Dvořák’s Symphony No. 6 pays tribute both to his mentor Brahms and to the rich folk music of his Bohemian homeland. The most popular of all Dvořák’s works, Symphony No. 9 ‘From the New World’, makes an immediate appeal by virtue of a seemingly inexhaustible flow of melody and sparkling orchestration. ‘New orchestra, New World, and a terrific reading of a firm favourite’ (Gramophone on Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9)

Again, the performances and sonics cannot be faulted on either symphony, and partly since I hadn’t heard the New World Symphony for some time, I found it extremely fresh-sounding and enjoyable, which I hadn’t expected frankly. The Sixth holds a strong influence of Dvořák’s mentor Johannes Brahms, but it also includes the folk influences of his Bohemian homeland in a similar way that Brahms uses references to gypsy music. It has a lovely slow movement in B Flat, and for the lively Scherzo Dvořák uses a Czech peasant dance—contrasting effectively with the more pastorale Trio section. The Brahms influence sounds especially strong in the rich theme and orchestration of the finale and the work ends in a most positive and triumphant mood.
The New World Symphony hardly needs further explanation. This is one of its better interpretations to my ears, though I didn’t compare it to any others. Also has raised the Baltimore Symphony to a very high standard, and the lossless Blu-ray ray audio captures it with much better fidelity than the lossy codecs to which standard DVDs are limited. The Sixth was recorded at 88.2K and the Ninth at 96K, both with 24-bit word length. I’ve read that some audiophiles claim they can hear subtle degradations in so-called lossless formats that are not audible in straight, say, 96K/24bit PCM. I’m afraid I can’t. One non-sonic advantage of audio-only Blu-ray would be that this pairing of the two symphonies runs seven and one-half minutes over the 80-minute limit of SACDs. Of course 96K/24bit DVDs would offer the same extended length, but only in two channels. --John Sunier, Audiophile Audition, February 2011


Tracklist :
Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60 45:39
1 Allegro non tanto 16:07
2 Adagio 11:23
3 Scherzo: Furiant: Presto 8:01
4 Finale: Allegro con spirito 10:07

Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, ‘From the New World’ 41:49
5 Adagio – Allegro molto 11:46
6 Largo 11:56
7 Molto vivace 7:08
8 Allegro con fuoco 10:57