Charles Ives: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 4 / Hymns
Ives's First Symphony is an attractive, conservative piece with a gorgeous slow  movement based on a hymn tune and a finale that sounds strangely like early Bruckner. The Fourth,  on the other hand, is arguably his masterpiece, and one of the most radical compositions in the  history of music. Scored for a huge orchestra with three solo pianos, chorus, offstage and onstage  instruments, and "everything but the kitchen sink" percussion, it requires at least two conductors to  keep it all coordinated. Listening to it--despite the commotion in the second movement--is a  positively transcendental experience, and the finale resolves itself into one of the most beautiful  moments in American music. These performances are smashing (and crashing, where necessary!).--David Hurwitz