Reviews of various releases that comprise this set:
Mozart: Symphonies Nos 6-10:
The second volume contains works all securely attributed to the young Wolfgang. The performances and recordings are excellent. You may even prefer the other symphonies in this series, especially those numbered in the teens and twenties, to their rivals.
Mozart: Symphonies Nos 15-18:
The performances of the Northern Chamber Orchestra under Nicholas Ward are consistently stylish and engaged.
Mozart: Symphonies Nos 21-24, 26:
This is good Mozart - lithe, detailed, delicately poised, sparkling, nicely sprung and full of life. Lively performances from the NCO.
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 25, 32 and 41 8.550113
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 36, 33 and 27 8.550264
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 40, 28 and 31 8.550164
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 29, 30 and 38 8.550119
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 34, 35 and 39 8.550186
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 40 and 41 8.550299
The Capella Istropolitana consists of leading members of the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra of Bratislava. Their string-tone is very much in scale with the clarity of a period performance but tonally far sweeter. Wordsworth observes exposition repeats in first movements, but in the finales only in such symphonies as Nos. 38 and 41, where the movement particularly needs extra scale. In slow movements, as is usual, he omits repeats. He often adopts speeds that are marginally slower than we expect nowadays in chamber-scale performances; but, with exceptionally clean articulation and infectiously sprung rhythms, the results never drag, even if No. 29 is made to sound more sober than usual. In every way these are worthy rivals to the best full-priced versions, and they can be recommended with few if any reservations.
