Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic are releasing Stravinsky's
"Rite of Spring" and (possibly--a rumor), Ravel's complete "Daphnis"
on their own house label and on SACD.  That makes three house labels
releasing SACDs.  LSO Live and Royal Concertgebouw Live are the other
two.  EMI seems to have no interest in getting on the SACD classical
bandwagon, so it's nice that the Berliners have gone around them with
their own label!

Some recent purchases:

I've been delighted with Roge's new Ravel/Gershwin Piano Concerti on the
Oehms label with the RSO Wien with Bertrand de Billy, conductor.  Roge
digs into the Ravel score even more so than he did with Dutoit years ago
and the SACD recording, (both two-channel and esp.  multi-channel), does
Ravel's orchestra a unique justice.

I also picked up the complete Saint Saens Piano concerti on the Audite
label with Anna Malikova on the piano accompanied by T.  Sanderling and
the WDR Orchestra, Koln.  The 2nd and 4th need no intro, but if you don't
know the 3rd and esp.  the 5th, they are gems.  Some beautiful poetic
writing worthy of Chopin in the 5th.  Malikova plays these moments a
little more feverishly than Collard, (with Previn on EMI), but she's
entirely persuasive for my tastes.  Otherwise soloist, conductor and
orchestra provide all the "bubble" one could want.

I also picked up Julia Fischer playing Russian Violin Concerti of
Khachaturian, Prokofiev, and Glazunov on Pentatone SACD.  I'm a big fan
of the Prokofiev 1st, and Fischer, with the help of the Russian National
Orchestra/Kreizberg, captures the gently ecstatic, nocturnal beauties
of this magical score perfectly.  The mischievous rhythmic sections
really dance here as well in Fischer's hands.  It's nice to see a new
recording of the Glazunov.  The 2nd mov't really sounds fleshed out and
more beautiful than ever, and Fischer and Co dance the finale away.
Khachaturian?  Hmmm.  With the exception of the extremely ingratiating
melodies in the finale, I didn't warm to this music otherwise; neither
the 1st mov't or Andante 2nd.

Capriccio SACD offers Shostakovich's 1st Violin Concerto and a Suite
from his Lady Macbeth.  There is some remarkable music in the Suite!
Including an (obligatorily tortured) ecstatic love scene and moments of
orchestra virtuosity out-Mahlering Mahler in the 3rd mov't of his 9th.
If the full opera gives you a headache, (it did me, and I can eat Strauss'
Elektra for breakfast), the Suite is an excellent alternative.

Coming Nov.  9th: MTT's Mahler 2nd, the first in full DSD discreet
surround.  I can't wait.

(Of course, virtually *all* SACDs contain a layer that will play on your
standard CD player.)

John Smyth
Sac, CA

(If you're interested in buying from my CD collection, I have 1/2 of it up
now at Amazon:

http://s1.amazon.com/exec/varzea/ts/customer-open-marketplace-items/AC4IT4HAH934U/)