Bringing his acclaimed Mendelssohn cycle to a rousing conclusion, Sir John Eliot Gardiner presents the composer’s symphony-cantata, Lobgesang. Mendelssohn wrote that the piece ‘lies very near my heart’, and with its stately grandeur and religiosity, plus its sheer magnitude – double the length of any of his other symphonies – it stands amongst his most impressive works. Posthumously categorised by editors as the composer’s second symphony, it is also known as a ‘song of praise’ and three talented soloists join the LSO and the world-class Monteverdi Choir for this recording.While Gardiner is well-versed in the German’s output, this release documents his first performance of the work. In an interview for The Arts Desk, he said: It’s a piece I’ve been looking at for years, and I’ve never conducted it. I was a bit sceptical at first, thinking that it was the torso of a symphony with a cantata bolted on. But it isn’t. It’s a delight. It has a lot of the inventiveness and sheer melodic flow of the young Mendelssohn and it’s perfectly calibrated and constructed.’Presented as a Pure Audio Blu-ray and SACD Hybrid package.