Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2; Vocalise

Rachmaninov always took a clear-eyed, brisk and unsentimental view when playing his own music, and on this new release Otaka and the BBC Welsh SO strike a fine balance between structural concern and romantic expression. The playing is warmly sonorous and uninhibitedly powered, and Osaka unfolds the grand structure singlemindedly. The recorded sound is not always ideal: climaxes seem a little cluttered, and the woodwind often lacks presence. Anthony Payne

Our rating

4

Published: January 20, 2012 at 3:46 pm

COMPOSERS: Rachmaninov
LABELS: Nimbus
WORKS: Symphony No. 2; Vocalise
PERFORMER: BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra/Tadaaki Otaka
CATALOGUE NO: Nl 5322 DDD

Rachmaninov always took a clear-eyed, brisk and unsentimental view when playing his own music, and on this new release Otaka and the BBC Welsh SO strike a fine balance between structural concern and romantic expression. The playing is warmly sonorous and uninhibitedly powered, and Osaka unfolds the grand structure singlemindedly. The recorded sound is not always ideal: climaxes seem a little cluttered, and the woodwind often lacks presence. Anthony Payne

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