Review by Jonalogic November 24, 2010 (5 of 8 found this review helpful)
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I'm not sure why no-one has reviewed this, if only as a warning for those determined to obtain a recording of the Planets on SACD.
I will keep this simple. Avoid. Although - as expected from this label - the sound is excellent, the performance is, frankly, terrible.
Good news first- sound quality is near state-of-the-art: ambient, lush, detailed and transparent.
Unfortunately, it is clear from the very first bars of a limp, limp 'Mars' that all is not right, musically. Although the notes are all there, the performance is quite bereft of life, energy and passion. Quite simply, every movement plods. I guarantee you will not get to the end of this recording. It is, categorically, not worth the insane prices being posted.
The best 'Planets' on SACD remains the fine Susskind in stellar Elite/MoFi sound. Even if someone can secure rights to the great performance of Previn and the LSO on EMI, I suspect this will remain unsurpassed, sonically at least, on SACD. However, it's now damn difficult to get hold of.
IMHO, the Handley on Membran is not bad, with the usual provisos. Even that is now becoming tricky to find, though.
There are also plenty of fine 'golden age' analogue Planets, of course - not just the aforementioned Previn, but a brace of Boults, the VPO/Karajan; some have a penchant for the Mehta. However, it appears -regretfully - that none of these are likely to appear on SACD anytime soon.
So we wait for a good, modern performance. Suffice it to say, however, that this Chesky is NOT it.
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