De Falla: Seven Popular Spanish Songs for Mezzo-Soprano & Orchestra. w/ Mabelle Sangalli, mezzo; Rotterdam Philharmonic, live, 1986

Mozart: Two-Piano Concerto, E-Flat Major, K. 365. w/Badura-Skoda & Dagmar Bella, pianos; Vienna Philharmonic, live, 2/2/1949 [There is some question as to the authenticity of this performance, but Badura-Skoda claims to remember it well, and that’s good enough for me. His partner, the obscure Mme Bella isn’t in the same league at all and occasionally sounds intimidated (as well she might). I forget the details, but I think she was either a distant cousin of the conductor or related to an old friend or something along those lines, and he was doing everybody (except Mozart!) a favor by letting her play. She’s not really awful, just out-classed and somewhat stiff; it bothers some people a lot; me, not so much, because, A) I don’t really get in the mood for this piece very often, and, B) Furtwangler gives it such muscle-and-bone that when I AM in the mood, this antique will do just fine. The sound is typical of radio-dubbings of the time, neither better nor worse than most informal dubbings from the late Forties.]

LUDWIG, Leopold: [Yet another second-tier podium figure who, if he were practicing his art today, would be much more esteemed than he was during an earlier time, when the competition was so exalted. Leopold Ludwig began his career as a pianist, a student of Emil Pauer, no less, and found his natural place in the food-chain as long-time director of the Hamburg Staatsoper . His non-operatic work was highly regarded, too, and although he never achieved superstar status (he appears to have been an essentially modest man, much like Carl Schuricht), he built up quite a respectable catalogue of recordings, for Angel, Everest, and several smaller labels. His accompaniment for Gilels is shapely, dynamic, and beautifully shaded to compliment the pianist’s brilliance. This "Emperor" was one of Angel’s first stereo releases, and appears not to have been reissued since it vanished in the late Sixties. The sonics are modest, veddy-briddish in their lack of demonstrativeness, but clean and well-balanced, allowing Gilel’s to take center stage, as was only proper at this stage of his meteoric career. This LP is quite scarce today, and honesty compels me to inform you that there is a fine but quite obnoxious hair-line scratch across most of Movement I; the rest of the LP is in good shape. It doesn’t ruin the performance for ME, but then I’m a tolerant listener when it comes to these things. Anyway, if you’re a Gilels admirer and you haven’t heard this, you’ll be delighted to acquire it, scratch or no.]

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor". Emil Gilels, piano; Leopold Ludwig; Philharmonia Orchestra, stereo pressing

Mahler: Symphony No. 9. w/ Cleveland Orchestra; live, 1981 [See tirade under "Composers; Mahler"]

Eisma, Will: "Diaphora" for Strings, Marimba, Harpsichord, & Percussion. w/ Concertgebouw of Amsterdam; live, Holland Festival, 1966. [13:03] [See comments under "Composers"]

Straesser, Joep: "22 Pages" for Winds, Double-basses, Percussion, and Male Voices. Hilversum Radio Orchestra & unidentified soloists; live, Holland Festival, 1966; [10:45] [Even the skilled advocacy of Moderna can’t pump interest into this sterile "exploration of new sound combinations" (same basic process you can hear in any kindergarten class when teacher passes out the cheap instruments!), but almost by chance it DOES have some moments of interest.]

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade. w/ San Francisco Symphony, c. 1946 [A very, very hard-to-find Camden re-issue, in good shape (only a few minor scratches; once I ran it through the Groove-Sucker, the disc emerged in very clean condition; the sonics were and remain quite good for that label, in that place, at that time under RCA contract (how’s that for a precise description?) Naturally, Monteux doesn’t dig into the score with the same shamelessly erotic excess as Stokowski, but he does emphasize the score’s sensuality and the San Francisco orchestra sounds quite fine in most places. Why RCA has never seen fit to reissue on CD this great conductor’s best pre-stereo catalogue items is just another marketing mystery; I guess the same reasons apply to why they had Stokowski re-make Wagner AND "Scheherazade" in his final RCA studio sessions instead of pieces he’d never officially recorded, such as the Rachmaninoff Second (which he was due to start recording the morning after the night he died, peacefully, in his bed…) Anyhow, Monteux fans who’ve never acquired this classic reading will be quite satisfied with the clean pressing and generally colorful engineering.]

MYSTERY MAESTRO OF THE MONTH

Ravel: Bolero and Rimsky-Korsakov: Capriccio Espagnole. {Here’s another fascinating guessing-game from one of those late-Fifties micro-labels, in this case the International Award Series. To capture the flavor of the period, let me quote from the back-side of the album cover:

Dvorak: Symphony No. 1, C Minor, Op. 3 ("The Bells of Zlonice"). w/ Prague Symphony Orchestra [No timing] [The accepted wisdom is that Dvorak’s first four symphonies are pretty thin gruel, but while it’s true that none of them matches the later five, all of them have their outstanding moments, and this one is astonishingly accomplished for an "Opus Three" work. Some lovely tunes, an earthy toe-tapping furiant scherzo, and a virile allegro con brio finale that sounds like it could be an early study for the Slavonic Dances – what’s not to like? Neumann, in what must have been one of Supraphon’s earliest stereo issues, certainly finds the just-right lilt and swagger to maximize the work’s good points, without pushing to inflate it into the Major Statement is surely isn’t. Good reverberant Hall of Artists sounds and the Prague Symphony sounding damn near as vutal as the Czech Phil, especially those piquant, inimitable woodwinds.]

Prokofiev: The Gambler (complete opera). w/ Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra of the "All-Union Radio" (whatever THAT was) [See comments under "Opera, choral & Vocal Soloists[

SCHERCHEN: [This month’s Scherchen selections are derived from a "wicked" old Westminster collection entitled "The Devil in Hi-Fi", which I was lucky enough to find in near-mint condition. I wish they’d stuck something else on besides that isolated movement of the Berlioz (note that I have the entire performance available, too, from a very fine original copy), but everything else sounds fresh and inspired, particularly the Liszt and Saint-Saens warhorses, which Scherchen conducts as if he had just discovered them and can’t wait to sell them to the world. Great stuff in excellent mono sound.]

