Bruno Walter's 1961 account of Symphony No. 1 was the loving reminiscence of a man in his mid-eighties, one who not only had a vivid memory of the composer, but also of the youthful emotions the music is about. It is an unabashedly Romantic reading of the score--passionate, grandly phrased, and almost Straussian in its warmth of sound, but with irresistible momentum as well. Walter's 1958 recording of the Resurrection Symphony remains among the best as well, notable for its generosity of spirit and insight, its breadth and scope, and the deeply committed and spiritually uplifting manner in which the conductor puts across the finale. In Sony's excellent 20-bit remasterings, the sound scarcely shows any age at all. --Ted Libbey