It is difficult to think of Mendelssohn without being reminded of the extraordinary evocative power of his music, capable of conjuring up bright Italian sunshine, grey Scottish landscapes, and the magical world of fairies. He was a child prodigy and an outstanding composer, but he tends nevertheless to be neglected, compared to other members of his generation in the nineteenth century – to the detriment of his art, which is fascinating in so many ways.
With Les Ambassadeurs ~ La Grande Écurie, Alexis Kossenko embarks on a series of concerts and recordings devoted to Mendelssohn's complete orchestral works, played on period instruments, with the forces that would have been used in his day, and also focusing on versions that we rarely have an opportunity to hear. For indeed, Mendelssohn was a great perfectionist, constantly dissatisfied with his own work, which he therefore revised to the extent that there are now often several versions of the same score. The first volume in this series is devoted to his Symphony no. 4, "Italian" (1834 version), and Symphony no. 5, "Reformation" – in fact his second in order of composition (written at age of twenty) and his first great symphony.