Berlioz: "March to the Scaffold" from Symphonie Fantastique. w/ London Symphony

Liszt: Mephisto Waltz. w/ Vienna State Opera Orchestra

Mussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain. w/ Vienna State Opera Orchestra

Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre. w/ Vienna State Opera Orchestra

Borodin: "Prince Igor" – "Umsohnst nach Ruhe"… George London, bass; Philadelphia Orchestra, live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

Gounod: "Faust" – Serenade. w/ George London, bass; Philadelphia Orch, live, 1962

Mozart: "Nozze de Figarro" – "Non piu andrai…" w/ George London; Philadelphia, 1962

Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3, C Major, Op. 26. w/ William Kapell, piano; NBC Symphony; live, 2/20/1949 [See comments under "Kapell" in "Chamber Ensembles & Solo Virtuosi"]

Puccini: "Tosca" – "Vissi d’arte". w/ Birgit Nilsson, sop.,; Philadelphia Orch, live, 1962

Thomson: "The Mother of us All" Suite. w/ New York Philharmonic; live, 4/2/1950 [13:19] [See comments under "Composers"]

Verdi: "Aida" – "O ciel! Mio padre!". w/ Birgit Nilsson; Philadelphia Orch, live, 1962

Wagner: "Gotterdammerung" – Immolation Scene. w/ Philadelphia Orchestra, live; Pension Fund Concert, 1962

Wagner: "Lohengrin" – Prelude. w/ Philadelphia Orchestra, live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

Wagner: "Rienzi" Overture. w/ Philadelphia Orchestra, live; Pension Fund Concert, 1962

Wagner: "Tristan und Isolde" – Liebestod. w/ Philadelphia Orchestra, live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

TOSCANINI: [This month’s Toscanini rarities are both very choice and very hard to come-by; they’ve been donated to "Records in the Attic" by a Durham, N.C. physician who’s been a hardcore Toscanini collector for more than 40 years, and to whom I am grateful beyond words. None have ever been "officially" released, and even the privately circulated iterations of them disappeared more than 20 years ago. If you want ‘em, I suspect this web site is the only place you can find ‘em. Fasten your seat belts!]

Bach: St. Matthew Passion, Final Chorus. NBC Symphony & unidentified chorus, 1945. [Every bit as rapturous and devout as Mengelberg’s, in good clean sound. Time: approx. 10 minutes.]

Catanali: Dance of the Water Nymphs. w/ NBC Symphony; live, 8/5/1952

Debussy: Nocturnes – "Fetes" only. NBC Symphony, live, Carnegie Hall, 3/15/52. [Personally, I think Toscanini’s way with this music was just…how to put it politely…dreadful. Much too fast, too raw, utterly drained of atmosphere, splashed in primary colors – a Jackson Pollock instead of a Turner, if you will. That said, however, the recorded sound itself is truly brilliant and pristine, so if you don’t find the Godfather’s style just too wrong to stomach, you’ll at least hear that wrong-ness in genuine Hi-Fi.]

"DIXIE" w/ NBC Symphony, live, Richmond, Virginia, 1951. [Oh, my, oh my, what a treat! This encore turned the audience into a howling mob, and Toscanini spared no vulgarity in throwing them the red meat (there are some trombone glissandi that’ll curdle your earwax!). This, the only known recording, alas, is a distorted home-cutting-deck job that turns everything into a raucous roar, but does that really matter?]

Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. NBC Symphony; live, 4/4/1943 [Only known performance he ever gave of this warhorse, and it’s wonderful; every bit as luch and wild as Stokowski’s. The acetate-derived sonics are surprisingly smooth and vivid. Revelatory and unique!]

Mussorgsky: Prelude to "Khovantschina". NBC Symphony; live, 12/13/1953

Sibelius: The Swan of Tuonela. w/ New York Philharmonic [From 1945 Pension Fund Concert; never broadcast; superb!]

TANTRUM!!! The Legendary Watch-Stomping Explosion!! [You’ve read about it, imagined it, maybe heard about it from others who’ve actually heard it, but until you hear this secretly made live document, you ain’t heard nothin’ yet! Yes, you can hear the old man working up to detonation, yes you can hear him flailing the podium angrily, and, yes! You can hear him growl "Basta! Basta!" and stamp upon his pocket watch, crushing it to a heap of battered flywheels and springs. A priceless document, a classical Party Record beyond compare!]

WALTER, Bruno:

Mahler: Symphony No. 4. w/ Elizabeth Schwarzkopf; Vienna Philharmonic, live 1960

Schubert: Symphony No. 8 ("Unfinished"). Vienna Philharmonic, live, 1960. [These two works comprised Bruno Walter’s "Farewell Concert" with the Vienna Philharmonic, 1960. As you might expect, it was an emotional event, and both readings are very special. The Mahler is expansive and glowing, the "opening of Heaven’s gates" episode in III is even more powerful and imposing than it is in Walter’s classic NY Philharmonic recording; Schwarzkopf is luminous. The Schubert is comparable only to Furtwangler’s and Mengelberg’s. Movement I is dark, mysterious, and suffused with tragic gravitas; II is slow, lingering, very tenderly phrased, almost hypnotic – you don’t want it to end. The sound is reasonably clear and well-balanced, with crushing power in the climaxes and ample clarity in the softer, lyrical sections. Although there was a full audience present, you’d never know it, so reverently silent are the listeners; not a cough or a sneeze or a rattled program. This is an example of Golden Age conducting at its most memorable.]

Composers

Two Arias from "In Ecclipse". Antoniu; American Composers Orchestra; live, 1981. [World premiere, and if the entire five-movement work is as gorgeous and powerful as these two excerpts, I’d love to hear it! Based on Seneca’s gruesome version of the Oedipus story (as translated by British poet Ted Hughes), it’s a five-part work of great range and substances – you can tell that even from the two parts heard here (I assume the rest of it’s been composed in the quarter-century since I taped this!). I didn’t get the tenor’s name ("Richard" Something), but both he and conductor Antoniu really deliver the goods. If anyone reading this (yeah, right, Trotter – DOES anybody read these things?) knows of or happens to have a tape of a complete performance, please get in touch with me and we’ll work out some kind of a deal!]

Fantasie on Epic Russian Themes, Op. 43. Blumenthal; Waldhans; Brno Philharmonic [25:20] [Okay, pianists – looking for a sure-fire program novelty that audiences would adore? Here ya go! Who could resist "epic Russian Themes"? This is a juicy, colorful, thoroughly engaging piece by a woefully under-appreciated Russian romantic. Blumenthal’s on good behavior here, too, abandoning her usual generic high competence for a reading of real zest and intensity.]

The Wise and Foolish Virgins, Rhapsody Op. 17. Niels Gravillius; Stockholm Philharmonic.

St. Matthew Passion, Final Chorus. Toscanini; NBC Symphony & unidentified chorus, 1945. [Every bit as rapturous and devout as Mengelberg’s, in good clean sound. Time: approx. 10 minutes.]

