BERLIOZ: “Symphonie Fantastique” (transcribed by Liszt and Petrov). Nikolai Petrov, piano. Art and Electronics/MCA Classics AED-10332.

The obvious question is: Why bother? Because the game is there to be played--and Petrov, using the Liszt transcription as a base, fights a heroic yet ultimately losing battle. Yet while the problems of transferring things like sustained strings and bizarre orchestral effects to the piano are often too much to overcome, there are some passages of the “Witches Sabbath” that are amazingly detailed and faithful. And there isn’t any doubt that Petrov sounds like a super-virtuoso here, playing with staggering clarity and conviction.

A NORDIC FESTIVAL: Music by Alfven, Grieg, Jarnefelt, Leifs, Nielsen and Sibelius. Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. Sony Classical SK 46668. Salonen and his brightly recorded Swedish orchestra breathe fire into some Scandinavian standards and offer a few surprises in the deal. Among Salonen’s best shots are exuberant renditions of Alfven’s irresistible “Midsommarvaka” and Grieg’s majestic “Sigurd Jorsalfar” suite--and Sibelius’ “Valse Triste” has a rare undercurrent of haunting menace. But there also is “Geysirs” by Iceland’s Jon Leifs, a jagged, seven-minute eruption of growling stillness and startling violence that stands out in stark contrast to the heroic gestures and genial tunes elsewhere.

PARRY: Symphony No. 1, “From Death to Life.” English Symphony Orchestra, conducted by William Boughton. Nimbus NI 5296. Though not a symphonic giant in an international context, Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (1848-1918) might have seemed like one against the meager English competition of his time. Parry’s luxuriant, tuneful First Symphony (a first recording) bows low to his Central European role models while offering fascinating pre-echoes of Elgar. “From Death to Life” is a lush, alternately resigned and cautiously optimistic reaction of an English gentleman to the onset of World War I. Both receive loving, polished performances and wide-screen sound.