BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andrew Davis
NMC D053 (recorded October 1997; CD issued 1998)
(flacs, cover, inlay and booklet)
Recording venue: BBC Maida Vale Studio 1, London
Recording Engineer: Tryggvi Trigvasson; Producer: Colin Matthews
To my knowledge there has still only been five recordings of Anthony Payne's splendid completion of the Third Symphony and this, the first recording - made some months before the first public performance, remains my favourite. Based on hearing a broadcast tape of the first performance in Ireland with Vernon Handley conducting the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, if he had lived long enough to set down his projected recording, Handley may well have overtaken Andrew Davis as favourite recording.
The current recordings are:
- Andrew Davis and BBC Symphony Orchestra (NMC - October 1997)
- Paul Daniel and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (Naxos - May 1999)
- Colin Davis and London Symphony Orchestra (LSO Live - December 2001)
- Tadaaki Otaka and Sapporo Symphony (Signum - March 2007)
- Richard Hickox and BBC National Orchestra of Wales (Chandos - July 2007)
Many critics find the Paul Daniel recording to be the top recommendation to date and it is certainly also very fine with excellent recorded sound by Tony Faulkner. Colin Davis may also offer the most deeply felt performance of the slow movement but his recording is scuppered for me by the appallingly boxy acoustic of the Barbican Hall (once described as listening to an A.M. radio in the early 1950s). Even Tony Faulkner couldn't do anything with it.
Both of those recordings have been posted here earlier by friend Davide in a mega post: http://meetinginmusic.blogspot.com/2014/09/summer-nights-10.html. The Otaka and Hickox recordings also include Anthony Payne's realisation of Pomp and Circumstance March No.6 but Hickox's recording of the symphony is a very dull affair.
Illustrations are played by Robert Gibbs- using WH Reed's violin and David Owen Norris- piano with Elgar's completed sections taken from the Andrew Davis recording.
Recording date: November 1997
Recording venue: Potton Hall, Suffolk
Recording Engineer: Tryggvi Tryggvason; Producer: Colin Matthews
Although this post of the commentary contains FLAC files, they are not lossless but have been converted from 320Kbps AAC streaming audio files, captured with SoundTap. The sound is probably the best lossy conversion that I have heard. Cover and booklet are included.