The main difference from any other performances I have is the quite incredible degree to which tempos are pulled around in order to make a particular effect. All told this is a big and bewildering disappointment.

If you listen to the set chronologically you will be rewarded with marvellous accounts of the first two symphonies. These performances show Pletnev's Beethoven at its commanding, enlivening best. The playing of the Russian National Orchestra… has a relish and impulse, with secure bass-lines and transparent textures. The best performances among the later symphonies are those of the Fourth and the Seventh symphonies. The Eighth, by contrast, is stodgily conducted. The Ninth, once under way, is a fairly swift affair, in the instrumental movements at least. The finale is well done, a performance if discipline and relish, carefully assembled.