Symphony 5
'In this towering performance by the LSO under the composer's friend and colleague Mstislav Rostropovich ... Shostakovich comes across as a thoroughgoing modernist, agonised about the issues of the day, but pouring his angst into a huge, multifaceted work which flows with the heat of volcanic lava. One of the last remaining links with this titanic composer, the great cellist-conductor can lay rightful claim to being his outstanding living interpreter.' --The Observer, 9 January 2005'Rostropovich breathes this music as if it were oxygen ... he brings it chillingly to life' --BBC 3 CD Radio Review'Rostropovich captures the stark ambivalence of the music - its gut-wrenching menace on the one hand, and stark attractiveness on the other. The playing is top-notch, and quite terrifying at all the right moments.' ***** --The Scotsman, 28 January 2005'This is the sort of thing at which Rostropovich excels; the frozen wastes, the seas of desolation that cover this carefully proportioned symphony have never been more atmospherically charted.' --BBC Music Magazine, March 2005'his strength is in his ability to inspire players. There's nothing routine about this performance: Rostropovich generates a fierce intensity ... The LSO's response is consitantly impressive.' --Classic FM Magazine, March 2005