Five must-hear recordings of André Previn

In February 2019, André Previn, best known for his role as principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra (1968-1979), sadly died aged 89. Throughout his musical career, Previn flourished as a conductor, composer and performer, winning four Academy Awards and eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

From his great accolades, we have reviewed and chosen the five best recordings of Previn's work:

Rachmaninov Symphony No. 2

LSO/ André Previn

Warner Classics 0852892

Recorded in 1973 at Kingsway Hall, London, Previn put the original, uncut version of this then-neglected symphony firmly back on the map

• The best recordings of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2

André Previn conducts Vaughan Williams

Soloists, LSO/André Previn

RCA 88875126952 (download)

Previn recorded this CD with the London Symphony Orchestra in the 1960s, creating one of the greatest recordings of the highly acclaimed Vaughan Williams symphonies. The interpretations here cast refreshing new light on this great cycle.

• The best recordings of Vaughan Williams's Pastoral Symphony
• Which is your favourite Ralph Vaughan Williams work?

Previn Violin Concerto ‘Anne-Sophie’

Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin), Boston Symphony Orchestra/André Previn

DG E4745002

Previn dedicated this violin concerto to his future wife, Anne-Sophie, and it was first performed in 2002 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The violin part was written for his fiancée and seen as a musical love letter from Previn. This work is a major statement from the composer-conductor’s later years, performed with warmth and firepower by its dedicatee

• The 20 Greatest Violinists...how the musicians voted

Walton Symphony No. 1

LSO/André Previn

Sony G010004009424W (download only)

This four movement Symphony composed between 1931-35 was one of Walton's two symphonies. Previn’s first recording of this symphony remains remarkable for its crackling rhythmic energy and drive

• The 20 greatest symphonies of all time

Gershwin Rhapsody In Blue ; Piano Concerto

André Previn (piano), LSO

Warner Classics 2435668912

Previn performed these two well-known works by Gershwin, accompanied by the London Symphony Orchestra. The close bond with his orchestra can be heard, alongside a definitive display of Previn’s keyboard skills, deftly catching the music’s lyrical inventiveness and improvisatory streak

• The best recordings of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue
• 10 piano concertos you might not know