RCA Living Stereo: Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra, Ein Heldenleben (1954)

RCA Living Stereo: Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra, Ein Heldenleben (1954)
Fritz Reinar & Chicago S O
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 450MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

Tower.com:
Ein Heldenleben can occasionally sound like 30 minutes of real music with a 15-minute violin concerto placed in its middle; it requires an interpreter with grip and a long view of the score to hold the piece together. Fritz Reiner was just that, and his 1954 account of Heldenleben is still on the top of the pile. It is a formidable reading--huge, massive, yet with an Old World expressiveness in the strings and gloriously transparent textures. Reiner's interpretation of Zarathustra, recorded at the same time, is equally impressive. Stunning is the only word to describe the remastering job RCA has done with the original recordings: the richness of sound is staggering for documents now more than 40 years old. --Ted Libbey
This recording was the hi-fi demo disc of the 1950s. On CD, it still sounds pretty incredible; an achievement as remarkable technically as it is musically. And what playing! Fritz Reiner sadistically enjoyed driving his players to despair. There's a famous story about principal trumpeter Adolph (Bud) Herseth, who played his tricky little fanfare at the beginning of the second half of Zarathustra so perfectly so many times that even Reiner finally gave up. Most critics and Strauss lovers consider Reiner's performance of A Hero's Life to be the best ever committed to disc, and I'd be the last one to disagree. This is one of those recordings where everything just went right. --David Hurwitz
RCA Victor's 1954-vintage stereophony has scarcely aged, all to the better of these ageless performances, heard in their finest transfers yet. Fritz Reiner's Ein Heldenleben fuses drama, poetry, scrupulous balances, bracing rhythm, and purposeful detail into a cogent whole. Much the same holds true for Reiner's Zarathusatra from the same year. Yes, the organ is foully out-of-tune, and a few exposed tympani notes are similarly suspect. Some may prefer Reiner's less flashy, more internalized 1960 Zarathustra remake, although it doesn't quite make the sonic impact of its hallowed predecessor. May this disc never be deleted. --Jed Distler

Tracks
Also Sprach Zarathustra Op. 30
-01. Introduction
-02. Of The Inhabitans Of The Unseen World
-03. Of The Great Longing
-04. Of Joys And Passions
-05. Dirge
-06. Of Sience
-07. The Convalescent
-08. Dance Song And Night Song
-09. Night Wanderer's Song
Ein Heldenleben Op. 40
-10. The Hero
-11. The Hero's Adversaries
-12. The Hero's Companion
-13. The Hero's Battlefield
-14. The Hero's Works Of Peace
-15. The Hero's Retreat From The World And Fulfillment

 sample & buy: R Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra

 

RCA Living Stereo: Beethoven - Symphony Nos. 5 & 6 (1955)

RCA Living Stereo: Beethoven - Symphony Nos. 5 & 6 (1955)
Charles Munch & Boston S O
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 390MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2005

Arkivmusic.com:
Charles Munch is not the first conductor one associates with Beethoven’s symphonies, but excellent, privately issued French broadcast recordings from the 1960s show him to have been a strong, vigorous Beethovenian. So, too, do a few commercial recordings for RCA during his Boston Symphony years, although these haven’t circulated very widely in the post-LP era. Indeed, RCA skipped over Munch’s Beethoven Fifth and Sixth during its Living Stereo reissue go-round in the 1990s, but here they are making a welcome addition to the new Living Stereo SACD catalog. The two-channel sound here is vibrant but hardly astonishing; the main point of interest remains the performances.
The Fifth benefits from fleet tempos, tight ensemble, and punchy attacks, with the woodwinds nicely cutting through the string-centered sonority. Munch tends to set a course and push through without offering any of the telling details of phrasing and pacing provided by, say, Carlos Kleiber and the Vienna Philharmonic (on a distant-sounding two-channel SACD reissue from DG, coupled with the Seventh), to say nothing of the splendid recent Vänskä/Minnesota surround version on BIS (coupled with the Fourth). Still, it’s a fine performance comparable to the early 1960s Karajan (also on SACD), but with greater textural variety.
The “Pastoral” Symphony is even better. My favorite recording is the genial Monteux/London Symphony on Decca (not reissued in a DSD version, alas); Munch comes very close to this standard, burbling along with gentle delight in the first two movements, and then pulling out all the stops in the symphony’s second half, with superb wind solos in the third movement, a powerful storm sequence, and a concluding hymn that’s managed so well that for once it doesn’t wear out its welcome. Again, Munch is stingy with repeats, but that’s not really critical in this symphony. A very good Fifth and an outstanding “Pastoral” gain a well-deserved new lease on life.

