Bernstein: Symphonies Nos 1-3 – Prelude, Fugue & Riffs

Leonard Bernstein’s groundbreaking musicals usually take centre stage, but conductor Antonio Pappano puts the case for the symphonies with performances of energy, crunch and extraordinary skill. Each of the three shows the American composer at the forefront of 20th-century orchestral music. Bernstein’s most substantial symphony, No. 2: The Age of Anxiety, a piano concerto in all but name, embodies a range of European and American styles with unerring flair and drama. Dedicated to the memory of J.F.K., No. 3: Kaddish, in contrast, is angular, angry, searching, and shines a light on Bernstein’s crises of faith. As something of a musical sorbet, the jazzy, unstoppable Prelude, Fugue and Riffs lets Bernstein loose on Broadway once again.