Beethoven: Symphony No 9 'Choral'

'The conclusion to Bernard Haitink's Beethoven cycle with the London Symphony Orchestra was its crowning glory: a performance of the Ninth Symphony of shattering, visionary power.
Haitink's mastery of Beethoven's structures has never been in doubt, but what is surprising is how much he seems to have learned from the early music movement in moulding his new approach to these pieces. Haitink made you aware as never before of the discontinuities in this movement, veering from Turkish marches to full-scale fugues, moments when Beethoven brings the music to the brink of comprehensibility. Yet Haitink pulled everything together in a coda of unbounded joy … This is a Beethoven cycle for our times, an ideal balance of Haitink's new found sense of discovery in these pieces and the LSO's authority'
The Guardian (UK), 3 May 2006

'Symphony No 9 that followed was simply tremendous. Haitink has managed to reinvigorate his Beethoven without losing any of his old authority or depth. The opening movement rose to lympian climaxes of awesome power. The slow movement plumbed depths of emotion while keeping the melody flowing easily along. The baritone Gerald Finley set the finale off with ringing confidence … The LSO itself played for Haitink at the peak of its powers. To have such warmth of sound combined with clarity at every layer up and down the orchestra was a remarkable achievement'
Financial Times (UK), 3 May 2006