Somebody at Deutsche Grammophon should be commended: this is one of the most intelligent and compelling releases to appear in the “Originals” series so far. Michael Tilson Thomas’ recording of Tchaikovsky’s First Symphony was long regarded as the best for its “balletic” treatment of the score. And indeed there is an element of danceability in his tempos as well as an irresistibly natural flow in his handling of transitions. This is especially the case in the Finale, where so many conductors get tripped up by the extreme contrasts between its somber and excited passages. Thomas makes the dreamy second movement sound like a soulful lullaby, aided not a little by the Boston Symphony’s rich-textured string playing.
Conductor and orchestra partner each other with an intimacy and spontaneity that yields even greater results in Debussy’s Images. Here Boston’s French pedigree is on proud display as the orchestra produces–particularly in La parfums de la nuit–the most exquisite shadings of Debussy’s delicate colors. Thomas feels this score’s pulse and conducts with synaptic-like effortlessness. The naturally balanced analog recordings reproduce finely in this current edition but point up the unfortunate tendency to over-brightness that was Deutsche Grammophon’s preference in the 1970s. [8/9/2000]