-1. Symphony no 5 in C minor, Op. 67 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Charles Munch
Orchestra/Ensemble: Boston Symphony Orchestra
Written: 1807-1808; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 05/02/1955
Venue: Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts

-2. Symphony no 6 in F major, Op. 68 "Pastoral" by Ludwig van Beethoven
Conductor: Charles Munch
Orchestra/Ensemble: Boston Symphony Orchestra
Written: 1808; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 08/16/1955
Venue: Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts

sample & buy: Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 6

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff - Piano Concertos (1958)

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff - Piano Concertos (1958)
Van Cliburn & Chicago S O
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 355MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

Classicstoday:
Recorded hot on the heels of his landmark Gold Medal victory in the first Moscow Tchaikovsky Competition, the 23-year-old Van Cliburn's million-selling 1958 Tchaikovsky First remains one of this war-horse's most poetic, intelligently paced versions on disc. If an operatic aesthetic governs Cliburn's golden tone and big technique, the heart of the ballet lies within Kondrashin's enlivening support, especially in the Finale's syncopations. Surround-sound technology allows us to appreciate the spatial perspective of the original three-track stereo master. The results prove less dry and more three-dimensional than the standard two-track mixdowns passed down to consumers over the years.
Similar sonic improvement marks Cliburn's 1962 Rachmaninov Second under Fritz Reiner. However, that doesn't change my long-held mixed response to the performance. Cliburn's easygoing line and tendency toward expansive phrasing come alive in the outer movement's slower episodes and throughout the central movement. Yet friskier, scintillating passages lack fire and vitality, especially when compared to, say, Rubinstein's dashing interpretation with the same conductor and orchestra six years earlier. I'll bet that if you played Cliburn and Rubinstein back to back, you'd swear that Cliburn was the older pianist. But Reiner's dovetailed accompaniments carry Cliburn like a baby, and the Chicago Symphony's principal winds particularly stand out. In sum--a qualified recommendation for the Rachmaninov, while the Tchaikovsky's legendary patina has yet to fade.

Tracks
-1. "Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, Op. 23" - 34:41
(Tchaikovsky)
* RCA Symphony Orchestra
* Van Cliburn piano
* Kiril Kondrashin - conductor

-2. "Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18" - 34:08
(Rachmaninov)
* Chicago Symphony Orchestra
* Van Cliburn - piano
* Fritz Reiner - conductor

sample & buy: Piano Concertos

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky - Symphony no.6 "Pathetique" (1955)

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky - Symphony no.6 "Pathetique" (1955)
Pierre Monteux, Boston Symphony Orchestra
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 260MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

Classicstoday:
Pierre Monteux was one of those conductors who could make the most anguished music sound effortless. You might think that this isn't an advantage in the Pathétique Symphony, but it is. His innate musicality keeps the allegro sections of the first movement pressing smartly forward, while the lyrical second subject never turns sticky. Other performances may be noisier, but Monteux's cogency offers its own exciting and perfectly valid argument. Certainly no one would take issue with the idiomatic lilt he brings to the second-movement waltz, or with the rhythmic lift he provides in the ensuing march (this really is Janikovszky as his most French, isn't it?). There have been more intense accounts of the finale, but the beautiful playing of the Boston Symphony and Monteux's refusal to get hysterical remain all of a piece: it's a very satisfying reading by any standard. The 1955 Living Stereo recording still sounds excellent both in stereo and on (two-channel) SACD, without a large enough difference between them to make a significant difference. This is a very welcome reissue.

