Thursday, December 9th, 2010
I had posted these two titles on Klassic Haus Restorations last week, but hadn’t mentioned them here yet, so I am correcting that oversight. These two discs contain some rare delights.
The Scholars are one of Europe’s premier chamber vocal ensembles. The vocal ensemble formed in 1970 orginally of students at King’s College, Cambridge. The Scholars are lively and diverse personalities with fresh voices honed in the incomparable, centuries-old English choral tradition. They are dedicated to taking first-class a cappella music to the widest possible audiences around the world. I have previous restored their first album, KHCD-2010-034 (STEREO) – English Choral Music in the Time of Henry VIII, The Reformation, and The Elizabethan Age, recorded in December, 1971. This Georgian Glees album (KHCD-2010-049) is derived from a Decca/L’Oiseux-Lyre LP published in 1979, and is authorized for reissue by The Scholars. Performed with panache and a remarkable sense of style, it is a great one-of-a-kind recording of seldom heard, very English chamber vocal music.
Two musical giants, Richter and Mravinsky, collaborate in what many think is the best recording ever of Tchaikovsky’s 1st concerto for piano (KHCD-2010-050). Recorded in 1958 by Melodiya, it transcribes a formidable interpretation, with the Leningrad Philharmonic providing rock-solid support. The rarely-played-and-recorded Rubinstein 4th Piano Concerto features the forceful personality and legendary keyboard skills of Oscar Levant, with Dimitri Mitropoulos leading the New York Philharmonic in sympathetic accompaniment, from a Columbia recording made in 1952.