Ring in the New Year with Rossini!

Oh gosh, a while back I posted a transfer of Luciano Sgrizzi performing the piano pieces comprising Rossini's late opus the "Sins from My Old Age." That transfer was immensely popular and I had numerous requests for the companion lp from Nonesuch which features the choral pieces. Well, here it is! Found it last weekend at the Goodwill and it is a near mint copy. What luck!

I can understand why this record won the coveted Grand Prix du Disque in 1965. It is a beautifully recorded, superbly prepared and a highly idiomatic reading of these gems from Rossini's salon soire years. I think it's  fitting to present it now since the record opens up with a salut to the New Year!

What strikes me most about these pieces is the invention behind them. Rossini was a great experimenter and he obviously loved the interplay between melody and accompaniment. This music captures your attention and really wraps itself around you, in a loving and comforting way. Maestro Loehrer leads elegant performances and he is fortunate to have Luciano Sgrizzi on board for his dazzling pianistic virtuosity. I have listened to this collection three times straight and each time, I hear something new and positively delightful!

Happy New Year!

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Luciano Sgrizzi and Sins Of My Old Age

A request was made to me by David on Symphonyshare to transfer this lp. Here's a selection of the pieces that Rossini composed and referred to as "Sins of my old age." They are performed by one of the great early music specialists of his time, Luciano Sgrizzi.

These salon type pieces are interesting because they are mostly theme based (meaning based on a subject, person or idea) and they contain striking ideas that at times point to the "music of the future" as Liszt might have put it.  I find these brief vignettes full of neat melodies which cement the proposition that Rossini was one of the greatest melodists ever to grace the planet. This is clever, witty and thoroughly enjoyable fare.

I believe this original Cygnus recording (here released by Nonesuch) dates from the early 60's - it is stereo.

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Ormandy conducts Haydn along with a dose of Fiedler for good measure!

Though I have been somewhat ambivalent about Eugene Ormandy over the years, when I saw this lp of him conducting Haydn's Symphonies Nos. 7 and 45, I had to pick it up and offer a transfer, if anything because my fine colleague Mr. Austin would enjoy it immensely...at least I hope he does! The cover above is from the CBS Special Products issue though my copy is the ML 4673 edition. 

Eugene Ormandy did conduct relatively little Haydn perhaps being that Szell, and later Bernstein, were so darn successful with this composer and Columbia could not afford to flood the markets with too much Haydn you know. After listening to this fine issue, I feel that it is a real loss that Ormandy did not explore more of Haydn for he does have a way with these symphonies and his way is superbly supported by the wonderful Philadelphia Orchestra. Let me tell you, the proof is is in the pudding - just listen to the adagio "farewell" from Symphony 45, so beautifully shaped and played. This is probably the finest "exit" I have ever heard for this unique work. In the earlier, "Le Midi", Ormandy's interpretation affords this early symphony a greater stature and place in the canon. It just sounds not too far away from the "London" symphonies which were years in the future. I say this as a compliment to Ormandy's interpretative skill, not as a cheap shot towards Haydn as a composer. All in all, I am glad to have come across this in the dollar pile; it is worth many times that!

The filler: I've had this under 30 minute Camden reissue of Fiedler conducting the 1812 Overture and the William Tell Overture for sometime. I've been waiting to find a suitable place for it in a post and I think its a nice filler here alongside the Ormandy. Two rather contemporary recordings by two outstanding musical ensembles. Those accustomed to Fiedler's later 1812's may be in for a surprise here. This is Markevitch type conducting, no nonsense, brisk, totally unsentimental, and technically impressive on an instrumental level. Without cannons and other electronic gimmicktry, Fiedler lets the percussion cut loose for a battle royale. Very impressive job by all and I'm sure this one is up my friend Buster's alley!

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Rossini's The Barber of Seville - opera without words

During the late 50's through the mid 60's. Kapp Records released a number of "opera without words" recordings, presumably to offer an alternative to the ones that Kostelanetz was issuing through Columbia. Altogether, there were about a dozen of these arrangements, asssembled and conducted by longtime Columbia Broadcasting System music director, Domenico Savino. The orchestra credited ihere is the Rome Symphony Orchestra. Interestingly, some of these Savino recordings found their way into the underside of pirate recordings where the Rome SO became the Rome Radio Orchestra, not to be confused with RAI Rome, of course.

Domenico Savino was an immensely talented, and jack of all trades kind of guy for CBS. Producer, arranger, composer, administrator, this guy apparently could do it all. Later in his life, after his successful career with CBS, he became involved in this opera without words project and he put his vast grab bag of skills in gear and cranked out this interesting series.  I think the arrangements are first rate and though the orchestra is small, it plays well given that rehearsal time was probably short and to the point. I do have my suspicions that the Rome SO is actually a bunch of New York theatre, freelance and moonlighting symphony players since Savino would've have had strong connections to these folks by virtue of his many years as part of the New York music scene. Perhaps someone out there can enlighten me further?

I hope you enjoy this 3/4 of an hour of sparkling Rossini. I have a couple more of these Savino recordings and I'll post 'em if there is an interest. Stereo FLACs.

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Rene Leibowitz conducts Rossini overtures with the Pasdeloup Orchestra

Here's an early Urania stereo release of Rossini Overtures performed by the Pasdeloup Orchestra under the estimable Rene Leibowitz. The usual suspects are here, La Gazza Ladra, William Tell, Semiramide and The Italian Girl in Algiers. All are splendidly rendered by this most French of orchestras under its cosmopolitan maestro.

Rene Leibowitz was one of the last century's best kept secrets. Polish born, he spent most of his adult life in France concentrating on composing, teaching, advocating 20th century music and keeping alive the great French opera/operetta tradition of the 19th century. This man had an enormous repetoire from early Baroque to cutting edge modern masters in fact, one may be able to say that only Hermann Scherchen conducted more styles, traditions and periods the Leibowitz.

Perhaps though, Leibowitz's greatest recorded legacy were series of Reader's Digest recordings that he collaborated on with the great producer Charles Gerhardt while in London during the 1960's. Having at his disposal such great orchestras as the LPO and RPO, Leibowitz set down magnificent accounts of the great musical masters, the highlight being a superlative Beethoven cycle that many critics have placed at the very top in their rankings....some say it is THE set for all time. That set is available on Chesky and I would encourage everyone to seek it out; the playing, the fidelity to the score and the conductorial vision is what sets it apart from all others. It is a treasure.

I hope you like these Rossini overtures. I will shortly be posting Leibowitz's take on the Respighi-Rossini  Le Boutique Fantastique.


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