A dazzling calling-card for the formidable technical and interpretative skills of the Litton/ Dallas Symphony partnership, featuring five American masters at their most approachable; an ideal introduction for anyone yet to dip a toe into the vast range of repertoire beyond Gershwin, Copland and Barber.
We kick off in exhilarating style with William Schuman's marvellous New England Triptych of 1956. Taking its cue from hymn tunes by Schuman's countryman William Billings (1746-1800), the work comprises two bustling tableaux framing a central meditation ('When Jesus wept') of exalted beauty and compassion. Next comes Charles Griffes's gorgeous The White Peacock - a transatlantic cousin, if you will, to Debussy's Prelude a l'apres-midi d'un faune. The first of Ives's Three Places in New England prompts my sole misgiving of any note: for all the fastidious refinement on show, Litton's direction remains oddly earthbound and short on atmosphere. Otherwise, all goes swimmingly, the giddy, increasingly hilarious din of the central 'Putnam's Camp' dashingly well conveyed.
No grumbles, either, about Litton's clean-limbed, purposeful way with Alan Hovhaness's Mysterious Mountain (his Second Symphony, composed in 1955 for Stokowski and the Houston Symphony, and first recorded by Reiner in Chicago three years later - RCA, 9/95). I've always had a soft spot for this serene, yet agreeably sturdy score - and so, too, does Litton by the sound of it. Lastly, there's the crowd-pleasing concert suite that Walter Piston fashioned from his 1938 ballet score, The Incredible Flutist. It's a delectably tuneful and witty confection, crammed with indelible invention (who could fail to be seduced by the languid charms of the 'Tango of the Merchant's Daughters' or 'Siciliana'?). Rest assured, Litton and his terrific band do Piston absolutely proud.
A final word about the recording. The glorious acoustic of Dallas's Eugene McDermott Hall lends an enticing glow to a sound picture of bewitching tonal naturalness and stunning range (bass-drum fanciers will have a field-day in both outer movements of the Schuman). A classy collection indeed.
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