Segerstam set down the first of the two suites from The Tempest with the Danish National Radio Orchestra (as a fill-up to the Fourth Symphony) in a reading I described as the best modern recording of the piece. This disc brings both suites in generally straightforward readings, free from expressive exaggeration and with impressive playing from the Helsinki Philharmonic. Sir Thomas Beecham’s classic 1955 account is not eclipsed but this does have the advantage of state-of-the-art recording. Less successful is The Oceanides, which begins very slowly but then proceeds at a rather breathless pace – even so, Segerstam is about a minute longer than Sir Thomas (HMV, 7/62 – nla) and most other conductors. Nevertheless it has strong atmosphere. So, too, has Nightride and Sunrise, not an easy score to bring off. Jochum managed the transition from the trochaic pattern of the ride to the glowing and majestic sunrise with conspicuous artistry in his 1955 DG recording recently reissued in harness with Bruckner’s Symphony No. 4. So, for that matter, does Segerstam. Although I would not necessarily prefer this newcomer to the Rattle, it is finely paced and convincing.'