This charming disc is less a potpourri of Viennese bonbons, more an act of devotion...Rubato, lilt and elegance reign supreme, and you’ll find yourself partying to the sound of imperial Vienna.

Not since Ferenc Fricsay and Carlos Kleiber have I heard better-prepared performances of Strauss faily perennials...Honeck twirls us through a winning programme with every solo beautifully pointed, every transition perfectly judged, while his orchestra responds as if he'd been conducting them for generations.

Under Honeck’s bristling baton, the Symphoniker (Vienna Symphony Orchestra) sound no less idiomatic than their Philharmoniker rivals in this uplifting music. Indeed, I prefer their transparency and zesty rhythmic attack...A joyous toe-tapper.