I finished listening to this 8-LP box, except the box is gone, damaged by water that got into my basement. The LPs, which were pressed in Italy, are OK. Recorded 4/25-30/70 (5 & 9), 5/24-26/71 (6) & 9/10-18/72 (others), all in the Grosser Saal, Musikverein, Vienna. Producers: Dr. Hans Hirsch & Dr. Ellen Hickmann. Recording supervision: Wolfgang Lohse. Tonmeister: Günter Hermanns.
I exceeded my $1 limit for this one, maybe because I didn't have an LP on the Pye label, although this is a U.S. pressing. It's also QS Quad. Recorded 11/75, West Ham Central Mission, London. Producer: Tony Hodgson. Recording engineer/Quad remix: Ray Prickett. Mobile equipment: Bob Auger Associates. Robert (Bob) Auger was a leading free-lance engineer who began his career at Pye & recorded The Kinks' "You Really Got Me" before going on to make many classical recordings. Stokowski was 93 at the time of making this one.
Thank you, though just my weekly checking the forum trying to catch up on this thread. Enjoying life "offline" too much Quartetto Italiano are excellent, I enjoy them as well, no one sounds like them in these string quartets. Budapest Quartet's mono cycle has been the one I have been really in love with this past year and a half or so, just really nice old fashioned romanticism with a small chamber quality. I am really looking forward to hearing Ebene in the late quartets, I of course agree with their decision to have Grosse Fuge as the closing of Op. 130
The picture is of the complete set. And Harry did rave the 7th symphony stating “Can’t wait to hear what Kofman does with the Shosty 11th when it comes to that.". I don’t know if he was able to hear the 11th before his death. And I think this box set to be very important.
Ah, the age-old conundrum of the artist's vision versus what the paying public "wants". A common phenomenon in the pop world, the "one-hit wonder" results when an artist gives the public exactly what it wants, and then fails to deliver variations of exactly the same thing for at least the next five albums. 'The Planets" is, in fact, a stunning work (Dutoit's is my favorite!). But so is much of the rest of Holst's oevure. An enormous pity that a Philistine public can't take a few minutes to explore the many other excellent and rewarding works that Holst placed on offer.
Yes, indeed. Holst even mentioned that The Planets wasn’t even one of his favorite works. As I mentioned earlier, I love The Planets but it’s a great shame when a listener who obviously enjoyed the work doesn’t want to explore the composer’s music more in-depth. You hear a work like the Lyric Movement or The Mystic Trumpeter and think “Man, where have I been?”
I think MALP might stand for mono ALP - the regular stereo code being ALP 1745. The record was pressed by HMV New Zealand (and cleaned up and played beautifully ). Edit - actually didn't get that quite right. ALP 1745 was the UK mono release. Not sure why they needed to made it MALP in New Zealand . The stereo release is ASD 313 and appears to represent a separate and later recording (and the one reissued), despite the use of the same LP cover for the two releases. Anyway, the mono version is great!
The British labels do seem to "do right" by their countryman Holst, don't they? Chandos and Hyperion have both been exemplary here. I've always enjoyed Richard Hickox's recording of Savitri for Hyperion, in particular.
A very good series. It’s too bad Hickox didn’t live long enough to finish it. Hickox had already recorded a good bit of Holst on Chandos prior to that first volume. I like Andrew Davis okay, but he’s no Hickox, Bryden Thomson or Vernon Handley (three of the finest British conductors who recorded for Chandos). For anyone wanting to explore Holst’s oeuvre further beyond The Planets, the Warner Classics set The Collector’s Edition would do nicely and contains many great performances including the much acclaimed late 70s Boult recording of The Planets with the London Philharmonic.
I concur entirely on your opinion of Bryden Thomson and Vernon Handley, particularly in each of their readings of the symphonies of Arnold Bax (and both for Chandos!). I could happily go on here for hours on the merits of these, but will spare you; alas, I have to get up and go to work in the morning.
Interesting. I never could get into Bax like many listeners could and own a lot of recordings of his music, which I guess makes me sound like a hypocrite. What is it about Bax’s music that allures you or draws you in? Any favorite works in particular? I realize you’ve got to go to work, so get get back to me at your own leisure. Thread duty -
The stereo issue was ASD 313 & the mono was ALP 1745. Same recording for both, made 1/10-12 & 13/59 and 2/17/59, Abbey Road No.1 Studio, London. There was an earlier, mono-only recording made with the same orchestra 11/12-13/51 in the same studio and issued as CLP 1003. While I was looking for information I saw French issues with the FALP prefix, so different countries did use an extra letter prefix.
Nice. Thanks for that. I looked through the entries on discogs, but obviously didn't get it quite right.
Listening to "Legends Of St Nicholas - Medieval Chant and Polyphony" performed by Anonymous 4 on Harmonia Mundi.
A couple years ago, I paid a visit to St Nicholas's tomb located in Bari (Puglia) in the heel of Italy's boot. Because he is far more important a saint (aside from his Santa Claus alter ego) in Greece and Russia, the church was full of VERY devout Russians and Greeks. It was fascinating. By the way, according the the legend, the folks from Bari went to Greece and stole his "major" bones and buried them in Bari. The smaller bones were eventually stolen by Venetians, and so there is another 'tomb' in, or around, Venice! This guy really got around! Luckily, sometime in the mid-90s, I was lucky enough to be on the first row (comp tix!) to an Anonymous 4 concert in Austin. Quite lovely! I think they disbanded soon after, and I promise, I had nothing to do with it!
Listening to CD 39 from the "L'Oiseau Lyre - The Baroque Era" box. Pergolesi - Stabat Mater / Salve Regina performed by The Academy Of Ancient Music directed by Christopher Hogwood. Emma Kirkby (soprano) and James Bowman (countertenor)
Listening to "Unsuk Chin - Rocana / Violin Concerto" performed by the Orchestre Symphonique De Montreal directed by Kent Nagano on Analekta. Featuring Viviane Hagner (violin).
