Mark Seeley <[log in to unmask]> asked about the Naxos cycle of
Shostakovich symphonies under the direction of Ladislav Slovak?
Extremely underrated set of recordings.
Slovak (generally) follows a middle ground between the white heat
machismo of the Mravinsky school & the epic grandeur preferred in the
West; & proves that the middle of the road isn't just a good place to
get run over. His reading of S15 remains my favorite; though not even LS
can convince me that the score is the cryptic masterpiece critics tend
to claim it is.
Main weakness is the orchestra: though consistently acceptable; it
really lacks the firepower to make DSCH's loudest effects work. People
with better sound systems than mine have complained about the recordings
being less than pristine; but none have really described them as being
bad....
All the best,
Robert Clements <[log in to unmask]>
<http://www.ausnet.net.au/~clemensr/welcome.htm>