COMPOSERS: Elgar
LABELS: EMI
WORKS: Symphonies Nos 1 and 2; Sospiri; Serenade for Strings; Cockaigne etc
PERFORMER: Philharmonia Orchestra/Haitink; CLS/Hickox; LPO/Boult
CATALOGUE NO: EMI 907 2212
Magnificent Elgar from Haitink, masterfully balancing long-range sweep and fine orchestral detail, and finding ferocious brilliance in the First Symphony’s Scherzo. Boult’s Cockaigne is a coruscating bonus. Malcolm Hayes