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(Vittorio Gui - pigeon holed as an Opera Conductor but so much more)

Vittorio Gui is probably best known for his classic opera recordings with, among others, Maria Callas. But Gui was infinitely more than only an opera conductor. As founder of the Florence May Festival in the late 1920s, Gui did a lot to bring about awareness of composers whose works had either fallen into neglect or were never performed and just not familiar to Italian audiences. And it was him, along with his fellow countryman Arturo Toscanini who brought an awareness of Brahms and certainly Richard Strauss to the concert halls of Rome and Milan and Florence.

So this recording of Richard Strauss' Tone Poem Til Eulensgpiegel's Lustige Strieche, gives a good idea of what Gui was exposing Italian audiences to. It was made just after the War, around 1946-1947 (I don't have the exact session dates - if someone does please let me know) and recorded for the Parlophone Company and eventually issued on the small Tempo Records label as an early lp around 1951. It features the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Florence May Festival) Orchestra led by their music director and founder, Vittorio Gui.

In the event you've been glued to the TV, watching the Superbowl and are taking a break, hit the play button and spend 14 minutes decompressing.

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(Johan Svendsen - Contemporary of Grieg, but less well known)

The music of Johan Svendsen has probably gotten more familiar to audiences now that it was say, 40 years ago. A contemporary of fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg, he was most prominently known for his Romance for Violin and Orchestra and not a lot else.

After World War 2 the Society of Norwegian Composers sought to spread the word about Svendsen, and many other Norwegian composers for that matter. They issued a series of 78 discs through the Norwegian Office Of Cultural Relations, featuring a number of less familiar composers of the 19th and early 20th centuries, performed by some of the leading orchestras and performing bodies in Norway. The result was a fascinating set of discs which, sadly were not commercially available, even at the time of their release. They were destined for educational institutions and radio stations in an effort to promote culture and not garner sales.

One of those recordings was the 2nd Symphony of Johan Svendsen, with the Oslo Philharmonic conducted by their music director Odd Gruner-Hegge. Hegge had been music director of the orchestra in the late 1920's to early 1930s when he left and later resumed his association with the orchestra from 1945-1952. There is no actual date on the discs and no information regarding sessions. I am assuming it's 1946, but it could be as late as 1948. In any event, it's a rare fist recording of a seldom performed symphony played by an orchestra the composer was closely associated with.

Nice combination, if you ask me.

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(Sir John Barbirolli - taking over the reins from Toscanini in 1937)

From 1937-1943 Sir John Barbirolli took over as Conductor of the New York Philharmonic when Arturo Toscanini left to assume his role as music director of the newly-formed NBC Symphony. During that time he was actively courted by American record companies and did a number of memorable sessions with RCA Victor and Columbia Records before relinquishing his post and returning to his native England and the height of the war where he began his long association with the Halle Orchestra.

Barbirolli had a long and distinguished career and was guest conductor throughout the world before and after World War 2, performing with all the great orchestras. He was active both on the concert stage and in the studio all the way until his death in 1970.

Barbirolli did an arrangement of works by Henry Purcell (the Suite for Strings with four horns, two flutes and English Horn), and was one of the first recording sessions issued by RCA during his New York tenure.

The Suite was originally issued in 1938 as Victor set M-533 and was recorded on October 24, 1937.

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(The Griller Quartet - together continuously from 1931-1963)

Another dive into the early Decca/London FFRR 78's tonight. This time from the legendary Griller String Quartet who had the distinction of being together without personnel changes or interruption from 1931-1963 - something of a record, and certainly a testimony to just how good this little band were.

In my earlier post a few weeks ago regarding the first sessions of this new recording technique, I mentioned it was primarily British orchestras or the occasional visiting European orchestra who were asked to participate in these sessions. It also extended to small performing groups, like the Grillers. And it was quickly realized the new technology was perfectly suited to the subtle nuances of a string quartet.

