Purchases Today

[André]

It actually does.  What I'm struggling with is the distinctly self-conscious, psychedelic-era marketing. In 1971, if I'd known about this album, would I have bought it and would I have bought into its commercial messaging that classical music can be as heavy as Led Zep?  I certainly loved classical as much or maybe more than rock music...I wish I knew the answer to those questions; I don't and never will, but I can express disappointment at the lack of creativity on the part of classical promoters who thought they were being clever.  Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique was similary marketed. 

This was very much a fad at the time. There were very distinct schools of marketing back then (1968-1972 - ish), as the Woodstock and Isle of Wight Festivals and Let-it-all-hang-out, Rolling Stones crotch cover provocation were making headlines across the world.

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Classical music marketers couldn't have their fingers sticky of course, but they retained the idea that marketing was fast becoming an attention-grabbing business. So we went from

- the uber serious DGG folks, who had moved from too classical images to people-ism as stars like Karajan took hold of the classical music world:



- to the soft psychedelism of Columbia records, who half-heartedly attempted to sweep cobwebs and plant flowers, rainbows and soft-grained images:

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Not to be outdone - au contraire - DG launched its Festival of Hits series with white background made-up graphism:

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Festival of Hits for Organ: I guess one must be grateful for keeping this one above the belt ... One would expect pipes, but we get a box of ... cigars instead (pun: no cigar for this one !).

- and to the full-on psychedelic, stream of consciousness LP covers from Nonesuch that made quite a splash back then:

Note that this Mahler 1 confection could have adorned a recording of Berlioz' Fantastique or Schonberg's Gürrelieder as well.

- worst (or best ?) of all were the infamous Westminster releases:
Back when whitening stripes were yet to be invented ....



Father and son Brahms: David and Igor Oistrakh - get it ?.



An OMG one this one. Walküre = VW ? How has this one passed the censors ? Unabashedly, unscrupulous, unsubtle commercials have no business in classical music ! Remove those tasteless rims  !

[Mister Sharpe]

This was very much a fad at the time. There were very distinct schools of marketing back then (1968-1972 - ish), as the Woodstock and Isle of Wight Festivals and Let-it-all-hang-out, Rolling Stones crotch cover provocation were making headlines across the world.

Thanks, André, I was unaware of those Nonesuch Mahler issues!

[hopefullytrusting]

Want to have a Messiaen Organ weekend, so I had to purchase the complete set from Brilliant ...

[Mister Sharpe]

I bought three items this morning for the nearly obscene price of $5.  Someone once said that "the more one thinks one knows, the less they actually do." That applies to me, sadly, and 2/3 of my purchase:  I knew nought of the Cypress String Quartet (now disbanded) but they garnered more than respectable reviews for this set. The Verdi, also, is news to me! Speaking of greater knowledge, I always wish I knew more about the provenance of my used CDs (Where did the original owner buy it?; What did he or she think about it?; How many times did it get played?, etc.) For objects that owe their existence to sound, almost all CDs are reticent on these questions. (LPs are far more revealing about their owners). But in the case of the Cypress Set of LvB Quartets, they were a gift in 2017 from the cellist, Jennifer Kloetzel, whose abilities were often called attention to in reviews. Toscanini's TV Concert DVD presents Aida. 

 

[ritter]

This book on composer Riccardo Malipiero includes a CD with a 1969 Italian Swiss Radio recording, conducted by Edwin Loehrer, of the 12-tone opera buffa La donna è mobile (first performed in Milan in 1957). The libretto, by writer, politician and TV personality Guglielmo Zucconi, is based on the play Nostra Dea by Massimo Bontempelli (one of the introducers of surrealism into Italy).

[Madiel]

NOT purchased today: one of the rarest Naive Vivaldi volumes, which has turned up on eBay with the one seller that I have left negative feedback for and vowed never to use again. Aargh. 

It appears there might also be a copy in central France if anyone is going past...

[hopefullytrusting]

Last 3, at least for a little bit - I need to catch up with my listening:

[André]

Odds and ends from the last leg of Bernstein's promethean career, when he became a conductorial demi-god in Europe (and he believed it himself):




The Beethoven overture, 4th concerto and 5th symphony are what was played at 'the Amnesty International Concert'. Featuring the BRSO and pianist Claudio Arrau.

