Ireland’s National Symphony Orchestra has turned out to be quite a find for Naxos, providing consistently fine performances of Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Bruckner, and now Rachmaninov. Don’t expect the lush string sound of Philadelphia under Ormandy, or the raw power of the Russian Federation Symphony under Svetlanov, or even the taut muscularity of Pletnev and the Russian National Orchestra. However, Alexander Anissimov knows this band’s strengths, and he plays to them brilliantly. He gets gorgeous string tone for the langorous introduction and main tune of the first movement, and his brass have a bright but burnished tone that punctuates their dramatic entrances. I only wish there had been more intensity, along the lines of Litton or Temirkanov, in the second subject’s climactic reprise.
Woodwinds shine in the second movement’s intertwining passages, while Anissimov conducts a beautifully moving Adagio, enhanced by his original and convincingly applied rubato. The finale gets off to a boisterous start and maintains its joyful energy right through to the exuberant close. However, I must mention that Anissimov makes two cuts (at 1:49 and 8:00), removing some of the (admittedly overgenerous) repetitions of the main theme. Still, even with the above considerations, this is one fine Rachmaninov Second, recorded in warm, detailed sound. And the Naxos price makes it all but irresistible.
