Karajan's darkly objectified Fourth and monumentalized Fifth, along with his cool and luminous Sixth, are beautifully realized interpretations that have achieved classic status. The Seventh falls slightly short of that standard, as Karajan's tempos tend to be stiff and unyielding, especially in the more urgent and impassioned passages. However, it's the rare Sibelius symphony cycle that gets everything right (Bernstein comes pretty close), and this DG offering, with its marvelous playing and vivid, spacious recorded sound, effectively holds its own against the competition.