Search - Edward Elgar, Leonard Slatkin, London Philharmonic Orchestra :: Elgar: Symphony No. 2; Serenade

Leonard Slatkin is a fine conductor, and however much British critics may moon about the great recordings of the past, there is no better Elgar Second Symphony than this one. It's great to hear the London Philharmonic playing with such unanimity of purpose and discipline in music that they generally treat with the sort of familiarity that breeds contempt. Slatkin pulls no punches at all-- the pounding climax of the third movement has never sounded more terrifying, and yet the symphony's many elegiac moments have all the quiet poetry they require. In short, this is a first-rate performance in every respect, captured in vivid sound. --David Hurwitz