The outstanding performance in this collection of concertante cello works is of Bloch’s Schelomo, which comes as a rich and satisfying climax. Not since the classic first recording – Emanuel Feuermann with Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra (now on Biddulph, 12/91) – do I remember a performance so concentrated and powerful. The solo rhapsodising suits Truls Mørk’s expressive style perfectly, and Paavo Järvi draws from the French Radio Philharmonic a performance of wonderful weight and clarity. The climax of the first big tutti (track 5, 7’00”) has a thrust that makes Bernstein’s accompaniment for Rostropovich seem relatively lightweight. So, too, with the tutti towards the end, with Mørk pressing ahead in the lead-up to it. Though Rostropovich sounds weightier, Mørk’s concentration and the clarity of sound heighten the impact of his playing.

There is similar concentration in the rhapsodic Kol nidrei of Bruch, with Mørk’s pianissimo playing magically refined. The reading of the Schumann, though comparably warm, is more controversial; his flexible phrasing leads him to vary the beat far more than either Rostropovich or Jacqueline du Pré, among the most expressive soloists of all yet who keep far steadier tempi. Mørk’s freedom goes with a sense of fantasy, and in the brisk finale, with rhythms lightly sprung, there is less room for him to pull the tempo around.

In Schelomo, Järvi draws playing of admirable clarity from the orchestra, but in the Schumann the sound is congested at times and the playing less incisive. Though I prefer the alternative versions, this is still compelling, well-coupled with outstanding performances of the Bloch and Bruch.