Unfortunately, most of these recordings never got reissued, even on lp. And it's only been in recent years that many of these performances have been issued on CD via companies like Dutton Laboratories. I think this performance has been reissued, but I'm going off my own 78's - so if there's a technical glitch, it's my fault and not theirs.

So this performance by the Grillers, recorded in 1947 features Mozart: String Quartet in G Major K. 387 (Spring).

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(Otto Klemperer - 1935 - when giants roamed the podium. And yes, he was 6 foot 5")

Otto Klemperer went through a period of virtual obscurity in his lifetime from the War years until the early 1950s when his fortunes changed and concert halls overflowed. In the early years of electrical recording (1926-1935) he did many milestone sessions for Deutsche Grammophon (Polydor outside Germany), but with the advent of Hitlers Germany, he was forced to leave (as so many did) and seek asylum in a number of countries. His recordings were banned and the masters destroyed. He settled for a time in Los Angeles, becoming Music Director of the L.A. Philharmonic in the late 1930s and was briefly considered taking over Toscanini's post at The New York Philharmonic, but was passed over in favor of Bruno Walter.

But it's the 1920s recordings we're looking at today, most notably one of the many he did of the music of Richard Wagner. This recording of the Siegfried Idyll was done in 1927, at the height of Klemperers pre-war popularity. It features the Berlin State Opera, an orchestra he was closely associated with for a number of years.

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(Charles Munch - Widely respected - you could take his Ravel interpretations to the bank)

Today we're dipping into the archives for some of the early "high fidelity" recordings made by Decca (London in the U.S.) Records just after World War 2. Decca had been experimenting with a new process they called Full Frequency Range Recording which promised a much better overall sound to recordings - making them much clearer and cleaner than the rather muddled and constrained sounding discs made before the War.

So beginning in 1946, Decca set out to record a series of sessions using this technique, mostly with British orchestras, but in the case of this recording, a session featuring The Paris Conservatoire who were on tour in the UK, lead by their principle conductor Charles Munch.

One of the first pieces cut during these sessions on October 8, 1946 was Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe Suites 1 and 2. It was issued in the U.S. as set EDA 29 and was given rave reviews and signaled a new era in recording. Less than three years later Decca/London released the first lp's to the market and FFRR became the trademark and the benchmark for high quality recordings.

Although this is a 78 set, and the shellac (the pressing material of the time) was the same as it always was, there is a noticeable difference in sound from purely a dynamic point of view.

At any rate. It's Ravel done by an orchestra and conductor who knew the composer backwards and forwards - and their sound is unmistakable.

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(Marguerite Long - Grande Dame of the keyboard and controversy to match)

Two short works tonight. First up is the 1931 recording for French Columbia of the Ballade for Piano and Orchstra by Gabriel Faure featuring pianist Marguerite Long with the Paris Conservatory conducted by Phillipe Gaubert. Long was a close friend (for a time) with Gabriel Faure as well as Maurice Ravel. It was her recording of the Ravel Piano concerto, made weeks after the premier that was considered to be the definitive performance, since the recording was also billed with Ravel as conductor (which was not the case as conductor Pedro Freitas Branco did the honors). And the concerto was dedicated to her (presumably with twisted arm). Her relationship with Faure went on for many years, and Long was responsible for premiers of many of his piano works, including this one.

The next piece is something of a bonus, the forgotten conductor Volkmar Andrae leading the Zurich Tonnhalle in a 1930 recording for Swiss Columbia of the Feruccio Busoni arrangement of the Overture to The Abduction From The Seraglio by Mozart. Andrae was active into the lp period and his recordings of the early symphonies of Anton Bruckner have been long sought collectors items on the vinyl market. However, his fame did not really extend past the European continent and he is almost completely unknown here in the States. Andrae was a devoted interpreter of the music of Bruckner and was one of a handful of conductors who regularly programmed his symphonies at concerts, bringing an awareness of a composer not easily understood during the early part of the 20th century.

