ArkivMusic’s new reissue series makes available again select items from the Everest catalog, of which this Copland disc is of particular interest. Aaron Copland’s rather straightforward conducting effectively communicates the grand spirit of the Third Symphony, even if it doesn’t highlight the music’s tension and drama the way Leonard Bernstein did in his two recordings. The London Symphony musicians play with more earnestness than finesse–even so, they cannot match the chutzpah and brilliance of the New York Philharmonic for Bernstein.
Billy the Kid comes off better under Copland’s direct manner, with its consistently forward pulse. However, his rather stiff rhythmic sense acts as a drag on some of the music’s more animated dance passages. A big plus for Copland’s rendition is the powerful finale, where the usually inaudible harp glissandos sound with stunning effect. The recorded sound is pretty decent for 1958-59 (unless you consider RCA’s contemporaneous Appalachian Spring recording, with Copland leading the Boston Symphony in still-amazingly life-like sound), with Billy the Kid transferred at a higher level than the Symphony. The only drawback is the weak bottom end, which makes the bass drum sound like somebody beating a cardboard box. Nonetheless, this remains an important document of America’s greatest composer interpreting some of his finest work. If you missed it before, now’s your chance.
