RECORDED MUSIC

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18500, 22 February 1930, Page 11 (Supplement)

RECORDED MUSIC

Not Eton alone but Britons all over the world are stirred by the flowing melody and manly words of the Boating Song, and few will remain unmoved by the stirring version of Raymond Newell. His latest disc pairs with this with the old traditional song "I Married a Wife,” a character study excellently carried out. Mr Newell, well known on the London stage, with the support of a really fine chorus. (Columbia 01749).

Harold Williams, the most popular of Australian baritones, shows a marked improvement in h’s latest record. Kis material is well chosen. The Toreador's Song and “Heart Bowed Down,” from Balfe’s Opera. “The Bohemian Girl.” The first he gives with manly vigour and strong sentiment, holding his magnificent power well in reserve, lie makes a fine contrast with his second number, and in both has the excellent support of a rousing chorus (the 73.8. C.) and orchestra (Columbia C 5001).

The re-recordings of “Jeux d'Eau” by Ravel and Rhapsody in E Flat (Brahms) by Benno Moiseiwitsch are equally welcome. The Ravel show piece was a popular number on Moiseiwitsch’s programmes when he toured New Zealand about a year ago. He interprets with beautiful tone colourings the romanticism of Brahms. The reproduction in both cases is very clear. (H.M.V., D 1648).

The versatile Pattman. whom we remember for his Fugues and Tocca on the Liberal Jewish Synagogue Organ, | gives us lighter fare nowadays. His latest couples the fragrantly melodious "Narcissus” of Trevin with the more familiar “Melody in F" by Rubinstein. Though he has transferred from a ! "legitimate" organ to a "cinema” one, j his sound musicianship still shines through, apd he plays both times with simple directness and sincerity. Columbia 01752.

Frank Crumit, the American comedian, who achieved a wide success with his renderings of "Abdul Abulbul Amir" and “The Gay Caballero.” has added another popular number to his list, "Mountains Ain’t No Place for Bad Men.” The clever intonation cf the voice is very effective. On the other side there is a catchy number. “A High Silk Hat end a Walking Cane." which should also be very acceptable to Crumifs admireis. (11.M.V., EASB3).

Two world-popular tunes in the Introduction of Act 3 of Wagner’s ‘Lohengrin” and an orchestral version of the famous Prelude in C Sharp Minor by Rachmaninoff, will be found on a disc by Sir Henry Wood and the New Queen’s Hall Orchestra. Thitf record has now been transferred to the popular-priced section. The economist will be pleased to compare the old preelectric disc of 10 - with the much better version at 6/-. Sir Henry makes the most in the Lohengrin of one of the few really great melodies that Wagner wrote, and arranged the Rachmaninoff to invest it with a rich overplus of effort. Columbia 02967).

The musical comedy “Hold Everything” is enjoying a long run of success on Broadway, New York, and is already billed as one of the attractions of this year in New Zealand. Its best feature, according to criticisms, is the bright and attractive "music. There is life and colour in the chief songs and dances, and these have been made into attractive records by H.M.V. Jack Hylton and his orchestra are well to the fore with two records of fox-trots —“You’re the Cream in My Coffee” and “To Know You is to Love You” (85650), and "Don’t Hold Everything” and "Everybody Loves You” (85651), which have lilting vocal refrains. Jesse Crawford on the Wurlitzer organ im-

parts some clever variations into “You’re the Cream in My Coffee” and "My Sin” (EA6OI). The Light Opera Company sings the vocal gems on one side of EB4I and gems from "Whoopee” on the other. They get every ounce of sparkle out of the melodious music.

Johann Strauss the Second, a 6on of the immortal Waltz King, has a few words in his vast repertoire—he wrote over 400 waltz tunes—every bit as good as his father ever wrote. Though the rest is far below stan-

dard. that is no reason why we should reject such incomparable feux-de-joie as "Tales from the Vienna Woods.” Bruno Walter, the famous German conductor, gives a glowing account of it. With 'what cheeky good-humour some of those deftly-turned woodwind passages suggest the amorous adventures of romantic Vienna! Musicians will delight in Walter’s musicianly handling of his tempo, and the velvet glove that guides all the exuberance. Columbia 04359.

Albert Coates is a rhythmical conductor with a cuick appreciation of instrumental dexterity and colour. He is able to bring out the brilliancy of any instrumental group his baton alights upon, but never does he imperil the homogeneity of the orchestral texture. This- is a feature of the recovering of "Eine Faust Overture,” chronologically the first of the great works of Richard Wagner. It is a work of tremendous power, and Coates’s rendering has every tonal quality. The music is based on a passage from Goethe’s

“Faust,” which discusses the inevitability of external forces and the desire of Death as against Life “a thing urblest.” Wagne’s themes possess all conceivable dramatic aptness and the work unfolds itself according to a plan of continuous movement, logical and inevitable. Every time we hoten to Wagner there is no diminution of our wonder at the man’s power, resource and certainty of touch. (H.M.V., D 163).

