Harrell paired the Shostakovich with Bloch’s Schelomo in a very effective and satisfying performance…a recommended release.

To read the complete review, please visit Fanfare online.

Harrell is in top form here—his voluminous sound and all the varieties of tone he can muster are put to good use. He screams, sings, weeps, and wheedles.

Symphony No. 9 starts out at a good clip…The players sound like somebody just gave them each a million dollars—I’ve rarely heard an orchestra sound so happy.

The Liadov pieces have the full spectrum of sound that Shostakovich’s Ninth should. They’re pleasant bits of Russian romanticism…

To read the complete review, please visit American Record Guide online.

The Seattle Symphony, conducted by Gerard Schwarz, and cellist Lynn Harrell provide technically brilliant performances… Harrell’s powerful tone rises easily above the robust orchestration, yielding a first-rate performance of this taxing concerto. The disc concludes with five short works of Anatol Lyadov, a highly successful Russian composer a generation earlier than Shostakovich who has regrettably become largely overlooked. Schwarz brings these picturesque miniatures to life with the same playfulness and dedication as found in the Shostakovich.