DVORAK. Symphony No. 5 in F major, Op. 76. Carnival Overture, Op. 92. London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Witold Rowicki. Philips 0 SAL3631 (12 in., 32s. 3d. plus 5s. 9d. PT).

Selected comParison:

LSO, Kertesz (3/67) t LXT6273 0 SXL6273

Several months back, not long after I had reviewed Kertesz's Decca version of this delectable symphony, there was a live performance given at the Royal Festival Hall, the first I ever remember there. At the end it was gratifying to observe colleagues, normally severe and determinedly unmoved, giving way to what I can only describe as musical intoxication. Not one of us had ever heard a live performance before, and in our heady state we just could not understand why. The notices we wrote reflected our reactions, yet battle still apparently has to be done before concertpromoters and public wake up to Dvoi-alcian bliss of an intensity not easy to match.

The gramophone companies and record collectors look like getting there first. Clearly Kertesz's Dyofik cycle need not be regarded as definitive, and I myself would very much like to hear how some of the lesser-known symphonies work out, stronger or weaker, when a more consciously affectionate approach is adopted. Here we have Rowicki going in the opposite direction from Kertesz, if only because he chooses tempi in the first and last movements markedly faster than Kertesz's already quite brisk Allegros. My first reaction, having over the last year got to 'breathe in time' with Kertesz, (his record has been the most frequently played in my collection over that time) was to find the Rowicki performance almost painfully gabbled, with the sharp dactyllic rhythm of the second subject (shades of Siegfried's Rhine Journey) made to sound perfunctory.

I have now managed to get used to Rowicki's tempi a little more, and though I still feel that Kertesz gets closer to the pastoral spirit of the music, there is an added bite in the music when taken faster. Even at top speed Rowicki does wonders in drawing expressive phrasing from his players as in the second subject of the finale. The middle two movements present less of a contrast, but even there Rowicki's approach is a degree straighter, and in the scherzo marginally less lilting.

Rather surprisingly the Philips recording is clearer in texture than the very good Decca, but I imagine different machines may react differently. In any case it is hardly a point to hang much advantage on, but the coupling might make a difference. Rowicki has Carnival; Kertesz has My Home Overture. One oddity of the Philips is that the "attacca" between the second and third movements is not properly respected. Admittedly Dvofak does not specifically use the word "attacca", and asks instead for "only a short pause", but the seven seconds (with band) between the final chords of the slow movement and the first chords of the slow introduction to the scherzo are too much. Kertesz made one phrase echo the other, and that was surely right. And though in sum I prefer Kertesz, I can well believe that for others Rowicki will seem preferable. I remember Robert Layton preferring Rowicki to Kertesz on their previous clash over the Sixth Symphony. Certainly the more this wonderful music is known the better. E.G.