Many thanks to my learned friend who has contributed a review on one of his favourite classical pieces. In his words:
One of the last great Deccas before they went digital. Needless to say, it involves the two legendary K's—Kingsway Hall (the location) and Kenneth Wilkinson (the engineer). The two K's were behind some of the best Decca FFSS black labels in the history of stereo classical LPs, particularly during the late 50s and early 60s. I do not have another performance of the Bartok 2nd violin concerto to compare with, but I am confident that this recording featuring Kyung Wha-Chung and Georg Solti/LPO has to be one of the top 10. Just as I identify Mozart with Uchida, Schubert with Martzy and Chopin's 1st piano concerto with Argerich, so the Bartok somehow 'belongs' to Wha-Chung. She is, after all, best remembered for the eight curtain calls at a concert at the Champs Elysees Theater in Paris when she performed the very same Bartok. The sound: What I remember most distinctly about this LP, when I heard it some 20 years ago, was the entry of the solo violin immediately after the pizzicato intro, in the 1st movement (Allegro non troppo). It simply grips you with its realism and power. Even today, it never fails to raise the hairs on my arms! I have not heard anything like it since the Danse Macabre in Witches Brew. The massed strings and brass are captured very well too, and although loud, will not distort on a properly set-up turntable/tonearm/cartridge. Bass foundation is solid. Placement is perfect, with the violin taking centre stage (of course), no spotlighting, and the orchestra spread out behind the soloist. No, you don't need an exotic cartridge to bring out the magic of this disc. Decca & Wilkinson have done a very good job already. All you need do is sit back and enjoy. The Bartok/Wha Chung/Solti LP (Decca SXL 6802, UK pressing, 1978) should be among the prized discs of any classical music connoiseur. As with all Decca records, it is best to stick to the UK issues, where possible. From experience, the German, Dutch and US pressings don't match the quality of the UK versions. The Japanese pressings are good though. The UK copy used to be easily available and didn't cost very much. Prices seem to have escalated lately and a nice copy could set you back £30 or so today.
Thursday, 19 July 2007
BARTOK VIOLIN CONCERTO NO.2: KYUNG-WHA CHUNG
Many thanks to my learned friend who has contributed a review on one of his favourite classical pieces. In his words:
One of the last great Deccas before they went digital. Needless to say, it involves the two legendary K's—Kingsway Hall (the location) and Kenneth Wilkinson (the engineer). The two K's were behind some of the best Decca FFSS black labels in the history of stereo classical LPs, particularly during the late 50s and early 60s. I do not have another performance of the Bartok 2nd violin concerto to compare with, but I am confident that this recording featuring Kyung Wha-Chung and Georg Solti/LPO has to be one of the top 10. Just as I identify Mozart with Uchida, Schubert with Martzy and Chopin's 1st piano concerto with Argerich, so the Bartok somehow 'belongs' to Wha-Chung. She is, after all, best remembered for the eight curtain calls at a concert at the Champs Elysees Theater in Paris when she performed the very same Bartok. The sound: What I remember most distinctly about this LP, when I heard it some 20 years ago, was the entry of the solo violin immediately after the pizzicato intro, in the 1st movement (Allegro non troppo). It simply grips you with its realism and power. Even today, it never fails to raise the hairs on my arms! I have not heard anything like it since the Danse Macabre in Witches Brew. The massed strings and brass are captured very well too, and although loud, will not distort on a properly set-up turntable/tonearm/cartridge. Bass foundation is solid. Placement is perfect, with the violin taking centre stage (of course), no spotlighting, and the orchestra spread out behind the soloist. No, you don't need an exotic cartridge to bring out the magic of this disc. Decca & Wilkinson have done a very good job already. All you need do is sit back and enjoy. The Bartok/Wha Chung/Solti LP (Decca SXL 6802, UK pressing, 1978) should be among the prized discs of any classical music connoiseur. As with all Decca records, it is best to stick to the UK issues, where possible. From experience, the German, Dutch and US pressings don't match the quality of the UK versions. The Japanese pressings are good though. The UK copy used to be easily available and didn't cost very much. Prices seem to have escalated lately and a nice copy could set you back £30 or so today.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment