01. - 04. Symphony No. 1 in A-flat major, op.55 [44'50]
05. In the South. Concert overture, op.50 'Alassio' [20'48]
BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Adrian Boult and Leonard Slatkin*
BBC MM269 (recorded July 1976 and July 2002*; this CD issued in 2006 as cover disc of BBC Music Magazine vol.14 no.12)
(CD-rip; flacs, cover and inlay scans)
Recording venue: Royal Albert Hall, London
Recording engineer: Not stated and Neil Pemberton*; Producer: CB Samuelson and Ann McKay*
This performance of Elgar's first symphony was selected by reviewer Geraint Lewis as the top recommendation in Gramophone magazine's Collection feature in the August 2019 issue. Lewis actually selected a later 2012 release of the recording on the ICA Classics label where it is coupled with the Brahms Symphony No.3 also conducted by Sir Adrian rather than the brilliant recording of In the South conducted by Leonard Slatkin as fill up on this disc. The booklet (included in this download) of the ICA Classics release makes, as far as the Elgar is concerned, the erroneous claim that it was the performance's first release on CD.
Although this performance of the symphony is excellent and the sound is very good broadcast quality of the time, for me it doesn't supplant Sir Adrian's earlier 1968 recording of the work for Lyrita (already posted here on MIMIC) with the London Philharmonic where the recorded sound is spectacular and the performance is spot on. Unlike Lewis, I am troubled by the very swift tempo that Sir Adrian adopts here in the first movement. Lewis does at least have the Lyrita recording as runner-up along with Ed Gardner's recording also with the BBC Symphony (Chandos), Roger Norrington and the SWR Symphony Stuttgart (SWR Music) and as a historical choice, Sir Edward's own 1930 recording with the London Symphony in Lani Spahr's superb remastering (Somm). My own favourite recent recording, Sakari Oramo with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic (BIS) gets very short shrift.
Leonard Slatkin's excellent In the South, also given at a Prom concert, makes a fine make weight with the Canto popolare middle section beautifully played by the BBC Orchestra's principals.
Download from MEGA.