For Shakespeare’s birthday back in April, I made available the Scherzo from Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream music, in a 1911 recording conducted by Landon Ronald. To complement this, I’ve now transferred the Ronald’s early recordings of the Overture, Nocturne and Wedding March, together with his later electrically recorded version of the Nocturne. I’ve included the Scherzo in this post so the whole set can play continuously. As a bonus, at the end I’ve included the Ronald’s recording of the overture to Nicolai’s Merry Wives of Windsor, which was coupled with the Midsummer Night’s Dream overture.
Ronald recorded the Mendelssohn works several times.
New Symphony Orchestra:
7th October 1911 – A Midsummer Night‘s Dream: Scherzo (Mendelssohn)
ac5549f (unissued)
ac5550f 0681 (020617, 030617, 060562, D152)
10th February 1912 – A Midsummer Night‘s Dream: Wedding march (Mendelssohn)
ac6007f (unissued)
ac6008f 0755 (030627, 040737, 2-050521, 2-0250599, D166, S4190, W74, ES123)
17th February 1912 – A Midsummer Night‘s Dream: Nocturne (Mendelssohn)
ac6035f (unissued)
ac6036f 0756 (030628, 040738, D152, ES123)
3rd February 1913 – A Midsummer Night‘s Dream: Overture (Mendelssohn)
HO450ai 0853 (020747, 060601, D153, AB102)
Royal Albert Hall Orchestra:
13th March 1923 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Wedding March (Mendelssohn)
Cc 2695-1 (unissued)
Cc 2695-2 0755X (D166, 2-050521X, 2-0250599X, S4190)
23rd June 1923 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream Op 61: Scherzo (Mendelssohn)
Cc 3145-1 (unissued)
Cc 3145-2 0681X (D152)
27th July 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Nocturne (Mendelssohn), pt 1
Cc 6411-1 (unissued)
Cc 6411-2 (unissued)
27th July 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Nocturne (Mendelssohn), pt 2
Cc 6412-1 (unissued)
Cc 6412-2 4-0733 (D1034, AB169)
27th July 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Scherzo (Mendelssohn)
Cc 6413-1 4-0836 (D1097, W918, AB198, ES26)
9th September 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Nocturne (Mendelssohn), pt 1
Cc 6411-3,-4 (unissued)
Cc 6411-5 4-0732 (D1034, AB169)
18th November 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Mendelssohn), pt 1
Cc 7310-1 (unissued)
Cc 7310-2 (assigned 4-0858, but unissued)
18th November 1925 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Mendelssohn), pt 2
Cc 7311-1 (unissued)
Cc 7311-2 (assigned 4-0852, but unissued)
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
His Master’s Voice D153 (side 0853)
Matrix HO 450ai
Recorded 3rd February 1913, Hayes
The following cuts are made: bb 142 – 157, 196(4) – 517(3), 566 – 585, 620 – end. (inclusive)
Although I have had not had a great deal of time to work on recordings for this site recently, I could not let the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death pass unmarked. There are several spoken word Shakespeare recordings to be found on site and music based on his works (just enter Shakespeare in the search box). But as a new addition, I have transferred Landon Ronald’s 1911 recording of the Scherzo from Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream Music.
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
His Master’s Voice 0681
Matrix ac5550f
Recorded 7th October 1911, London
Another great writer, Miguel de Cervantes died on the same day as Shakespeare. He is best remembered for Don Quixote, and to celebrate this anniversary, I’ve transferred Chaliapin’s 1927 recording of the death of Don Quixote, from Massenet’s opera.
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Fyodor Chaliapin (bass) as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza Olive Kline (soprano) as the voice of Dulcinea Orchestra, Rosario Bourdon
His Master’s Voice DB 1096
Matrices CVE-38334-I, 38335-I (sides 2-032114/5)
Recorded 7th April 1927, Liederkranz Hall, New York for Victor.
For the traditional Viennese welcome to the New Year, here are three Suppé overtures, all performed by the Hastings Municipal Orchestra conducted by Basil Cameron. These Decca records from 1929 and 1930 are rather worn, and the sound is not therefore all I would hope for.
