JAMES CONLON, CONDUCTOR, KRISTINE JEPSON, MEZZO-SOPRANO, DONNIE RAY ALBERT, BARITONE, MICHAEL CHERTOCK, ORGAN, CINCINNATI MAY FESTIVAL CHORUS AND THE CINCINNATI SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA; Franz Liszt: "St. Stanislaus" (Telarc) *** 1/2

PAAVO JARVI, CONDUCTOR, THE CINCINNATI SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA; Music of Ravel (Telarc) *** 1/2

Leon Botstein is a meticulous conductor, yet one whose attention to detail isn't overshadowed by his innate musicality. Consequently, his performances are fabulously vibrant. And the recordings he's made for Telarc attest to his perceptive, intelligent and dynamic interpretations.

Botstein's collaboration with the London Symphony Orchestra on this recording of Liszt's "Dante Symphony" and the tone poem "Tasso" is nothing less than superlative. The orchestra (and the London Oratory School Schola in the "Dante Symphony") responds almost intuitively to his direction, and the result is performances of the highest order.

The "Dante Symphony" is one such work. It's imaginatively written and rich in orchestral colors. It's a wonderfully descriptive piece that presents a sensitive musical portrayal of Dante's "Divine Comedy." In Botstein's stirring interpretation, the work is wonderfully alive and compellingly vivid.

The same can be said for "Tasso." This descriptive work is rich in emotional and expressive content, and Botstein captures the drama of the music with his insightful interpretation.

• The music for Liszt's oratorio "St. Stanislaus," unlike the "Dante Symphony" and "Tasso," is overwhelmingly serious and pious but strikingly potent. The work is much like Wagner's "Parsifal" in spiritual content and mirrors Liszt's religious convictions, which were increasingly of importance in his later life. It's an intense work dealing with the martyrdom in 1079 of Poland's patron saint.

Liszt only managed to complete the first and last scenes out of the projected four for his oratorio, sending the final scene to his publisher only weeks before his death in 1886.