I have now listened to each performance several times and your work is simply, breathtakingly superb .... masterful transfers that let the music making speak for itself. And your new technical process certainly contributes a most welcome spaciousness to the sound picture.
Verdi Requiem Mass - Selma Kaye(S)- Myriam Pirazzini(A)-Gino Sinimberghi(T)-Augusto Boeuf(B)-Rome Opera House Orchestra & Chorus/Luigi Ricci (MONO/MSE, rec.1952)Surprise! I never knew the work of Luigi Ricci until by chance this came into my attention. A thrilling recording as any of the best I know, it instantly reminded me of the live 1940 Toscanini (miracu ...
J.S.Bach: The 6 Partitas - Paul Badura-Skoda (MONO, 2-CD set, rec.ca 1953)Paul Badura-Skoda recorded the Partitas many times and played them innumerable. This is his first recording which taught generations of avid music lovers these masterpieces of grace and balance. His p ...
BRC-3428 Tchaikovsky Symphony 4 - Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition (orch.Ravel) - Chcago SO / Kubelik (MONO-MSE, rec.1951)We have often tried our hand recently re-mastering some glorious oldies that can actually be found on commercial issues, some even from their original labels. The Concertgebouw/Szell Brahms-Dvorak sym ...
Bruckner Symphony no 0 (Die Nullte) - Concert Hall SO / Henk Spruit - Reger Ballet Suite op.130 - Dresden PO / Ernst Schrader - Pfitzner Das Christelflein* & Das Katchen von Heilbronn** Ovts (Berlin RSO/Rother* and VPO/Pfitzner**) (MONO-MSE, rec. 1952)The Dutch conductor Henk Spruit formed in 1945 the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra – and apparently this is the body hiding under the alias “Concert Hall Symphony Orchestra” on the lp of this pione ...
Mendelssohn: Piano Quartet in F minor,op.2 - Violin Sonata op.4 - Dvorak Piano Trio op.65 - Artur Balsam (pno); Daniel Guilet & Louis Kaufman (vln); Frank Brieff (vla); Lucien Laporte & Marcel Cervera (cello) (MONO-MSE, rec. early 1950s)From the chamber music by-ways explored by Concert Hall during the mono era, here is a compilation of three very fine works, played by the formidable Artur Balsam and friends – equally great artists ...
Suzanne Danco sings lieder by Debussy, Brahms & Wolf (Guido Agosti,pno) (MONO-MSE, rec.early 1950s)Susanne Danco possessed a small voice but an enviable technique and a lovely tone which made her ideal for lieder singing. Here is a compilation of a beautiful Debussy recital supplemented by another ...
Mendelssohn Midsummer Night's Dream (cpte)* - Beethoven Choral Fantasy op.80** - Schubert Gesang der Geister u.d.Wassern - Soloists*/Akademie Kammerchor*/**/ Friedrich Wuehrer(pno)** -VSO / Clemens Krauss (MONO-MSE, rec. 1951)Clemens Krauss directs here the Vienna Symphony in Mendelssohn's beautifully played and sung Midsummernight’s Dream, a riveting Choral Fantasy by Beethoven with the participation of Friedrich Wuehre ...
Brahms Symphony 3 - Dvorak Symphony 8 - Concertgebouw Orch./George Szell (MONO-MSE, rec.1951)Collectors will own this duo of Szell’s glorious Amsterdam recordings of the erarly 1950s. We have compiled it again from mint original LXTs and treated them to our custom MSE Ambient Sound process ...
Gounod Faust ballet-Bizet Arlesienne exts - Massenet Thais ballet - Berlioz Damnation orch. exts - Franck Redemption - Paris Nat.Opera/Paris Conservatory Orch./Georges Sebastian (MONO-MSE, rec. early 1950s)Georges Sebastian was Hungarian and bore a striking resemblance to his famous compatriot, Fritz Reiner. He also shared a remarkable baton technique and here he can be heard on a typical French program ...