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Decca F1668, F1886, K529
Matrices MB 775-1A, MB 776-1A, MB 779-3A, MB 780-2A, MA 1174-1A, MA 1175-1A
Recorded 19th December 1929, 20th December 1929, 7th to 13th April 1930, White Rock Pavilion, Hastings
Sir Edward Elgar recorded his Enigma Variations in 1921 acoustically for the Gramophone Company (with a rather abbreviated version of the Nimrod variation). The Columbia Graphophone Company made the second recording, acoustically again, with Sir Henry J Wood conducting the New Queen’s Hall Orchestra. Apart from the omission of a repeat in Variation III, the work is given complete. Although recorded in the summer of 1924 the set was not issued until May the following year. It was only a few months later that electrical recordings began to be issued. Elgar himself recorded an electrical version of the Enigma Variations for the Gramophone Company in 1926, and though Wood’s version on Columbia was deleted in 1928, it wasn’t until 1932 that Hamilton Harty conducted an electrical recording for Columbia, which by this time had merged with the Gramophone Company to form EMI. Wood recorded the variations electrically for Decca in November 1935, again omitting the repeat from Variation III, and this time squeezing the variations into 7 sides, with the overture from Handel’s Solomon as a filler.
(zip file – right click the link, then select “Save as”, unzip the folder when downloaded)
Columbia L 1629-32
Matrices AX 505-1, 511-1, 512-1, 513-2, 514-1, 515-1, 516-2, 522-3 (S 546, 547, 548, 549, 552, 551, 550, 553)
Recorded 9th July 1924 (side 1), 10th July 1924 (sides 2 to 7), 14th July 1924 (side 8), Columbia Studios, Petty France, London
Issued May 1925, deleted February 1928
Side 1 – Theme, Variations I (C.A.E.), II (H.D.S.-P.), III (R.B.T.)
Side 2 – Variations IV (W.M.B.), V (R.P.A.), VI (Ysobel), VII (Troyte)
Side 3 – Variations VIII (W.N.), IX (Nimrod)
Side 4 – Variation X (Dorabella) Intermezzo
Side 5 – Variations XI (G.R.S.), XII (G.B.N.)
Side 6 – Variation XIII (***) Romanza
Side 7 – Variation XIV (E.D.U.) Finale – part 1 (fig 61 to 1 bar after fig 72)
Side 8 – Variation XIV (E.D.U.) Finale – part 2 (fig 72 to end)
After Christmas carols earlier in the week, today it’s another Dickensian helping from Bransby Williams. His 1912 Columbia recording of his Scrooge monologues, together with a Micawber speech appeared here last year. These were replaced with later acoustic recordings in 1924, but these were swiftly rendered redundant by the advent of electrical recording. Thus in 1926, Williams recorded these scenes again, on the same catalogue numbers with an R appended (for “re-recording”). The first record of this set has appeared here previously, but I’ve now acquired the second record, so I present it here in full.
Dickens – Scrooge – Before the Dream; The Dream; After the Dream
Dickens – David Copperfield – Micawber’s advice to David Copperfield
Bransby Williams, actor
On Friday 17th July the BBC Proms began. It’s 120 years since the first Proms season, and for the first fifty seasons, Sir Henry Wood did the lion’s share of the conducting.
Wood’s discography is large, and includes many works he performed at the proms. In 1934, Columbia made a compilation record of excerpts of Wood’s recordings from 1925 to 1933, titling it “A Night at the Proms.”
A Night at the Proms – music by Bizet, Schubert, Rossini, Mendelssohn, Bach and Nicolai – conducted by Sir Henry Wood
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia DX 724
Matrices CAX 7731-1, 7730-1
Recorded 19th April 1934, London
Issued August 1934
Contents
Bizet – Carmen – Prelude to Act 1
(from L1208R, 1st October 1926, New Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 78.7rpm) Schubert – Symphony No.8 in B minor- “The Unfinished” – start of first movement
(from DX 551, 30th October 1933, London Symphony Orchestra, 77.4rpm) Rossini – William Tell – Overture – final section
(from 5059, 13th July 1928, New Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 76.1rpm) Mendelssohn – Fingal’s Cave – Overture – opening
(from 9843, 4th March 1929, New Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 75.7rpm) Mendelssohn – Spring Song – opening
(from 9844, 4th March 1929, New Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 75.7rpm) J.S. Bach – Brandenburg Concerto No.3 in G – start of first movement
(from LX 173, 16th June 1932, British Symphony Orchestra, 76.1rpm) Nicolai – Merry Wives of Windsor – Overture – final section (from L 1723, 7th December 1925, New Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 80.1rpm)
The original recording speeds of the records Columbia re-recorded for this compilation vary somewhat, so for this transfer, I’ve repitched each selection to A440.
