Another look at the CBC Transcription Service and a set of discs issued late 1964 by famed pianist Marek Jablonski in recital at the 1964 Jeunesses Musicales du Canada.

Featuring the music of Mozart, Chopin, Albeniz and others, this 90 minute concert is another one of those series of discs slated for destruction after 1965.

Luckily, it didn't happen to this one.

Enjoy.

Over to Paris this week for a recital by renowned Russian Pianist Denis Matsuev, recorded live in concert at Thèatre des Champs-Elysèes on April 17th of this year by Radio France.

Here is the rundown:

1.Robert Schumann
Scènes d'enfants Op.15 (1838)

2. Robert Schumann
Carnaval Op.9 (1934,1935)

3. Edvard Grieg
Six images poétiques Op.3 (1863)

4. Edvard Grieg
Sonate en mi mineur Op.7 (1865)

5. Franz Liszt
Mephisto valse N°1 S 514 (1856,1861)

6. Alexandre Scriabine
Etude en do dièse mineur op 2

7. Alexandre Scriabine
Etude en ré dièse mineur op 8 n°12

8. Serge Rachmaninov
Prélude en sol dièse mineur op 32 n°12

9. Grigori Ginzburg
Figaro Fantaisie d'après Rossini

10. Duke Ellington / Denis Matsuev
Improvisation sur le thème de Caravan

Concert donné le 17 avril 2012. Production Théâtre des Champs-Elysées.

The two Schumann pieces are on the top player and the rest of the concert (with all the encores) are on the bottom player.

Great concert, enthusiastic audience, wonderful repertoire. And all on an Anti-Road Rage Wednesday.

Life is good.

Over to Barcelona this week for a concert recorded this past February 22nd by Radio Nacional Espana, featuring Pianist Miquel Villalba in music of Satie, Ravel, Poulenc and Montsalvatge.

Broken up between two players, the concert goes something like this:

Ciclo de Cámara. Concierto celebrado en L´Auditori deBarcelona el 22 de febrero de 2012.

Part 1: POULENC: 3 Mouvements perpétuels.
MONTSALVATGE:3 Divertimentos para piano.
MILHAUD: Saudades doBrasil, Op. 67.
MONTSALVATGE: Sonatine pour Ivette.

Part 2: SATIE: 3 Gymnopédies.
RAVEL: Sonatine.
MONTSALVATGE: 4 Diàlegs amb el piano.
Miquel Villalba, Piano.

Good concert and one that definitely ranks high in the Anti-Road Rage Wednesday lexicon.

Enjoy.

Over to Austria by way of Spain this week for a concert given on May 21, 2011 by French Piano sensation Cedric Tiberghien in a recital of music by Beethoven, Schumann, Ravel and Debussy.

Tiberghiend has been getting great reviews over his U.S. debut with the National Symphony (of Washington D.C.) and is slated for a busy tour schedule of the U.S. this year.

But in the meantime, here is the recital from last year as recorded by ORF in Austria and relayed to Radio Nacional Espana. The concert is broken up into two parts - Part One has the Beethoven and Schumann and Part Two has the Ravel and Debussy.

Here are the notes:

17.00►Gran Auditorio
Concierto celebrado en la Sala Markus Sittikus de
Hohenems el 21 de mayo de 2011. Grabación de la ORF,
Austria. Schubertiadas 2011.

BEETHOVEN: Sonata para piano nº 14 en Do sostenido menor, Op. 27 / 2.

SCHUMANN: Kreisleriana, Op. 16.

RAVEL: Gaspard de la nuit.

DEBUSSY: Masques. D‟un
chaier d‟esquisses. L‟isle joyeuse.
Cedric Tiberghien (p.).

We're looking at almost perfect Anti-Road Rage music today. I think it's safe to operate heavy machinery while listening to this one.

Enjoy no matter what.

Those rather cumbersome, oversized, disgustingly fragile records again this week. Only instead of by way of France they're local. A weekly program that began life in the late 1920's and continued until the 1950's featured two major orchestras on the West Coast - The San Francisco Symphony and The Los Angeles Philharmonic. Sponsored by Standard Oil this one hour program featured some of the greatest names in the Classical Music World performing live in specially arranged concerts.

This one, originally broadcast on March 4, 1945 featured the Los Angeles Philharmonic, conducted by their Music Director at the time Alfred Wallenstein with the legendary Artur Schnabel as piano soloist.

