Baroque Program with the Societa Corelli

Back in the 1950's, RCA Victor released a handful of records featuring the chamber orchestra of Societa Corelli. Here is LM 1767, a nice program which alternates soprano arias with concerti grossi of the time.

The following piece are featured on this lp:

ANTONIO VIVALDI - 1) Concerto in A minor, 2) Cessate Omai for mezzo soprano and Strings and,
3) Sinfonia No. 2 in G major

BENEDETTO MARCELLO - Concerto grosso in F major op. 1 No. 4

GIACOMO CARISSIMI - Suonerà l'ultima tromba

FRANCESCO GEMINIANI - Concerto grosso in E minor op. 3 No. 3


Luisa Ribacchi  is the mezzo soprano and she acquits herself well in this repertoire.

I'd call this lp one of those records found on the byways of music. It was probably quite a novelty at the time and catered to people's perception that the Italian Baroque would receive authoritative performances by Italian ensembles.

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Thomas Schippers with the Scarlatti Orchestra of Naples

I'm very pleased to have discovered this excellent record of 18th century music led by the highly talented and tragically short lived Thomas Schippers. Here, we have a program of 18th century compositions by Italian born composers. Vivaldi was a well known entity by the 1950's though Durante and Salieri were seldom heard when Schippers set down this record.  The release of this lp must have been quite a novelty. I'm not sure if this was the first record made by Maestro Schippers  but what I can say is that it is an impressive outing for a conductor not yet out of his 20's.

It's sad that Thomas Schippers did not have the opportunity to have the long and successful career that he was destined for. Certainly one of the most gifted of his generation, he possessed a wide repertoire and moved with ease between the concert hall and the opera house. I'd say he was probably the American version of a Carlo Maria Giulini and had he lived far longer, he would probably have become one of the best known and most respected of podium leaders.

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Vivaldi from Paris

Here's an early Westminster LP (c 1950) of the music of Vivaldi performed by Andre Jouve and the New Chamber Orchestra of Paris. Although I was not expecting much, I can honestly says that the spirited performances and attempt to shed the romantic veil over the music, more then compensate for any inadequacies in technique or style.

Andre Jouvre is a name not at all well known to me but I did previously make his acquaintance on a transfer of Prokofiev done on The Music Parlour . He's one of those conductors that pretty much spent his career within his homeland and made contributions that are more national than international in scope.

When this record was made, Vivaldi was still rather a curiosity and performances were not at all common as they are today. Jouve is quite credible and acquits himself well with his French musicians. It's interesting to observe how far our understanding of Vivaldi has come since this record was cut sixty plus years ago.

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The Baroque Oboe with Harold Gomberg

While I'm thinking New England Patriots at the moment, I suppose I can take a few minutes and concentrate on the classics!? With the recent shutdown of Megaupload, who knows how long any of us will be around doing our thing? As Otter says in Animal House, "What a shame that a few bad apples have to spoil a good time for everyone."

so....Harold Gomberg performing baroque works for the oboe accompanied by continuo and small chamber ensemble. Interestingly, this must be one of the very first conducting efforts on record by the much maligned Seiji Ozawa, probably made while he was Leonard Bernstein's assistant in NY and right before he headed north to Toronto. Gomberg, of course, is the consumate artist, with a mousselike tone and elegance in phrasing. Though a somewhat controversial figure (many fault him for being in the ring that led to the great Mitropoulos' demise in NY), he was nonetheless an oboist on par with Tabuteau as having the greatest influence on a school of players that now hold important chairs in many orchestras throughout the USA. This record is a pleasing document of his artistry. And, the music is wonderful too!

With that, Go Patriots! It all comes down to Tom Brady, a superb artist in his own right!

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Sherman Walt plays four bassoon concerti of Vivaldi

 My! I'm glad that I found this lp. What a wonderful reminder of the artistry of the greatest American bassoonist of the last century, namely one Sherman Walt. Joined by his colleagues from the Boston Symphony, in Zimbler Sinfonietta guise, Walt offers sterling renditions of four of the maybe twenty or so bassoon concertos of Vivaldi.