I’ve subscribed to Classical Recordings Quarterly since it began life as International Classical Record Collector in 1995. It’s always been a fascinating magazine, covering mainly historical recordings, and the performers, producers and record labels associated with them. It remains consistently fascinating, but as a small but well-produced magazine in a world of rising costs and growing competition, it needs more subscribers. So if you have a interest in historic classical recordings (and surely that applies to most visitors to this site) and do not already subscribe to CRQ, please consider doing so. You can find a free pdf of the June 2010 issue on their website, so that you can see if you are tempted by the magazine. I heartily recommend it.
I should make clear that I have a personal interest in supporting CRQ. In the Autumn and Winter 2013 issues, they published my two-part article on Percy Pitt and his recorded legacy, and I have undertaken several remastering projects for their associated CD reissue label CRQ Editions. So far the label has released more than 170 CDs in quarterly batches, some of which are now available as downloads. I’ve contributed the following to their catalogue:
CRQ CD076 (1 CD) Percy Pitt Conducts! Volume 1: French, German and Austrian repertoire – operatic selections by Bizet, Saint-Saëns, Thomas, Delibes, Wagner, Mendelssohn and Suppé.
CRQ CD095 (1 CD) Percy Pitt Conducts. Volume 2: Italian repertoire – operatic overtures and selections by Rossini, Drigo, Boccherini, Wolf-Ferrari, Verdi and Leoncavallo.
CRQ CD104 (1 CD) Percy Pitt conducts, Volume 3: Russian, Italian, Irish and English repertoire – works by Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Glazunov, Puccini, Balfe, Coleridge-Taylor and Sullivan.
CRQ CD120 (1 CD) Lorenzo Molajoli conducts the Milan Symphony Orchestra in Respighi’s Fontane di Roma and orchestral works by Cimarosa, Bellini, Rossini, Mascagni, Gounod, Fucik and Tchaikovksy.
CRQ CD131-132 (2 CD) Percy Pitt conducts, Volume 4: the vocal recordings for HMV – this includes all except two of the singers with whom Pitt recorded, and also includes examples of Pitt as piano accompanist. The first CD is devoted to international stars and Wagner, and the second to singers from the British Empire and the USA. Also included is the only example of Pitt as a concerto conductor, leading the Air from Goldmark’s Violin Concerto with Francis MacMillen plus several purely orchestral items. The singers featured are Luisa Tetrazzini, Maria Gay, Emmy Destinn, Louise Kirkby-Lunn, John McCormack, Mario Sammarco, Titta Ruffo, Graziella Pareto, Fernand Ansseau, Marie-Louise Edvina, Dmitri Smirnov, Feodor Chaliapin, Minnie Saltzmann-Stevens, Peter Cornelius, Clarence Whitehill, Robert Radford, Florence Austral, Tudor Davies, Walter Hyde, Miriam Licette, Nora d’Argel, William Samuell, Jeanne Brola, Eveline Matthews, John Harrison, Phyllis Lett, Flora Woodman, Olga Haley, Stella Power, Rosina Buckman and Edna Thornton.
CRQ CD144 (1 CD) Eugene Goossens conducts Gramophone Premières – Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 3; Delius: Brigg Fair; Stravinsky: Petrushka; Rimsky-Korsakov: Dubinushka; Scriabin: Rêverie Op.24; Grainger: Molly on the Shore – Irish Reel; Goossens: Tam O’Shanter – Scherzo.
CRQ CD153 (1 CD) Eugene Goossens conducts, Volume 2: the Columbia and Edison Bell recordings – Saint-Saëns: Danse Macabre; Goossens: Four Conceits, Op. 20 (first recording); Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Tannhäuser: Overtures; Wolf-Ferrari: Il Segreto di Susanna: Overture; Sibelius: Scènes Historiques: Festivo; Delibes: Le Roi l’a dit: Overture ; Coppélia: 4 extracts; Planquette: Paul Jones (Surcouf): Selection; Offenbach: La Périchole: Selection; Auber: Les Diamants de la Couronne: Overture; Le Cheval de Bronze: Overture.
