RECENT RECORDS
ORCHESTRAL: H.M.V. issues Berlioz's King Lear overture played with maximum persuasiveness and sympathy by the Royal Phil- harmonic Orchestra under Beecham. In Sibelius's first symphony, played by Stokowski and " his " symphony orchestra, there is some very fine playing and an unfailing sense of colour, but vehemence sometimes leads to an unpleasant thickening of the texture. Decca issue one comparatively unusual work—Turina's Procesion del Rocio, well played by the Paris Conservatoire Orchestra under Enrique Jorda—and three chestnuts. Josef Krips conducts the London Symphony Orchestra in a very decent performance of Mozart's " Jupiter " symphony, Ansermet and the Suisse Romande Orchestra are less successful in Haydn's " Clock " symphony, and Ruggiero Ricci plays Tchaikovsky's violin concerto with much brilliance and poignancy, accompanied by the New Symphony Orchestra under Sargent.
OPERA: The "complete'! Fledermaus issued by Decca is to be almost wholly recommended. Singers and orchestra are Viennese and as good at this admirable sort of thing as any living. Clemens Kraus is the right conductor (though his tempo on one sittgle occasion seems to be quite indefensible), and if only we had the dialogue, this recording would steal in advance the thunder of that production of Die Fledermaus for which London is still—pace
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