Piston: Symphony No. 6/The Incredible Flutist/3 New England Sketches
This is yet another fantastic release in RCA Victor's American music series with Leonard  Slatkin conducting the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra (with great Thomas Hart Benton cover paintings).The Incredible Flutistby Walter Piston, written in 1938, is one of his most colorful works, and it is  probably his greatest work, despite the power of his symphonies. (The "Tango of the Merchant's  Daughter" will bring you to your knees.) It's from a ballet suite about a funky circus that invades a  sleepy little town. Slatkin's take on Piston'sThree New England Sketchesis elegaic and the  Symphony 6 more robust. Wonderful music.--Paul Cook