CRQ CD171-172 (2 CD) The Virtuoso String Quartet: pioneers of chamber music on record
Franck: Quartet in D*; Debussy: Quartet in G minor, Op. 10; Tchaikovsky; Quartet in D, Op. 11*; Beethoven: Quartet No. 12 in E flat, Op. 127, plus music for string quartet by Mendelssohn, Gossec, Grainger, Glazunov, Dittersdorf and Haydn (*=first recording) / Virtuoso String Quartet (Marjorie Hayward, Edwin Virgo, violins; Raymond Jeremy, viola; Cedric Sharpe, cello).
Further projects for this label are currently in production.
Following the Christmas festivities, I like to ring in the new year with the Strausses. To that end, here are three of his most famous waltzes, one in purely orchestral form, one in both orchestral and vocal versions, and another only in its vocal form. The two singers had their Strauss waltzes backed by the waltz song Je veux vivre from Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette.
Josef Krips recorded numerous Strauss waltzes for DECCA with at least four orchestras, and sometimes with vocal soloists. These are his earliest DECCA accounts of this repertoire.
Johann Strauss II – The Blue Danube Waltz
National Symphony Orchestra, Josef Krips
Johann Strauss II – The Emperor Waltz
New Symphony Orchestra, Josef Krips
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
DECCA LW 5011 (10″ LP)
Matrices TRL 29-1A, 30-1B
Transfers from original 78rpm matrices AR 11669, 11670 (Blue Danube), AR 12162, 12163 (Emperor)
Recorded 17th October 1947 (Blue Danube) and 7th April 1948 (Emperor), Kingsway Hall, London
DECCA attempted to record both waltzes during the 1947 session, but only the Blue Danube was completed. By the time the next sessions came round, the contract with the National Symphony Orchestra had expired, so the New Symphony Orchestra were called on instead. The LP sleeve however references only the earlier orchestra. The two sides of each recording were transferred to the 33rpm matrices at inconsistent speeds, necessitating a drop in speed of about 0.3rpm halfway through each waltz (at the side join).
The Australian soprano Evelyn Scotney (1896-1967), after early studies in her homeland, was heard by the great Nellie Melba and dispatched to Paris to study with Mathilde Marchesi. She later had lessons from Tosti in London. Her career took in the Boston Opera House, the Metropolitan in New York (with Caruso) and in the UK in the 1920s.
Gounod – Roméo et Juliette – Je veux vivre
Johann Strauss II – Blue Danube Waltz (in Italian)
Evelyn Scotney, soprano Aeolian Orchestra
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Aeolian Vocalion A-0213
Matrices AM 8480, 10581
Recorded c1923, London
Play at 77.3rpm
The French soprano Suzanne-Marie Bertin recorded in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Several operetta sides have been reissued by Symposium, and her recording of a Reynaldo Hahn song can be heard on Youtube. This Piccadilly recording however sees her firmly in the coloratura repertoire.
Johann Strauss II – Blue Danube Waltz (in Italian)
Gounod – Roméo et Juliette – Je veux vivre
Suzanne-Marie Bertin, soprano with Orchestra
With Christmas nearly here, it’s time for my customary festive posting. On the orchestral side of things, Stanford Robinson conducts the Nutcracker Suite, and then there’s a feast of Dickensian recordings from Bransby Williams. Then as a non-festive bonus, a monologue from Wilfrid Brambell, best known as Albert Steptoe in Steptoe and Son. He apparently created the character of “David Bright” and is heard here in “A Bright Day” recorded for Radio Eireann in 1946, according to the written note on the record sleeve.
Tchaikovksy – Nutcracker Suite Op.71a
National Symphony Orchestra, Stanford Robinson
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
DECCA AK 1142-4
Matrices AR 9056-3, 9057-2, 9058-2, 9081-2, 9079-2, 9080-2
Recorded 18th January 1945 (tracks 1-5) and 26th January 1945 (tracks 6-8), Kingsway Hall, London
Released September 1945
Bransby Williams was a regular on the music hall stage, famed for his impersonations of great actors of the time, for his humorous monologues, and particularly for his performances of Dickensian characters. He recorded extensively from at least 1905 to 1948, starting with Edison cylinders, then HMV and Zonophone, Pathé, Winner, Columbia and Decca. He recorded his interpretation of Scrooge in 1905, 1906 and 1912 (Edison), 1909 (HMV), 1912 (Winner), 1912, 1924 and 1926 (Columbia) and 1948 (DECCA). I present here his 1912 Columbia and 1948 DECCA accounts. The Columbia is coupled with Micawber’s advice to David Copperfield, which can also be heard on a separate DECCA recording from 1947.
