The "25 LSO Live" logo in the graphics for this release refers to the fact that
LSO Live
, the in-house label of the
London Symphony Orchestra
, is celebrating its 25th anniversary. These recordings, for the most part, were among the first released on the label and feature longtime conductor
Sir Colin Davis
leading the orchestra in the last four
Dvo¿ák
symphonies. There is a subsidiary programming principle; the album celebrates a "Year of Czech Music" in 2024, the 200th anniversary of
Smetana
's birth, as well as several other anniversaries. Hence, the
Sinfonietta
of
Janá¿ek
is included (in a much later performance led by
Simon Rattle
that adds little and breaks the acoustic continuity), as well as
's
Má vlast
from the same early group by
Davis
.
had recorded most of this music before, and arguably more colorfully; here, he settled into a precise, rather nervous manner that undeniably showcased his control over the orchestra, near effortless by this time. He is at his best in
's much-played
, which here seems to reveal fresh details even in its most familiar sections. Sample the
Vltava ("The Moldau")
movement, where eddies and currents below the main stream represented by the big theme are carefully brought out. Promotional copy leans heavily on the 2024 remastering of this material, but to these ears, the tweaking can do only so much with material that was only of moderate sound quality, to begin with; the orchestra's engineers learned as they went along in releases for this label over the years. Still, whatever cavils one might have, these are certainly strong Czech music recordings by a fabled conductor at an attractive price, and anyone hearing them will hardly be anything other than satisfied. ~ James Manheim