As always, Goetzel's orchestra buckles down with a boisterous energy that disarms criticism - even when the work is Sheherazade.

A terrific recording … Goetzel paces the work extremely convincingly … For daring, exotic colour, this is the most beguiling Sheherazade to have entertained me for some time.

If you doubted the need for another recording of Rimsky-Korsakov's oriental spectacular, this disc should change your mind. The Istanbul team's playing has something of the gutsiness of the old Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra recordings under Loris Tjeknavoria , but with a greater sophistication of orchestral colour and a firm guiding hand from principal conductor Sascha Goetze! You'l l be gripped from the first resonant trombone proclamation of the blood thirsty Sultan Shahriar right through to the final victory of his resourceful Sheherazade, leader Pelin Halkaci Akin superlative to the last. He's even accompanied in the Sultana's recitatives not by the usual harp, but by a quanun, an oriental lute , played by the consummate Hakan Gungor, who slips in two pertinent improvisation af ter the first and third movements. The solos in 'The Tales of the Kalendar Prince' are characterful too, crowned by a magical first flautist. And the articulation of the finale's whirl - one of the greatest symphonic movements of its kind­ would be impressive even from one of the world's accepted top orchestras.

The interludes work beautifully as palate-cleansers and serve to throw the music which surrounds them into sharper relief...The Borusan forces offer some of the most vital, vivid orchestral playing I’ve heard in a long time, whether throwing new light on an established warhorse or introducing us to relative rarities – I urge you to give them a whirl.