Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 3 & 5 (Bernstein Century)
There are two kinds of collaboration possible between conductor and  soloist. The first kind happens when both completely agree about the way the  music ought to go because they share the same approach. The second type features  two artists of very different temperament, and it's more dangerous but also  potentially more exciting. The danger arises when the two performers fail to  agree on anything, and each goes his own merry way. But when they really  stimulate each other a new sort of musical fusion results, and then just listen  to the sparks fly! That's exactly what happens here. Bernstein's passionate  immediacy of response seems to feed onSerkin's disciplined severity, and the  result is Beethoven for the record books. Let it rip!--David Hurwitz