Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 (SACD)

Multiple prize-winning conductor René Jacobs and the B Rock Orchestra continue their Schubert cycle on PENTATONE with a recording of the composer's Second and Third Symphony. Jacobs approaches these pieces as a symphonic pair revealing contrasting aspects of Schubert's personality and compositional approach; the former being serious, ambitious, aiming to outdo Beethoven, while the latter is deliberately un-heroic: light, lyrical, and full of Italianizing elements. Interestingly, Jacobs discerns a comparable tandem approach in Schubert's Fourth and Fifth Symphonies, which will form the next episode of this recording project. The players of the B Rock Orchestra present these works on period instruments, transparent, but full of fire.