01. The Isle of the Dead, op.29 [21'45]
02. The Rock, op.7 [13'31]
03. - 05. Symphonic Dances, op.45* [35'11]
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrew Litton
BIS SACD-1751 [recorded June 2009 and March 2008*; SACD/CD issued 2012]
[digital download; 24bit/44,1kHz flacs, booklet, cover and inlay scans]
Recording venue: Grieghallen, BergenRecording engineers: Hans Kipfer & Andreas Ruge*; Producers: Robert Suff & Marion Schwebel*
Following my post of Andrew Litton's splendid recording of Rachmaninov's second symphony for BIS, and his earlier recording of all three symphonies for Virgin Classics, here is the accompanying disc of the composer's two other major orchestral compositions, plus the very early The Rock.
I'm afraid that I find this issue a bit of a disappointment compared with those performances and recordings. Although I am a Litton fan, I find myself worryingly in agreement with David Hurwitz on this issue. The Symphonic Dances seem rather held back and a rather stop-go affair with strange hesitations and pointing of details. The recording doesn't help either.
I'm also usually a fan of BIS' sound but here there seems to be some strange balances and it is difficult to get the level right. The Isle of the Dead is certainly no match for Evgeny Svetlanov's in-concert recording with the BBC Symphony (BBC Legends), And I still haven't heard another recording of the Symphonic Dances which I enjoy quite as much as Eugene Goossens with the London Symphony for Everest - although Paavo Jarvi and Orchestre de Paris for Erato are quite close and probably a safer recommendation.
01. The Isle of the Dead, op.29 [20'50]
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrew Litton
from Virgin VC790830-2 [recorded May 1989; CD issued 1990]
[CD-rip; flac, booklet, cover and inlay scans; not my rip - many thanks to the original uploader]
Recording venue: Abbey Road No.1 Studio, London
Recording engineers: Mark Vigars & Simon Rhodes
Producer: Andrew Keener
Also, here is Andrew Litton's earlier recording of The Isle of the Dead which offers a rather more taut performance, even though the timings are virtually identical. The First Symphony (tracks 02. to 05.) is already in the MEGA folder. Unfortunately, I do not have the Symphonic Dances recording which accompanied the third symphony on the original Virgin Classics release. If anybody does have it, I would appreciate an upload.
Appendix
A late addition to this post; c-box reader alberich kindly uploaded rips of the Symphonic Dances and Vocalise from the early issues on Virgin Classics with the Royal Philharmonic. I have taken the liberty of converting his wav rips to flacs, added tags and some poor scans of the cover and inlay artwork sourced from the interweb. On a first listen, Litton's interpretation of the Symphonic Dances doesn't appear to have changed a great deal over the years but this earlier performance seems to flow more evenly and the sound balance is more natural to my ears.
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrew Litton
from Virgin VC790832-2 [recorded September 1989; CD issued 1990]
[CD-rip; flac, poor cover and inlay scans, no booklet; not my rip - many thanks to the original uploader]
Recording venue: Walthamstow Assembly Hall, London
Recording engineer: Mark Vigars; Producer: Andrew Keener
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrew Litton
from Virgin VC 790831-2 [recorded May 1989; CD issued 1990]
[CD-rip; flac, poor cover and inlay scans, no booklet; not my rip - many thanks to the original uploader]
Recording venue: Abbey Road No.1 Studio, London
Recording engineer: Mark Vigars; Producer: Andrew Keener