Sony Essential Classics

Started by MN Dave, September 20, 2020, 03:51:36 PM

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Roasted Swan

Quote from: Sergeant Rock on September 21, 2020, 04:44:52 PM
Some of my favorite "Essentials"








Sarge

I don't know the Rosen but all the others are excellent!  I would add many of the other Ormandy and Szell recordings to the point of saying you rarely go wrong with any of them.  I was listening to a couple of the Stravinsky (odd butchered Petrouska - but what there is wonderfully played) and Ravel discs and the RVW 4 from Mitropoulos (yeah I know - not strictly one of the "essential classics" series!). The playing is breath-takingly fine and the recordings - even in these early masterings - so much better than I remember from low grade 70's vinyl.  The Barenboim/Zukerman Elgar violin conc. is still one of the very finest there is.  Easily the best performance of Barenboim's first traversal of Elgar.

 

 
 

vandermolen

#21
I share a number of Sarge and Roasted Swan's choices, including the Wagner orchestral music from the Ring, Szell's Bruckner's 3rd Symphony (still my favourite recording), Mahler, Symphony 6, that great Mitropolous and Stokowski Vaughan Williams disc and the Shostakovich 4th and 10th symphonies from Ormandy (my introduction to both works on LP) + Walton Symphony 2 (Szell) and Belshazzar's Feast (Ormandy) and the Planets (Ormandy). On my drive home from work there was a record shop in Lewes which had a whole Sony Essential Classics section, so I often stopped off there on my way home. Also, this one:
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Roasted Swan

Quote from: vandermolen on September 23, 2020, 05:15:42 AM
I share a number of Sarge and Roasted Swan's choices, including the Wagner orchestral music from the Ring, Szell's Bruckner's 3rd Symphony (still my favourite recording), Mahler, Symphony 6, that great Mitropolous and Stokowski Vaughan Williams disc and the Shostakovich 4th and 10th symphonies from Ormandy (my introduction to both works on LP) + Walton Symphony 2 (Szell) and Belshazzar's Feast (Ormandy) and the Planets (Ormandy). On my drive home from work there was a record shop in Lewes which had a whole Sony Essential Classics section, so I often stopped off there on my way home. Also, this one:


+1 for the Copland disc which is notable for containing Previn's 1st "classical" recording - The Red Pony Suite

Dry Brett Kavanaugh

#23
Quote from: Roasted Swan on September 23, 2020, 03:32:53 AM
I don't know the Rosen but all the others are excellent!  I would add many of the other Ormandy and Szell recordings to the point of saying you rarely go wrong with any of them.  I was listening to a couple of the Stravinsky (odd butchered Petrouska - but what there is wonderfully played) and Ravel discs and the RVW 4 from Mitropoulos (yeah I know - not strictly one of the "essential classics" series!). The playing is breath-takingly fine and the recordings - even in these early masterings - so much better than I remember from low grade 70's vinyl.  The Barenboim/Zukerman Elgar violin conc. is still one of the very finest there is.  Easily the best performance of Barenboim's first traversal of Elgar.

 

 
 

+1 for Respighi, Mussorgsky, and Hindemith discs. I am curious about the Petrushka disc. I will look for it.


P.s.  Are many of these discs originally Columbia label recordings ?

MN Dave

Thanks for all your replies. Surely not a clunker in the bunch.  0:)

I don't mind the cover art, and it made them easy to spot--and I went right for them. :D

Save my own, I missed any mention of the Beethoven/Sibelius violin concertos. :(
"The effect of music is so very much more powerful and penetrating than is that of the other arts, for these others speak only of the shadow, but music of the essence." — Arthur Schopenhauer

Biffo

Quote from: MN Dave on September 23, 2020, 08:20:02 AM
Thanks for all your replies. Surely not a clunker in the bunch.  0:)

I don't mind the cover art, and it made them easy to spot--and I went right for them. :D

Save my own, I missed any mention of the Beethoven/Sibelius violin concertos. :(

I have the Beethoven from Isaac Stern/Bernstein/NYPO and the Sibelius from Zino Francescatti/Bernstein/NYPO but they are part of Sony box sets. Presumably they were issued as single LPs at some point. The Sibelius comes with its original cover; it was coupled with the Bruch concerto and conducted by Thomas Schippers.

vandermolen

Quote from: Roasted Swan on September 23, 2020, 06:50:43 AM
+1 for the Copland disc which is notable for containing Previn's 1st "classical" recording - The Red Pony Suite
I didn't realise that about Previn. I had the LP as well. The Copland Sony CD disc also includes my favourite 'Lincoln Portrait'.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

MN Dave

Quote from: Biffo on September 23, 2020, 08:35:43 AM
I have the Beethoven from Isaac Stern/Bernstein/NYPO and the Sibelius from Zino Francescatti/Bernstein/NYPO but they are part of Sony box sets. Presumably they were issued as single LPs at some point. The Sibelius comes with its original cover; it was coupled with the Bruch concerto and conducted by Thomas Schippers.

Here's the cover art for anyone who wants to see it. Many of you probably don't!  :laugh:
[asin]B0000027OR[/asin]
"The effect of music is so very much more powerful and penetrating than is that of the other arts, for these others speak only of the shadow, but music of the essence." — Arthur Schopenhauer

Roasted Swan

Quote from: Dry Brett Kavanaugh on September 23, 2020, 07:37:33 AM
+1 for Respighi, Mussorgsky, and Hindemith discs. I am curious about the Petrushka disc. I will look for it.


