MUSIC REVIEW : Russian Fare--as Only the Russians Can : In its Southern California debut, the mighty Leningrad Philharmonic brings timbre, temperament and instinct to a Prokofiev-Tchaikovsky program.

Lots of orchestras--especially the great American ones--play Russian music with technical brilliance and emotive fervor........

Bernstein, Ormandy, Solti, Giulini, Karajan, Abbado, even Mehta and Previn, have all left their estimable mark on second-hand Tchaikovsky. Most of these maestros have enjoyed distinctive successes with Prokofiev and Shostakovich too.

No orchestra, however, plays Russian music as a great Russian orchestra can when it is inspired by an enlightened Russian conductor. Blood is thicker than bravura.

Tradition can be imitated. It can’t be cloned.

The ultimate authenticity is a matter of historic conviction. It is a matter of authority. It is a matter of timbre and temperament. It probably is a matter of instinct.

Sunday afternoon at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, the mighty Leningrad Philharmonic made its Southern California debut, playing the first in an extensive series of Russian programs that will end at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Saturday. The concert was a revelation--the real, rare and wonderful thing.

The Leningrad ensemble proved, within the opening measures of Prokofiev’s “Lieutenant Kije” suite, that it need fear no comparison with our most virtuosic orchestras. The Soviet visitors play with splendid clarity and precision, and with virtuosity in depth throughout the ranks.

Even more important, they play with unified, disciplined passion. They play with brooding, throbbing, gut-thumping intensity.

Their expressive compulsion never seems excessive, however, and it never precludes precision. The Leningrad tone somehow remains mellow, even in the wildest climaxes. The line remains taut even in the most indulgent andantes.

Much of the credit belongs, of course, to Yuri Temirkanov, who inherited Leningrad leadership from the fabled Yevgeny Mravinsky in 1988. Temirkanov has been an admired post- perestroika guest at the Hollywood Bowl, where he has enjoyed varied successes with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Nothing he has done here prepared the listener, however, for the impact of his performances with his own orchestra.

These players obviously know their boss. They understand his wishes. They respond to his unique style, and respect his quirks.

The quirks are intriguing. Temirkanov favors an unorthodox seating plan--at least it is unorthodox in the West--that places the cellos and basses at his left, and moves the violas and brass to his right.

The conductor also favors a communicative system that wastes little public energy on such prosaic details as cues and beats. He seems more concerned with mood than with motion.

Because he needs no baton, both of his hands are free to sculpt phrases in the air. They are arching phrases, witty phrases, poignant phrases, elegant phrases, delicate phrases . . . .

In “Lieutenant Kije,” Temirkanov told whimsical, folksy tales of mockery, grotesquerie and mysterious lyricism. The violins shimmered brightly, the winds danced jauntily and the brass blared boldly.

In Tchaikovsky’s often-maligned “Manfred” Symphony, Temirkanov offered object lessons in the heroic art of the romantic narrative. He made brash use of vast dynamic scale and a broad color spectrum. At the same time, he illuminated all manner of unexpected nuances and even sustained tension amid what--in lesser hands--has often suggested sprawling indulgence.

The centerpiece of program was Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto, an introductory vehicle for the vaunted Dmitri Alexeyev. He didn’t bluster, and he refused to pound. He seemed to perform with dashing, dazzling, reckless bravado.

Seemed? One couldn’t be quite sure, because the Steinway at his disposal sounded oddly dull and distant.

The aggressively self-effacing Temirkanov provided spirited, ever-sympathetic support. He knows exactly when to follow, when to lead, and when to do nothing. He and his colleagues deserved their ovations.

The concert, which will be repeated in Los Angeles on Wednesday, was sponsored by the Orange County Philharmonic Society. It was dedicated to the memory of Leonard Bernstein.