Claude Debussy: "La Mer"
2 files zip FLAC Mega Download
BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Arturo Toscanini
HMV EH 29 1345 1987 DMM Recorded: Queen's Hall - 3/12 June 1935. Transfers by Keith Hardwick. Numerous small defects 'edited-away'...
One of my last un-transferred EMI Orchestral 'Historical' single LP's - others in that series are @ held-to-ransom 'Buy It Now' prices on eBay - and I won't purchase more simply for these, currently free, Blogs (and waveform-editing this took nearly 3 HOURS - from a flawless pressing).
Previously this had sounded over-garish (Digital?) - but have used an 'as new' 1977 ADC XLM Mk.II cartridge - with excellent (IMO) results.
Sleeve-note / ADC review >>>
Thank you very much for the Elgar/Debussy disc. Look forwards to listen to it.
ReplyDeleteWell I enjoyed it!
DeleteSounded very fine as the original CD-RW dub - remarkable Timpani outburst in 'Enigma'.
Additionally, Thank you (and some others) too - if I ever go to a 'charging model' - then I won't forget!
Such un-English Enigma, performed in grand operatic style, rather! Very differently realized. Exquisite La Mer, Toscanini's style works very well with it. Thanks for your hard work in restoring the sound to listenable/enjoyable condition - very good for such an early live recording with often good detail in the instruments, like the viola.
ReplyDeleteElgar and Toscanini - I'm excited to hear this! Thanks for sharing and best wishes.
ReplyDeleteAs the sleevenote suggests - this is probably for the La Mer (though much prefer Ansermet's 1951 - which sounds wonderful on ACL (gruesome as original LXT)
DeleteCompared to the versions I have collected, Toscanini's La Mer is now my 2nd or 3rd favorite version behind Coppola's and possibly Desormiere's which puts it in good company. His Elgar falls quite short of Boult's, Barbirolli's, and Elgar's. Elgar's 1926 version is by far and away the best. Thank you for the post.
ReplyDeleteIf these blogs 'vanish', then I wouldn't be too surprised to find a few (more) transfers appearing on Youtube!
Delete[Never heard Desormiere's La Mer: still like Szell's Cleveland - though do now miss the 1905 version 3rd mvt trumpet fanfares (as here: almost get a feeling that the BBC SO were expecting to play them]
Thank you very much for this transfer!
ReplyDeleteAt the moment I am listening again very much to Toscanini and of course those latest CD trasfers of these recordings on EMI (EMI Icon set) are in no way satisfactory.
Ooops....but they were done by employed 'professionals'!
DeleteEMI never mentioned (on the LP's sleeve) they were 'Digitally' transferred; but the series of later HMV Treasury appear to have a different 'characteristic'....something I've mentioned before - but this one was particularly 'garish'..
'Unfortunately', I'm missing some of those later transfers (Toscanini/Beethoven - Heifetz - Kreisler), and, annoyingly, don't have the Nielsen 2LP set, and sold the Hassid, years back: these things just aren't obtainable on eBay, except at stupid cost - so that's that..
I've got the Nieslen 2lp set on Treasury. Will try to do a transfer. I hadn't kept track of whether these had been subsequently issued in acceptable (or otherwise) digital form.
ReplyDeleteWell, that begs the question whether any digital transfer is 'as good' as an analog original! Pointless me bothering with eBay as the only likely 2 sellers (whom I've bought Treasury boxed sets from - for here...) either get high bids - or one engages in insane 'shill bidding' - see the listings for '£4.00 p/p'.
DeleteOnly have the Grondahl 4 as an ALP: original LP hardly sold well - 1959 tax stamp on a 1953 pressing..
Yes, I guess that was a rhetorical statement regarding digital! I suppose there are degrees of success to be hoped for. I don't even consider that I "own" a recording any longer that Dutton put out on a cd transfer. Even so, I was shocked recently to compare my basic lp "rip" of some of the Beecham Delius Society 30's recordings as A.C. Griffith transferred for World Records (SHB 32) to the Beecham Collection CDs from 20 years ago or so (the releases before the SOMM series began). Griffith is STILL given transfer credit, but with some blurb about further digital remastering. Well, even with lowered expectations as to what that might mean, it's astonishing how thoroughly they ruined the beautiful work as heard on the lps (of course, 78 rpm pressings most likely would yield different and wonderful results as well)! Sea Drift has a wonderful pianissimo bass drum that recurs at various points. The lp reproduces this very well....the digital remaster? Completely inaudible! One surprise to me was some incorrect pitching on the lps. They caught this and corrected it on the cds, right? Wrong!
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work here! I seem to always be apologizing for not commenting on EVERYTHING I enjoy from you, but I'm doing it again. Apologies!
P.S. I'm not sure how to get a private comment to you, so sorry if this is inappropriate to mention "in public", but I enjoy your 78 transfers, but if you would care to take me up on an offer....I've got an editing program that enables very good "overlap" style side joins, and I'm pretty quick at doing these (and check to avoid musical mistakes). I'd be happy to do such operating (without changing anything else, of course) on single sided unjoined files.