The Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, conducted by Paavo Järvi, released a four-disc set on Alpha Classics with recordings of all Mendelssohn's symphonies as well as the Sommernachtstraum (A Midsummer Night's Dream). The first recordings were made in the spring of 2021 during the pandemic, in the interim venue Tonhalle Maag. The last recordings were made in January 2023 in the magnificently renovated historic Tonhalle Zürich.
"I don't think Mendelssohn gets the attention he deserves," said Paavo Järvi at the start of the 2020–2021 season. Faced with this observation, he undertook to record a complete cycle of Mendelssohn's orchestral works with the Zürich Tonhalle Orchestra for his second season as Music Director.
It was no easy task for the recording team led by producer Philip Traugott: the acoustics of the two halls are different, and the live character of the recordings was not the same either. Four symphonies and A Midsummer Night's Dream were recorded under strict distancing rules. The recording of the symphonic cantata Lobgesang (officially counted as Symphony No. 2), on the other hand, had to be postponed until it was once again possible to include a choir. In a review of this performance – in which the Zürcher Sing-Akademie, tenor Patrick Grahl, and sopranos Chen Reiss and Marie Henriette Reinhold took part - the NZZ wrote of „overwhelming splendor“.
The recordings of this Zurich Mendelssohn cycle have never been released individually; the 4-CD box set now presents the project as a whole. „Recording his works is like a dream come true for me“, says Paavo Järvi. „A midsummer night's dream come true, so to speak.“
Recordings are available in stores, for example from Hochuli or Musik Hug, and via streaming on Spotify.
This recording was supported by the Hans Imholz Foundation.
More info: Tonhalle Orchestra