[Firebird] It would be hard to deny Mäkelä his place in the top tier. He creates a vibrant mood in every episode, even the ones that fill in while pantomime takes place onstage in Fokine’s fairy-tale choreography. Not a note feels like filler here, because an astute musical intelligence is paying attention without letup. As in Le Sacre, there’s a lovely natural flow to the performance.

In taking these momentous scores back to their Parisian roots Klaus Mäkelä, as expected, engages his keen ears and sense of orchestral drama to hear and to project their startling innovation...a conductor like Mäkelä can and does startle the senses with his nose for detail and atmosphere.

The young Finn gets the balance between sleek polish and raw energy absolutely spot-on in both works on his debut recording with the Paris orchestra. There's a gorgeous, vibrant sheen to the string sound in the *Rite*'s 'Rondes printanières' and 'Cercles mysteriéux des adolescentes' and the 'Danse de la terre' zips along like a mint-condition sports car, throwing the primal menace of the 'Cortège du sage' and of Kastchei's music from *The Firebird* into sharper relief than ever.