P.s.  Are many of these discs originally Columbia label recordings ?

The Petrushka is quite odd as most but not all of the full score is there and the version is called "suite".  But as far as I know Stravinsky never sanctioned one.  I seem to remember an old Stokowski/Berlin PO disc that also had a Petrushka "suite" on it back in CFP LP days.  EDIT:  I remembered this appears in the EMI Stokowski "Icon" box - its about half the score at 17 minutes whereas Ormandy is nearer to 3/4 at around 27 minutes - hardly seems worth cutting 7 minutes (unless it was to fit it on one side of an LP?)

vandermolen

#29
Quote from: Dry Brett Kavanaugh on September 23, 2020, 07:37:33 AM
+1 for Respighi, Mussorgsky, and Hindemith discs. I am curious about the Petrushka disc. I will look for it.


P.s.  Are many of these discs originally Columbia label recordings ?
I think that many of them are probably originally CBS recordings.

+1 for Respighi's Church Windows and the Walton Hindemith Variations disc.

Here are three more that I enjoyed v much. Especially the Duruflé performance:
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Jo498

Almost all are CBS (or the Epic sublabel) recordings. Maybe a few already from Sony, but I think these more recent ones got onto later cheapo series like "Esprit".
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

Dry Brett Kavanaugh

Quote from: vandermolen on September 23, 2020, 10:09:58 AM
I think that many of them are probably originally CBS recordings.

+1 for Respighi's Church Windows and the Walton Hindemith Variations disc.

Here are three more that I enjoyed v much. Especially the Duruflé performance:


Our favorite boy at GMG, David Hurwitz, has something to say about the Songs of Auvergne. 😄😄😄

https://youtu.be/0XYuSAB10yk

MN Dave

Quote from: Dry Brett Kavanaugh on September 23, 2020, 12:57:56 PM
Our favorite boy at GMG, David Hurwitz, has something to say about the Songs of Auvergne. 😄😄😄

https://youtu.be/0XYuSAB10yk

He's all we have. Is anyone else doing CD reviews on YouTube for classical music?
"The effect of music is so very much more powerful and penetrating than is that of the other arts, for these others speak only of the shadow, but music of the essence." — Arthur Schopenhauer

Dry Brett Kavanaugh

Quote from: MN Dave on September 23, 2020, 01:05:16 PM
He's all we have. Is anyone else doing CD reviews on YouTube for classical music?

Doesn't matter to him. It evinces his genius. 😆😆

Holden

I have a number of what are now Sony CDs. They include Rudolf Serkin, Bruno Walter, Murray Perahia, Leonard Bernstein, etc but they aren't Essential Classics. Off the top of my head I have:

Carmina Burana - Ormandy
Dvorak Slavonic Dances - Szell
Spanish Guitar Music - John Williams
Bach Organ works - E Power Biggs
Dvorak - String Quartet and American piano quintet - Juilliard/Firkusny
Beethoven - Overtures - Szell (this wasn't on the website posted by MN Dave)
Cheers

Holden

aukhawk

QuoteP.s.  Are many of these discs originally Columbia label recordings ?

Quote from: vandermolen on September 23, 2020, 10:09:58 AM
I think that many of them are probably originally CBS recordings.

And a few RCA (eg Anner Bylsma).
I say 'CBS' too because here in the UK Columbia is/was a completely different label, at least in the stereo era.  The US and UK Columbia brands separated for good in 1931, according to Wikipedia.  As a kid I might actually have had some 'ambiguous' Columbia 78s dating from before that!

Jo498

I am not sure if it was also on essential classics but the Beethoven Ouvertures with Szell (and also some Haydn and Mozart symphonies) were on an even cheaper series that had no booklets to speak of. "Gala" and maybe also a different name (or a different name in some countries).
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

Roasted Swan

Prompted by this thread I've just received a couple of new (for me) "Essential Classics"



looking forward to hearing both of them!  Prompted (again!) by this discussion I listened to this disc;



OMG - the playing is SENSATIONAL - I'd forgotten just how good.  Superb soloist in Sheherazade and the brass just blaze in the Russian Easter Festival Overture.  OK the sound is a bit "flat" as a recording and plenty of tape hiss too but what a performance!!  So easy to ignore "standard" rep and forget how good it is........

vandermolen

Quote from: Roasted Swan on October 01, 2020, 10:30:58 AM
Prompted by this thread I've just received a couple of new (for me) "Essential Classics"



looking forward to hearing both of them!  Prompted (again!) by this discussion I listened to this disc;



OMG - the playing is SENSATIONAL - I'd forgotten just how good.  Superb soloist in Sheherazade and the brass just blaze in the Russian Easter Festival Overture.  OK the sound is a bit "flat" as a recording and plenty of tape hiss too but what a performance!!  So easy to ignore "standard" rep and forget how good it is........
I love the Russian Easter Festival Overture and that looks like a fabulous disc.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Roasted Swan

Partly prompted by this thread and one elsewhere about Ibert I picked up this disc a few days ago cheap.....



The Divertissement is stunningly played but perhaps just a little aggressive as opposed to witty?  Escales is much better and the lovely Faure works (in part shared with Andrew Davis and the Philharmonia) also very good.  But the highlight is a razor-edged Roussel Bacchus & Ariadne suite.  I'd forgotten what an impressive work this is.  All in all another feather in the Ormandy cap.......