An overture, concerto and symphony make for either a selective or ideal concert hall sequence; such are the advantages of modern recordings. This exemplary disc also offers us an opportunity to sample Grieg’s virtues and limitations under the best possible conditions, for performances and recording are both outstanding.

Central to all three works is Grieg’s love of his homeland, of western Norway as exemplified in his frequent use of folksong and dance elements. He may have written: ‘I didn’t want to be merely Norwegian, much less super-Norwegian. I just wanted to be…myself.’ But at the same time he could also write of how the composer Ole Bull ‘opened my eyes to the beauty and originality in Norwegian music. Through him I became acquainted with many forgotten folksongs and above all with my own nature. Had it not been for Ole Bull’s fortunate influence I would have written colourless music à la Gade.’

That last swipe at the Dane Niels Gade understandable after the latter’s alternate dismissal and praise for In Autumn and a generally patronising attitude. Although Grieg is still frequently referred to as essentially a miniaturist uncomfortable in the larger forms, the melodic beauty, warmth and sincerity of his writing often makes such considerations more academic than pertinent. Grieg may not have been a ‘musical Christ’ (Tchaikovsky’s description of Mozart) but all three works here contain melodies of a related familiar cut and glow. Grieg may have written ‘not to be performed’ on the score of his Symphony but fortunately it was not destroyed and was later performed in 1980 in Moscow and a year later at the Bergen Festival, where it received its first recording.

All the performances on this CD are given with such zest and affection that all possible criticism is swept aside. Norika Ogawa is a distinguished soloist in the Concerto; her musicianship and dexterity are immaculate, her interpretation quite without the mannerisms or idiosyncrasies that so often disfigure the readings of other more obviously celebrated names. She flashes through the presto passage announcing the cadenza like a meteor and both she and Ole Kristian Ruud and the Bergen Philharmonic are hauntingly sensitive in the central Adagio. An added note concerning the DSD (Direct Stream Digital) technology used rightly claims that it leads ‘to an enhancement in clarity and transparency of sound’.