As our understanding of the cosmos expands, so too must performances of The Planets. At least that’s the logic of Sir Simon Rattle with his second recording of this celebrated seven-movement piece (which stops with Neptune). After an energized (and sometimes brawny) traversal of the solar system known to Holst, Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker press on with Colin Matthews’ “Pluto, The Renewer” and a host of contemporary pieces on similar themes—one of the best being Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho’s grandly alien-sounding “Asteroid 4179 - Toutatis.”
- Boston Pops Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, BBC Symphony Orchestra & Vienna Philharmonic
- Eugen Jochum & Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
- Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra & Willem Mengelberg
- Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra & Sir Georg Solti
- Sir Adrian Boult, London Philharmonic Orchestra & London Symphony Orchestra
- Leonard Bernstein & New York Philharmonic
- Mariss Jansons