Great Expectations

The latest recording in the Beethoven cycle by Osmo Vänskä and the Minnesota Orchestra—the Ninth Symphony—is released this month. Given the superlative concert reviews the orchestra received for this masterwork and the accolades poured on its first two CDs, expectations are high for the third installment of the project. “I don’t want to think about that,” Vänskä says. “Just as we want to play every concert like it’s the most important, every recording must be treated like the most important recording. In an ideal world, we are getting better results every time.”

Recordings of Beethoven’s Ninth are ubiquitous, from famous historical interpretations by the bigwigs to versions by no-name orchestras to period-instrument recordings made in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century venues. Why another Ninth?

According to Minnesota Public Radio’s classical music director Brian Newhouse, “Osmo has said that recording Beethoven these days, with so many other orchestras having done it, is a matter of glory or suicide. The orchestra has gotten such enormous press for its [previous] Beethoven CDs. I think one effect is that they keep raising the bar for themselves.”

Anyone who’s been listening to the orchestra since Vänskä took the helm knows his attention to detail is what makes the orchestra’s performances and recordings so memorable. The biggest payback for Vänskä is when the audience notices those nuances. “When I read scores, I have musical ideas about them that I follow when we’re playing,” he says. “Of course, I’m very happy when there are at least a few people who like those ideas. And in this case, they have been received so well, and that’s a great feeling for a conductor.” Available early November. 612-371-5656