Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra & Edward Gardner - Brahms: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73 & Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98 (2026)
This is a competent, well-shaped document rather than an album that asserts necessity. The pairing of the Second and Fourth symphonies makes sense on paper, but the performances don’t generate a strong album-scale tension between them. They coexist politely instead of reframing each other.
Gardner’s approach favors balance, clarity, and control. Inner voices are clean, phrasing is sensible, and nothing is mishandled. But the listening experience remains observational. Movements unfold correctly without accruing pressure, and climaxes arrive as expected rather than feeling earned through risk or compression.
The Second never quite opens into radiance, and the Fourth never fully tightens the screw. The orchestra sounds disciplined and reliable, but the interpretive stance is cautious. Time passes smoothly, yet without consequence; you follow the structure, but you’re rarely pulled into it.
As an archival or reference recording, this works. As an album-world, it stays mid-range: coherent, respectable, and intact, but ultimately safe—more an illustration of Brahms than a space you inhabit and return to.
Genre: Romanticism
Country: Norway
Final Verdict: 67% (Good Album)
Yearly Ranking: 2nd / 3
Highlight: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73: I. Allegro non troppo
Made me think of:
Claudio Abbado & Berlin Philharmonic
Bernard Haitink & Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Herbert von Karajan & Berlin Philharmonic
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