Weber Der Freischutz (complete) - Cunitz, Loose, Hopf a.o.-VSTO Chorus/VPO - Ackermann)- 4 Overtures (VPO/Bohm) (2-CD set, MONO-MSE, rec. early 1950s)The Rumanian Otto Ackermann was engaged by Legge along with Galliera, Dobrowen and Kletzki to shape his newly founded Philharmonia . For Decca he recorded during the early 1950s this very fine Freisch ...
Tchaikovsky Symphony 3 "Polish" - The Tempest (VSTOO / Swoboda / Fekete) (MONO-MSE, rec.early 1950s)Surprisingly the mono catalog contained many more less-known works than we thought it did. Concert Hall and Vox (to name but two labels) were heroically exploring unknown territories and adventurous r ...
Kreutzer Septet in E flat (The Vienna Octet) - Bruckner String Quintet in F (Philharmonic Str.Quintet, Vienna) (MONO-MSE, rec. eraly 1950s)Strange bedfellows maybe – yet not that much. Kreutzer’s Septet is a fine work full of period-charm and played here by the excellent Vienna Octet, which survived during the stereo years; but the m ...
Mozart Violin/Piano Sonatas KV 378/379 (Heksch/De Klijn) - Boccherini Cello Concerto (Koscielny/Rosbaud)-Str.Quartet in C(Herschenhan Qt)(MONO-MSE, rec.early 1950s)Alice Heksch and Nap de Klijn formed in the 1950s the Amsterdam duo – a worthy precursor of Philips’ later Haskil-Grumiaux team, as stylish and as inspired as their famous successors. Heksch recor ...
Fritz Lehmann Overtures by Auber, Boieldieu, Adam, Schumann & Brahms - Munchener Philharmoniker / Bamberger Symphoniker / Berliner Philharmoniker (MONO-MSE Processed, rec.early 1950s)Fritz Lehmann and his fine German orchestras will charm you in a versatile program of French and German overtures, a kind of compilation that once was very popular but nowadays has disappeared, which ...
Martinon-LPO: Overtures by Adam, Herold, Boieldieu & Offenbach (MONO-MSE, rec. mid-1950s)Here is a French master conductor with a crack LPO having immense fun with old favorites like Boieldieu's La Dame Blanche and Le Calife de Bagdad overtures, Herold's Zampa, Adam's Si j'etais roi and a ...
J.C.Bach Sinfonia op.18/1-Schubert Symphony 3 (Cincinnati/Th.Johnson)-Mendelssohn Symphony 4 (CPO/Pedrotti) (MONO-MSE, rec. early-mid 1950s)The "Italian" often suffers from overenthusiastic conducting, creating the impression of a Mark Sennet-like comedy accompaniment. Pedrotti paces the music easily. His timings are very close to Klemp ...
Brahms Piano Concerto in B flat op.83 (Magaloff-HaguePO/Otterloo)(*)-Piano Pieces op.116(Seemann) (STEREO*/MONO-MSE, rec. early 1960s and mid-1950s)Otterloo recorded an older mono version with Uninskly (on BRC-2801) so here is now a formidable later stereo version with the maverick Nikita Magaloff. A very special recording done in the Concertgebo ...
Schubert Mass in E flat, D.950-Solists,Chorus,VSO/Moralt) (MONO-MSE, rec.c.1950)Today you will hear better sung and - of course - better recorded versions of this great Mass (one could mention Sawallisch or Leinsdorf for example) - but rarely will you hear it played so dramatical ...
Chausson Concerto for violin, piano & string quartet (Kaufman,Balsam,PascalQT)-Faure Piano Works(K.Long) (MONO-MSE, rec.early1950s)A very rare recording of this strange and fascinating work, recorded by Kaufman, Balsam and the Pascal Quartet in early mono and and an equally fascinating selection of Faure piano works by the great ...