String Quartet, 1969. American String Quartet [17:05] [This is the kind of music I usually detest: tuneless, hardcore post-Schoenbergian Sixties’ Modernist stuff, buttressed with pretentious and technical program notes, viz.: "Both movements of the String Quartet reveal my interests during 1968-1969: continuity and pervasiveness; transformation and elaboration; ways to imagine surfaces which continually reflect some quality of the latent ‘ground’. Constancy of change is an attribute of the work that even the most casual listener will grasp, I hope…Also, I simply wanted ‘to write a string quartet’, and thus preoccupied myself with the sonic resources of the ensemble…" Okay, let’s all guffaw and get it over with, because believe it or not, you CAN HEAR WHAT SHE’S TALKING ABOUT! Yes, THE PIECE actually says something, in its chrome-plated, Sixties’ fashion; it really works as music! There are some quite brilliant source-and-reflection episodes in pizzicato style, some harmonic lay-outs that communicate real feeling…I doubt it’ll ever become a program staple, or even very well known, but I think it’s a splendid accomplishment, and it’s given a drop-dead brilliant reading here.]

Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor". Emil Gilels; Leopold Ludwig; Philharmonia Orchestra [See comments under "Conductors"]

Quartet No. 1, F Major, Op. 18/ No. 1. Pascal String Quartet

Quartet No. 6, B flat Major, Op. 18/ No. 6. Pascal String Quartet

Symphony No. 2. Performers, date & venue unknown. [It’s dubbed from an Aries LP, so everything except the name of the composition is bogus. I think this one’s attributed to the "Versailles Philharmonic"…]

"March to the Scaffold" from Symphonie Fantastique. Scherchen; London Symphony Orchestra

Quartet for Oboe, Violin, Viola & Cello. Netherlands Oboe Quartet & Guests. Live, Holland Festival, 1966. [12:27] [Dreary, Party-line tow-row exercise, without one redeeming flicker of warmth, humanity, or wit anywhere in the piece. The performers are experts at this repertoire, but even they sound like they’re playing with gritted teeth.]

Symphony in A Minor. Claudio Scimone; Monte Carlo Opera Orchestra. [A thoroughly agreeable, if rather academic, piece of workmanship; you would never guess, however, that it’s by the same composer who wrote the earth-shattering Prologue to Mephistopheles.]

"Prince Igor" – "Umsonst nach Ruhe". George London, bass; Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra, live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

String Quartet No. 1. Contemporary String Quartet [19:35]

Tragic Overture. Toscanini; Philharmonia Orchestra, live, London, 9/9/52. [NOT the same take as the commercially released alternate; the best sound, qua sound, I’ve ever heard for this excerpt. It’s the only performance I know that equals Mengelberg’s in its lightning-bolt intensity, and the sound is much cleaner than it was on the old Turnabout issue, or even the new (and outrageously over-priced) "Testament" CDs. This is Toscanini at his very best; this is the art of conducting at its most Olympian; this is one of the two greatest recordings of this music ever made. Did I mention it’s very good?]

BRAIN, Havergal: [I’ve finally accepted the likelihood that I shall not live to see a complete cycle of Brian’s symphonies readily available, much less his operas, theater music, tone poems & overtures, and concerti (although SOME young virtuoso is missing a good career move by not taking up the cause of Brian’s Violin Concerto, which really has the potential to crowd-please, But by luck and industrious trading, I’ve acquired tapes of the premieres of several more of this wonderful old man’s symphonies, thus inching closer. About half there now:

Fanfares from "The Cenci". Howarth; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

Prologue to "Faust". Mackerras; New Philharmonia Orch. [If the rest of this opera measures up to this tantalizing segment, it bloody well ought to be staged!]

Symphony No. 2, "Scherzo" only, in two versions. Leslie Head; Kensington Symphony Orchestra, live, 1973 (first performance of a now suppressed score (I think) ; and Mackerras, New Philharmonia, 1979 Orchestra. [I actually think the provincial Kensington ensemble and its little known conductor do a slightly more impressive job with this eccentric and soon-to-disappear symphony. And I MAY be wrong, too, about Brian’s having "suppressed" this piece. Anyway, here are two different "takes" but both brilliantly engaged.]

Symphony No. 13. Syanley Pope; Royal Philharmonic Orchestra [17:51]

Symphony No. 17. Stanley Pope; Royal Philharmonic Orchestra [13:30]

Symphony No. 27. Sir Charles Mackerras; New Philharmonia

Symphony No. 29. Meyer Fredman; Royal Philharmonic, premiere, [22:56]

Variations & Fugue on a Theme by Johann Sebastian Bach, Op. 81. Rudolf Serkin, piano [

The Earl of Salisbury’s Ste…uh, Pavane. Howarth; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

Dance of the Water Nymphs. Toscanini; NBC Symphony Orchestra; live, 8/5/1952

Ceremonial Fanfare. Howarth; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

Nocturnes – "Fetes" only. Toscanini; NBC Symphony, live, Carnegie Hall, 3/15/52. [Personally, I think Toscanini’s way with this music just…how to put it politely…sucked. Much too fast, too raw, utterly drained of atmosphere, splashed in primary colors – a Jackson Pollock instead of a Turner, if you will. That said, however, the recorded sound itself is truly brilliant and pristine, so if you don’t find the Godfather’s stgyle just too wrong to stomach, you’ll at least hear that wrong-ness in genuine Hi-Fi.]

"Aureole" for Large Orchestra. Theodore Antoniu; American Composers Orchestra; live, 1981. [As usual with Druckman, it’s a bit gimmicky, but it’s also a magnificent study on orchestral color and sheer inventive gusto. While it may be true that his pieces DO tend to sound somewhat alike (the same can of course be said about Mozart), it’s also true that he sounds unlike any other composer, obtaining a vibrant, prismatic shimmer from the orchestra that casts a genuine spell. I don’t believe this piece has ever been commercially recorded, so this live – and very sharp – reading is the only game in town. Off-the-air sound is quite good, except for an occasional sputter of interference. I like Druckman’s work a lot -- although I seldom get in the mood to put it on, I’m always glad when I do. He can orchestrate like a house a-fire, and musicians seem to enjoy playing his stuff very much – there’s a marvelous élan to this performance that beats the sterile perfection of a studio recording three ways from Sunday.]

Symphony No. 1, C Minor, Op. 3, "The Bells of Zlonice". Vaclav Neumann; Prague Symphony Orchestra [See comments under "Conductors’]

"Diaphora" for Strings, Marimba, Harpsichord, and Percussion. Bruno Moderna; Concertgebouw of Amsterdam; live, Holland Festival, 1966 [13:03] [Not without moments of vivacity and color, which Moderna makes the most of; but still, a lukewarm exercise in formalism…]

Seven Popular Spanish Songs. Mabelle Sangalli, mezzo; Jean Fournet; Rotterdam Philharmonic; live, 1986 [13:21]

"Battle Music" (arr. by Ghedini). Fennell; The Fennell Wind Ensemble; live, Library of Congress, date unknown.

