Philippe Jordan conducts the Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris in much-loved works by Russian composers: Prokofiev’s ‘Classical’ Symphony and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition in Ravel’s famous orchestration. Directly before the recording sessions, a concert featuring both works prompted this response from ResMusica: “Philippe Jordan, known for his precision in interpreting a score, exhibited superb authority in a programme that showed off the orchestra to great effect and astonished the ear with its profusion of colours … Pictures at an Exhibition was marvellous from beginning to end.”
Commenting on his life as a conductor in the French newspaper Les Échos, Jordan said: “My feeling is that activity both in the orchestral pit and on the concert podium is necessary for a full appreciation of what a conductor’s life has to offer.” The Swiss-born maestro is much admired for the refinement he draws from orchestras; as Gramophone observed of his Erato release of Ravel’s complete Daphnis et Chloé, recorded with the orchestra of the Paris Opéra: “He graces the rhythms and dynamics with natural, malleable inflection and crafts the textures with such care.” For all that, Jordan believes that “Sheer beauty of sound is not enough … you have to find the particular soundworld of each work, of each composer.”

“The Paris Opéra’s young music director reminds us that Pictures at an Exhibition is one of Ravel’s great orchestral scores, bringing Gallic finesse to Mussorgsky’s craggy piano original.” The Sunday Times