fifth and the eerie third symphony created by Prokofiev” – BBC Music Magazine
★★★★ “The live recording here plays to the performance’s strengths; a recording that promises new ideas from the Philharmonia’s new conductor” – AllMusic