Towards the end of the last century Debussy wrote an opera, “Pellas and Melisande,” which, though revived at the time with the usual hostile questioning of the public, delighted the greatest musicians of the day. One and all expected that as he had found an art-form so obviously suited to him, he would continue to create fresh masterpieces. But no, "Pella6” remained his sole opera. From that day to this it has pleasured a growing public. Columbia now offers it in abbreviated form on six 12-inch discs. A group of famous French singers form the cast, and it may safely be predicted that the quality of their singing, so completely foreign and unfamiliar to ears accustomed only to the English, Italian and occasionally German methods, will come as a comolete and

lelightful surprise. The sene of poetry is not absent from a single note. The , flesh and blood singers uphold the fugitive dream-like atmosphere with great credit. Even the pedestrian passages abound in chaim. Particular praise must be given to the unfailing purity of the voices and to the delicately exact enunciation. The opera is given on six 12-inch records in an album. Columbia 02865-66.

The “Aida" complete set issued by H.M.V. introduces in the name part Dusolina Giannini, who recently charmed all who heard her with her beautiful, full soprano voice. Her rich organ records very successfully, and both in “Ritorna vincitor” and in "O patria mia" she phrases very artistically, whilst she does not lack dramatic fire in the poignant scenes with j Amneris and her father. Irene Ming- [ hini-Cattaneo as the Princess reveals a magnificent voice, and sings very forcefully, Rer work being throughout of a very high standard. Aureliano Pertile. the well-known tenor, is well cast as Radames, and he sings with feeling and vigour. Giovanni Inghilleri, a new baritone, creates the right atmophere as Amonasro,. the captive Ethiopian King. Luigi Manfrini, a basso with a superb voice, is a richvoiced Ramfis. The ensemble numbers, such as the march, or the trio from the Nile scene, are splendidly sung and recorded, the singing of the La Scala Chorus being notably fine. Some of the finest records of the set are the Temple scene (Act 1), the great finale of Act 2, the AmnerisRadames duet, and the subsequent judgment scene (both sung with passionate intensity by Minghini-Cat-taneo), and the final duet, “O terra addio.” The orchestral accompaniment by the La Scala Orchestra, conducted by Sabajno, is rich and full, yet does not drown the voices. The set issued in two albums, with complete English text. (H.M.V., D 1595-1613).

We call Gaspar Cassado a new star, by the side of such fixed constellations who have shone for us these many

years past, but really, to fix the metaphor, he has served at the inner 6hrine

some little time. Favourite pupil of Pablo Casals, the greatest ’cellist of the day. he has already in a brief public career scored enormous triumphs in London, on the Continent, in his native Spain, and is even now winning the unstinted praise of the New York cities. If we examine his latest offering, a pairing of "Melodic” by Tchaikowsky with a “Song without words” by Mendelssohn, we can discover what bring the raptures to the critics. A smooth. mellow, singing tone; a subtlety of phrasing that charges the music with heartfelt meaning; a play of light and shade like the modulated voice of a great actor. There is a career of greatness in store for this warm young genius. Columbia 04288.

The recording of the actual performance at the Berlin State Opera House of the finale of Act 111. of Richard Strauss's opera "The Rose Cavalier” is a fine achievement. This opera was chosen last season for the gala performance at Covent Garden and sL special production was also staged in New York. Its lyric beauty is unchallenged. In the recording the atmosphere of 'the theatre has been successfully caught, and the singing is uniformly good. The timbres of the voices of the trio blend will, and the high soprano gives some very beautiful singing indeed. The orchestral background adorns the scene. (H.M.V., D 1629.)

Among the new records are two that music-lovers will hail with delight—two Debussy “Nocturnes,” “Fetes” and “Images,” played with lapidarian cunning by Phillipe Gauberte and the Orchestra de la Societe des Concerts du Conservatoire of Paris. The music is entrancingly atmospheric. It sparkles with starlight and fairy lamps, the silvery edge of moonlight, the soft rotundity of clouds, fleeting dreams, and the spiritual essence of fun rather than its corporate body. Debussy is concerned with dreams and visions and fancies rather than with solid realities, and nobody knew better how to transform these Jnto poetic music. It is almost hard to believe that the orchestra has the same strings, brass and wood wind that play Beethoven. Gaubert guides them with a fairy wand in his hand, and even those who are in doubt about the modern musical structure will recognise the dreamy fancies of the mind in the soft chords. (Columbia 02865-66).

The Italian baritone, Benvenuta Franci, has perhaps the most powerful voice on the gramophone. But this enormous voice never loses its resonance and beautiful timbre. The glorious sweep of the big sustained notes remind one of a robust tenor like Caruso or Martinelli. Yet there is never a suspicion of shouting, and the big organ is astonishingly flexible and under perfect control. Franci in two arias from Ponchielli’s “La Gioconda” displays artistic feeling and thoughtful study. His dramatic powers are well illustrated in a declamatory aria “O Monumento” (O Mighty Monument) from the first act. It Is a soliloquy by Barnabas, a spy of the Inquisition, who has learnt of the elopement of the wife of the chief of the Inquisition with Erzo, a one-time nobleman who is now a sailor. The second aria is from the second act. Barnabas, disguised as a fisherman in order to spy on Erzo, approaches a boat and sings with a crew a merry fisherman’s song. Franci is supported by the full chorus and orchestra of LaScala Opera House, Milan, and the ensembles come through with a clearness that makes them realistic. (H.M.V., D 3 1117).