Michael Stern's accounts of these three popular 20th century masterpieces with his fine Kansas City Symphony demonstrates musicianship of a high order throughout. Stern eschews any temptation to treat them merely as virtuoso orchestral showpieces, focusing instead on their more subtle musical values. The Hindemith is a perfect illustration of Stern's approach. Tempi are well judged allowing his players to phrase ingratiatingly – for example, the flute solos in the 'Andantino' – while the final 'Marsch' is trenchant and dogged but at the same time uplifting and joyous in its final bars.

The Prokofiev is similarly undemonstrative, and though some might feel that the opening is not quite incisive enough, Stern's sane approach pays dividends as the Suite progresses. The 'Infernal Scene' (track 6) has great menace, not least due to the percussive impact of the recording, and the well-known 'March' is steady and cleanly articulated by the Kansas City Symphony. I particularly enjoyed the sensuousness Stern and his players bring to 'The Prince and Princess' (track 9).

While the Concert Suite from 'The Miraculous Mandarin' may not have the rawness of some native Hungarian performances, Stern's more contained approach to this wonderful score yields many felicitations in the orchestral execution – the appropriately oleaginous clarinet playing of Robert Santos being just one example – and the savagery engendered in the Suite's final section is spine tingling.

The recording was entrusted to the capable hands of the veteran producer David Frost and engineer Keith O Johnson and, as one might expect, 'Prof.' Johnson's sonics are spectacular in their richness and impact – especially at the bass end of the spectrum. Unlike the earlier releases of the Kansas City Symphony on Reference Recordings, this one was made in the orchestra's impressive new performing home, the Helzberg Hall located in the Kauffman Centre for the Performing Arts (February 5-11, 2012). The 5.1 multi-channel SACD is sonically streets ahead of the CD/HDCD version of these performances issued some months ago. The listener is placed some way back in the hall but the sound has a wide spread between the speakers with a convincing depth and a pleasing ambience, most apparent in the quieter sections of these scores. I did, however, find it necessary to turn up the volume a tad to achieve real presence. With that done, the visceral impact of the Julia Irene Kauffman Casavant Organ at the opening of the Bartok became immediately apparent. It must be said, however, that, in all three works, the energy generated by every entry of the bass drum is of floor-shaking proportions. Though this is certainly attention grabbing, it is perhaps too much of a good thing especially for those with bass rich speakers.

The accompanying liner notes on the three works by Richard Freed, are clear, informative and detailed in a way that is not always emulated by other companies.

These expertly recorded and vividly etched performances can be confidently recommended.

Copyright © 2014 Graham Williams and HRAudio.net

Performance:

Sonics (Multichannel):