Ideally coupled, powerfully played, and convincingly conducted,
Dmitri Kitajenko and the
Moscow Philharmonic's 1986 and 1984 recordings of Rachmaninov's violent First Symphony and whimsical symphonic fantasy The Rock have only one thing against them. It's not the coupling. Taken together, these two early orchestral works paint an incredibly impressive portrait of Rachmaninov as a passionately emotional and technically accomplished young composer. It's not the playing. From warm winds to strong strings from blasting brass to bludgeoning percussion, from sumptuous sonorities to characterful solos, the
Moscow Philharmonic delivers playing as fine as any to come out of the Soviet Republics. It's not the conducting.
Kitajenko is a skillful director who knows not only how to get the best out of his players but how to make the best case for music that has been unaccountably treated as third-rate. No, the only thing these recordings have going against them is the actual recordings. Not that they are all that bad -- compared with earlier Soviet recordings, these late stereo recordings are an enormous improvement -- but compared with most western recordings, they sound curiously hollow and empty, as if the orchestra was playing in a hall the size of a sports stadium and the microphones were placed in the upper bleachers. For listeners who love early Rachmaninov, these performances will satisfy even as the recording disappoints. For listeners who don't already know early Rachmaninov, there are other recorded performances that may prove more convincing in the long run: the vital
Ormandy, the vibrant
Previn, the ardent
Ashkenazy among others.