Imagine, if you can, a music with the visceral impact of a Xenakis, the celebratory energy of a Tippett and the subtlety of a Dutilleux, a music of volcanic pulsation and of undreamt-of sound-colours, hurled around orchestral space with sure-footed abandon; a music which, at its best, seems to hail from a triumphant future. Such are first impressions of these orchestral works by Poul Ruders. Over the last ten years or so Ruders has vaulted to prominence over the backs of such estimable senior colleagues as his fellow-Dane Per Norgaard. The style is extrovert and international, direct in its appeal, especially its sonic appeal, yet at the same time always searching, never complacent or opportunistic—a thinking person's John Adams, perhaps.
From the opening explosion of Gong, and the descending shards of sound which result, it is instantly clear that Ruders has been conducting a passionate love-affair with the resources of the symphony orchestra. And a rather crude conclusion does little to detract from the sheer excitement generated by this piece. If small reservations must be entered, I would say that I am not always convinced by his attempts to generate interest from slender material. Tundra, a 1990 tribute for the 125th anniversary of Sibelius's birth, leaves me more lukewarm than chilled, and I felt that the second movement of the Symphony overestimates the potential of its two alternating, overlapping and inter-penetrating chords (which bring to mind nothing so much as the end of Vaughan Williams's Sea Symphony, but without the contextual motivation). Still, as anyone who heard the 1990 Prom premiere will know, most of this Goethe-inspired symphony exerts an enthralling power, and renewed acquaintance has done nothing to dull its impact. That already says much for the playing of the Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the dynamic direction of Leif Segerstam, not to mention the spacious perspectives of yet another first-rate Chandos recording.
I suppose it is arguable that the kind of apocalyptic extremism of a piece such as Thus saw Saint John does not exactly represent the greatest of compositional challenges. But if you are prepared to believe that virtuosic energy and beauty are self-justifying virtues, the chances are you will revel in this music.'