This latest recording from the Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra under co-artistic director Rachael Beesley is a masterclass in historically informed performance (HIP), offering listeners an electrifying, visceral experience that transports them back to a richly imagined 19th-century sound world. Indeed, these thrilling performances, captured live, of Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Overture, Op. 21, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 in F, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Scottish (1843 version), are among the finest and most exciting I’ve heard.

Beesley’s approach to HIP is deeply emotive yet meticulously authentic as evidenced by the orchestra’s use of gut strings, natural brass, and historical winds. These period instruments, combined with Beesley’s attention to expressive techniques such as tempo rubato, portamento, and rhetorical phrasing, sculpt performances that are both stylistically rigorous and emotionally engaging. 

“Early 20th-century recordings and 18th- and 19th-century performance treatises and annotated scores reveal remarkable insights into the evolution of pre-modern performance styles,” writes Beesley in her booklet note.

That ARCO’s commitment to embodying the aesthetic ideals of the Romantic era is so palpable is...