Dvořák: Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, Op. 70, B. 141 & Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88, B. 163

Album review

The performances on this release by the Naxos label's German branch were made in 2021 and 2022 by Southwest German Radio (SWR) at its Saarbrücken studios but were not released until 2024. Whoever kept it from getting lost in the shuffle deserves some credit, for they are quite distinctive Dvořák performances from a conductor, Pietari Inkinen, who may be on the edge of the big time. Inkinen shapes these two familiar works inventively to a point where even those who own many versions will find the performances absorbing. He delivers on the attention to the long line that his publicity promises, and if his Dvořák has a slight tendency to sound like Sibelius, that is not a bad thing. Moreover, he is artful in catching the significance of short motifs as they appear in the orchestra and using them to propel the action forward. Hear the unusual complexity he brings to the opening measures of the Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70. That performance may be a bit stronger than the one of the Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88, where, at times, one wants a bit more of a straightforward tune (the two symphonies were recorded at different times), but both readings are fresh in very well-trodden material. The Deutsche Radio Philharmonie (in full, the cumbersome Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern) responds well to Inkinen's leadership here, but the performance also inspires a wish to hear him lead the Berlin Philharmonic or Czech Philharmonic in this music. Hearing this, one thinks he might just get that chance.

© James Manheim /TiVo