A little over 40 years separate Brahms’ Fourth Symphony from Schoenberg’s Variations Op.31: little enough for two sound-worlds so radically divergent. Yet a certain conscious classicism in the handling of variation forms (the chaconne in Brahms, balanced serialism in Schoenberg) and a common affiliation – to Bach – link these masterpieces of Romanticism and dodecaphony.

“brilliantly played” - Malcolm Hayes, Classic FM Magazine, January 2007

“For sheer velvety sonic sumptuousness you could hardly beat this. But there's more - Nagano's perfectly proportioned approach works well with this orchestra and this music. He is adept at re-thinking textures so that the familiar becomes novel, and has a superb gift for phrasing in a way that creates a flow.” - Robert Beale, Manchester Evening News, 22 December 2006

“Nagano and the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin ensure that we are able to orientate ourselves through their vivid evocation of the spirit of the Viennese waltz that overlays this extraordinarily rich, if cerebral, music [Schoenberg Variations op 31].” - Stephen Pettitt, The Sunday Times, 7 January 2007