The Naxos collection on 8553126 which includes this overture also has the two piano concertos as well as the Age of Gold Ballet suite with the New Zealand SO under the baton of Christopher Lyndon-Gee. There is also an interesting collection of Shostakovich pieces on the Sony Collection SBK62642. This includes a 1959 performance of the First Symphony from Ormandy recorded under the composer's watchful eyes, together with a varied selection of smaller pieces conducted by Kostelanetz. A Penguin rosette winner no less! Chandos have recorded the overture and it is one of the makeweights on their recording of the 9th Symphony ( CHAN 8587).
There is a recording on Naxos 8550153 where Nishizaki also includes the Mendelssohn concerto. Also from Naxos is a vintage performance dating from 1937 by Jascha Heifetz under Sir John Barbirolli on 8110938; a coupling with the Sibelius Concerto and the Wieniawski No2. At mid price there is an excellent account from Maxim Vengerov on Elatus 09027467432 with the BPO under Abbado. At full price the DG recording 471 4282 has the concerto played by David Garrett with the rarely recorded Conus concerto as a coupling.
At budget price the Naxos recording from the Philharmonia under Batiz on 8550726 also includes the Tsar Saltan suite. In the mid price range the 1957 EMI recording conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham is still highly regarded. However a newcomer to the catalogue is the thrilling Philips recording with Valery Gergiev conducting the Kirov Orchestra on 470 8402. This recording ( also available on SACD) seems destined to be a clear first choice for years to come.
Naxos have a collection of Sibelius tone poems on 8555299 played by the Iceland SO under Sakari. In the mid price range the Chandos collection CHAN 6508 with Sir Alexander Gibson finds the RSNO in fine fettle. At the full price level we can call on Sakari Oramo and the CBSO in a collection which includes the 5th Symphony, the Karelia Suite and The Bard on Teldec 8573858222. It comes as no surprise to learn that the eminent Sibelius conductor Osmo Vanska has included Pohjola's Daughter on a BIS collection BISCD1225 recorded with the Lahti SO - eight of the tone poems.
The Naxos collection has these two of the Four Sacred Pieces as a fill up to the Requiem on a 2CD set; the forces are the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra and Chorus under Morandi on 8550944/5. There is a mid priced CD from Sony Classics with Giulini conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in the Four Sacred Pieces coupled with the Vivaldi Credo on SMK89619. Also at mid price is Giulini's EMI recording with the Requiem in the Great Recordings of the Century series on 5675602. At full price, again in a coupling with the Requiem, is the period instrument recording on Philips 442 1422 with the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner. This is a dramatic recording characterised by a wide dynamic range.
There are three recordings available on Naxos, each with its own merits. There is a modern recording (855 0281) from the BRT Philharmonic (Brussels) under Rahbari which also includes the Tragic and the Academic Festival Overtures. In the Naxos Historical series there is Mengelberg conducting the Concertgebouw in Symphonies 2 and 4 on 8110158. Also of interest is a four handed piano version from Silke-Thora Matthies and Christian Koehn on 8554117. Moving to mid price brings into contention DG's 4742632, a collection of the 4 symphonies from Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic into contention. These recordings, some of Karajan's finest, date from the 1970's.