Individually, conductor Gustavo Dudamel, his Simon Bolivar (formerly Youth) Orchestra and pianist Yuja Wang are deservedly some of the hottest young properties in classical music, and that alone will make their live recording of Rach 3 and Prokofiev 2 into a critical success among those hearing this music for the first time. But for all the undeniable talent of those involved, this is a very odd recording of Rachmaninov’s showstopper, strangely introverted and then showing off by turns, communicating as if by text message, with clarity and standard phrasing one moment, and then mod-speak hieroglyphics the next.

Forget the rip-your-heart-out-and-wear-it-on-your-sleeve Rachmaninov that has fuelled a thousand legends. By Dudamel’s own admission, this is chamber-style Rachmaninov and one can imagine smart young things calling it ‘ironic’, a handy catchphrase for art that is smart, savvy, and untroubled by the lessons learned through the trials and follies of human experience.

The Prokofiev works much better as it actually IS ironic, complicated and modernist and able to be performed successfully with emotional detachment. It’s terrific as a showpiece, but the outrageous outbursts of sound and fury (the end of the first movement for instance) still reveal only occasional glimpses of the depths below.