PUCCINI // Madame Butterfly // Herbert von Karajan DECCA (P) 1974 // probably a first pressing, TELDEC (Telefunken-Decca) West Germany // 3 LPs in a box The booklet on this German copy is very thin and does not contain a libretto. Thankfully, I found one in a shop nearby for a few pennies. It neatly fits in the box.
Thanks! Yes, actually most of them look and sound mint, with a few exceptions when it comes to the covers
TELEMANN // Wind Concertos // Camerata Bern ARCHIV PRODUKTION (P) 1981 // first West German pressing, gatefold sleeve
The inscription does make it a humorous conversation piece! Personally, I think Jochum's Bruckner cycle is one of the better ones on record. Sonics are really great, too. And for free?--what a steal!
Closing off with two new promotional Deutsche Grammophon LPs to add to the growing collection of DG memorabilia: HANDEL · BEETHOVEN // Great Masters of the Baroque and Classical Era DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON/ARCHIV PRODUKTION (P) 1966 // STEREO PROMO LP from July 1966, promo stamp on label // lacquers cut April-May, 1966 This one is the first Archiv/DG hybrid label record I've seen. It has an Archiv silver label on side A, and a DG “tulip” label on side B. It's a promo LP containing a booklet with advertisements and packshots of Archiv and DG's subscription boxsets for the Holiday Season of 1966. These are Karajan's BEETHOVEN Missa solemnis, Kempff's Complete BEETHOVEN Sonata cycle, Wenzinger's HANDEL Organ Concerti box, and Karl Böhm WAGNER Tristan und Isolde classic recording. A pre-order form is included. Anyone who would preoder until February, 1967 could get these expensive sets for about 30% off. If one missed the preoder period, one would have to buy these for regular prices at 25 DM per disc.
I have the CD version in a 5-CD box ... Weren't these recordings all made in the 1960's before he turned full-time to conducting?
This afternoon I've been playing these Schumann Violin Sontas -- Gidon Kremer and Martha Argerich. Enjoyed it so much, I played it a second time. Honestly, I don't think Martha has ever made a bad, or even mediocre, recording. DG, German, 1986. Recorded in the Le Chaux de Fonds Music Hall, Salle de Musique (Switzerland), in November 1985.
Kind of the same thing for 1968, but this record could not be bought by consumers, but it was manufactured for record store owners. This time the boxsets are: Karl Richter's BACH Brandenburg Concertos, Böhm's MOZART Le Nozze di Figaro, Charles Münch's BERLIOZ Requiem, Karajan's WAGNER Das Rheingold, a huge 15-LP box of BRAHMS Chamber Works, and a 6-LP AVANT-GARDE box. A booklet is enclosed aimed at record store owners. It shows the kinds of display items one could order to advertise the coming boxsets:
HANDEL · BEETHOVEN // Great Masters of the Baroque and Classical Era DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON/ARCHIV PRODUKTION (P) 1966 // STEREO PROMO LP from July 1966, promo stamp on label // lacquers cut April-May, 1966. Actually there was a time when I actually own that lp and loved it.
Recorded 1967-1970. He actually continued to record well into the late '70s before becoming a conductor.
It's a compilation of recording sessions held between May 1967 and November 1970. I know that Eschenbach was still performing on the piano in the early '70s, as that is the time period when I saw him in concert.
He also switched label, as I have the following EMI boxes and LP... I also believe he conducted from the piano for Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21.
On a rainy day (its not supposed to rain in summer here!)... Now playing on Phillips Schumann* - Beaux Arts Trio With Samuel Rhodes, Dolf Bettelheim - Piano Quartet, Op. 47 / Piano Quintet, Op. 44
The late W German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt was a very talented man. I need to check out this Mozart recording on CD. I have owned the following Bach CD with Helmut Schmidt for years ...
Just to add a bit to this... 1961 seems to have been the pivotal year, at least for Columbia. I have an early 1961 Columbia tape catalog that still shows 1/2 track (they refer to it as "2-track") tapes still dominant. Many, if not most, of their tapes were only available in 1/2-track. Even the Classical "warhorse" titles. If you wanted a tape of Stravinsky's "Firebird," or Ravel's "Bolero," or Tchaikovky's "Romeo & Juliet" or "Pathetique Symphony (No.6)," or Sibelius' "Symphony No.2," or Respighi's "Pines/Fountains of Rome," or Mendelssohn's "A Midsummer Night's Dream"--just to name a few--your only option from Columbia was 1/2-track tape. Most 1/4-track tapes at that point were available in 1/2-track as well, but a few 1/4-track-only tapes were beginning to emerge. It must have been a nightmare for retailers to keep straight.
I think there were very few open-reel decks that could switch between 2-track and 4-track. Perhaps the tape head assembly could be swapped?
If you select tracks 1-4 on a four track machine it will play a twin track monaural tape although it uses less of the tape to do so. You cannot play a four track tape on a twin, ever.
The Dutch label's name is Philips (pronounced Phee-lips); people keep misspelling the name. The American label's name was Phillips, founded by Sam Phillips, who also founded Sun Records and first recorded Elvis Presley.
Still raining, still in pajamas at 1pm. NP Les Sylphides orch by Roy Douglas. Peter Maag/PCO on London. Spelling seems correct so on to a poorly lit photo!
