The symphony sounds to be more ‘the real thing’ than most recordings claiming to be live, judging from the moderate audience noise, minor slips in the violins’ pitching and inspiriting urgings from Delogu, some bringing genuine excitement (the first movement); others, excitability and loss of focus (the finale). As to the engineering: in the main, we have that familiar Dvorak Hall sound (in my view, a unique and very special acoustic space) and the orchestra are rather better laid out (and less toppy) than in some of Supraphon’s digital recordings. Trumpets are discreet, though that is more a case of playing styles and Delogu’s own preference for rounded rather than brilliant brass contributions. But matters can become briefly opaque, for example, the wind decorations of the strings’ theme in the Trio (which may be the conductor’s fault), and there is a damaging drop in level during the finale (perceived as a distancing).
Until this finale, the problems are outweighed by the pleasures, and they are, as you might expect, the Czechs’ typical airy, freewheeling, graceful and often sublime way with ‘man and nature’ music (Delogu’s association with Prague’s leading ensemble, the Czech PO, goes back over 20 years). The wind family vibrato remains intact (especially horns and oboes). And if the strings aren’t capable of top-flight ensembles’ full-toned gorgeousness or gravitas, they mainly play with spirit, good accentuation, and more than enough passion, particularly in the climax of the Romeo and Juliet love music (there is dignity here, as well). Perhaps the traditional wind-down for the love theme’s first appearance is a case of ‘too much too soon’, but the seductive Czech ‘soft-focus’ of muted strings and wind choir with the theme is hard to resist.'