New York Philharmonic & Leonard Bernstein Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 17 "little Russian" (1972 2018)

Anyone interested in Romantic music will inevitably come across the name Carl Reinecke. Countless aspiring composers from Germany and Scandinavia went to him to learn their craft. To those who wanted to make it in the city of the famous Gewandhaus Orchestra, he was an institution. Reinecke the composer enjoyed great success during his lifetime. However, as a preservationist of musical traditions, he was quickly forgotten after his death. The inevitable course of musical development swept him out of the way. This was not due to the quality of his music. Not only does his compositional technique stand up to scrutiny, but also his music as a sonic experience. This is particularly true of his three symphonies, all of which are now available in our catalogue with the release of the powerful Second in C minor.

On the eve of his centenary in 2018, Sony Classical releases the most important collection, Leonard Bernstein’s classic American Columbia recordings, remastered from their original 2- and multi-track analogue tapes. This has allowed for the creation of a natural balance (for example, between the orchestra and solo instruments) that brings the quality of these half-century-old recordings, excellent for their time, up to the standards of today’s audiophiles. In addition, there has been a meticulous restoration of some earlier masterings in which LP surface noise was too rigorously eliminated at the expense of the original brilliance.

This 7 CD box set features the first complete cycle of Tchaikovsky’s symphonies recorded by Vladimir Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra, including symphonies previously released on the LPO’s label and new recordings of Tchaikovsky’s Symphonies Nos. 2 and 3, Francesca da Rimini and Serenade for Strings.

Slatkin's recording of Tchaikovsky's "Little Russian" Symphony (No 2 in C minor) is very good. Slatkin uses an expansive tempo in the Allegro of I, but the music never drags. In short Slatkin and the virtuoso musicians of the Saint Louis Symphony serve Tchaikovsky's early symphony very well. The impression they give is one of massiveness and confidence, and it works!

If you can get past the 1940s monaural sound (and if you are not already familiar with this performance, you will get a shock). This is the gentlest, most right sounding rendition I have ever heard. The tempi are uncommonly brisk, though they never sound that way. The third movement has never sounded more beautiful. Halban is perfect in the finale. Walter passed away before he could record this work in stereo. His later performances were very different and I'm still not sure whether or not his later slower tempos and even greater expression were an improvement.