In Europe young Schnéevoigt was considered skilled,[4] but by an accounting [clarification needed] of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Schnéevoigt's conducting style was characterised as "flaccid", "paunchy", "phlegmatic", and "plodding", with "little or no sense of direction so far as discipline was concerned". This notwithstanding, his passion for the music of Sibelius was such that he cried when conducting his works.[5]
The accounting[clarification needed] by Los Angeles Philharmonic is not in accordance with the contemporary critique of Schnéevoigt's conducting. The critiques published in the papers of Los Angeles during 1927–1929 were mainly positive and especially Schnéevoigt's Mahler interpretations were applauded.[6] A reason for Schnéevoigt's apparent loss of reputation, may be that he was succeeded by two legendary conductors (Artur Rodziński and Otto Klemperer) and so his achievements were forgotten.[7]
Schnéevoigt was a close friend of composer Jean Sibelius[11] and often performed Sibelius's orchestral music. He conducted the first performance in Finland of Luonnotar in January 1914. He discovered the manuscripts of Sibelius's tone poems "Lemminkäinen and the Maidens" and "Lemminkäinen in Tuonela" (from the Lemminkäinen Suite), which had been thought lost, and gave their first performance since 1894.[12]
On 3 June 1934, Schnéevoigt and the Finnish National Orchestra traveled to London, there Schnéevoigt made the first recording of Sibelius's Symphony No 6. It was originally planned for Robert Kajanus, a close friend of Sibelius, to record the symphony, but because of his death in 1933 it was instead done by Schnéevoigt.[13]
^Mark Swed (31 August 2003). "The Salonen-Gehry axis". CalendarLive.com. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-28.