Prokofiev: Symphony No 4; L'Enfant prodigue, review São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, cond Marin Alsop It is inspired programming to couple Prokofiev's Fourth Symphony with his ballet The Prodigal Son, since they have substantial links. The ballet was completed in 1929 on a commission from Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes; the symphony, begun immediately afterwards at the behest of the conductor Serge Koussevitzky, draws on some of the same material. It's fun to spot where the two coincide, but the differences are striking. Prokofiev was adamant, as he told Koussevitzky, that the connection "does not mean that the symphony was written from material from The Prodigal Son, or that The Prodigal Son was written from material from the symphony. In the symphony I had the opportunity to develop symphonically what the form of a ballet would not permit me to do. He goes on to cite the links between Beethoven's Prometheus ballet and Third Symphony as a precedent. The idea of combining the two works on disc is not new: in fact, Naxos already has one in its catalogue from the Ukrainian National Symphony Orchestra (8.553055). But these performances from Marin Alsop and her Brazilian orchestra are particularly arresting for their fusion of zest, rhythmic bite, strength of character and sure handling of Prokofiev's orchestral palette. Whether in the ballet or in the symphony (which is performed here in the later, amplified version of 1947), Alsop illuminates instrumental timbres that Prokofiev often mingles in unconventional alliances, and which give his music such an individual flavour. His brand of lyricism, too, is shaped smoothly and with supple, subtle inflections. Together with the energy the São Paulo orchestra has at its disposal, all these traits contribute to interpretations that radiate a genuine Prokofiev spirit.