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26 BEETHOVEN/LISZT, SYMPHONY NO.9 From Furtwängler to Gardiner, there are myriad orchestral ‘approaches’ to the Beethoven symphonies: were you attracted to certain aesthetics in particular? Philippe Cassard: Cédric and I were familiar with our ‘classics’, but the conductors we discussed most often were Furtwängler and Harnoncourt. We always had the orchestral score at hand to see how Liszt solved this or that problem, what he decided to omit, or how he brought out one detail to the detriment of another. Cédric Pescia: In a completely different aesthetic from the two just mentioned, we also listened to Mariss Jansons. We were touched by his lyricism and a form of classicism, far removed from the trenchancy and radicalism of the Gardiner or Harnoncourt versions, which underline the modernity of the work. The question oftenaroseas towhetherwewanted to takeour interpretation towards something more innovative or more classical. Sometimes we were quite unable to decide. In the end, we grappled with the work head on and let our temperaments speak for themselves.