Well, Eugen d'Albert was born in Glasgow, so I suppose he could be described as Scotch (yes, I know, "Scottish" is now the acceptable term)
Thanks--and sorry about the link. Don't know what happened there, but this one should work: [TNT-Audio Vintage column] On an Overgrown Pathé »
Oh, I know, I just wish the sound was a little better. By the time stereo came around, his playing had deteriorated. He certainly played well in the mid-50s, though.
As you probably know he suffered a stroke in 1956, which paralyzed his right arm; he never played again.
I have those Testament CDs too. In every case that I compared (Gilels, Solomon, etc), the Testament CDs had better sound than the EMIs.
Elgar and Lutoslawski might not seem like obvious recording companions, but both are very well played and recorded.
I own these little wonders on CD with Brendel and Zimerman.....but I found this on vinyl this summer and it's right there very close second to the aforementioned. On the TT.... Maestro Kempff
To end the day: R. Strauss, waltzes from Der Rosenkavalier. Bruno Walter leading the Berlin Philharmonic from 1930, a two-sided Columbia "royal blue" 78. Not usually my favorite music, but played this way it has a charm and lilt that are most ingratiating. Playback proved best with the standard Shure conical 78 RPM stylus; my various truncated ellipticals all blasted to a greater or lesser extent on peaks. As usual when playing 78s, the "right" stylus is the one that gives you the best sound, theoretical considerations notwithstanding.
Saturday, I walked into my local record store to find a darn NM copy of "The Royal Ballet - Gala Performances" sitting on a shelf. How I wish I could tell you it was the stereo version, but it was not. Mono original from the Indianapolis pressing plant with 3S, 1S,1S,1S stampers. Vinyl in quiet NM condition. Well, my friends, even in mono, the sound is to die for. Wow. Honestly, when I bought it for a whopping $20, I was thinking of resale. But after listening to it, I love the music, AND THE SOUND. Warm with depth and clarity, even in the mono state. $20 well spent. Now I want to hear the stereo from 1s original pressings. Yeah, I know, good luck finding that. I also picked up a NM Living Stereo of this for $20!
Sublime to the Ridiculous Dept.: R. Strauss and B. Walter may have gently tucked me in, but this morning the clock radio, tuned to our local "classical" NPR FM affiliate, blasted me from bed with some brass quintet blooping out "The Twelve Days of Christmas."
Now playing: Edvard Grieg – Piano Concerto in A minor, Op.16 Robert Schuman – Piano Concerto in A minor, Op.54 — Stephen Bishop Kovacevich (piano) – BBC Symphony Orchestra – Sir Colin Davis (Philips)
Good morning and happy start of the week everyone. Here we are in deep freeze for the rest of this week and beyond. Temperatures of - 16 C to - 20 C (without the windchill factor) for a high! That's - 4 F according to my conversion website. Brrrrrrrrrrrr. YUCK!!! Maybe this on the TT will put me in a better mood.
Sonata and Partita No.1. Fantastic playing and sound, but the mics are close enough to pick up a lot of breath sounds.
I haven't heard this one, but I like Abbado's recording of Mahler's 4th from his second Mahler cycle, featuring Renée Fleming.
Since Mozart died 225 years ago today, disc 29 from the new box set for me. 2 piano quartets and a flute quartet, really nice!
Thanks for reminding us! I will definitely spin some Mozart later tonight, when I get back from work.
Working and streaming... If you'd told me a few months ago that I liked opera, I'd have laughed and cranked up the heavy metal to drown you out. But The Marriage of Figaro got me hooked a couple months back...
Lucian Ban & John Hébert – Enesco Re-Imagined (Sunnyside 1259) — With Ralph Alessi: trumpet; Tony Malaby: tenor saxophone; Mat Maneri: viola; Albrecht Maurer: violin: Lucian Ban: piano and re- orchestrations; John Hébert: bass and re-orchestrations; Gerald Cleaver: drums; Badal Roy: tabla, percussion; Recorded live at the 2009 George Enesco Interational Festival, Bucharest, Romania. Works: 1 Aria Et Scherzino For Violin, Viola, Cello, Bass And Piano (1909) - Aria 6:37 2 Octet For Strings Op. 7 (1900) - 1st Movemente, Très Modéré 14:51 Sonata No. 3 For Violin & Piano Op. 25 (1926) In The Romanian Folk Character 3 1st Movement, Malincolico 9:07 4 2nd Movement, Misterioso 10:45 - 5 Orchestral Suite No. 1 Op. 9 (1903) Prélude À L'unisson 8:55 6 Piano Suite No. 1 Op. 3 (1893) In The Ancient Style - Adagio - Voice – George Enescu (voice recorded 1951) 7:10 7 Symphony No. 4 (Unfinished) (1934) - 2nd Movement, Marziale 13:59 I don't know the works well enough to know how much is retained from the original compositions, but it's an enjoyable listen in any case.
Since someone mentioned today December 5th it's Mozart's 225 death anniversary - and if you want to honor this great composer and experience a great Zauberfloete ( Magic Flute) .....this is in my opinion still the best recording of it. I am a huge opera lover since I was an embryo.....I can gladly give you recommendations if you want.
Good timing -- I'm just about to drive for a bit, so I'm downloading this to listen to on the way. Thank you! (I'll be checking back for more recommendations later).
