Hard to believe performances as vibrant, soulful and involving as these have never previously made it onto CD (they were recorded in Moscow in October 1990). Pavel Kogan (son of virtuoso fiddler Leonid) moulds genuinely compelling, authentically tangy accounts of these two Rachmaninov masterworks, penetrating to the core of their homesick melancholy with often devastating candour.

Kogan is not afraid to take risks, and I particularly adore the way he teases out and caresses the Third Symphony’s achingly tender string cantilenas. From the violins’ memorably rapt and songful descending “sigh” barely a minute in, you instinctively know you’re in for a heart-tugging treat, and there are countless other enticements in an exceptionally well prepared reading which in its edge-of –seat spontaneity, characterful profile and yearning lyrical flow held me captive throughout.

A comparable emotional and intellectual charge courses through the Symphonic Dances. Kogan’s fired-up Moscow band again delivers the goods in another excitingly flexible ride, and although you may not agree with every daring interpretative ploy, the volatile thrust and full-throated ardour of the music-making are impossible to resist. The brass are inclined to blare within the rather hollow and over-reverberant acoustic, but the experienced production team of Joanna Nikrenz and Marc Aubort ensure that string timbre has ample warmth and that textures glow as they must in this repertoire. Among digital contenders, I’d definitely want Kogan’s incident-packed versions on my shelves alongside those of Ashkenazy (Decca) and Jansons (EMI) – and at super budget price, they’re an absolute steal. Can we now expect the other two Rachmaninov symphonies from this same partnership?

-- Andrew Achenbach, Gramophone