This collection of previous EMI Barber recordings, made in the late 1980s and mid 1990s, features Leonard Slatkin and the St. Louis Symphony in generally compelling performances of the orchestral works, though they yield in some instances (like the School for Scandal, Second Essay, and Medea’s Dance of Vengeance) to Thomas Schippers’ unfailingly idiomatic and powerful renditions with the New York Philharmonic. Also, Argo’s recording of much of the same material with David Zinman and the Baltimore Symphony is sonically superior, though Joanna Nickrenz’s St. Louis production gains clarity and vibrancy in this remastering. Elmar Oliveira delivers a flowing and heartfelt performance of the Violin Concerto even if it doesn’t scale the heights of Hilary Hahn’s recent and ravishing recording on Sony Classical.
The chamber works are an especially welcome bonus, particularly the dramatic and moving Cello Sonata, warmly conveyed by Alan Stepansky with pianist Israela Margalit, who also provides fine readings of the popular Souvenirs and the beautiful Nocturne (an homage to John Field, which was suggested to the composer by pianist John Browning). Summer Music is a soothingly pastoral yet quirkily playful piece for wind quintet, brilliantly performed by first-chair soloists of the New York Philharmonic. So there you have it, just about all your favorite Barber (and even a little more) in one bargain package.
