'The complex first movement unfolds like a musical pageant and the LSO's playing is first rate' (The Sunday Telegraph)

'I've never heard the opening Pan Awakes music more marvellously vivid ... you won't hear more brilliant playing than the LSO's' (The Sunday Times)

'Gergiev’s Mahler Fourth begins so slowly, you wonder how he can reach the end of the symphony. But gradually, the method behind this apparent madness reveals itself: Gergiev doesn’t play the rustic charms of the opening movement like a memory of Mozart, rather he encompasses a wider pastoral perspective filled with menacing undercurrent … Gergiev’s serene conclusion is beautifully heard’’ (Classic FM Magazine)

'Gergiev’s febrile intensity lends itself well to the neurotic quality of Mahler’s music ... the orchestra is superb' (The Daily Telegraph)

'This is a magnificent performance in every respect. The orchestral playing is consistently of the highest quality, individually and collectively, the musicians clearly inspired by the insight and total conviction of their conductor. No one can afford to ignore this record' (International Record Review)

'It is difficult to resist Valery Gergiev in full flow. He summons such reserves of power and commitment from the LSO that one cannot help but be swept along' (Gramophone)

'This is a reading of great intensity, creating a most powerful impact ... a stunning performance of considerable musical belief in the demonstrable fact that Mahler's Sixth is a great and original masterpiece' (International Record Review)

'It shows how Mahler's neurosis and Gergiev's volatility are ideally matched: this is no plain-sailing excercise in orchestral virtuosity, but a deeply wrought journey of the soul ... The performance as a whole achieves an impressive balance between structure and detail' (The Daily Telegraph)

'The massed horns sound magnificent in the finale's battle-cries, and all of the principals tackle their parts with aplomb. It's good to hear this symphony played with the sort of gruff, raw vigor that suits its heroic cast so well' (Classics Today)

'Mahler's Sixth Symphony is lots of things—a commentary on Beethoven's Eroica Symphony No 3, the compositional gear change that led the way towards his final sequence of rulebook-slashing symphonies; but also it's one of Mahler's most obviously 'symphonic' utterances, dealing with ideas of heroic endeavours that may, or may not, hit the rocks. Another month, another Mahler Six. In last month's magazine I reviewed Antonio Pappano's new recording on EMI Classics, and on the surface, both versions have much in common. Salonen and Pappano opt to place the Scherzo before the Andante; both recordings benefit from top-notch orchestras fully versed in the idiom. But Salonen's account is more straight-laced and direct. Pappano nudges the second movement forward slightly to jolt the continuity; Salonen noticeably plays both movements at the same tempo. Pappano is loose and throws the shapes; Salonen calculates every detail prudently. For repeated listening, Pappano clearly has an edge. But when I say Salonen calculates every detail that's not the same as being 'calculating', and his performance is purposeful and revealing' (Classic FM Magazine)

'The brass are heroic and dauntingly present throughout—from the tuba that executes a fiendish trill in the finale to the clarion trumpets fanfaring the doom-marches. Salonen has had to work over the years on late-Romantic phrases; he has always been more of a note-by-note texturer … the real payoff of live performance comes, as ever, in the final drive towards a victory that implodes. Here, the clarity of Salonen's Philharmonia strings in apocalyptic welters only enhances the excitement of the ride to the abyss. And the fact that the Philharmonia is combating dry, unenhanced Festival Hall acoustics makes the imposingly warm sound Salonen often creates seem all the more impressive' (BBC Music Magazine)» More

'Right from the start, with those dark, dragging rhythms, there’s a sense that something special is afoot here … Gergiev charts the whole labyrinthine course with thrilling assurance ... and the virtuosity and sensitivity of the London Symphony Orchestra—in solo or ensemble writing, or in rich tuttis—is a continual exhilarating delight. Hand on heart, I can’t think of another recording of this symphony that not only brings so many of its extraordinary features to life, but ultimately balances them so satisfyingly. Thoroughly recommended' (BBC Music Magazine)