In 2004, Mariss Jansons succeeded Riccardo Chailly at the helm of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and remained chief conductor until 2015. His musical centre of gravity was the great symphonic works of the Austro German tradition, with music from Russia another speciality. And there are many wonderful examples here: First Symphonies by Brahms, Schumann and Sibelius, Beethoven’s Fifth, Bruckner’s Third, Mahler’s Seventh, Tchaikovsky’s Sixth, Rachmaninoff’s Second, Prokofiev’s Fifth and Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique are all in excellent hands. He also proves a superb advocate of Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra and Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms. Jansons wasn’t necessarily a card-carrying champion of newer music, but he gives beautifully judged performances of early 20th-century works, such as Varèse’s Amériques, Lutosławski’s Concerto for Orchestra and Gubaidulina’s Feast During a Plague. A noted orchestra trainer, Jansons draws glorious playing from this great Dutch orchestra from the near-perfect acoustic of the Concertgebouw. A fascinating and rewarding celebration of one of the truly great conductors of our time.