From the available recorded evidence, it would seem that Czech conductor
Václav Talich's favorite non-Czech composer was Mozart. This 15th volume in Supraphon's 17-volume
Václav Talich edition is entirely devoted to Mozart: his Violin Concerto No. 4 and his Clarinet Concerto, plus four of the seven movements from his Gran Partita Serenade. In
Talich's firm but loving hands, all three works receive exemplary performances: warm in tone, rich in affection, and always musical. With the blended, colorful playing of the Czech Philharmonic,
Talich molds the music into lyrical shapes that reveal a more human Mozart than often heard in the cooler, more deliberately elegant performances that came into fashion after
Talich's time. With lean-toned violinist Jiri Novák and clarinetist
Vladimír Ríha, the concertos are competitive with the best on record in every way except sound quality, and Supraphon's engineers have worked miracles in refurbishing the aged 1954 and 1955 recordings into distant but clear shape. Anyone who has even intermittently followed the
Talich edition need not hesitate.