"Faust" – Serenade. George London, bass; Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra, live; Pension Fund Concert, 1962

"Fossegrimen" – Dramatic Suite for Orchestra & Hardranger Fiddle, Op. 21. Sigbjorn Osa, fiddle; Oivind Bergh; Norwegian Radio Orchestra. [20:38] [One of my all-time favorite "obscure" pieces; irresistible folk tunes, pungent twangy sound of the Hardranger, and a story-line suggestive of dancing peasants, garrulous trolls, and swiving-in-the-haystacks. Just great stuff! I’ve listed another, much earlier recording too, on a scarce-as-hens’-teeth Black Label Mercury, that’s a shade earthier and more unbuttoned; it sounds more like a folk orchestra’s playing it. Others might prefer the smoother, richer sound of this modern recording; you can’t go wrong with either!]

Maskarade Suite. Oivind Bergh; Norwegian Radio Symphony. [25:38] [What, did EVERY Scandinavian composer write something called "Maskerade"?? This isn’t as sophisticated and sardonic as Carl Nielsen’s work, but it’s full of great tunes and colorful orchestration; and it’s presented in a very sympathetic reading and excellent sound.]

Symphony No. 7. Antoniu; American Composers’ Orchestra; live, 1981. [No, this reading doesn’t have the rich, plush string tone of Ormandy’s wonderful recording – long unavailable – and, yes, the piece sounds like a pastiche of left-over bits from earlier, stronger Roy Harris works, but it’s still a lovely thing, especially when it’s performed with this kind of fervent conviction. Ormandy’s interpretation sort of "looks backwards" to the Romantic past, while Antoniu and his doughty part-time band definitely play Harris AS a 20^th-Century composer, giving the music a bit more edge and bite and raw vigor. Both approaches work well; the composer would have been honored and pleased by this revival.]

The Children of Lyr. Thomson; Ulster Orchestra

Ode to a Nightengale. Heather Harper, sop.; Thomson; Ulster Orchestra

Sinfonia Concertante, B-flat Major, Hob. 1/105. Bohdan Warchal; Slovak Chamber Orchestra. [22:04] [Well-recorded, expressive, robust performance of a delightful work]

Processionals. Theodore Antoniu; American Composers’ Orchestra; live, 1981. [Minimalism-as-ritual here, and if the piece were three minutes longer, it would become tiresome. But it isn’t, so it’s rather fascinating and Bolero-like. This is the world premiere, incidentally.]

Concert Music for Brass, Op. 47. Fennell; The Fennell Wind Ensemble; live, Library of Congress; date unknown

Hammersmith, Op. 52. Fennell; The Fennell Wind Ensemble; live, Library of Congress; date unknown.

Agincourt Song. Composer; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

Processional for Brass. Composer; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

(Arranged by Howarth) Suite of French Renaissance Dances. Howarth; Philip Jones Brass Ensemble

Fanfares for Britannicus. Howarth; Philip Jones Brass Ensemnle.

Cantata "Pour le Portrait d’un Oiseau" for mezzo and Chamber Orchestra. Ileana Melita, mezzo; Elie Poslavsky; Concertgebouw of Amsterdam; live, Holland Festival, 1966 [12:27] [Last time I checked, the Concertgebouw was hardly a "chamber Orchestra", but let that pass. Sigh. Every time I think I’ve reached the bottom of the stack, I find another batch of these damned Radio Nederland transcription discs, all proudly proclaiming ‘DUTCH AVANT-GARDE MUSIC" , which immediately alerts you to what’s cookin’ – feeble, gimmicky, self-conscious trendiness and weird, funky assortments of instruments, and snotty, often irrelevant (like Satie, but without the wit) or just plain dysfunctional titles. The Dutch government was generous with its grant money, and these young Turks glommed hold of every guilder on the plate, cranking out reams of this junk. The ensembles dutifully gave excellent performances, the audience dutifully applauded and counted the moments until a Beethoven piece; the Amsterdam critics pretended to take it all very seriously…and I doubt if 3/4ths of it has every been played or recorded again. The more confrontationally "avant-garde" the composer’s posturing, the more hopelessly dated and in-bred the music sounds today. But some of these composers eventually grew up and smelled the neo-tonal coffee and actually produced good work, so there’s documentary value to these relics, if nothing else. Performances and sound are universally top-notch; I can dub them with or without the solemnly pretentious spoken introductions, your choice.]

The Leksands Suite. Niels Gravill`ius; Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra [More juicy Swedish neo-Romanticism, tellingly conducted by the estimable Maestro Grevillius – who, had he chosen to leave Sweden, would surely be far better known today than he is. This is another case of record collectors keeping a fine, but obscure, musician’s reputation alive, if only just barely, beyond the borders of his homeland. I mean, sheesh, there are so MANY noble, selfless things we vinyl-heads do!]

Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. Toscanini;NBC Symphony; live, 4/4/1943 [Only known performance he ever gave of this warhorse, and it’s wonderful; every bit as luch and wild as Stokowski’s. The acetate-derived sonics are surprisingly smooth and vivid. Revelatory and unique!]

Mephisto Waltz. Scherchen; Vienna State Opera Orchestra.

"Adagio" from Piano Quartet. Concertgebouw Chamber Players; live, 1986 [10:28] [The last guy you’d think of when it comes to string quartets, right? Evidently, Mahler thought so, too, since he gave up this fledgling effort after fully scoring just this single movement, which does occasionally get played just because of who composed it. I can’t imagine any quartet making more out of this chip-off-the-workbench than these four string players from Amsterdam; if you’re in a receptive mood, you CAN hear some shadows of things to come… fleetingly. More often than not, though, it sounds like Schubert in a melancholy mood.]

Symphony No. 9. Maazel; Cleveland Orchestra; live, 1981 [Wonderful heady interpretation; imagine Szells transparency and icy precision blended with sensual lushness and voluptuous colors from a re-energized ensemble. Damn, but Maazel just keeps getting more brilliant as he ages (and he remains so charmingly unpredictable; he’ll blow the roof off at one concert, then at the very next – same program, mind you! – the music will sound inexplicably inert and the same "brilliant" personal touches will sound wayward, arbitrary, and crudely eccentric). But unquestionably, the Brilliant Maazel has gradually taken over more and more often from the "Wayward Maazel" as he’s gotten older, more mature and – not so coincidentally – as the other competitor died off in his profession, leaving him the obvious heir to Stokowski’s mantle. May he live as long and be as productive of great performances!]

Dandelion Romance, for Mixed Chorus & Soprano. Sona Kaucka, soprano; Josef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus [14:05]

The Legend of the Smoke from the Potato-tops, for Mixed Chorus, soloists, flute, Clarinet, Horn, Accordion & Piano. Josef Veselka; Soloists & Chorus of the Czech Philharmonic. [20:00]

Mikes from the Mountains, for Mixed Chorus, Violin, Viola & Piano. Joef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus & Soloists. [20:35] [That’s "MIK-ESH". Not "Mikes". Some sort of folk hero, I guess. You don’t need to know the oddball derivation to enjoy the music, which is prime Martinu.]

