I was at a friend's house last night, and he put on a Hanssler disc of
Schumann's 2nd and 4th symphonies conducted by Marriner; he had bought
the disc 2 days earlier.  I only had the opportunity to listen to the
2nd symphony as the evening was getting late.

I could hardly believe what I was hearing.  Marriner is toward the bottom
of my conductor chart, so I expected a relatively routine and staid
performance.  As the 1st movement began, my attention became riveted to
the music.  The introduction was superb, bringing out all the tension and
beauty.  As the pace quickened, the excitement generated by Marriner was
exhilarating.  Also, the sound was crisp, clear, and hit me just right at
climaxes.  The other three movements were equally excellent.  It seemed as
if Marriner was on some speed-up medication.  Whatever it is, he should
stick with it.

I did not hear the 4th symphony, but I intend to acquire the disc quickly.
Marriner's 2nd is easily the best performance I've heard in the past few
months; that would include Gardiner, Kubelik, and Thielmann(sp?), and
Bernstein.  Warning:  Marriner's disc is set at a high volume - the louder
passages could blow you away.

Don Satz
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