READER CHOICE

Steve Shults, Atlanta, GA, US

I’ve been delightfully surprised by Simon Rattle’s recording of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring with the Berlin Philharmonic. Rattle’s first recording with the National Youth Orchestra was pretty good but it seemed to be a work in progress. His second recording with the

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was hampered by his obsession for bringing out every ounce of detail so that it sounds too calculated and fussy. In this recording with Berlin, however, he seems to have grown into the work and now seems to be willing to take more chances.