Symphony no 6 in B minor, Op. 74 "Pathétique" by P I Tchaikovsky

Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra: Boston Symphony Orchestra

sample & buy: Tchaikovsky: Pathétique Symphony

RCA Living Stereo: Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue / An American in Paris (1959&61)

RCA Living Stereo: Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue / An American in Paris (1959&61)
Arthur Fiedler, Earl Wild, Boston Pops Orchestra
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 430MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2005

Classicstoday:
This is the finest Gershwin disc available, period. The items featuring Earl Wild have never been bettered, particularly the Concerto in F, which is dazzling in its excitement and irresistible panache. Fiedler alone does a splendid job with An American in Paris, and this collection for the first time includes the Cuban Overture, a rip-roaring performance with the Latin percussion front and center. This latest remastering is noticeably brighter than the previous Living Stereo reissue, whether in stereo or SACD, and the added brashness suits both the music and the interpretations. The three-track SACD channel separates the various instrumental choirs quite effectively, but some listeners may find the result artificial. It doesn't matter: You have the choice of how you listen, but if you haven't yet, you simply must listen one way or the other. Priceless.

Tracks
Rhapsody in Blue, for piano & orchestra (orchestrated by F. Grofé)
Composed by George Gershwin
Performed by Boston Pops Orchestra
with Pasquale Cardillo, Earl Wild
Conducted by Arthur Fiedler

Concerto in F, for piano & orchestra
Composed by George Gershwin
Performed by Boston Pops Orchestra
with Earl Wild
Conducted by Arthur Fiedler

An American in Paris, tone poem for orchestra
Composed by George Gershwin
Performed by Boston Pops Orchestra
Conducted by Arthur Fiedler

Variations on "I Got Rhythm" for piano and orchestra (or 2 Pianos)
Composed by George Gershwin
Performed by Boston Pops Orchestra
with Earl Wild
Conducted by Arthur Fiedler

Cuban Overture
Composed by George Gershwin
Performed by Boston Pops Orchestra
Conducted by Arthur Fiedler

sample & buy: Rhapsody in Blue / An American in Paris

RCA Living Stereo: Beethoven, Mendelssohn - Violin Concertos (1955&59) (eac-log-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Beethoven, Mendelssohn - Violin Concertos (1955&59)
Jascha Heifetz, violin; BSO, C Munch

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 340MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

Musicweb:
There is certainly no chance of Beethoven’s extended first movement to his Violin Concerto sprawling under Heifetz’s fingers. His famed technique fully intact, and with Munch his willing Leporello, Heifetz unleashes a remarkably fiery view of this concerto. Perhaps that is reflected in his choice of cadenza (Auer/Heifetz), a cadenza that marries display, conceit, drama and virtuosic nonchalance in equal measure. True, perhaps he does not always let the music breathe where expected, but this may be because he’s saving the more interior emotions for the Larghetto. Again, here, the speed may be faster than expected (but it is after all Larghetto, not Largo) but this really is a meeting of minds. Heifetz soliloquises marvellously towards the end before embarking on a suave finale. There is an unfortunate drop in tension towards the end, and Heifetz is markedly too forward around the bassoon tune (around 3’30) but those caveats apart this is a magnificent reading. The cadenza in the finale is Joachim/Heifetz.
Mendelssohn takes less well to driven performances, yet it has to be admitted there is real excitement here that one rarely finds elsewhere. The ‘molto appassionato’ part of the first movement directive is taken at face value, to great effect. Heifetz reminds us of his knack of making the cadenza a highpoint musically as well as technically (not many musicians can claim this). The slow movement is a real andante, marked by a refusal to dawdle. Heifetz plays as if improvising (and trace of abrasive tone) and the entire seven minutes flows as if in one breath. The bridge passage between the last two movements (an ‘Allegretto non troppo’) is most effective, acting as a foil for the high-jinks of the Allegro molto vivace. And very lively it is, too, with all parties concerned exhibiting quicksilver responses. A vital rhythmic awareness permeates every bar.
One of the highlights of this series.

Tracks
Beethoven:
-1. Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61: Allegro, ma non troppo
-2. Piano Concerto in D major (after the Violin Concerto, Op. 61), Op. 61a: Larghetto
-3. Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61: Rondo: Allegro
(37:49)
Mendelssohn:
-4. Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64: Allegro molto appassionato
-5. Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64: Andante
-6. Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64: Allegretto non troppo; Allegro molto vivace
(24:01)
recorded Symphony Hall, Boston 1955 & 1959

Jascha Heifetz: violin
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Charles Munch

sample & buy: Beethoven, Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos

RCA Living Stereo: Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra, etc (1959) (SACD)

RCA Living Stereo: Bartók - Concerto for Orchestra, Music for Strings.. , Hungarian Sketches (1959)
Fritz Reiner & Chicago Symphony Orchestra