The Opening of the Wells, for Mixed Chorus, soprano, tenor, violin, viola & Piano. Josef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus & Soloists [20:10]

Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 14. David Bar-Illan, piano [No timing given]

Sinfonia. Claudio Scimone; Monte Carlo Opera Orchestra. [I’ve never heard anything by this composer that stuck in my mind longer than it took to play the recording of it; this pleasant but inconsequential exercise is no exception, even though Scimone tries his considerable best to make it interesting.]

Two-Piano Concerto E flat Major, K. 365. Badura-Skoda & Dagmag Bella, pianos; Furtwangler’ Vienna Philharmonic, live, 2/2/1949 [See comments under "Conductors"]

Night on Bald Mountain. Scherchen; Vienna State Opera Orchestra.

Prelude to "Khovantschina". Toscanini; NBC Symphony; live, 12/13/1953

Fantasy on a Polish Theme, Op. 19. Blumenthal, piano; Wagner; Innsbruck Symphony [22:35]

Sinfonia Concertante No. 5, F Major. Bohdan Warchal; Slovak Chamber Orchestra [24:00]

"The Gambler", complete Opera. Rozhdesvensky, et. al. [See details under "Opera & Choral"]

Piano Concerto No. 3, C Major, Op. 26. William Kapell, piano; Stokowski; NBC Symphony; live, 2/20/ 1949 [See comments under "Chamber Ensembles & Solo Virtuosi"]

Capriccio Sinfonica. Claudio Scimone; Monte Carlo Opera Orchestra

"Tosca" – "Vissi d’arte". Birgit Nilsson; Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra; live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

Bolero. "Dr. Edmundo Aleva"; Festival Orchestra of Milan. [See mini-essay under "Conductors; Mystery Maestri"]

Capriccio Espagnole. "Dr. Edmundo Aleva"; "Festival Orchestra of Milan" [See comments under "Conductors; Mystery Maestri"]

Danse Macabre, Op. Scherchen; Vienna State Opera Orchestra. [Leave it to Scherchen to somehow lay out the bones, as it were, so that the piece sounds fresh, inspired, exciting. The xylophone player alone deserves a medal, and every single timpani note comes through crisp and distinct. I can think of only a handful of recordings that equal this one, and both are ancient" Sir Hamiliton Harty’s, with its fiercely over-recorded xylophone, and Stokowski’s downright smarmy old Philadelphia one, c. 1928; of course, Westminster gave Scherchen much better sound, and my Source copy is in near-mint condition.]

Serenade, Op. 24. Leon Kirchner, conducting; Marlboro Chamber Players (Harold Wright, Bb clarinet; Don Stewart, bass clarinet; Stanley Silverman, guitar; Jacob Glick, mandolin; Jaime Laredo, violin; Samuel Rhodes, viola; Madeline Foley, cello; Thomas Paul, bass. [If that isn’t a Dream Team for this strange but lovable piece, I dunno what would be. Kirchner, of course, is better known as one of America’s finest composers, but on this limited-circulation LP, he leads a really warm, Viennese reading – close to schmaltzy at times – of this transitional masterpiece; the Marlboro Recording Society – which appears to have been defunct for decades, now – captured it in very warm, close-up sound, every instrumental voice balanced just right, and the result is my favorite reading of all. Mitropoulos’s would be, but his musicians were neither as good nor as cozy with the style as these players. No timing given on Source, but the piece is always about 26-27 minutes long, no matter who’s doing it. If you, too, love this strange but deeply satisfying work, and you haven’t heard this rendition of it, delay no more.]

Fantasy in C Major, "Wanderer". Bar-Illan, piano [19:06] [See comments under "Chamber & Solo Virtuosi]

Introduction & Variations, Op. 160. Rudolf Serkin, piano; Paula Sylvester, flute. [From a live recital at the Marlboro Festival, circa late Seventies; very fine.]

Sonata in G Minor, Op. 22 David Bar-Illan, piano [No timing given]

The Swan of Tuonela. Toscanini; New York Philharmonic, live, 1/13/1945 [This was a pension fund concert, not broadcast and no excerpts ever commercially released; yet the sound is remarkably good, deep, rich Carnegie-Hall in its prime, and the performance – much to my amazement – is ultra slow, very dark, very spiritual (those bass drum rolls have never sounded more ominous!) – it’s one of the greatest performances of this work I’ve ever heard and I must have 35 recordings of it.]

Clarinet Concerto No. 2, E Flat Minor, Op. 57. John Denman, clarinet; Hazel Vivienne; Sadlers Wells Orchestra [See comment under "Chamber & Solo"]

Clarinet Concerto No. 3, B Flat Major, No, opus no. John Denman, clarinet; Hazel Vivienne; Sadlers Wells Orchestra [See comment under "Chamber & Solo Virtuosi"]

"22 Pages" for Winds, Double-basses, Percussion & Male Voices. Bruno Moderna; Radio Hilversum Orchestra & soloists; live, Holland Festival, 1966 [10:45] [See comments under "Conductors"]

Suite for Woodwinds, B-flat, Op. 4. Fennell; The Fennell Wind Ensemble; live, Library of Congress, date unknown. [Sheer delight!]

"The Mother of Us All" Suite. Stokowski; New York Philharmonic, live; 4/2/1950 [13:19] [I once saw this charming and slightly nutty opera in a gratifyingly professional staging by the opera company at UNC-G, and, as usual, I came away wondering why it isn’t produced more often! (The whacky libretto by Gertrude Stein is worth the price of admission!) The fascinating paradox about Virgil; Thomson is the dichotomy between his persona as MUSIC CRITIC (and make no mistake, he was one of the best since George Bernard Shaw) and Thomson THE COMPOSER. The former was a feisty progressive and a hard-nosed cynic, who caustically made fun of what he called the "WOW!" school of conducting, yet his deceptively simple, even n naive-sounding music often found its most forceful advocates among conductors of that ilk, especially Stokowski, who made five commercial recordings of Thomson pieces and programmed several others, and V.T. was damned happy about it, too. The opera from which this suite is drawn, is based on the life of Susan B. Anthony, and is structured as a series of set-piece tableaux depicting various highlights of her biography and her crusade. Thomson cannily generates sympathy, respect, and admiration for his subject, by resolutely refusing to get "preachy"; in fact, by adopting a mostly frothy, almost Satie-like attitude – he gets the underlying message across, simply because the audience has so much fun watching and listening! This sparkling performance was only the second (the premiere was given two weeks earlier, by the Knoxville Symphony, which commissioned the suite!). Stokowski included three of the four movements (a fourth had to be omitted because of broadcast time constraints): "Prelude", "Cold Weather", and "A Political Rally". Under a less sympathetic interpreter, the suite might sound like Charles Ives on Xanax, but Stokie relishes every sweet/raucous bar of it, and turns Thomson’s calculated simplicity (the composer once described the harmonies as being "plain-as-Dick’s-hatband") into something beautifully evocative of a rustic, simpler America. I think this is one of the finest, as well as one of the rarest, off-the-air Stokowski readings in my collection, and the sonics are warm and very present. Sheer delight!]

