VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Symphony No. 2, 'London' / The Wasps Overt

Kees Bakels' Vaughan Williams cycle is much better than many British critics like to admit. It's strange, but you would think that it would be a source of pride for foreign musicians to conduct native composers like Vaughan Williams and Elgar. Unfortunately, what usually happens is that the "outsider" takes the music and promptly outclasses the home-grown talent. Such was the case with Slatkin's Vaughan Williams cycle, which eclipsed the efforts of the likes of Boult and Handley, and it's pretty much the case here. Bakel's performances are extremely exciting, especially his Ninth Symphony, which is a revelation. It may be that the fast tempos compromise what some consider the music's "transcendental" qualities, but that's a small loss when the interpretation gives the work so much more coherence and urgency then usual. The Fifth Symphony is so pretty that it's practically unkillable, and it's very well done here, though without quite the luminosity of Bryden Thomson's Chandos recording. Even so, these performances are first rate in every way.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com