Composers: Prokofiev
Compositions: Lieutenant Kijé Suite, Alexander Nevsky
Performers: Utah Symphony Orchestra, University of Utah Chorus/Thierry Fischer
Catalogue Number: Reference Recordings 7355 ACD

I wonder how many readers remember the Vanguard recordings made by this orchestra with their long-time maestro, Maurice Abravanel, whose other claim to fame was that Otto Klemperer, during one of his notorious manic phases, once eloped (briefly), with his wife. Well, after an interminable absence from the catalogue, they’re back – with a vengeance, if this release is anything to go by. And what a witty juxtaposition: Russia’s great medieval nationalist epic contrasted with a cheeky satire on...