"La Battalia di Legnano", Prelude to. Claudio Scimone; Monte Carlo Opera Orchestra. [See comments under "Puccini"]

"Gotterdammerung" – Immolation Scene. Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra; live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

"Lohengrin" Prelude Act I. Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra; live, Pension Fund, 1962.

"Rienzi" Overture. Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra; live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962

"Tristan & Isolde" – Liebestod. Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra Pension Fund Concert, 1962 [Maybe it was the gala celebration, or maybe it was because he was back in Philadelphia, but Stokie whipped the first part up to a faster tempo than on any other performance I’ve heard by him (about 20!) and then, taking a hairpin curve on two wheels, broadens the tempo just before the climax (as it were). Sounds like it took the orchestra by surprise, too, but they hang on, and there’s no denying the excitement.]

Barkin, Elaine: String Quartet, 1969. [17:05]+

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4, G Major, Op. w/ Clemens Krauss; Vienna Philharmonic [See comments under "Conductors"]

Mozart: Two-Piano Concerto, E-flat Major, K. 365. w. Furtwangler; Vienna Philharmonic; live, 2/2/1949

Mendelssohn: Rondo capriccioso, Op. 14. [No timing given[

Schubert: Fantasy in C Major, "Wanderer". [19:06] [A very fine, impassioned reading that, for some reason, never received much attention when it was in print.]

Arensky: Fantasie (sic) on Epic Russian Themes, Op. 48. w/ Waldhans; Brno Philharmonic [25:20] [See comments under "Arensky"]

Paderewski: Fantasy on Polish Themes, Op. 19. w/ Wagner; Innsbruck Symphony [22:35]

Boykan: String Quartet No. 1. [1935]

Spohr: Clarinet Concerto No. 2, E Flat Major, Op. 57. w/ Hazel Vivienne; Sadlers Wells Orchestra.

Stamitz: Clarinet Concerto No. 3, B flat Major (No Op. Number). w/ Hazel Vivienne; Sadlers Wells Orchestra. [Sprightly, charming works by late Classical/early Romantic sort-of contemporaries of Beethoven. Ample charm and virtuosity in the performances; Denham produces a suitably streamlined, but pleasingly fruity, tone that seems just right for this in-between music. Ms. Vivienne is worth a note, too, as she was one of the very few woman conductors who reached the big leagues, and by the time this obscure "Peerless" release was issued in 1973, she’d been music director at Sadlers Wells for ten well-regarded years. I wonder what became of her?]

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor". w/ Leopold Ludwig; Philharmonia Orchestra [See comments under "Conductors"]

Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3, C Major, Op. 26. w/ Stokowski; NBC Symphony; live, 2/20/1949. [Once famously considered a "barbaric" piece, with a finger-breaking toccata finale that invariably brings down the house – IF the pianist doesn’t have a stroke playing it – this show-off concerto has been part of the repertoire now for so long that some great pianists have uncovered more lyricism and poetry in it than you might think was even there, under the pounding surface-clatter (Marta Argerich, that Dark Angel of the keyboard, does an especially brilliant job of bringing out those elements), but in this reading, both Kapell and Stokie are determined to go for broke; it’s a scorching, almost blindingly intense account, with the NBC players hanging on for dear life and the conductor showing no mercy by flogging them with almost inhumanly fast tempos; Kapell takes it in stride, revels in it, slashes the keys with a straight-razor and then sets fire to them with a bottle of napalm. For sheer visceral brilliance, this 1949 live performance is in a class by itself, and the sound is more than serviceable (although it does get a bit congested near the end, as the engineers obviously struggle to keep from blowing the VU meters to bits), but by that time you won’t care. No timing’s given on my Source copy, but it HAS to be a couple of minutes shorter than most recorded versions, simply because of the break-neck attack by the performers. If memory serves, Kapell also made a studio recording of this (it was virtually a calling-card piece for him), but fine as it is, it pales in comparison. Critics who chided Stokowski for "not having enough soloists" on his programs – the clear implication being that he hated to share the limelight with ANY other musician – just didn’t know what they were talking about; I saw him work with dozens of guest virtuosi, and he was invariably courteous, cooperative, and willing to meet them more than half-way – one of my most vivid memories of those days, actually, centers on rehearsals of the Brahms D Minor, where the ursine John Ogdon, then at his peak, all-but-hugged Stokowski for his considerate, yet thrillingly assertive, handling of the orchestral part. I hate to say it, but the extant recording of their collaboration just doesn’t quite equal the fever-pitch they achieved at the dress rehearsal, although on its own terms, it’s a knockout. And yes, I WILL be listing that rarity, eventually; remember, folks, just because I haven’t gotten around to formally listing something, doesn’t mean I can’t dub it for you – the 2500-odd listings already available represent, perhaps, about five per cent of my total holdings, and if I don’t have something you’re looking for, chances are I know somebody who HAS, so send those special requests c/o this web site, and I’ll get in touch with you promptly.]

Du Bois, Robert: Quartet for Oboe, Violin, Viola & Cello. Live, Holland Festival, 1966. [12:27] [See comments under "Composer"]

Beethoven: String Quartet in B Flat Major, Op. 18 / No. 6 [The Pascal’s Beethoven quartet cycle has long been one of the dark-horse favorites among collectors. Unobtainable since the mid-Seventies, in ANY format, the boxed set of all the S.Q.s was last issued by the Book of the Month Club, in their respected "Classics Library" format. The complete set that fell into my hands last December, fortunately, was in near-immaculate condition, with exemplary sound and very clean surfaces – doesn’t look as though the former owner bothered to play them even once; the CD dubbings, therefore, really sound crisp and vibrant and ultra-clear in their handling of counterpoint; enjoy, enjoy! (I haven’t decided when I’m going to list the entire box set, but if you should want the whole thing now, please email me an inquiry and we’ll work something out!)]

