Album: Sibelius Symphonies Nos 1 & 3 – Elder/Hallé, (Hallé)

Written in 1899, Sibelius's First Symphony has unusual warmth, as though the pine forests of Finland were baking under an Italian sun.

Mark Elder's vividly detailed reading draws resinous solos from the Hallé woodwind. In the Nordic Third Symphony, dynamic bowing and weighty pizzicato figures complement the brass. It's a measure of how confident the Hallé is that the difference between its studio (No 1) and live (No 3) recordings is imperceptible.

Pick of the album: A style is born in Sibelius's "Finale quasi una fantasia'