Tchaikovsky: Francesca da Rimini; Hamlet / Scriabin: Poem of Ecstasy ~ Stokowski
It's hot in here! Leopold Stokowski's volatile, batonless hands  transform Tchaikovsky's Dante-inspired fantasy into terrifying reality. The  venerable maestro doesn't let up inHamleteither, as he puts his trusty  New York freelance orchestra through its paces, to staggering results. To cool  down, Stokowski favors linear clarity over textural opulence in the Scriabin,  abetted by a closely miked Houston Symphony. A disc that blends fire and ice  into a potent musical and audiophile brew. Drink up!--Jed Distler