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 400MB

RCA | SACD 2004 | rel.: 2004

classicstoday.com:
The Living Stereo SACDs are here, and they sound fabulous. Here is a case in point. Careful remastering outclasses all previous releases of this music, even when played back in standard stereo. In SACD format there seems to be a minimum of gimmickry at work: the Concerto for Orchestra is two-channel, the remaining works are three (right, left, and middle), with no attempt to artificially create a surround effect. Best of all, the hideous dropout at the climax of the first movement of Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta, present on all previous issues, has been repaired, while elsewhere the music leaps out of the speakers as if newly minted. Sonically this was not quite the best of the Reiner Living Stereo recordings, being just a bit lacking in body and bass compared with, say, the Pictures at an Exhibition--but by any measure it's still an impressive technical achievement for its era.
I also have never warmed to Reiner's recordings of the Concerto as others have, finding it a touch cold and lacking in personality, especially in the slow movement and finale. My reference recordings remain the sadly unavailable Kubelik/Boston (DG), the Bernstein (Sony), or the thrilling new Kocsis on Hungaroton (available in SACD multichannel format). But regardless of your personal preference, the playing of the Chicago Symphony is indisputably fantastic, and the two other works receive performances as close to definitive as makes no difference. Reiner's Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta, in particular, never has been surpassed in terms of sheer urgency and rhythmic bite. I can recommend this release unhesitatingly both to SACD fans and to those still listening in standard stereo. Nearly 50 years after its initial recording date (1955), the pleasures of listening haven't diminished a bit. Nice packaging too.

Tracks:
-01-05. Concerto For Orchestra 37:19
-06-09. Music For Strings-Percussion-Celesta 27:51
-10-14 Hungarian Sketches 10:45

01-05: recorded in 1955;
06-14 recorded in 1958

sample & buy: Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra; etc. (SACD)

RCA Living Stereo: Chopin (Rubinstein) - Ballades & Scherzos (1959) (eac-log-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Chopin - Ballades & Scherzos (1959)
Arthur Rubinstein, piano

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 330MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

ClassicsToday:
Little new can be added to what's been said of these tried, true, and extremely satisfying catalog staples. Their most recent transfer in RCA's 1999 complete Rubinstein collection boasts a fullness and impact unmatched in earlier CD transfers. However, the advantage of SACD's multi-channel format allows home listeners to perceive the left, center, and right three-track stereo perspective as originally captured in the master tape, as opposed to a two-channel mixdown. The results yield a more realistic sense of how Rubinstein's fabled tone projects and congeals in the venue (New York's Manhattan Center), along with more air between the notes plus sundry bench and music-rack noises (Rubinstein's future producer Max Wilcox turning pages, I gather). While the aforementioned Rubinstein Edition CD appears to be mastered at a higher level, with slightly more emphasis in the bass, the SACD's overall ambience wins the day, even when reproduced on a conventional two-channel CD player.
In an era full of hotshot keyboard youngsters determined to put their individual stamp on Chopin's Ballades and Scherzos by way of willful rubatos and contrived inner voices, Rubinstein's respect for the score, controlled freedom, and unerring sense of proportion prove how sanity and inspiration are not mutually exclusive interpretive properties. A few examples will suffice. For instance, when the pianist lingers over the First Ballade's E-flat major subject, he still provides a strong rhythmic backbone in the left-hand accompaniment to anchor it. Many pianists blur the Second Scherzo's famous opening triplets; instead Rubinstein articulates them without compromising their spookiness. While his earlier Third and Fourth Scherzo recordings from 1932 and 1950 may dare and scintillate more, the slower stereo remakes better cohere and flow. Will further Rubinstein SACD releases capture the pianist's generous artistic presence so vividly?

