Series For Connoisseurs

Press, Volume C, Issue 29616, 12 September 1961, Page 9

Series For Connoisseurs

Since virtually all imports of records stopped there has been little for collectors whose interests go beyond the bounds of the standard repertoire to modern music, early music or chamber music. The Record Society, a branch of the World Record Club, promises to help fill this gap. Its schedule for its first six months includes chamber music by Beethoven, Villa-Lobos, and Schubert, songs and symphonies by Mahler, and music by Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Hindemith and Bartok. The two records reviewed below come from the first release. Record Society recordings are luxuriously packaged, with full notes on the music and texts and translations, in the case of vocal works. The records cost 30s each. MONTEVERDI: Madrigals —Hot- ekcl del; Lasdatemi morlro; Zeflro torn*; Ardo; Obime, dov’e fl mio ben; Chtome d'Oro; “D Ballo dello incrate” (excerpts); Lamento della Ntafa; Eeco monnorar Foods. Vocal and instrumental ensemble directed by Nadia Boulanger. Record Society mono RZXSM (Ulo). This record, which comes from E-M.L’s “Great Recordings of the Century” series, is an LP transfer of a set of 78’s, recorded In Paris in February, 1937, that is one of the classics of the gramophone. The Record Society has performed a great service in making it available here for the first time in any form. Nadia Boulanger, the first woman to conduct the Boston Symphony and other great orchestras, is one of the century’s great interpretative musicians. The Monteverdi revival of recent years is largely due to her efforts. Monteverdi is one of the greatest composers of all time, although the late Renaissance spirit of his music may seem strange at first to those for whom music is bounded by Bach on the one hand and by, say, Richard Strauss on the other. His madrigals—which are madrigals in spite of being accompanied, for the Italians did not Use the term in so narrow a sense as the English who borrowed it from them —show Ms genius in its more intimate and perhaps XROSt TOdily Teaaaphte frequently bears

a descriptive relationship to the words—which makes the provision of texts particularly welcome—but it leads a greater life of its own at the same time. “Lasciatemi morire” is a five-voiced version of the famous lament from “Arianna” and the excerpts from “Il Ballo delle Ingrate” include the poignant plaint of one of the unfortunate women which ends the work. About half the madrigals are duets for tenors. Boulanger’s singers, who include Hugues Cuenod and Doda Conrad, are a very musicianly group. Although the women are not ideally steady, their performances are wonderfully spirited and refined. Boulanger’s use of piano Instead of harpsichord is anachronistic, but her playing is so buoyant that it seems a small point. Like other recordings In this series, the transfers have been accomplished with great skill and the sound is quite acceptable. Only a hi-fi bigot will reject the record on account Mit The transfers in this series are made from pressings in vinylite from unused masters, and the . resulting sound is much better than from the ori-.i ginal shellac pressings. Other “Great Recordings of the Century” which the society should consider issuing are Elizabeth Schumann's Wolf and Strauss Heder, Panzera’s French songs and Chaliapin’s Russian Opera. BEETHOVEN: Strinr Quartet No. 1 la F major, Or. M, No. L Stria* Quartet No. 2 ta G Major, Op la, No. 2. The Huusarian Quartet. Record Society mono BEJNM (Uto). This is the first issue in ' the Record Society's pro- 1 jected complete series orf ■ Beethoven’s quartets, played by the Hungarian Quartet Such integral recordings are often uneven, so it would be unwise to make predictions, but the first issue shows the Hungarians taking a strong, forthright line with the music. Their playing is bold and brisk, but rather' unsmiling—in the Scherzo of No. 1, for instance. They are very accomplished technically, and a lack of sheen on the tone is probably due to « somewhat dead recording, thia being pTOSMMSnCMi | on the tart