Sherman Walt was for some 30 years, give or take, the principal bassoonist of the BSO and one of the most respected musicians in my fair city. Walt had a distinctive timbre and keen musicianship and his presence, along with the likes of Joseph Silverstein, Harold Wright, Jules Eskin and Armando Ghitalla were reason enough for guest conductors to die to come to Boston. Walt, as he displays in this recording, makes the funky bassoon sound so effortless though it is in fact mighty challenging and not easy to master. The sad thing about Walt is that he was killed in a car accident only months after retiring from the BSO after a distinguished, and  highly influential, tenure, one that reached far beyond the city limits of Boston.

No doubt everyone here is having a bit of fun and I'm at a loss why this record has been lost. Well, I found it albeit in the mono edition, and here it is. Enjoy some terrific playing! Released in 1959 by RCA.

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Ruggiero Ricci plays Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky

Ruggiero Ricci is one of the greatest violinists that this country has produced. His career as a virtuso and teacher has spanned over 75 years and he is still with us, as he celebrated his 92nd birthday several months ago. Renowned as probably the greatest authority on the works of Paganini, Ricci has given over 6,000 concerts in 65 countries. He has been a great musical and cultural ambassador for the United States and is a living musical treasure.

I'm offering two special recordings by Ricci. First up is the Four Seasons, played by what is billed the Stradivarius Chamber Orchestra, since all musicians are playing valuable, and rare stringed instruments by Stradivari. Ricci's instinct for Italian string music is legendary and his feeling for these most over recorded four concerti is spot on. There is joy in his playing and the technique, combined  with his "earthy" approach makes this requisite listening. The 1964 stereo recording by American Decca holds up well.

The Tchaikovsky reading is also very fine. Malcolm Sargent proves a strong collaborator and Ricci's  approach to the Tchaikovsky is like a 180 degree turn from a Heifetz or Milstein performance. Where those two artists emphasize technique and the "Russianness" of the piece, Ricci injects that bit of Mediterranean sunshine that again, brings a degree of the "soil" to the piece. I guess what I'm trying to say is Ricci, though a virtuoso, projects a human quality to the proceedings rather then towering above all as a superman of sorts. Do you all get what I'm trying to say? This recording dates from around 1950 or so, I believe.

Ruggiero Ricci, a belated happy 92!

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A grab bag of sorts - Mozart, Mahler, Vivaldi and Bach led by Reiner and Schneider

Reiner and Schneider..it rhymes! Busy last couple nights. Oktoberfest season is in full swing and between the beer, brats and brewhaha....the band had a great time last night (my lips are shot!), thousands at the Harpoon Brewery in Boston and oh, how I love taking those pictures with the younger crowd! Anyway...

Here are two short lps that I'm offering as a grab bag of sorts. We have Alexander Schneider leading Mozart and Vivaldi with the the Dumbarton Oaks Chamber Orchestra  and then Carol Brice singing Mahler's Wayfarer Songs with Reiner and the Pittsburgh SO and selected Bach arias with Daniel Saidenberg leading the Columbia Broadcasting Orchestra.

Though Dumbarton Oaks is outside of Washington DC, the music was recorded in 1949 in NYC if memory serves me right. This leads me wondering if Dumbarton Oaks is just a name for a NYC based pickup orchestra. Whatever the case, Schneider proves the experienced and vital leader and the Vivaldi and Mozart pieces come off marvelously. You know, my fear is that we are fast forgetting the immense contribution of Alexander Schneider to the American musical scene. Soloist, conductor, teacher, editor, impresario, the man did everything and did it so well. In my book, perhaps his single greatest achievement was to force the great Casals from retirement. No one else had the stature, or "balls" to do this and we all benefited beyond belief from Schneider's chutzpah.

I know not much of Carol Brice though her voice has at times a Ferrier quality to it. Primarily a musical theatre performer, Brice did record several times with Reiner, noting down a rather well regarded El Amor Brujo. A performer of African American background, Brice was one of those brave and focused individuals who laid the groundwork of integration and made possible the later successes of Leontyne Price, Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman, to name a few. Her Mahler and Bach are thoughtfully performed and I especially hold her diction in regard. I do love it when I can hear the pronounciation of words! This must have been one of Reiner's first Mahler recordings and he shapes everything quite nicely. The same goes for Saidenberg and his studio orchestra - Brice performs the selected Bach arias flawlessly. Recorded dates are from the late 40's, give or take.

So, here's my "mono FLAC" grab bag for the day....Prost!

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