Alto returns Sir Colin Davis and the London Symphony Orchestra’s critically acclaimed recordings of Jean Sibelius’ Symphonies Nos 2 & 5 to international availability. Hailed as Gramophone Magazine and Classic FM discs of the month upon initial release, Sir Colin Davis is a strong advocate for the music of Jean Sibelius. Davis was once quoted as saying, “conducting Sibelius is like looking at oneself in the mirror. I look in the mirror and see the pitilessness of life, yet I find the strength to go on. Sibelius was happy when he was in company, depressed when he was alone. I am the same’.

Each of Sibelius’s seven numbered symphonies possesses a quite different character, a fact that has led his followers to assert that he is the finest symphonist since Beethoven. These two renditions have been brought back to life in these newly remastered editions from Paul Arden-Taylor.

“Davis reminds us now just how great he is in Sibelius with a marvellous new recording of the Second … the strength of this performance, where a patient (and more involving) build-up leads to a shattering finale. Davis loves Sibelius, and the orchestra clearly love playing it for him. Listening to a Sibelius performance of this calibre, there’s no other composer one would rather hear.” —Gramophone, Album of the Month (Symphony No. 2)