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. . and don't forget . .

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(Oskar Fried - Mostly forgotten today - but did introduce Mahler to Russia)

Since everyone is more than familiar with The Nutracker Suite (not to mention hearing it adnauseum during the holidays), I thought I would offer two historic recordings of the same work. One by the legendary, but largely forgotten conductor Oskar Fried and the other by the more well-known-but-getting-obscure-by-the-minute Paul van Kempen. Both were conductors who were well established in their day and whose recordings have been sought after by collectors for years.

First up, a 1927 (early electric so it could be 1926) recording featuring Oskar Fried and the Berlin State Opera. I believe one of the first recordings of the Nutcracker done by the electrical method. And the second, a 1939 recording featuring the Dresden Philharmonic conducted by Paul van Kempen. Both recordings were made for the Deutsche Grammophon (Polydor) company. The Fried was issued in the States on the Brunwick label and the van Kempen was probably not issued overseas as war broke out shortly after the recording was made.

(Paul van Kempen - less obscure but no less collectable)

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Two recordings with two different points of view - both from the 78 rpm period.

Enjoy and don't forget to hit the "donate" button at the bottom. Pennies, nickels and dimes are welcome. We slaved for hours over these things. . . sort of.

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(Fernand Oubradous - did for the Bassoon what Landowska did for the Harpsichord)

Fernand Oubradous had a long and celebrated career throughout France and Europe. In addition to his work on Bassoon, he was also an accomplished clarinetist as well as conductor and led his own orchestra in a series of award winning recordings for French Pathe` in the 1950s.

So we're posting something a bit more familiar today - Mozart: Bassoon Concerto K. 191 with Fernand Oubradous, Bassoon and an unnamed chamber orchestra conducted by Eugene Bigot. Recorded in Paris for HMV, June 23, 1936. This particular recording is from Victor set - M-704, as it was released in the U.S.

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(Maurice Ravel - if you're only going to write one string quartet, make it immortal)

Heading over to more familiar music this week. The String Quartet in F by Maurice Ravel in one of the first recordings of the work (I think the first electrical recording was by the Capet Quartet), by the Krettly Quartet of Paris. Recorded for the French division of His Master's Voice in Paris on March 22, 1929.

Over the years this work has been recorded hundreds of times by a whole range of outfits, and certainly people who are familiar with it have their preferences. But it's always nice to be reminded of when a work was relatively new and its first performance was not that far in the past. And even though the Quartet in F first came about in 1903, "new music" took its time to get public acceptance going and no doubt a lot of people heard this recording for the first time when it was issued in 1929, some 26 years later.

We think of 26 years now as an eternity - but things moved a lot slower when the Ravel Quartet in F was new.

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(Cecil Leeson - Adolph Sax would no doubt approve)

A seldom played Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano by a seldom heard composer tonight. Edvard Moritz is almost totally unknown today, but was one of the "up-and-comers" in the early part of the 20th century. He migrated to the U.S. at the outset of Hitlers rise to power and settled in New York where he pretty much remained until his death in 1974. Truths to tell, I haven't seen any other works written by him recorded or even played in public, so I'm a little in the dark as to what his other works are like. I know this one is quite good and it makes me wonder what else we're at the risk of missing.

This recording, made in 1941 for Decca Records (U.S.) features Cecil Leeson, the American sax soloist who did a lot to further the cause of the saxophone in the concert hall. A number of works by his contemporaries such as Paul Creston were dedicated to him and he enjoyed a long career before his death in 1989.

So jumping into some old and unfamiliar territory tonight via the 78 player. Sundays are just like that.

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(Bohuslav Martinu - put Czech music into the 20th century)

I've always been a big fan of the music of Bohuslav Martinu, ever since my teenage years when Manny Aron (of Aron's Records in L.A.) turned me on to an lp of his Sinfonietta Giocosa (coming up in the next few weeks). Although in the 60s Martinu was still largely obscure in the U.S., his reputation has grown steadily to the point where he is now pretty much acknowledged as one of the real beacons of 20th century Czech music.