Dickens – Scrooge – Before the Dream; The Dream; After the Dream
Dickens – David Copperfield – Micawber’s advice to David Copperfield
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia 347-8
Matrix 6275-2, 6276-2, 6277-1, 6278-1
Recorded 1912, London
Available from December 1912 to May 1924 (replaced by recordings made April 1924)
Play at 81.1rpm
Dickens – Scrooge – Before the Dream; The Dream; After the Dream
Dickens – Dombey and Son – Captain Cuttle
Over the past year or so I’ve produced several CD reissues for CRQ Editions. One of these was devoted to orchestral recordings conducted by Lorenzo Molajoli. The following set arrived too late for inclusion on the Molajoli CD.
Verdi – Nabucco – Overture
Bizet – Carmen – Prelude Act 1
Milan Symphony Orchestra, Lorenzo Molajoli
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia D 12274-5 (in album)
Matrices WB 1632, 1633, 1634 (30129, 30125, 30124), WB 1730 (30526)
Recorded 3rd November 1927 (Verdi), 19th November 1927 (Bizet), Milan
Verdi plays in score pitch at 75.2rpm, Bizet at 76.9rpm
The next track is one of the curious “collateral restorations” to my work on CDs of Percy Pitt. In 1909 Pitt conducted Peter Cornelius and Minnie Saltzmann-Stevens singing part of the final scene of Wagner’s Siegfried. When HMV reissued this on a double-sided record they chose to couple it with a Victor recording of the famous duet from Verdi’s La Forza del Destino, with Lambert Murhpy and Reinald Werrenrath.
Verdi – La Forza del Destino – Solenne in quest’ora
Lambert Murphy, tenor.
Reinald Werrenrath, baritone.
Orchestra
Over the past year or so I’ve produced several CD reissues for CRQ Editions. These included 3 CDs of Percy Pitt’s Columbia recordings, followed by a 2CD set of his HMV recordings with singers. In compiling the last I listened to and did initial restoration on many more records than the set could accommodate, and I hope to present several of these “collateral restorations” here. First up are three sides with Pitt conducting for the great Luisa Tetrazzini. Two of these are from Pitt’s first HMV recording session, which was also Tetrazzini’s first. The third comes from a session the following year.
Thomas – Mignon – Polonaise (Io son Titania)
Luisa Tetrazzini, soprano with Orchestra conducted by Percy Pitt
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Gramophone Monarch 053142
Matrix 2171f
Recorded 20th December 1907, London
Plays in score pitch at 76.8rpm – original record has a lot of wear, so the sound is noisy in places
Delibes – Lakmé – Bell Song (Dov’e l’Indiana bruna)
Luisa Tetrazzini, soprano with Orchestra conducted by Percy Pitt
Today marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Richard Strauss. To mark this, I’ve transferred two acoustic recordings of great tone poems by Strauss.
The first is Henry Wood’s heavily abridged 1916 account of Till Eulenspiegel, the first ever recording of the work. It’s cut down to just two sides, losing approximately half of the music. This is a work that Wood conducted regularly at the Proms, yet this is, as far as I can determine, his only recording of any piece by Strauss.
Richard Strauss – Till’s Merry Pranks: or a Rogue’s Rondo Henry J Wood and his Orchestra
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia L 1067
Matrices 6766-3, 6786-2
Recorded 1916
Available from October 1916 to May 1928
Plays in score pitch at 80.7rpm
The second recording is conducted by the composer himself. In 1922 Columbia recorded Don Juan with Strauss conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. This was Strauss’s second recording of the work, more or less: a 1917 account for Grammophon had the first two sides conducted by George Szell, and the last two by Strauss. For the Columbia recording Strauss conducted the whole work, save for a minor cut of the 24 bars preceding figure L in the score. The rather small violin section is pushed to the limit in some of the prominent parts with a high tessitura.