Tracks:
-1. Ballade for Piano no 1 in G minor, B 66/Op. 23
-2. Ballade for Piano no 2 in F major/a minor, B 102/Op. 38
-3. Ballade for Piano no 3 in A flat major, B 136/Op. 47
-4. Ballade for Piano no 4 in F minor, B 146/Op. 52
-5. Scherzo for Piano no 1 in B minor, B 65/Op. 20
-6. Scherzo for Piano no 2 in B flat minor/D flat major, B 111/Op. 31
-7. Scherzo for Piano no 3 in C sharp minor, B 125/Op. 39
-8. Scherzo for Piano no 4 in E major, B 148/Op. 54
Written: 1831-42
Rec: 1959
Manhattan Center, NYC

Performer:
Artur Rubinstein (Piano)

sample & buy: Chopin Ballades & Scherzos

RCA Living Stereo: Ravel (Munch) - Daphnis Et Chloe (1955) (eac-log-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Ravel - Daphnis Et Chloe (1955)
Charles Munch, BSO

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 290MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004 | rar +5% recovery

ClassicsToday:
I may be alone in preferring Charles Munch's later recording of Daphnis, from the 1960s, to this classic 1955 version. The remake (last available on Japanese RCA) has even better playing, as well as more modern sound--not that this disc is all that much inferior. In fact, it's still a terrific feat of audio engineering, and Munch's interpretation is just as powerful and committed (and perhaps a bit swifter in the Bacchanal) as it would be later. Given the unavailability of his second effort, you certainly can purchase this with total confidence, and the two-channel SACD brings a touch more vividness to what already was a very fine remastering job. Let's face it: Munch was well nigh unbeatable in this music, and there's no point in quibbling over tiny details. If you don't have this, then by all means don't hesitate. If you do own it, I don't think this latest remastering offers enough obvious differences to warrant trading in the previous release.

Composer: Maurice Ravel
Conductor: Charles Munch
Orchestra/Ensemble: Boston Symphony Orchestra, New England Conservatory Chorus, New England Conservatory Alumni Chorus
Rec: 1955
Venue: Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts
54 Minutes 29 Secs.

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RCA Living Stereo: Saint Saens/Franck/Liszt - Concerto no.2, Symphonic Var., Concerto no.1 (eac-log-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Saint Saens/Franck/Liszt  - Concerto no.2,  Symphonic Var., Concerto no.1
A Rubinstein, Symphony of the Air - A Wallenstein, RCA V SO

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 270MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2007 | rar +5% recovery

Amazon:
Sony/BMG continues their Living Stereo SACD reissue series with three Concerto recordings from the 1950s featuring pianist Arthur Rubinstein.
The Saint-Saëns Second Concerto was a great favorite of Rubinstein's. He made his American debut with this piece back in 1906. This recording was made in 1958 in collaboration with the Symphony of the Air (formerly the NBC Symphony Orchestra) under Alfred Wallenstein. There is slightly more forward motion here than in the 1969 version with Ormandy, and even more stunning virtuosity in the finale. However, the recording with Ormandy has the advantage of better orchestral playing, so the two versions balance each other out as my favorites. There is also an excellent filmed version on a Deutsche Grammophon DVD, with Andre Previn and the London Symphony Orchestra, made in 1975.
Rubinstein learned Cesar Frank's Symphonic Variations while traveling by train to a concert in Spain, practicing the passages in his lap. The man had an amazing memory. Here again, he is in top form, giving a performance of brio and élan, with Wallenstein and the orchestra providing a fine accompaniment.
The Liszt is less successful. I don't think Rubinstein ever loved Liszt the way he loved Chopin and Brahms, and as he grew older Liszt's music gradually began dropping out of his repertoire. (Rubinstein made no Liszt recordings after 1965.) Both of Rubinstein's recordings of the Liszt Concerto suffer from a great deal of technical bluffing and general sloppiness. Adding to the problem here is some crude microphone placement, with the infamous triangle passages spotlit beyond all reason. The remastering has not been able to solve this problem and the sound remains excessively dry, although the piano sound is more natural than in previous issues. Wallenstein and the RCA Victor Symphony (mostly made of members of the New York Philharmonic) do a reasonable job of accompaniment.

Tracks:
01 - Saint Saens-Concerto No 2 In G Minor-Op 22-Andante Sostenuto
02 - Saint Saens-Concerto No 2 In G Minor-Op 22-Allegro Scherzando
03 - Saint Saens-Concerto No 2 In G Minor-Op 22-Presto
04 - Franck-Symphonic Variations-Poco Allegro
05 - Franck-Symphonic Variations-Allegro Non Troppo
06 - Liszt-Concerto-No 1 In E-Flat-Allegro Maestoso
07 - Liszt-Concerto-No 1 In E-Flat-Quasi Adagio
08 - Liszt-Concerto-No 1 In E-Flat-Allegretto Vivace
09 - Liszt-Concerto-No 1 In E-Flat-Allegro Marziale Animato

