“The orchestra played no small role… the Cleveland Orchestra with Gilbert displayed nothing but brilliance from front to back, reveling in the music’s enormous palette of moods, textures, and colors… Same goes for the Haydn at the outset of the program. By way of contrast to the wild world of Busoni, Gilbert opened the evening with a distinctly lithe, refined account of the ‘Military’ Symphony No. 100, so named for the battle imagery in its second movement.
Under Gilbert, the orchestra sounded exceptionally clear and articulate, as if every phrase had been carefully sculpted, and the marches and clashes in the battle scene were nothing short of thrilling. The Busoni Concerto, in other words, may have been the highlight of the evening, but it wasn’t the only piece worth waiting for.”