Richard Strauss – Don Juan London Symphony Orchestra, Richard Strauss
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia L 1419-20
Matrices 75034-2, 75035-2, 75036-2, 75037-2
Recorded 18th January 1922
Available from April 1922 to February 1928
Plays in score pitch at 80.0rpm
Although I’ve not posted much here recently, I’ve been doing plenty of restoration, for CRQ editions – there are now four volumes of Percy Pitt recordings available, and one of Lorenzo Molajoli.
My reason for posting today though is to honour Shakespeare’s birthday. I’ve transferred a recently acquired late acoustic Vocalion of Henry Baynton (1892-1951), one of the last actor-managers, performing Shakespearian excerpts. The first side is one of his own concoctions, I think, called “Shakespeare’s War Cry” consisting of a shortened verions of Richmond’s speech from Richard III, Act 5 Scene 3, the last three lines of Philip the Bastard from King John Act 5 Scene 7, and the St Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V Act 4 Scene 3, followed by a brief conclusion “God keep us thorough to the end. God prosper your affairs. God grant us everlasting peace.”
Shakespeare’s War Cry (from Richard III, King John, Henry V) Shakespeare – The Seven Ages of Man (from As You Like It); Hamlet’s Soliloquy Henry Baynton
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Vocalion K-05216
Matrices 04273, 04274X
Recorded c 1924
Transferred at 79.5rpm in line with some roughly contemporary matrices.
The day cannot go by either without at least a brief tribute to the great Albert Coates. I’ve not had time to do any new transfers of his recordings, so I thought his wonderful account of Dvorak’s Carnival Overture needed to reappear here.
Dvorak – Carnival Overture London Symphony Orchestra, Albert Coates
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Odeon 3814/6483
Matrices 3814-4 x, 6483 x (P 2279)
Recorded January 1906
74.2rpm playing in F minor and E flat major at A435
The next two sides are classics of the gramophone, though my copies aren’t the best. Johann II Strauss – Die Fledermaus – Mein Herr Marquis; Spiel’ ich die Unschuld vom Lande Orchestra, Karl Alwin Elisabeth Schumann, soprano
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
HMV E 545
Matrices Bb 12008-I, BV 614-III (7-43097, 30-1473)
Recorded 11th November 1927, Studio C, Small Queen’s Hall, London; 6th September 1929, Mittlerer Konzerthaussaal, Vienna
76.3rpm, 76.5rpm
The final Strauss of the day celebrates his sesquicentennial anniversary this year, and is represented by his best known waltz.
Richard Strauss – Der Rosenkavalier – Waltz Berlin State Opera Orchestra, Leo Blech
To round off the Wagner and Verdi bicentenary year, I’ve gathered a varied selection of music by these two operatic greats, in various guises.
Dajos Béla recorded extensively in many genres. The following abridged version of the Tannhäuser Overture is one of his more straightforwardly classical recordings, though the scoring is adapted for his band of the time – a piano can definitely be heard contributing.
Wagner – Tannhäuser – Overture (abridged) Künstler-Kapella Dajos Béla
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Odeon AA79816-7
Matrices xxBo 7551, 7552-II
Recorded 24th April 1923
Plays in A440 at 80rpm
Dan Godfrey has appeared here on many occasions, but this is the first time I’ve transferred anything by his eldest son, Dan Godfrey Jr. He very much followed in his father’s footsteps. He was appointed by the nascent BBC to conduct the 2LO Military Band with whom he recorded some 50 sides for the Edison Bell company, mostly arrangements of serious classical fare.
Wagner – The Rhinegold – Entry of the Gods into Valhalla 2LO Military Band, Dan Godfrey Jr
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Winner 4112
Matrices 8921B-1, 8922B-1
Recorded and issued 1924
Plays in A452 at 80.3rpm
The Dresden-born Emil Enderlein (b 1887) started as a lyric tenor, before developing into a Heldentenor. He sang Walther in Die Meistersinger at Bayreuth in 1925, and Parsifal and the Götterdämmerung Siegfried at the Zoppot Forest Opera in 1927-28. After his Bayreuth performances he changed his stage name to Erik Enderlein, and continued to perform well into the 1930s. After retirement he worked as a singing teacher in Berlin. He recorded for Pathé, Parlophone, Polyphon and Polydor as Emil Enderlein, but this curious
piano accompanied account of two excerpts from the Ring cycle appeared on the Piccadilly label, an offshoot of the Metropole label. The recordings are likely to have been made in 1929 when he sang at Covent Garden.
