LALO: Cello Concerto; SAINT-SAENS: Cello Concerto No. 2: Pieter Wispelwey, Flanders Symphony Orchestra

After their highly acclaimed recording of Britten's Cello Symphony, Pieter Wispelwey and the Flanders Symphony Orchestra conducted by Seikyo Kim turn to two romantic cello concertos whose neglect is hard to fathom. Edouard Lalo penned a variety of large scale orchestral works, including the famous Symphonie espagnole for violin, a piano concerto, and the Cello Concerto heard here. A strong work in the Germanic tradition, its comparative neglect in the concert hall is difficult to understand. The second Cello Concerto by Camille Saint-Saens, written in 1902, is totally overshadowed by his impressive and dazzling first concerto dating from 1872. The later work has all of the composer's flair for style, elegance and is possibly more challenging for the soloist than its A minor sibling.