The first item on this disc, though, is a horse of a very different color: Khachaturian's Flute Concerto, better known as his Violin Concerto, here in Rampal's popular transcription. While I ordinarily detest this sort of thing outside of Baroque music, the fact is that the piece sounds perfectly fine on the flute, being constructed simply as a series of alternating statements between the boisterous full orchestra and the simply accompanied soloist. In short, there isn't much (musically speaking) that the violin has to do that doesn't sound equally fine on the flute, especially when played as here without a trace of breathiness or hollow timbre. David Zinman's accompaniments fit Pahud like a hand in a glove, and the sound is extremely vivid and well balanced. The opening of the Khachaturian finale will blow you through the back wall of your listening room. An extraordinary disc, by any measure. [9/20/2003]