Joachim Raff (1822-1882) was a celebrated composer in his time, equally as famous as his older contemporaries Schumann and Liszt (he was the latter’s assistant in Weimar in the 1850s.) Raff wrote prolifically, composing eleven symphonies, yet his work fell out of favour and is rarely played today. This excellent release from Järvi and his Swiss orchestra – appropriately, since Raff’s family was Swiss – gives us a possible clue as to why his popularity did not outlast the century.

The Second Symphony surges forward in the manner of Schumann’s Rhenish, especially in Järvi’s vigorous performance. The lusty first movement is built on a fanfare figure, and the work is bracingly orchestrated with clarity and flair. Compared to his peers, however, Raff lacks a distinctive personality; his music is a public utterance, at odds with the Romantic zeitgeist. His harmony is less sophisticated than Schumann’s, and certain themes sound derivative of Mendelssohn, who had been dead 20 years.

Raff embraced programmatic music, and this side of the composer can be heard in his four Shakespearean Preludes. They pre-echo the tone poems of Richard Strauss, but again Strauss did it with more imagination and individuality. If you don’t expect more, this smartly performed and beautifully recorded disc will probably delight you.