Schmidt Symphony No. 2

Strauss Dreaming by the Fireside

Vienna Philharmonic/Semyon Bychkov
Sony Classical 88985355522

Reviewed July 2017

Semyon Bychkov pleads masterpiece status for a rarity. Schmidt’s late Romantic style needs the sheen of the Vienna Philharmonic, here captured in outstandingly natural and spacious sound – this is a winner on the engineering front, too. The jury was unanimous in welcoming this splendid risk from a major label.

Audio clip: Lebhaft from Schmidt's Symphony No. 2