Hi-Res Downloads

96kHz/24-bit FLAC, BIS-2124 (supplied by www.eclassical.com)

The Fifth Symphony has fared well on records, right back to the 1946 Koussevitsky/RCA and particularly with American orchestras. Prokofiev’s 1915 Diaghilev ballet commission for Ala et Lolli, a mythological Scythian concoction, met with rejection: the composer ‘did not understand a thing about dance’, said Balanchine. So the score yielded the dissonant four-movement Suite here. Long regarded as a riposte to Stravinsky’s La Sacre it even sounds quite jolly in Litton’s hands in parts, rather like a piece of film music, although the first track is suitably wild. (The CSO/Abbado is the benchmark: DG 447 4192.) The symphony is weighty, entirely naturally paced and full of colourful detail. The ‘slow motion’ and acceleration back to tempo in the Allegro marcato is really impressive, and the production has a wide soundstage with clear, transparent inner balances. CB

Sound Quality: 92%

Hi-Fi News Lab Report

Recorded at 96kHz/24-bit in 2014 this file’s metadata may erroneously state ‘1970’ but at least the media itself is the ‘real deal’ and not a downsample from BIS’s SACD. Good dynamic range and full use of the ~45kHz bandwidth. PM