Top 10 tone-poems

A form pioneered by Liszt that was taken to new heights by Sibelius, Tchaikovsky and Richard Strauss

No 1

Liszt Les Préludes

BBC Philharmonic Orchestra / Gianandrea Noseda

'Volume 1 of Liszt’s complete symphonic poems augurs...' Review

 

No 2

R Strauss Also sprach Zarathustra

Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra / Herbert von Karajan

'The playing of the Berlin...' Review

No 3

Bax Tintagel

London Philharmonic Orchestra / Osmo Vänskä

'I hold extremely happy memories of attending this December 2007...' Review

 

No 4

Sibelius Finlandia

Philharmonia Orchestra / Vladimir Ashkenazy

'If sonic splendour were the sole criterion, Vladimir...' Review

 

No 5

Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet

Santa Cecilia Orchestra / Sir Antonio Pappano

'With chorus added in the 1812 as well as the Waltz fromEugene...' Review

 

No 6

Borodin In Central Asia

Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra / Neeme Järvi

'Borodin's In Central Asia is one of the most memorably poetic...' Review

 

No 7

Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune

Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle

'These new accounts have...' Review

 

No 8

Nielsen Pan and Syrinx

Danish National Symphony Orchestra / Thomas Dausgaard 

'This is outstanding, and unmissable for Nielsen collectors – and not...' Review

 

No 9

Honegger Pacific 231

Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra / Mariss Jansons

'The Honegger symphonies have been well served on CD in recent...' Review

 

No 10

Wagner Siegfried Idyll

Staatskapelle Dresden / Donald Runnicles

'Not so long ago I was reviewing an impressive studio recording...' Review