Paul Dukas’ Symphony in C has had relatively few champions, but none so great as Jean Martinon. This is arguably the finest performance of the work on disc, displaying energy and enthusiasm that few if any conductors and orchestras have matched. But it’s not just about drive: Martinon applies a rubato so instinctive, so naturally flowing that you get the feeling the Orchestre National de l’ORTF has become his voice, instantly carrying out his artistic impulses. And, boy do they play! Just listen to that wonderfully distinctive French sound–the spice of the woodwinds, the tang of the brass. Martinon really revels in the score’s impressionist elements, especially the dreamy pre-La Mer interlude before the first movement’s dramatic coda. In Martinon’s hands the finale resembles an airborne race as he excitedly guides the music over its cliffs and valleys. I only wish the brass could have been more prominent in the coda, but then I’ve been spoiled by the Chicago Symphony’s aggressive and notably un-French playing style in this passage.
Like the symphony, Martinon’s fine reading of the Ariane et Barbe-bleue excerpt is in excellent stereo sound. Of the remaining mono items, Igor Markevitch’s jittery and jaunty Sorcerer’s Apprentice is the prize. Pierre Dervaux’s La Peri is particularly well done, but for me the piece needs a three-dimensional stereo recording, like Armin Jordan’s excellent reading on Erato, to fully recreate Dukas’ magical atmosphere. But if your central concern is the symphony, this is the one you just gotta have.
