Mozart Symphonies - SCO & Sir Charles Mackerras - The Ticket (Ireland)

Charles Mackerras's way with music of the 18th century is to emulate the sounds and practices of period instruments players with bands playing modern instruments. The results at their best can be highly invigorating, like a brisk winter walk on a breezy, sunny day. There are times in Mozart's four last symphonies where the music- making can sound a little forced, notably in the G minor Symphony. However, Mackerras is at his very best in the Symphony in E flat, the most rarely heard and elusive of these late works. Here, the driven energy of the opening movement (even including the Adagio with which it opens) is simply irresistible.