Wagner – The Valkyrie – Spring Song Wagner – Siegfried – Forging Song Eric Enderlein, tenor with piano
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Piccadilly No.5020
Matrices 1914, 1915
Recorded 1929
78.3rpm
The Carl Rosa Opera Company was a mainstay of opera in English from 1873 to 1960 (before being revived in 1997) performing in London and all round Britain. The selection from Lohengrin is conducted by Arthur Hammond (1904-1991) who joined the company in 1928, but by 1936 was working at Covent Garden. Imperial records were produced by the Crystalate company from 1920 to 1934, probably placing this record in the early 1930s. None of the soloists are named, but are likely to be Carl Rosa regulars of the period (but probably not among the top rank singers who were contracted to other recording companies.)
Wagner – Lohengrin – Vocal Selection Arthur Hammond, Carl Rosa Orchestra, Carl Rosa Opera Company
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Imperial Z 115
Matrices T.I. 146.A, 148.A
Recorded c1931-32
79.1rpm
The French tenor Paul Franz (1876-1950) was born François Gauthier in Paris. He did not train as a singer until he was almost 30, but soon was in demand across a wide repertoire.
Wagner – Tristan & Isolde – Ou Tristan va se rendre Wagner – Le Crépuscule des Dieux – Mort de Siegfried Paul Franz, tenor with Orchestra
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Pathé No.0286 (29cm, paper label, edge start)
Recording numbers 2376, 2494 R
Recorded c1919-20
Disc transfers 8th Jan 1924, 4th September 1924
73.1rpm, 76.5rpm
Borghild Bryhn-Langaard (1883-1939) was a Norwegian soprano, taught partly by Grieg’s wife Nina Hagerup. She sang the Rhinegold Fricka and Valkyrie Brünnhilde in Richter’s English Ring cycle at Covent Garden in 1908.
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Pathé 729
Recording numbers 77198, 77201
Matrices 24198 G, 47320 GR
Recorded 1917-18, Berlin
Play in score pitch at 94.4rpm, 91.5rpm
The cellist W.H. Squire recorded extensively for the Gramophone Company and Columbia, with large works interspersed with lighter pieces or arrangements of standards.
Wagner – Tannhäuser – O Star of Eve W.H. Squire, cello with piano
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
His Master’s Voice D 502
Matrices HO 4434af, 4433-IIaf (3-0529, 3-0530)
Recorded 11th June 1920, Hayes
79.6rpm
John Barbirolli is also a name that requires little introduction, and his later recordings are well known. But early efforts like this operatic selection have received less attention.
Wagner – Tannhäuser – Selection (arr Alfonso Gibilaro) London Symphony Orchestra, John Barbirolli
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
His Master’s Voice C 2293
Matrices 2B 1102-1, 1103-1 (32-2441, 32-2442)
Recorded 25th September 1931, Queen’s Hall, London
77.6rpm
The Zoppot Forest Opera ran from 1921 to 1944 in Sopot (now in Poland) and was known as the Bayreuth of the North. Many prominent singer and conductors performed there, though by 1942 when Siegfried and Die Meistersinger were performed, the singers were perhaps not such big names, but still acquit themselves well.
Wagner – Siegfried: Siegfried und die Stimme des Waldvogels a.d. 2 Akt – Freundliches Vöglein, dich frage ich nun Zwischenspiel a.d. 3 Akt Berlin State Orchestra, Robert Heger Heinz Kraayvanger, tenor. Cova Wackers, soprano
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Polydor 67922
Matrices 1880½-GS9, 1891½-GS9
Recorded 18th June 1942 “Aufnahmen mit Künstlern der Zoppoter Waldoper 1942”
77.1rpm
Giuseppe Lenghi-Cellini, born in Italy in 1881 had a substantial career in Britain, performing in concerts and opera. He recorded extensively for Parlophone, but can also be heard on Regal and Piccadilly.
This particular record has a bad fracture affecting the first minute or so of each side.
