The Singapore Symphony Orchestra, which has been associated most recently on disc with its series of Rachmaninov symphonies coupled with concerted works in collaboration with Yevgeny Sudbin, here applies itself with notable sensibility, energy and colouristic finesse to some core Debussy. There is no shortage of this repertoire in the catalogue, and indeed only recently Hännsler released finely tuned Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra performances of Images and Prélude à L’après-midi d’un faune conducted by Heinz Holliger. Those were allied to some of Debussy’s works featuring solo wind instruments, whereas the Singapore orchestra under Lan Shui go for La mer, a work they also recorded seven years ago in the context of a CD called ‘Seascapes’ alongside other maritime pieces by Zhou Long, Frank Bridge and Glazunov.

Nevertheless, this new version fits snugly into an all-Debussy programme, revealing as it does a genuine feel for the music’s fluidity of pulse and shading together with its mix of mysterious mists and gusty surges. The atmosphere is well conjured up, the palette of instrumental colours aptly deployed. By the stopwatch this Prélude à L’après-midi d’un faune is fractionally faster than Holliger’s by only a matter of about 20 seconds but it feels slower: the languor here is not so much seductive as sleepy, and there are times in Images, too, where the clarity of definition in Holliger’s performance lends the music a more scintillating gleam and transparency of texture. However, there is plenty of character to these stylistically astute Singapore performances.