SHOSTAKOVICH: SYMPHONY NO. 5. Lorin Maazel conducting...

SHOSTAKOVICH: SYMPHONY NO. 5. Lorin Maazel conducting the Cleveland Orchestra. Telarc Compact Disc CD 80067. This is one of Maazel’s best performances on CD in which the usually too-brilliant CD sound captures a warm, flowing performance with exceptional clarity. If you are not quite convinced by Leonard Bernstein’s large-scale romantic interpretation (CBS Masterworks) or Bernard Haitink’s stark version (London), then Maazel’s rather gentle, yet powerful, performance may be just the thing. This is neither severe nor over-romanticized Shostakovich. And nothing is left unexplored even when Maazel goes at a very fast clip in building to climax after climax.