Symphony no. 2; Scherzo; Vocalise

de Sergei Rachmaninoff

This 1992 recording of Mariss Jansons conducting the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra in a program of Rachmaninov could hardly be said to be long overdue for re-release in 2004. And yet here it is and, as it turns out, it is as fine, hard, and polished a Rachmaninov disc as you'll ever hear. After the success of his Tchaikovsky recordings for Chandos in the '80s, Jansons was at the first peak of his international career, and after five decades under Mravinsky, the St. Petersburg was as virtuoso an orchestra as the Berlin or the Vienna Philharmonic. Together, they turned in a recording of Rachmaninov's Second that recalled the classic performance more than any later ones. Jansons drives the Sanderling rhythms and emphasizes the drama of the Second more than most conductors, but his greatest strength is his ability to put backbone into the long lines of the opening Largo and central Adagio. In Jansons' hands, the Vocalise has tremendous intensity instead of the usual flabby sensuality. And, thanks to the superb playing of the St. Petersburg, the early Scherzo sounds more enjoyably juvenile and less annoyingly puerile. Listeners looking for a more voluptuous Second might try the second Previn recording, and listeners looking for a more Russian Second might try the old Svetlanov recording, but listeners looking for a fine, hard, and polished Second couldn't do better than this disc. EMI's Petersburg sound is bright and warm and deep. - James Leonard on AllMusic.