Verdi – Il Trovatore – Ah si ben mio; Di quella pira Giuseppe Lenghi Cellini, tenor with Orchestra
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Piccadilly No.5032
Matrices 3556-2, 3559
Recorded c1930
79.3rpm (Di quella pira transposed down a semitone)
Alick Maclean is a favourite conductor of mine, though few of his recordings have appeared here so far. He recorded extensively with the NQHLO, and also regularly conducted the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Verdi – Aida – Selection The New Queen’s Hall Light Orchestra, Alick Maclean
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia L 1439
Matrices 75089-2, 75090-2
Recorded 11th May 1922, London
Available from 10/1922 to 2/1928
(Intended replacement on AX491-2; 492-2; recorded 2nd July 1924 conducted by Eugene Goossens II; test pressings made; but not issued)
80.3rpm
The shortlived British violinist Mary Law has appeared here before. These operatic fantasias were standard fare for her in the recording studios.
Verdi – Il Trovatore: Fantasia; La Traviata: Fantasia Mary Law, violin with piano
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Zonophone Record The Twin Serial A 177
Matrices AL 8350f, AL 8354f (Z-047919, Z-047920)
Recorded 8th June 1915, London
77.9rpm
Stanley Chapple was the house conductor for the Aeolian Vocalion company, conducting orchestral works, as well as substantial operatic excerpts like the following. As usual, the soloists are unnamed, though I suspect that Frank Titterton can be heard on the Rigoletto selections.
Verdi – Vocal Excerpts from “Il Trovatore” Grand Opera Company, Soloists, Full Orchestra, Stanley Chapple
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Broadcast Twelve 3094
Matrices LO 1108x, 1109x
Recorded 1931-2
78.5rpm
This HMV issue of US Victor masters of vocal gems from Aida in English disguises under the heading of “Grand Opera Company” an ensemble that includes the young Richard Crooks as Radames.
Verdi – Aïda – Vocal Gems Grand Opera Company Della Baker, soprano Elsie Baker, contralto Stanley Baughman, baritone Rose Bryant, contralto Helen Clark, soprano Richard Crooks, tenor Frank Croxton, bass Royal Dadmun, baritone Charles H Hart, tenor Vivian Holt, soprano Judson House, tenor Olive Kline, soprano Lucy Isabelle Marsh, soprano Lambert Murphy, tenor Ruth Rodgers, soprano Orchestra, Rosario Bourdon
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
His Master’s Voice C 1605
Matrices CVE-13995-20, 13996-23
Recorded 13th July 1928, Liederkranz Hall, New York
76.3rpm
In 1902-3 the Anglo-Italian Commerce Company made a number of recordings in Milan for Pathé. The two excerpts here are from a Verdi rarity, I due Foscari, and are sung by an unnamed baritone.
(mp3 file – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Pathé 80098, 80874
Matrices 59089, 7555
Recorded c 1902-3, Milan
90.6rpm, 88.4rpm
France’s Garde Républicaine recorded extensively for many years for several companies. In Britain, the most comparable equivalent is the Coldstream Guards Band. These early operatic fantaisies have spoken introductions.
Verdi – Le Trouvère – Fantaisie Garde Républicaine
(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)
Columbia DX 1441-2
Matrices: CAX 10119-1, 10120-2, 10121-1, 10122-2
Recorded: 11th November 1947, No.1 Studio, Abbey Road
Issued December 1947
This was the second commercial recording of the Sea Interludes, but the first to be issued. Eduard van Beinum recorded them, and the Passacaglia, for Decca with the Concertgebouw Orchestra on September 15th and 16th 1947, with the 78s issued in January 1948. These Sargent sides were recorded two months later, but the incredibly quick turnaround for issue suggests to me that perhaps EMI were determined to be the first to get excerpts from Peter Grimes in the catalogues.
I received an email recently asking if I knew where George W Byng’s recording of the Ballet Music from Gounod’s Faust might be found. Some six years ago, before I had this website I did a transfer of the recording, so the time seemed apt to revisit it for a new transfer. Listening again, I get a sense of Byng’s experience as a theatre conductor – there is great life in these pieces.
Gounod – Faust – Ballet Music
Royal Opera Orchestra, Covent Garden, George W. Byng
More Wagner for the bicentenary year, this time with rarely head Vocalions from Adrian Boult in the overture to the Flying Dutchman and the Procession of Masters from Die Meistersinger (both 1927), and from Stanley Chapple in the Act 3 Prelude from Lohengrin (1927) and the Siegfried Idyll (a late acoustic recording from around 1925)
Wagner – Der fliegende Holländer – Overture Festival Symphony Orchestra, Adrian Boult