Schubert: Introduction & Variations, Op. 160, w/ Paula Sylvester, flute

COMPLETE OPERAS

"The Gambler". w/ Rozhdestvensky; Vladimir Makhov (Alexis); Nina Poliakova (Pauline); Anna Matiushinia (Blanche); Gennady Troitsky (The General); Andrei Sokolov (The Marquis); Boris Dubrin (Mr. Ashley); Other Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra of the All-Union Radio. [How time flies! Seems like only yesterday when I discovered this magnificent opera via this very recording – the first, I believe, and so tightly knit that I don’t see how Prokofiev could have made a suite from the music, much as I would enjoy hearing such a work. Just as he proved himself a master of public spectacle in earlier works (even in Alexander Nevsky), here the composer reveals his genius for delineating character and conveying inner, psychological states through tone. As I said, this is/was the first complete recording and, even though it announced a new masterpiece in this composer’s canon, and even though the critics praised Rozhdestvensky’s impassioned conducting and the fresh-voiced theatricality of the vocal cast, the Met still hasn’t gotten around to mounting a production! It’s based, of course, on Dostoyevsky’s short novel of the same name. You’ll quickly note that it is HAS NO ARIAS, no recitatives, no crowd-pleasing open-air choruses. Rarely does the composer use even internal rhyme. The style is basically a very eccentric form of sprechstimme – the closest thing to a conventional operatic climax is the a pugnacious, verbal sword-fight when bad luck at the roulette table makes the major characters very testy, and for that episode, Prokofiev brilliantly painted an orchestral accompaniment that evokes the bombast and over-acted style he deployed so powerfully in the music for Ivan the Terrible, Part One! The Soviet engineering is a tad glary and coarse-grained, but that actually helps the opera to make its full impact. For all the energy and invention he poured into them Prokofiev’s operas are, for some reason, a tough sell in the West (I’d love to see a full-throttle production of The Flaming Angel, for example, but don’t expect to live long enough…how many times has that early expressionistic masterpiece been staged in our lifetimes?). In any event, the Source recording vanished from American stores about 30 years ago and is nowhere in sight at the moment, so if you’re interested, this might be the only place you can acquire a copy. My LPs are in near-mint condition, and the opera almost takes up two full CDs. I filled the second disc with the electrifying live reading of the Third Piano Concerto, with William Kapell slinging napalm all over the keys and Stokie poking the NBC Symphony with a cattle-prod, so that’s a mighty appealing bonus when you order a copy.]

Harty: Ode to a Nightengale. w/ Bryden Thomson; Ulster Orchestra

Borodin: "Prince Igor" – "Umsonst nach Ruhe". w/ Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra, live, 1962, Pension Fund Concert

Gounod: "Faust" – Serenade. w/ Stokowski; Philadelphia Orchestra; live, Pension Fund Concert, 1962.

Bellini: "Il Fervido Desiderio". [2:48]

Bellini: "Malinconia, ninfa gentile…" [2:12]

Bellini" "Bella Nice, che d’amore…" [3:50]

Bellini: "Vanne, o rosa fortunate…" [2:13]

Donizetti: "Me Voglio fan ‘na casa…" 1:56]

Donizetti: "A Mezzanote…" [1:58]

Donizetti: "La Zingara…" [3:55]

Rossini: "La Fioraia Fiorentini…" [4:48]

Rossini: "La Promesa…" [3:32}

Rossini: ""Mi Lagnero Tacendo…" 3:35]

Rossini: "L’invito…" 3:03]

Verdi: "Perduta ho la pas…" [5:09]

Verdi: "Lo Spazzacamino…" [2:20]

Verdi: "Ad Una Stella…" [3:21]

Verdi: Stornello. [1:57]

NILLSON, Birgit: [These, and the George London items listed above, are from the Philadelphia Orchestra’s 1962 Pension Fund Concert. Stokowski presided on the podium, gladly subordinating his ego to the collective enterprise; the result was a memorable and unique evening. None of these performances has ever been commercially issued in America, so enjoy, enjoy!]

Martinu: Dandelion Romance, for Mixed Chorus & Soprano. Sona Kaucka, soprano; Josef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus [14:05]

Martinu: The Legend of the Smoke from the Potato-tops, for Mixed Chorus, soloists, flute, Clarinet, Horn, Accordion & Piano. Josef Veselka; Soloists & Chorus of the Czech Philharmonic. [20:00]

Martinu: Mikes from the Mountains, for Mixed Chorus, Violin, Viola & Piano. Josef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus & Soloists. [20:35] [That’s "MIK-ESH". Not "Mikes". Some sort of folk hero, I guess. You don’t need to know the oddball derivation to enjoy the music, which is prime Martinu.]

Martinu: The Opening of the Wells, for Mixed Chorus, soprano, tenor, violin, viola & Piano. Josef Veselka; Czech Philharmonic Chorus & Soloists [20:10]

By COMPOSER’S LAST NAME

GOLDSMITH, Jerry:

"A Patch of Blue". [For it’s time, a daring foray into racial prejudice, even though the film hasn’t aged well and now seems heavy-handed. Elizabeth Hartmann played the semi-Helen-Keller heroine; Shelly Winters played (what else?) her besotted and irresponsible mother; and Sidney Poitier played (also what else?) the handsome, proper-talkin’, compassionate Negro who helps the blind girl and she loves him because he’s kind and, well, she can’t SEE HE’S BLACK, so that’s the subtle-as-a-sledgehammer irony the whole movie’s based on. All the principles emote with almost sickening sincerity (except good ol’ Winters, who gets to slop around with a glass in her hand, abusing the girl and acting slutty and spilling booze all over her Zeppelins). Not one of Goldsmith’s more distinguished scores, but when the studio calls for schlock, he delivers, like any good movie composer’s supposed to. About the only thing this one has going for it is its rarity and its very good condition.]

"Lord Jim". [One of the all-time great adventure films – see my gushing blurb below.]

By TITLE

"Lord Jim". [See comments under "Kaper" . Damn, I adored this movie! Steamy Joseph Conrad ambience, redemption, love, and loss; great typhoon scene; two outstanding battle scenes; O’Toole at his brooding existential best (in a role that finally gave him an unforced chance to revisit the psychic territory of Lawrence!), Elai Wallach in another villainous gun-slinger role, with the eyes of a rattlesnake and the casual sadism of a Grand Inquisitor; and best of all, Israeli beauty queen Daliah Lavi (in her first and last starring role!) and the most impossible beautiful and maddeningly desirable six-foot willowy, dark-eyed, walks-like-a-gazelle South Seas temptress you ever saw! (Well, OK, so she couldn’t ACT very well, but with eyes like that, all she really needed to do was stand there and look unbelievably exotic and sensuous). Kaper’s music, as usual, seems cut to order by a master tailor; he never quite showed the blazing inspiration of Mickey Rosza, but when the script called for "lonely and nostalgic", he could spin a faux-Vaughan-Williams theme that would melt a stone; and when it called for "soaring heroism", he could always come up with horn-heavy themes that hovered somewhere between Rosza’s fanfares for El Cid and the Gary Cooper Theme in High Noon. I don’t think this one’s out on DVD yet, which is a pity; it’s just a superb escapist-adventure saga, and very faithful to the spirit, at least, of Conrad’s sweaty morality tales.]

"A Patch of Blue" [See comments above under "Goldsmith"]

CELTIC & RELATED FOLK GENRES

Good Friends, Good Music. [A gay (in the old sense), sprightly collection of wedding reels, party figs, pour-me-a-pint-and-up-the-Republic’s-arse kind of high jinks; infectious wonderful Irish music. The more Guinesses you drink, the better it sounds! Source LP had VERY limited, brief circulation in the U.S. and was vanished before many of the group’s fans ever knew it existed. Here’s your second chance to pick up this enjoyable compilation, and at a price cheaper than that of the original LP!]

