It is surprising that this coupling of the First and Third Concertos of Bruch is so rare‚ with no rival currently available. The coupling is not just apt but generous too‚ with the ever­popular No 1 in G minor set against the far more ambitious No 3‚ which vies in scale with the concertos of Beethoven and Brahms. James Ehnes‚ brilliant young Canadian virtuoso from Manitoba‚ winner of prizes both in Canada and the United States‚ is an impressive soloist with an exceptionally pure‚ sweet tone above the stave – important when so much of the solo writing lies up there. In the G minor Concerto he is deeply reflective‚ treating it as far more than a virtuoso vehicle. Not that he lacks anything in brilliance‚ with the many double­stopped passages exceptionally clean and incisive. In the bigger challenge of the Third Concerto he is equally at home‚ displaying the same qualities as in No 1‚ alternately reflective and passionate in the first two movements‚ sparkling in the finale with its folk­like flavours‚ half­Spanish rather than Hungarian. Where the performances fall short of the finest versions is not so much in the playing of the soloist‚ as – surprisingly when one remembers the dozens of glorious Montreal recordings from Decca – in the playing and recording of the Montreal Symphony under Dutoit. I am the more puzzled at the relative dullness both of the sound and even of the performances‚ when I see that the same venue has been used as with Decca‚ with even one of the former Decca engineers‚ John Dunkerley‚ in the team. The comparison with Hickox and the LSO on Lydia Mordkovitch’s Chandos version of No 3 is instructive. There the expressive rubato of both soloist and orchestra is consistently warmer and freer‚ with recording that gives the necessary glow to Bruch’s orchestration‚ as well as extra weight. In the new version the reflective phrases of the soloist come near to stagnating at times‚ not quite spontaneous­sounding. That said‚ these are still enjoyable performances‚ principally for the playing of the soloist. He is now due to record a companion disc for CBC with the Second Violin Concerto in a coupling with the Scottish Fantasy.