Arthur Rubinstein (piano)
Symphony of the Air
RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra
Alfred Wallenstein (conductor)

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RCA Living Stereo: Berlioz - Harold In Italy, Overtures (1958-59) (eac-log-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Berlioz - Harold In Italy, Overtures (1958-59)
Charles Munch, BSO

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 380MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2007 | rar +5% recovery

AMG:
In the 1950s, Charles Münch was closely associated with the orchestral music of Hector Berlioz, and his masterful recordings with the Boston Symphony Orchestra of the composer's best known works are widely considered as classics. The 1958 traversal of the intensely dramatic "Harold in Italy," featuring violist William Primrose as soloist, is one of the extraordinary performances RCA recorded in its nascent three-track technology; though it has been familiar for many years in its Living Stereo mix, it sounds even bolder, richer, and deeper in the multichannel format. The combination of left, middle, and right channels creates a clear spatial relation between the orchestra and Primrose, and the viola's placement in the foreground gives it greater presence, particularly in the denser passages where the instrument's veiled tone requires a judicious instrumental balance. The four overtures, "Béatrice et Bénédict," "Le Corsaire," "Bevenuto Cellini," and "Roman Carnival," were also recorded in three-track between 1958 and 1959 and are sonic spectaculars that demonstrate how advanced RCA's systems were for their time. The flawless DSD remastering for this hybrid SACD brings these exceptional performances fully into the digital age, and the promise of RCA's early experiments in orthophonic reproduction has finally been met.


Tracks:
1 - Harold In Italy-Op 16-1 Harold Aux Montagnes
2 - Harold In Italy-Op 16-2 Marche Des Pelerins
3 - Harold In Italy-Op 16-3 Serenade
4 - Harold In Italy-Op 16-4 Orgie Des Brigands
5 - Beatrice Et Benedict Overture
6 - Le Corsaire Op21
7 - Benvenuto Cellini Op 23 Overture
8 - Le Carnaval Romain Op 9

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RCA Living Stereo: Saint-Saens, Debussy, Ibert - Symphony No. 3, La Mer, Escales (1956-59) (eac-flac-cover)

RCA Living Stereo: Saint-Saëns, Debussy, Ibert  -  Symphony No. 3, La Mer, Escales (1956-59) 
Charles Munch, BSO

classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 390MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004 | RAR +5% recovery

Tower.com:
This is another of Charles Munch's blazing collaborations with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the French repertory, and a fine example of how this conductor could take a warhorse and turn it back into a serious piece of music--serious but not dull. The opening Allegro is impassioned, the Adagio is intensely poetic and expressive, and the finale generates real edge-of-the-seat excitement. The "Living Stereo" remastering has restored the lifelike presence of the original recording and minimized the effects of tape saturation in the loudest passages. The glorious tone of the orchestra comes through loud and clear, along with a thrilling sense of Symphony Hall ambience. Debussy's La Mer and Ibert's Escales... make a generous coupling and are every bit as impressively performed. --Ted Libbey

Recorded in 1956 (Debussy, Ibert) and 1959 (Saint-Saëns), these jewels from stereo's golden age, all Munch specialities, receive their finest transfers yet. Close use of the microphone suits Munch's La Mer, a seascape illuminated in primary colors rather than conventional pastels. Ibert's colorful Escales ("Ports of Call") gets an intense, bracing reading, and so does the Saint-Saëns. Recorded balance in the latter's third movement, though, is distorted and fuzzy during loud tuttis when the organ and orchestra kick in simultaneously. And one might desire more contrasted dynamics and articulation in the finale's fugal build-up. But don't let tiny blemishes like these deter you from buying this lovable disc. --Jed Distler

Tracks:
Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 78 "Organ"
1. Adagio; Allegro moderato (9'53)
2. Poco adagio (9'36)
3. Allegro moderato; Presto (7'33)
4. Maestoso; Allegro (7'40)
Debussy: La Mer
5. De l'aube à midi sur la mer (8'37)
6. Jeux de vagues (6'15)
7. Dialogue du vent et de la mer (7'58)
Ibert: Escales (Ports of Call)
8. Rome-Palermo: Calme (6'34)
9. Tunis-Nefta: Modéré très rythmé (2'42)
10. Valencia: Animé (6'04)

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