Though Carl Nielsen is, and will remain, my all-time favorite Scandinavian symphonist, the seven orchestral symphonies of Jean Sibelius are indeed some of the strongest works to come out of the first quarter of the 20th century.

My all-time favorite? I have a soft spot for the E minor symphony, having conducted it a couple of times and would love to conduct it again. But I also echo Habib's choice of the fourth, a masterwork of personal angst, compositional concision and a natural use of the orchestra where all of his demons abide and roost. It is a very dark composition that needs to be played with an impersonal touch.

That said, No. 2 is always going to be the favorite no matter what. It's a big, sweeping Nordic symphony with clear-cut themes and a classical structure that keeps the mind attuned. The best recording of this work for me is Sir John Barbirolli's with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from 1962. It's far more vivid than his older recording with the New York Philharmonic from 1938, and his later recording with the Halle Orchestra for EMI.

No. 5 was my introduction to Sibelius, and is my third favorite. It's a powerhouse that says it all. My favorite recordings? Georges Pretre from the late 1960s for RCA, and Karajan's EMI recording from the mid-1970s.

After that, the sixth. No one plays it, which is very sad. It's a very nice symphony that deserves more exposure, which leaves the third and seventh.

I'm not a fan of the third, even though I have heard two splendid recordings - Ashkenazy and Colin Davis (his first recorded cycle with the Boston Symphony is the one to really own), while you have to be in the right frame of mind for the seventh. Beecham's old recordings are worth owning, though the first one he did with the New York Philharmonic is a bit on the shaky side.

There are my takes on this great symphonist.

As for other Scandinavian symphonists, what does the panel think of the symphonies of Holmboe, Pettersson, Valen, Rangstroem, Segerstam, Alfven and Tubin?