The LvB 7th is from his last concert, with the BSO. Timings are in the 2nd standard deviation of the spectrum. Meaning: SLOOWWW.

The Overtures are extracted from his WP Symphonies cycle. The String Quartets arrangements also come from his late-career association with the Viennese.

The Missa Solemnis is the familiar Concertgebouw live 1979 concert. One of the best performances of anything, anytime.

The 9th symphony is from his famous Berlin Wall concert. Apart from the Missa and the Overtures, all these performances show Bernstein at his most idiosyncratic. And apart from the Missa and Overtures, I've never bought them previously, on account of their being so far from the left field. Buying them up in a medium-priced box seemed a good way to explore and not be too sorry if they're awful (apart from the Missa and Overtures, as I've already mentioned).

Go Lenny, go !

[JBS]

[AnotherSpin]

[..]
- worst (or best ?) of all were the infamous Westminster releases:
Back when whitening stripes were yet to be invented ....



Father and son Brahms: David and Igor Oistrakh - get it ?.



An OMG one this one. Walküre = VW ? How has this one passed the censors ? Unabashedly, unscrupulous, unsubtle commercials have no business in classical music ! Remove those tasteless rims  !

Back then, Westminster had art editors blessed not just with imagination but with a rather streak of bravery too.

[ritter]

Back then, Westminster had art editors blessed not just with imagination but with a rather streak of bravery too.

Clearly inspired by this classic. 

Discogs says the release of the LP with this cover is form 1970, as the movie is form 1968.

[ritter]

Another obscure release with chamber music by Sylvano Bussotti (used, "NM" from a German seller on Discogs).

[Madiel]

Just bought:



Somehow I either missed or forgot that this was available from Amazon Australia, effectively from the same French seller that I already bought another volume from (and have bought from previously through the same method some years ago). Maybe I saw it when I didn't yet appreciate this was a difficult volume to acquire, or maybe I just never remembered to search for it on Amazon Australia. So I was very surprised when a random Google search for a particular phrase revealed that there were 2 copies on offer. Done. Purchase number 65.

Currently bidding on number 66. Astonishingly, some people still run actual auctions on eBay!

[Mister Sharpe]

Clearly inspired by this classic. 

Discogs says the release of the LP with this cover is form 1970, as the movie is form 1968.

I once owned a copy of this Planets, no idea where it went, perhaps "where no man - or woman - has gone before." Even the more innocent Star Trek series was occasionally suggestive but unlike the phallic phasers here theirs were more modest.

[JBS]

Another sonic upgrade.


I'm assuming that this recording, unlike the one I already have, doesn't cut the soprano's scene out of the last act.

A used copy from Amazon MP.

[Kalevala]

Just bought:



Somehow I either missed or forgot that this was available from Amazon Australia, effectively from the same French seller that I already bought another volume from (and have bought from previously through the same method some years ago). Maybe I saw it when I didn't yet appreciate this was a difficult volume to acquire, or maybe I just never remembered to search for it on Amazon Australia. So I was very surprised when a random Google search for a particular phrase revealed that there were 2 copies on offer. Done. Purchase number 65.

Currently bidding on number 66. Astonishingly, some people still run actual auctions on eBay!

Good luck!    And how many left to go?

K

[Madiel]

Good luck!    And how many left to go?

K

Technically, with the release of an album a couple of weeks ago, I'm missing 9. In reality that means 8 I actually need to hunt for.

[Kalevala]

Technically, with the release of an album a couple of weeks ago, I'm missing 9. In reality that means 8 I actually need to hunt for.

So, they are still adding to this series?  Oh, boy!

K

[Madiel]

So, they are still adding to this series?  Oh, boy!

K

There's probably not that many to add, although it's not clear whether they're still sticking 100% to the original plan of what to record.  In the early days they were talking about roughly 100 recordings by 2015. They had only done 54 by then. We're at 74 now.

[JBS]

There's probably not that many to add, although it's not clear whether they're still sticking 100% to the original plan of what to record.  In the early days they were talking about roughly 100 recordings by 2015. They had only done 54 by then. We're at 74 now.

The booklet from the newest one says they are two-thirds of the way to their goal. If that's meant as a precise number, the total will be 111 recordings, with 37 left to go.