John C. Fiset wrote: >Beecham is the man for the 2nd. The old capital recording here in the USA. I have to disagree with that. Beecham thought of Brahms' music as boring, and, perhaps, recorded the 2nd just to prove his point. Von Bulov, or someone else, referred to this symphony as 'Pastoral', thus setting a trap for those conductors who approach it this way. In fact, it benefits very much from the overt drama, as Furtwaengler's recording, on EMI set, clearly shows. WF goes a little over the top in the 3rd, and here I would recommend Leinsdorf, also on EMI, if still in print. ML