Dmitri Kitaenko’s new Fifth may be a rather less wayward creature than his Manfred (A/10) but that doesn’t necessarily make it any more enticing a proposition. Technically, this is an enormously impressive display: the Cologne orchestra responds with formidable discipline and sumptuous body of tone, while the eagle-eyed Kitaenko directs proceedings with an iron grip. It’s all too slick and forceful, however, and I find myself craving far greater vulnerability, compassion and tenderness. As soon as the decibels rise, the music takes on a hectoring quality that quickly becomes wearisome – in which respect Kitaenko’s ruthlessly macho finale strikes me as a particular turn-off. To paraphrase Richard Osborne’s comment from some years back about a certain high-profile Bruckner symphony recording (I’ve conveniently forgotten whose), it’s the kind of performance that sounds loud even after you’ve switched it off.

Erich Leinsdorf’s April 1969 Boston SO Fifth (a symphony he never recorded commercially) has already generated a bit of a stir in the classical blogosphere; now, having experienced this welcome restoration of WGBH TV’s original (colour) telecast, I can fully understand why. The standard of playing is little short of sensational and Leinsdorf’s actual interpretation, if not perhaps quite as sheerly lovable as Pierre Monteux’s with the same band from a decade earlier (RCA, 11/94 – nla), possesses prodigious energy, drama and sweep. Granted, the maestro’s disconcertingly exaggerated podium manner takes some getting used to, but his authority is never in doubt. The closing pages shoot off like a rocket, Leinsdorf’s audible exhortations merely intensifying the giddy rush of adrenalin. It’s also a rare treat to view a number of legendary BSO principals – among them the flautist Doriot Anthony Dwyer and timpanist Everett (‘Vic’) Firth – at the top of their game.

As for the fill-ups, Kitaenko’s inclusion of the overture to The Queen of Spades is little more than a makeweight. The ICA Classics DVD contains a sleek Egmont Overture from the same Symphony Hall concert as that of the symphony, as well as the first Minuet from Mozart’s Posthorn Serenade in a performance from January 1963 at Harvard University’s Sanders Theatre, this time with Leinsdorf sans baton and drawing some rich-toned, immaculately tailored playing from this aristocrat among orchestras. It should by now be abundantly clear as to which of these two releases will offer the greater lasting satisfaction.