Schumann Cello Concerto (Navarra-Colonne/Cluytens)-Symphony 2 (POCC/Schuricht) (MONO-MSE, rec.mid-1950s)Navarra made a celebrated stereo recording with Ancerl in Prague, and here is his first recording with Cluytens and the Colonne Orchestra - a marvel of a rendition where both protagonists vie with eac ...
Goldmark Rustic Wedding Symphony (VSTOO)-Dvorak Symphony 3-Scherzo Capriccioso op.66 (VSO)/Swoboda (MONO-MSE, rec.early1950s)This once very popular divertimento-symphony got plenty of recordings at a time when Bruckner, e.g., had to wait for some more decades and so too had Mahler. Here is a lustily played recording by the ...
Arriaga String Quartets 1&2 - The Guilet String Quartet (MONO-MSE, rec.early 1950s)A magical recording of a magical pair of works by the 19th y.o. Juan Crisostomo Arriaga, for all intents and purposes as great a loss to the world of music as were the early demises (though in much mo ...
Schubert Sonata in C "La Reliquie"(comptd.Krenek)-Brahms Sonata no 1 op.1 - Ray Lev (MONO-MSE, rec.1947 & mid-1940s)If you have already (re)discovered Ray Lev's pianism, here is another great compilation: Schubert's C major D.840 Sonata (playing for the first time Krenek's completion of the fragments) and a stunn ...
Mozart Piano Concerto No.12 K.414 & No.21 K.467 - Folmer Jensen-Danish Radio CO/Woeldicke (MONO-MSE, rec.mid-1950s)A friend once brought his lp of this compilation urging us to pay attention to an unknown Danish pianist whose recordings of both of which concertos he claimed he never heard surpassed. Truth to tell, ...
Chopin Sonatas 2 & 3 etc. - Uninsky (MONO-MSE, rec.c.1954)We've given you as many of Uninsky's recordings as we could lay our hands on. Here is a glorious sequel of the series: his recordings of the two Sonatas nos 2 & 3 and a collection of smaller works, th ...
Dvorak Symphony No.9 "New World"(HaguePO/Dorati)-Bruch Violin Cto1(Schneiderhan-Bamberg/Leitner)-Tchaikovsky Romeo & Juliet - Bamberg/Lehmann) (MONO-MSE, rec.1953)Here is a perfect Sunday morning concert (compiled on our CD in the "correct" order: overture, concerto, symphony). Dorati's "New World" with Otterloo's orchestra, stunningly recorded by Philips in th ...
Berlioz Les Nuits d'Ete - Danco-Cincinnati/Th.Johnson - Corsaire; Carnaval Romain; Beatrice & Benedict; King Lear Ovts (Lamoureux/Martinon) (MONO-MSE, rec.1951 & c.1954)This most beloved of all voice/orchestra song cycles was lucky to get, from the very early mono era, equally high level recordings (De los Angeles/Munch; Steber/Mitropoulos e.g.) and this one, the old ...
Mendelssohn Melusine & Meerestille Ovts (VSO/Moltkau)-PianoCto 1 (Frugoni-VSO/Moralt) - MacDowell Piano Cto 2 & WoodlandSketches (Jenner-VSTOO/Swoboda) (MONO-MSE, rec.1952)Here is a lovely compilation of all time favorite works of the romantic era. These recordings may not approach today's perfectionist standards, but they all are full of passion and high spirits and sh ...
Bruckner Symphony No.2 in C minor - Linz Bruckner Orchestra / G.L.Jochum (MONO-MSE, rec.1944)One more of Georg Ludwig Jochum's much sought after pioneering recordings of Bruckner's lesser known symphonies at a time when only nos 4 and 7 were mentioned (or recorded), this comes from a pristine ...
Beethoven Mass in C, op.86 - Solists, Chorus, VSO/R.Moralt (MONO-MSE, rec.1950)Rarely recorded this Mass is a worthy fore-runner of its elder sister, the Missa Solemnis. This may be the work's earliest recording during the mono era, and all participants excel themselves and thei ...
