This was for years an account which justly got top marks in the Penguin Guide. It is in a different class to Dorati's earlier Mercury recording with the Concertgebouw Orchestra in that it is not hard driven but remains a dramatic performance nonetheless. Some may quibble with the Phase4 sound which does tend to spotlight the woodwind, but it does bring out many details in the scoring that I was not previously aware of. Others may be surprised at Dorati's slower than usual speed for the Scherzo, which for me is quite deliciously pointed. Even after 40 years, the reading remains fresh - truly an original conception. The coupling is very well played and recorded - Dorati is in his element in Hungarian music.