"Aqaba." [She’s a little more ethereal than Linda Thompson, and perhaps a little less secure in her intonation, but she can still weaves a spell with her evocative lyrics, her embroidered turns-of-phrase, and her spare but cunning instrumental back-ups. The album listed here is almost minimalist in its lack of fuss and lean textures, but it still brings the goosebumps. I’m listing the individual songs, even thought none of them, apparently, is derived from folk tunes per se, and my Source has no program notes, but still…the lady at her best is haunting and memorable.]

Aqaba. June Tabor, solo; instrumentalists; recorded 1986.

The Old Man’s Song (Don Quixote)

"The Mermaid’s Song". [Top-notch collection of varied traditional numbers by one of the oldest, most influential of all the Celtic groups. Here, drink another piss-warm Guiness, smoke a pack of fags, and "Up the Republic!"]:

Greenhouse Side; Highland Laddie; Pattie [3:10]

Logie o’ Buchan. [3:58]

Elspeth Campbell; Kenny Gyles of Portnalong, Skye; Malcolm Johnstone; Thornton’s Jig ] [4:43]

The Cuillins of Rhum [[3:28]

The Mermaid’s Song; The Herra Boys; Captain Horn; The Fourth Floor [6:11]

Are you Sleeping, Maggie? ; The Noose & the Ghillie . [3:04]

A Bruxa; Unknown [3:41]

Come Under My Plaiddie! [3:44]

Welcome, Royal Cherlie; Campbell’s Farewe;; to Redcasatle. [2:39]

Flashmarket Close; MacArthur; Colonel Fraser; The Swallow’s Tale [4:14]

The Ass in the graveyard [2:31]

ANTHOLOGY: "Old-Time Music", An Eclectic Sampler. [I am deeply indebted to my friend Mark Sanderson of Danville, Va., who made this compilation available, from his remarkable collection of "old timey" mountain, folk, bluegrass, and C & W tunes. Mark’s a recognized authority in this field (he also knows more about contemporary Czech composers than anybody I know!), and has made numerous trips to the Appalchians to record live music by authentic and decidedly non-commercial bands and soloists. You won’t find any of these artists on the charts, folks, but you WILL find many a good tune and many a fine fiddler listed below. I haven’t got the precise timings, but most of these cuts are in the 4-6 minute range, and they all fit handily on ONE CD. So…why not just order the whole anthology?]

HASH, Albert (fiddle); w/ Paul Spencer (banjo; Whitetop, Virginia.):

"Point Noir Two-Step".

WEST VIRGINIA PLAYBOYS (Duh…guess where?):

The Immortal King Oliver. [A beautifully re-mastered Milestone anthology, featuring recordings made between 1923 – 1928, when Oliver was playing and recordings with Jelly Roll Morton, Tommy Dorsey, Richard M. Jones, the Clarence Williams Orchestra, and his own inimitable "Creole Jazz Band". Most of these sides have been refurbished just enough to bring out all the music in the grooves, but not filtered so heavily as to sound artificially modified. A great collection; put this on in the morning and you’ll hit the sidewalk whistling.]

King Porter Stomp Tom Cat Blues

Mabel’s Dream, I and II Southern Stomps (2 alternate takes)

"Orinthology." [These sides were cut between 1947 – 1950. If you’ve reading this, you probably know the cuts. What’s most impressive, though, is the incredible array of sidemen who played in these sessions. Of course, alto sax was always C.P. himself, but the other personnel were: TRUMPET: Fats Navarro; Howard McGee; Miles Davis/ PIANO: Bud Powell; Duke Jordon; Dodo Marmarosso; Jimmy Bunn; BASS: Tommy Potter, Red Callender, Victor McMillan; TROMBONE: J.J. Johnson; DRUMS: Max Roac, Doln Lamond, Ray Porter/ GUITAR: Arvin Garrison. That Roster good enough for ya?]

POP & ROCK

Days of Wine and Roses. [Neo-psychedelic, impressively gentle and lyrical, moody as all hell.]

Tell Me When It’s Over Definitely Clean

That’s What You Always Say Then She Remembers

Halloween When You Smile

WAS (NOT WAS): [I’m about to dub this record; I’ve never heard it before, but my friend John But my friend John Butts thinks it’s one of the Seventies Greatest Cult LPs. I’ll let you know what I think after I listen to it (I usually trust John, but we don’t always see eye-to-eye on these matters)]

Emilyn Williams as Charles Dickens: [Mr. Williams, a distinguished British actor, director, and playwright (like Peter Ustinov, a triple-threat guy!) created a stage-Dickens of uncanny verisimilitude, and toured extensively with this one-man show, rather like Hal Holbrook’s unforgettable turn as Mark Twain. This two-disc set, an Argo original that’s been O/P since 1070, documents that virtuoso show. Although Mr. Williams frequently changed the excerpts and bits, in this particular documentation, you’ll hear the following – utterly charming – readings:]

"Moving in Society" from "Our Mutual Friends"

"Paul" – scenes from "Dombey and Son"

"Mr. Bob Sawyer Gives a Bachelor Party" from "Pickwick Papers"

"The Signalman", a ghost tale from "Christmas Stories"

"Mr. Chops" from "Christmas Stories"

"The Fancy Ball" from "A Tale of Two Cities"

Poetry OF W. B. Yeats. Read by Siobhan McKenna & Cyril Cusack

TOSCANINI WATCH-STOMPING TANTRUM: Probably the most famous explosion of foul temper by a conductor EVER caught on a recording! So embarrassing that the Toscanini clan tried to bring an injunction against the engineers at NBC who clandestinely recorded the incident; but by that time, multiple copies were in circulation so it was hard cheese for them. It must have been terrifying for the musicians subjected to this tirade, but from our perspective it’s amazing to hear this supposedly God-like servant of Music behaving like a spoiled, thwarted six-year-old.

THE ELEPHANT BOOK: [Kind of hard to describe this one, so I’m putting it under "Mundo Bizarro" for lack of a more appropriate category. It’s a compilation of satire, surreal radio skits, elephant jokes and songs (some of them make sense, most of them, gloriously, do not; lots of elephant-oriented parodies of classic radio and early TV ads. This is humor from the same cultural roots as the early issues of "Mad", and if you don’t dig one routine, just wait five seconds and another one will come along that’ll convulse you. Oh, yeah, there are a lot of Kennedy jokes, to, which pinpoint the time of issue. It’s on a label I’ve never heard of before, and for good reason: there IS no label. It was issued by Pocket Books, Inc., which had sold thousands of copies of Roger Price’s paperback of elephant cartoons. (Price invented the "Droodle", for those of you well-verse in Fifties trivia). Here’s a sample:

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