Ray Bayles wrote: >The now very old recording of the Shostakovich 5th conducted by Howard >Hansen is my favorite... difficult to find now though. It is a great >introduction to Shostakovich. Do you mean Howard Mitchell? If so, I would second that recommendation. Mitchell has not been held in high regard in many circles, but I find some of his recordings outstanding. He did a wonderful Suite No.2 from Daphnis which was issued on a disc issued in conjunction with a meeting of some architects association! Karl