How are these? The recordings were not included in the Silvestri box but they are in the Samson Francois box. I am very curious about these.
I received a couple of small box sets in the mail recently. Looking forward to starting my listening on Thanksgiving:
This is two disc as well, with the last four numbers (and Glazunov’s The Seasons) on the second disc. This Ashkenazy version has a reputation as being statlely/unhurried/too slow, depending on how kind the reviewers are - but I'm also wary of recordings like the quickfire Gergiev, where I suspect the tempos are driven by the financial incentive of fitting the whole thing on a single disc. Hmm, that page talks about UK PDOs of this period having a general gold/yellow appearance anyway, which I wasn't aware of - that might be all I'm seeing here, as the playing surface (including the very outside edge) looks fine. My old Fontana copy of Scott Walker's Scott 2 is in the early stages of bronzing, and I can see the nibbly-style effect around the outside edge - none of that here.
Some, yes. Some no. And if so, it is slight. Remember, a bronzed discs starts by becoming a yellow/light brown colour and gets darker as the bronzing develops. Usually, the bronzing develops from the outside of the disc and moves towards the centre with time. Often you get a kind of banding effect too. It's important to check your suspected discs from time to time to see if the bronzing becomes more prominent. I hope your disc stays healthy
Awesome! One of my favorite Sibelius symphony cycles. I bought the Japanese hybrid SACD issue of this set (a part of Tower Records ‘Definition Series’ in conjunction with Warner Classics) and it’s one of my most prized possessions (out of many of them), but it’s such a special set. The performances are top-drawer in every way imaginable. If you like Berglund’s Bournemouth cycle, you’ll probably want to supplement this set with more of his Sibelius from this particular period. There’s a 2-CD set of orchestral music (I actually was listening to it several pages ago) on EMI (it’s OOP, but you can probably find it cheaply second-hand --- try Discogs or eBay) and you’ll definitely want this Kullervo from him: You’ll also want to track this one down:
Thanks a bunch! I actually saw the Kullervo in my local Record Store (a week ago). I will go back and get it. I have that Violin Concerto recording featuring Ms. Ida Haendel and I love it! She plays with so much passion and soul.
Now playing… I bought my first CD player in the second half of the 80s. My main goal was to replace all my vinyl rock albums. But I also was reading CD Review (anyone remember that magazine?) and they really loved classical CDs. If you wanted to show off your new system at the time, a classical CD was probably going to be better than a rock album in many cases… at least compared to my favorite artists then. So I picked up a few classical CDs that they reviewed. One was by Canadian Brass. I don’t actually remember for sure which one it was, but it might have been A Canadian Brass Christmas. (With songs like Frosty The Snowman, I suppose it wasn’t strictly a “classical music” CD.) Hadn’t heard their name in years, but saw it last week and a bit of nostalgia grabbed me. Figured I should at least have one Canadian Brass CD in my library as a nod to them being one of the earliest CDs I bought. I got rid of my original CD a long time ago, and while it might have made sense to grab one of their Christmas CDs, I went with this Mozart CD instead which is more likely to be listened to throughout the year. Wish I could find all those CD Review issues online somewhere. Managed to find one for those who want a blast from the past:
Another pickup from yesterday: Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde. Ludwig / Wunderlich / Klemperer / New Philharmonia & Philharmoni Orchestras. EMI
I just gave the LP a second listen. I think the performances are good. Sound is OK, probably better in stereo on CD. By the way, my LP is mostly surface noise free after almost 60 years.
You’re welcome and please, please make sure that the Kullervo you’re going to get is with Berglund and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, because this a landmark recording. I believe this was also the world premiere of this work. So there’s the sense of occasion that something is special happening plus the thrill of discovery as Berglund guides the orchestra through this marvelous work.
Sibelius Symphony No. 3 in C major, Op. 52 New York Phil. Bernstein Next up: Nielsen Symphony No. 3 "Sinfonia Espansiva", Op. 27, FS 60 Royal Danish Orch. Bernstein
Listening to pianist Byron Janis perform Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.3, with Dorati / London Symphony. Mono LP from the Mercury Living Presence series, 1961. Byron Janis gives a strong performance that milks this thing for all it's worth, which is why I spin this record at least annually. Dorati's accompaniment is quite good, though at times I feel that perhaps a Russian conductor might bring a little more fire to some of the big moments. (I'm thinking about the Janis/ Kondrashin pairing in the 1st Concerto for Mercury.) Sounds great on my alternate Empire TT with a Denon DL-103R cart installed. I just have to remember to throw the "mono" preamp switch back to "stereo" when I'm done.
Nielsen Violin Concerto, Op. 33 Vilde Frang (violin) Danish National Symphony Orchestra Eivind Gullberg Jensen
Listening to CD 16 from "Marcelle Meyer - Ses Enregistrements 1925 - 1957" on EMI. Stravinsky - Trois Mouvements de Petrouchka / Ragtime / Piano Rag Music / Serenade / Sonate pour piano Espla - Sonata del Sur
Now Playing: Vivaldi - Concerti per mandolini; Concerti con molti strumenti - Fabio Biondi, Europa Galante (2002)
I haven't heard this but would love to. The Fischer-Dieskau Winterreise from the 80s with Alfred Brendel on Piano is one of my top-5 Classical recordings.
