Symphony 9 Great / Symphony 8 Unfinished
Sir Charles Mackerras has already recorded this music with the period instrument Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, but these modern orchestra versions are better still. He seems to have both a firmer grasp of the musical argument, and lighter hand with repeats (thank God--especially in the frequently endless Scherzo of the Ninth Symphony). The Scottish Chamber Orchestra gives him everything he asks for, and Telarc's sonics are just right.--David Hurwitz