Rotterdam 2008

Lahav Shani, Chief Conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra for the past five years, conducts the Dutch ensemble in Bruckner’s epic Symphony No 7. He admires the Austrian composer for his proverbially grand musical architecture, but also for his vision and the atmosphere he creates as he builds to mighty climaxes over extended periods “ … from a hint of light to the whole world”. Shani’s sense for symphonic structure and drama, and the Rotterdam Philharmonic’s response to it, was evident in their Warner Classics recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No 5 (released in 2022). Gramophone magazine’s reviewer praised “… an account where the feeling is refreshingly one of rediscovery …. Shani has a wonderful nose for atmosphere … [He] reminds me just how achingly beautiful the slow movement of this piece is … and I don’t think I have ever heard the transition into the hushed final pages sound quite as breathtaking … A terrific disc.”

Lahav Shani and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra bring a superb recording of Bruckner's 5th Symphony.

Lahav Shani and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra bring a superb recording of Bruckner's 5th Symphony.

For his first album with Warner Classics, Lahav Shani conducts the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in Symphony No. 7 and plays Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4: two pieces which come from Beethoven’s so-called “middle period”. The classical harmonic tension contributes to the drive of the music as much as the rhythmic propulsion. This music features a clarity of texture and, above all, a unity between the melodic motive and the accompaniment. Acclaimed for his “instant chemistry” with the orchestra, Lahav Shani is considered the shooting star amongst conductors – as Der Tagesspiegel puts it: “The young maestro is simply sensational”.

Lahav Shani and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra bring a superb recording of Bruckner's 5th Symphony.

This collection of previously unreleased live recordings celebrates the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra’s centenary and the ten-year residency, from 2008 to 2018, of its principal conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin.