SAINT-SAENS: PIANO CONCERTOS NOS. 2 AND 4....

SAINT-SAENS: PIANO CONCERTOS NOS. 2 AND 4. Jean-Philippe Collard, piano, Royal Philharmonic, Andre Previn, conductor. EMI CEC 7 47816 2 (compact disc). They huff and they puff, but Collard and Previn fail to blow much life into these bombastic showpieces. In all fairness, Saint-Saens’ piano concertos--he wrote five--are not notable for their substance: like souffles, they deflate easily. The more interesting Second inspires Collard to a fluent, flowing, almost ethereal reading. He and Previn extend little help to the more needy Fourth, however, which emerges square, prolix and repetitive, even in this velvety sound.