Luonnotar

"Edward Gardner's latest Chandos release with the Bergen Philharmonic is devoted to Sibelius ... Gardner's Tapiola is less bleak and brooding than some readings, but still fabulously atmospheric, and he's equally convincing in evoking the mysterious atmosphere of Luonnotar, in which the soloist is the current flavour-of-the-month among dramatic sopranos, Lise Davidsen; she certainly has all the necessary vocal heft for this creation-myth scena, without ever quite conveying the sense of wonder that runs through it".

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"Recording of the week: Davidsen has it all, and it's wonderful to hear her in Nordic repertoire at last ... The strings' incredible palette of colours continues to be a thing to marvel at throughout the rest of the programme ... All in all, this is a glorious recording which speaks of a real synergy between conductor, orchestra and repertoire, with Davidsen's contribution the icing on the cake".

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"This is an attractive compilation of some disparate Sibelius works ... Lise Davidsen has a darker, richer voice than the silvery soprano usually associated with this music ... but she has no trouble with the high-flying passages ... There are undoubtedly aspects of this release which are attractive, both in terms of novelty and performance, but for the very best recordings of the three major works, the collector will need to look elsewhere - mainly towards Karajan".

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"Lise Davidsen's name pings out of the album cover but make no mistake, it's real star is the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra's string section. Edward Gardner's performance of the three-movement string-orchestra version of Sibelius's Rakastava manages to combine something of the dark soil referred to by the composer with the sense of music well sprung and theatrically lit ... Perhaps there is some settling - some living - still to do before the team can deliver a Tapiola breathing, like the best of them, with the organic and the mysterious".

"År 1905 fascinerades Sibelius av Maeterlincks teaterpjäs Pelléas och Mélisande ... Den symboliska pjäsen är laddad med sexuella undertoner och inspirerade Sibelius till några av hans vackraste melodier. Bergenfilharmonikerna inleder här med ett driv som lockar till maximal koncentration när maestro Gardner mejslar fram en ovanligt dramatisk Luonnotar. Davidsens sopran övertygar genast och matchar den breda orkestreringen".