RACHMANINOFF: Symphonic Dances; STRAVINSKY: Symphony in Three Movements – London Sym. Orch./ Valery Gergiev – LSO Live

RACHMANINOFF: Symphonic Dances; STRAVINSKY: Symphony in Three Movements – London Sym. Orch./ Valery Gergiev – LSO Live multichannel SACD LO0688, 58:33 [Distr. by Naxos] *****:
Valery Gergiev is one of the most exciting conductors recording today. His previous Rachmaninoff Second Symphony for LSO Live was a knockout, and both of these symphonic works will likely take first place of multichannel options. In addition to his wide-ranging work with all aspects of the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Gergiev has whipped up the London Symphony to be virtuosi just like the Berlin Philharmonic and other European orchestras.
Some have said Gergiev’s interpretations are rushed, but his tempi in Rachmaninoff’s last and perhaps greatest orchestral work are actually slower than some of the competition. He plays up the composer’s quotations of his favored deathly Dies Irae and generally delivers a darker version of the score than from others. He gets more powerful percussion accents than anybody else; audiophiles will go wild.
In general Gergiev makes the Symphonic Dances—which have been getting considerable recorded attention lately—sound fresh and even more of a masterpiece than they seemed before. I got out my 96/24 Classic Records DVD of the famous Dallas Symphony version with Donald Johanos, which has also been released as a stereo SACD and 45 rpm vinyl by Analogue Productions. I know this is regarded as one of the super-great audiophile classical recordings, but Gergiev’s new SACD knocks it dead. The Dallas recording sounds almost like a chamber version, miked too closely, and has an annoying low tone continuing thru the entire recording. The recent Reference Recordings vinyl reissue of Eiji Oue’s version with the Minnesota Orchestra is better sonics, but next to Gergiev’s intensity sounds rather laid back. This would be my vote for Multichannel Disc of the Month if we hadn’t already chosen the Pink Floyd.
Pairing the Rachmaninoff with the Stravinsky Symphony is pure genius; don’t think that’s been done before, and it makes perfect sense. Gergiev accents the jagged edges of this neoclassical work, clearly a reflection of the composer’s concerns over WWII, which was going on as he wrote it. But it’s not menacing—just has some of the same darkness—as well as an athletic urgency—as heard in the Symphonic Dances. I always wait with bated breath for the final Hollywood-style concluding chord—Stravinsky’s very own little musical V-Day.
—John Sunier