Duncan Gifford - Saint-Saëns, D’Indy, Franck: Music For Piano And Orchestra (2004/2020)

On this disc of French Romantic works for piano and orchestra, Australian pianist Duncan Gifford proves himself a world-class talent with a brilliant tone, stupendous technique, and charismatic style. In Saint-Saëns' "Egyptian" Concerto, Gifford produces seemingly effortless cascades of arpeggios. D'Indy's Symphonie sur un chant montagnard Français allows him to dazzle with an apparently inexhaustible stream of sixty-fourth notes and wave upon wave of highly spiced harmonies scent Franck's Les Djinns. Unfortunately, the playing of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Sebastian Lang-Lessing is less than world-class. The Tasmanian musicians' technique is sorely tried in the unusual repertoire, and only its professionalism holds things together in the stormier passages on Les Djinns. Still, the opportunity to hear a first-rate pianist is not to be missed, and having three once-popular but now rarely performed works on one program offers added interest. It should be noted that ABC Classics' digital sound is gray, boxy, and unattractive.