Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5

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The jury is still out on whether in-house labels can replace the shrinkage in major-label orchestral recordings, but those released by the London Symphony Orchestra on its LSO Live label (they are indeed live recordings) generally make a good case for the value of these projects. With principal guest conductor Gianandrea Noseda at the helm, the LSO offers Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 in B flat major, Op. 100, the composer's rather acid wartime symphony. There is also a recording of the work by Valery Gergiev with the same orchestra, and the two make an interesting comparison. Noseda is slower, more restrained, and drier at every turn. It is Gergiev who, true to form, grabs the spotlight, but there is much to be said for this version. The winds and brass of this orchestra are capable of great things and achieve them here, and Noseda's overall conception of the work, rising from an ordinary day at the beginning with hints of unease, is careful and persuasive. The LSO Live engineers have gotten to know the ins and outs of the Barbican well by this time, and the end result is a very satisfying Prokofiev Fifth for those who listen attentively.

© James Manheim /TiVo