A lot of the qualities that you want in a performance of The Rite are here: crisp detailing, precise articulation, attentive care that everything which should be audible actually is. There are a couple of slightly rarer qualities too, very welcome after some ruthless, speed-record-breaking accounts: a recognition of how much of the score is lyrical (an expressive, almost luxuriantly twining introduction to Part 1) and of the solemnity implicit in the first noun of its title: there is an awed stillness to the ''Adoration of the Earth'' and a real sense of mystery to the ''Ritual Action of the Ancestors''. A performance of individual character, in short, if a touch lacking in the sheer force and brutally propulsive elan that are also desirable: the faster pages lack a volt or two of electricity; loving legato phrasing robs the introduction to Part 2 of suspense.
Jeu de cartes, too, is a fundamentally lyrical reading, though, by no means lacking in glitter. There is a charming balletic grace to the variations of the second 'deal' and a good responsiveness throughout to Stravinsky's quite frequently subdued dynamic markings. Pungency and bite, however, are a little less in evidence, so the wit of this delectable score is a bit understated. The playing, however, is accomplished, the recording clean (a touch of reverberance apart) and the price very low. Not for the perfectionist seeking the very best performances available, but useful for the hard-up collector or for someone nervously wanting to give Stravinsky a try.'