Haydn: Symphonies 88-92 / Sinfonia Concertante

"Some nods to 'authenticity' but this is big-band Haydn and Rattle relishes it. Anyone sceptical of the pairing of the words "Berlin Philharmonic" and "Haydn" is in for a delightful surprise. While not trying to ape the lighter sound of period instruments, this heavyweight orchestra under Rattle's inspired baton is suddenly spry, light on its feet, alert to the smallest changes of accent and nuance. A joyous set."
Editor's Choice Gramophone Magazine October 2007

"For me, Haydn is the greatest underrated composer of them all, and for any musician who loves to play, he's almost the most satisfying because he gives you absolutely everything."
Sir Simon Rattle

Simon Rattle makes a strong case for Haydn, the composer he would most like to have dinner with:
"He wrote about 115 symphonies and at least 80 of them are masterpieces. The second movement of No.88 contains one of his most profoundly moving melodies, with the feeling that some strange, enormous explosion is going on in the distance. The first movement has a very simple theme that could just be played by two horns. It starts very innocently, and then he builds the most extraordinary complications around it - suddenly, you're in the middle of rage. Haydn always wants to surprise his audience. He always expects his audience to be incredibly sophisticated, and the more you know about his music the more pleasure and fun and depth it has."

Reviews from live performances of this work:
"Joseph Haydn and Simon Rattle - music-making as a gleaming bulwark against the vulgarities of life, with ramparts of wit, drawbridges of charm and ambushes of pure rhetoric. (…) A concert of Haydn once again displayed the greatness, the mastery and the sheer spirit of adventure captured in this union."
Der Tagesspiegel, 10 February 2007

"Rattle (...) exudes the most dashing élan you could imagine. He tingles with meticulous devotion to his task. And he understands how to make Haydn's music smile. The musical surprises in which Haydn took such delight cannot come as a surprise to Rattle, of course - and yet he gives that impression, with evident pleasure to boot. One can sense that he absolutely loves this music. Haydn is dear to his heart - and to his intellect too."
Berliner Morgenpost, 10 February 2007

"The scaled-down Berlin Philharmonic played with relish and, with Sir Simon Rattle at the helm, led the listener into realms of experience which are, as a rule, rarely heard in Haydn. New and vivid pictures in sound were revealed to the audience, achieved not least by the outstanding 'philharmonic' orchestral soloists, who distinguished themselves in their technical perfection and the supreme musicality of their performances."
Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, Klassik am Morgen, 19 February 2007