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Salient: Victoria University Students' Paper. Vol. 28, No. 8. 1965.

Records — HMV Release Vanguard Discs — Arthur Everard Reviews Records

page 6

Records

HMV Release Vanguard Discs
Arthur Everard Reviews Records

"The Maids," produced by Downstage over Queen's Birthday weekend, co-starred Dorothy McKegg, seen here discussing the play.—Chris Black photo.

"The Maids," produced by Downstage over Queen's Birthday weekend, co-starred Dorothy McKegg, seen here discussing the play.—Chris Black photo.

HMV's access to the American Vanguard catalogue has made it possible for them to release some very interesting disks not formerly available locally.

A beautifully played and recorded collection of Bach-Vivaldi organ concertos played on the organ of the Maria Kyrka at Halsingborg, in Sweden, by Anton Heiller (MALP 6011, ASDM 5002) has been out for a while, as has also a highly recommendable version of Canteloube's Songs of the Auvergne sung by Netania Devrath (MCLP 6171), a soprano new to me but who has a charming and accomplished style.

But the bulk of these Vanguard releases seems to be various collections featuring Wiener Solisten and I Sollstl di Zagreb with various soloists under the name of "The Virtuoso . . ."

Andre Lardrot is the very expert solo oboist with the Wiener Solisten in The Virtuoso Oboe, Vol. 1. (MALP 6014) and Vol. 3 (MCLP 6162), these being collections of concertos by Albinoni. Cimarosa, Fischer, Handel. Haydn, Le-clair and Vivaldi. In The Virtuoso Guitar, the same string group (conducted by Wilfried Bottcher) accompanies Karl Scheit in various Concertos (MALP 6016).

Besides having recorded a concert of Airs, Dances, Fantasies and Serenades railed Notturno (MCLP) 6158), the Solisti di Zagreb, conducted by Antonio Janigro, play concerted pieces by Haydn, Torelli, Biber, Alberti, Menfredini and

Leopold Mozart with Helmut Wobisch (trumpet) in The Virtuoso Trumpet, Vol. 2, (MCLP 6180) and a Telemann Suite coupled with the Mozart Flute/Harp Concerto, K599, with flautist Julius Baker in The Virtuoso Flute (MALP 6017).

Anton Heiller is the harpsichordist in a recital of pieces by Rameau in The Virtuoso Harpsichord (MALP 6015) and, finally, there is a concert by the Taylor Recorder Consort (on MALP 6018) called The Dulcet Pipes which should hearten anyone who has struggled with this refractory instrument to no apparent success.

With the exception of the BachVivaldi concertos, these disks are available in mono only, but not one of them has anything less than well-balanced natural sound.

They are well worth while investigating, especially if you are interested in the lesser known works of the Eighteenth Century.

If only the new Ansermet/Suisse Romande collection were available in stereo it would be a high fidelity enthusiast's showpiece. Ravel's Bolero and La Valse, Honeggers' Pacific 231 and Dukas' Apprentice Sorcerer are perfect examples of physical sound generating interest where the music itself doesn't.

Unfortunately the record is released here in mono only (Decca LXT 6065) but even so it is a good demo of large, technicolored orchestral sound.

Ansermet's advocacy of these pieces is probably the best yet; his phrasing and timing ensure the precision and accuracy of attack that they must have to create their proper impact. The orchestral weight is most faithfully simulated by the engineers (I note, with special approval, the recording of the low bass) and the percussion transients come across very well indeed.

Julius Katchen's disk of Brahms' piano pieces, Opp. 117, 118, 119, is entitled The Complete Piano Works, Volume One, and as his playing is of such a high level of performance I hope the other volumes will soon follow.

There are one or two moments where he sounds uncomfortable in his particular choice of phrasing but his control and realisation of Brahms' markings is practically always very good.

Indeed, though I admit that his recital is not the overwhelming experience that Curzon's Liszt collection (reviewed last month) is, nevertheless this is a very enjoyable concert and fully equal to the Liszt one as far as mono recording is concerned and far better in stereo (Decca SXLM 6106).