Credits:

Ludwig van Beethoven

Description:

Nelsons and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra present their second Strauss series, “Alpine Symphony” and “Dance of Salome. The new album features Strauss’ “Alpine Symphony” and “Dance of Salome” from his most recent live performance in 2010, following “Life of a Hero” and “Knight of Roses” Suite (ORFEO803091).Speaking of the “Alpine Symphony,” Strauss’s last major orchestral work and a work of brilliant and exquisite orchestration, Nelsons’s mentor, Jansons, had already given a masterful performance of the work. Nelsons, too, has a way of putting his heart into the work, drawing out rich expressions from the Birmingham musicians, who have grown closer with each successive release, and playing slowly and on a grand scale. In the coupling “Dance of Salome,” Nelsons, as if demonstrating his already extensive career as an opera conductor, depicts madness, shivers, and sensual beauty