So I thought today I'd post one of his earlier works, his String Quartet Number 2, composed in 1925. This recording, an Ultraphon set of 78s recorded in 1947 (or 1948, I don't have the exact date) is, I think the first recording made of this work. It features the String Quartet of The National Theatre of Prague. I am pretty certain this hasn't seen the light of reissue anywhere, but there are several more recent recordings if you want something without the age factor attached.

Some people just aren't crazy about 78s.

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(Heitor Villa-Lobos - Composer and Poolshark)

Last week I posted a work by Morton Gould as an American ode to Latin American music. This week, I thought would take it the other way around and play a work composed by a Brazilian Composer and played for the first time to American audiences.

In 1940, the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Commissioner General in Brazil co-sponsored a series of concerts featuring music by new Brazilian composers.

One of the better known was Heitor Villa-Lobos, a name that is pretty familiar to most audiences around the world. Villa-Lobos was a major force in 20th Century classical music. Subsequently, when RCA Victor decided to release a set of recordings from this concert series, they chose the music of Villa-Lobos as the most representative. That's not to say the music of Francisco Mignone, M. Camargo Guarnieri and Oscar Lorenzo Fernandez wasn't any good. It's just as Villa-Lobos had name recognition.

From the set recorded in 1940 and issued in 1941, I've included Bachiana Brasileira Number 1. Everyone is familiar with the Number 5 Bachiana, but not so much with the others. This one is scored for eight cellos and was composed in 1932. The piece is dedicated to the conductor Burle Marx, who is conductor on this recording. The group is The Brazilian Festival Orchestra (cellos). I am not sure, but I think this was reissued on lp in the early 1950s - but hasn't seen any CD reissue as far as I know.

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(Morton Gould - Americana took up the cause of Latin Americana before World War 2)

In all fairness, Aron Copland did create something of stir and an interest in music of Latin America when Serge Koussevitsky introduced his El Salon Mexico to Boston audiences in 1938. It did get American audiences listening to what was going on with music south of our border. I'm sure it also helped that the coincidence of our increased interest in South America as a potential hotbed of Nazi sympathizers and potential government overthrows had a little to do with it as well.

All that said, it didn't hurt that American composers were eyeing the music and rhythms of South America as a fertile field of interesting ideas. One of those composers was Morton Gould who is probably best known now as an "easy listening" composer/arranger, former President of ASCAP and occasional writer of Broadway musicals, rather than a "serious" composer of orchestral music.

But early on he was. And throughout his life he turned in an impressive cataloge of some serious works.

The Latin American Symphonette probably isn't one of them. It's light, tuneful and rhythmic with lots of nods to Latin dance forms, but it's not a trailblazer and the musical world did not fall over itself at first hearing. It was written in 1940 and had its premier in 1941. This recording, the first, was made around 1943 and issued in 1944 by Victor and featured the Rochester Philharmonic conducted by the Spanish Pianist/conductor Jose Iturbi. It has not been reissued, even on lp.

In the coming weeks I'll post some examples of what was really going on in Latin American music at the time. But for now here's something historic and light at the same time.

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(Ernest Bloch - big believer in writing good and sincere music)

Back to the early 20th century this week. Swiss composer who settled in the U.S. early on, Ernest Bloch was prolific, though possibly less known today than many of his contemporaries. Much of his work was based on religious themes, with Schelomo for Cello and Orchestra the most well known.

The Concerto Grosso for String Orchestra and piano began life while he was living in Santa Fe New Mexico between December 1924 and April 1925. It was premiered at the Cleveland Institute of Music in June 1925 and recorded shortly after by the Philadelphia String Orchestra for Victor. This recording, made in 1931 also for Victor, is a revised version and features the Curtis Institute Chamber Ensemble led by Louis Bailly. Both are firsts and I don't think either have been reissued in any form.