We have only to listen to [Berio’s] exquisite song orchestrations, graced with Goerne on riveting, vibrant form, to feel the depth of his empathy, an almost palpable longing to be absorbed into that lost Viennese world…this coupling is a must-have

Matthias Goerne projects each song with ursine power and humour, albeit in slightly frayed voice. His larger-than-life stage persona fits Berio’s vividly faithful arrangements…this new [recording] feels even truer to the spirit of '68 which inspired Sinfonia

any attempt to describe this [third] movement can't possibly do full justice to how extraordinary an accomplishment it is; it's much more than simply copying out some Mahler and throwing in a few other bits and pieces, and the overall effect in performance is remarkable, shifting from violent orchestral outbursts to some truly sublime moments.

Berio’s Sinfonia, premiered in 1968, remains an incomparably rich conundrum...On a disc such as this outstanding one, balance can be contrived so that the throng of words is audible to just the right degree.

Berio’s skilful arrangements invoke a similar soundworld as Mahler’s own orchestrations of his songs: it’s colourful, slightly brittle, and vividly pointed up by Pons...Goerne gives the vocal lines the slightly larger-than-life quality they need, exaggerating their expressive extremes and running through his full palette of baritonal shades.

Goerne summons a dark, curdled tone, which can switch in an instant to a delicate tenderness...Altogether, this disc is a wonderful introduction to one of the 20th century’s great composers.

Pons’s new, gorgeously textured performance couples the endlessly fascinating work with Berio’s two-decades-later, light-touch orchestrations of Mahler songs, sung with heart-piercing point by Matthias Goerne.