The program is pretty mainstream and aimed at the musical novice (there's nothing wrong with that - we all were). Starting with the Overture to Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck, and the Prize Song from Wagner's Die Meistersinger. Schnabel joins the orchestra in the Schumann Piano Concerto (with a bumpy start) and ends with Dukas' Sorcerer's Apprentice.

Certainly historic in retrospect, but if you looked at the broadcast schedules from most American radio networks at the time who carried Symphonic concerts, it was no big deal. Every major (and many minor) symphony orchestras were regularly broadcast around the country. Some were dedicated to new music, some were dedicated to the meat-and-potatoes repertoire, but all of them were performing a service in introducing our culture to everything that was available. And the airwaves were filled with legendary figures at just about every spot on the radio dial

Something that, sadly, exists only in pockets today. With all this access in recent years you'd think we'd be drowning in an embarrassment of riches these days. But no.

Maybe someday. In the meantime - check out this slice of history. You may have heard of Artur Schnabel and you may have his benchmark series of complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas in your collection. Or maybe you just heard about him and never knew what he sounded like.

Now's your chance.

Over to the Angelika Kauffmann Hall, Schwarzenberg Austria during the 2011 Schubertiade Festival for a recital by British Piano virtuoso Paul Lewis in a program of, you guessed it, Schubert.

The concert was recorded by Radio France Musique on June 19, 2011. And for you note takers:

Schwarzenberg : Récital Paul Lewis, Piano

Franz Schubert

Valses Op.18 D.145 (1815, 1821)

Impromptu en ut mineur Op.90 N°1 D.899 N°1 (1827)
Impromptu en Mi bémol majeur Op.90 N°2 D.899 N°2 (1827)
Impromptu en Sol bémol majeur Op.90 N°3 D.899 N°3 (1827)
Impromptu en La bémol majeur Op.90 N°4 D.899 N°4 (1827)
Mélodie hongroise en Si mineur D.817 (1824)
Sonate N°18 en Sol majeur Op.78 D.894 (1826)

Concert donné le 19 juin 2011, Hall Angelika Kauffmann dans le cadre du Festival des

Schubertiade

The almost 90 minute concert is broken up between two players. The announcements are in French and somebody in Master Control forgot to flip the switch, so the first part of the concert is in Mono and the second half is in Stereo.

I know. You'd think . . . .

Still, France Musique runs two of these concerts a day and most of them are live-as-it-happens and off-the-cuff. So you can't really blame them for spacing out every now and then.

Besides, it's Anti-Road Rage Wednesday.

Over to Neuss, Germany this week via West German Radio (WDR) and a concert recital by Russian pianist Evgeni Koroliov, recorded live on October 16, 2001.

A single work - the complete Goldberg Variations Of Johann Sebastian Bach (BWV 988).

Considering how the week's been going - this may be perfect music to unwind to.

Here are the notes via WDR:

15. November · 20:05

johann sebastian bach:
Goldberg-Variationen BWV 988

Evgeni Koroliov, Klavier

Aufnahme vom

16. Oktober 2011 aus
dem Zeughaus, Neuss

Announcements are in German and I've shortened them down so I could cram it all on one player.

Enjoy.

A solo spot tonight from the legendary Kansas City Blues Magician, Pianist Jay McShann in a short set, recorded during one of the Kool Jazz Festival solo spotlight concerts on July 2, 1982.

A wildly tasty set that would have seemed short if it was 2 hours long. Still, you takes what can get and for a little over 10 minutes, he speaks volumes.

Sit back and enjoy - you can hit repeat if you want.

Jazz Piano legend McCoy Tyner on this weeks Downbeat. Recorded live in Holland on March 1, 1984 and originally broadcast by Radio Nederland for their Sesjuns series, this set features Tyner in exquisite form.

Good way to close out a hectic week. Turn it up and kick your shoes off.

It was fifty-four years ago this week that the news spread throughout the Jazz community that one of its finest artists, Art Tatum was gone.

Tatum was a true original, the pianist other pianists listened to, even giants of the Classical world such as Vladimir Horowitz. He created such an indelible impression on the art of playing that his recordings are studied even today to find out how he did it.

But even the passing of a giant such as Art Tatum didn't create much stir elsewhere in the world. The Presidential election was on most people's minds, the crisis in Hungary and the Cold War all grabbed headlines, relegating the death of this true genius to the back pages in the obituary notices.

Tatum died on November 5th and it was via CBS Radio on the West Coast on November 10th that a program in tribute to Art Tatum was aired.

You may not be all that familiar with him, but just remember that so much of what he did and how he did it influenced countless others.