Symphony 1 in D Minor Op 9
Was it really necessary to dredge up this dreary specimen of pseudo- Brahmsian late Romanticism? Dohnányi had already written more worthwhile (if  equally Brahmsian) music than this--like his Piano Quintet No. 1, op. 1--by the  time he composed this symphony at age 23. Perhaps he was intimidated by the task  of taking on an orchestra for the first time. At any rate, his themes are so  unmemorable here that we wonder why the orchestra is going on about them so in  the developments. It's like having a vigorous conversation about the weather.  The performance sounds decent enough, if it matters.--Leslie Gerber