Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra; Lutoslawksi: Concerto for Orchestra; Fanfare for Louisville.

Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra; Lutoslawksi: Concerto for Orchestra; Fan fare for Louisville. Paavo Jarvi, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Telarc CD-80618.

In the booklet note, maestro Paavo Jarvi says he is fond of coupling together similar pieces of music by different composers so that listeners can make comparisons and connections between them. In this case it's Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra, written in 1943, and Lutoslawski's Concerto for Orchestra, written a decade later in 1954. In addition, Telarc have included Lutoslawski's little Fan fare for Louisville for good measure.

If the coupling points out anything at all, it's how much better the Bartok work is. There is a reason why some pieces of music have been cherished classics, warhorses of the industry. Nevertheless, that's not to take anything away from Lutoslawski's Concerto. It is a bit shorter than Bartok's work and written in three movements rather than five; it gains something from its more concise approach. Both pieces of music use variations on folk tunes; it's just that Lutoslawki's Concerto doesn't have the number of memorable tunes nor the thematic or rhythmic intensity of Bartok's familiar work. Of course, both pieces contain the instrumental emphases that their titles suggest.

As far as Jarvi's interpretations are concerned, they are among the conductor's best work. They haven't quite got the forward thrust and pent-up tensions of my favorite Fritz Reiner recording (RCA and JVC), but they do command one's attention from beginning to end. I especially enjoyed the baleful atmosphere of Bartok's third movement, which the composer called a "lugubrious death song," and the relatively lively and joyful finale. The Telarc sound helps out, too, very natural, very realistic, and well staged, if a trifle more rounded than usual.

Addendum: For those folks with SACD players, the performances are also available of a hybrid SACD/CD disc (Telarc SACD-60618). The SACD version, which arrived after I'd written up these comments, sounds a trifle more vibrant to my ear than the regular CD issue, but the differences are subtle; I had no chance to listen in more than two channels.