Slovak Radio SO, Slovak PO/Ondrej Lenard (r1989)

Brian: Symphony No 1 (Gothic) Naxos 8.557418-19 (2 CDs)***

Has the day finally come for Havergal Brian (1876-1972)? The recent BBC Proms performance of the neglected English composer's Gothic Symphony(1927), the first in more than 30 years, was the first Prom to sell out in 2011. And although a project to record all of his symphonies floundered because of low sales, Naxos are proudly reissuing the Gothic's only commercial recording, first released in 1990, as a "21st Anniversary Limited Edition". The Gothic,completed in 1927, is awe-inspiring in scale. It plays for nearly two hours, calls for four vocal soloists, multiple choruses and brass bands, and its opening three orchestral movements are effectively a prelude to a 70-minute-plus setting of the Te Deum. It's a grandiose, profligate and prolix undertaking that just won't go away. It demands your attention, at least once. See url.ie/af6o