George Antheil’s belated representation on CD continues to grow. Although Ballet mécanique is the inevitable selling point here‚ the 1953 revision eschews many of the sonic and rhythmic excesses that give the work its infamy and‚ to be honest‚ its musical appeal. Spalding secures a zestful performance from the Philadelphia Virtuosi‚ less frenetic than the Ensemble Modern‚ with the interlocking ostinatos of pianos and percussion readily invoking Les noces in sound if not substance. Do seek out‚ if you can‚ Maurice Peress’ reconstruction of the 1926 original (MusicMasters‚ 4/94 – nla)‚ for a visceral impact like no other. The other works give a good overview of Antheil’s changing idiom over the greater part of his career. From 1948‚ the First Serenade might seem a continuation of his inter­war neo­classicism‚ yet the chromatic unease which permeates the brusque outer movements‚ and the plaintive solos and chill sul ponticelli of the Andante intimate deeper emotions. The Symphony of 1923 offers a statement of stylistic intent to rival Stravinsky’s Octet‚ though the astringent polytonal writing is more akin to Milhaud’s Chamber Symphonies. Nine years on‚ and the Concert finds the eclipsed composer pursuing understated yet intriguing directions. The succession of mini­ensembles‚ linked by a varied ritornello for the whole group‚ may have its basis in Stravinsky’s Symphonies of Wind Instruments‚ but Antheil’s piece is formally open­ended and emotionally anything but cathartic. Characterful and well­prepared performances‚ cleanly recorded‚ and informative notes from Joshua Cheek. Probably the best disc yet in Naxos’s American Classics series and‚ together with CPO’s emerging symphony cycle‚ confirmation that the self­styled ‘bad boy’ Antheil’s musical legacy is richer and more varied than has been suspected.