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L'Oiseau-Lyre

71.84.18.21
Posted on January 9, 2021 at 02:29:53
jennconducts
Audiophile

Posts: 164
Location: Central CA Coast
Joined: April 5, 2005
 Holy cow, LL made great sounding LPs before they made those disastrous early CDs in the 80s. I've known this all along, but I just now played the Handel "Three Italian Cantatas" LP (Leppard/Watts/ECO), a 61 YEAR OLD RECORD, and it is simply incredible. One of the best $12 I've ever spent! (Amoeba San Francisco)

 

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RE: L'Oiseau-Lyre, +1, posted on January 9, 2021 at 04:32:31
B. Scarpia
 Like Pablo for Jazz.

Even those that proudly state Digital on the cover are can't miss.

 

Yup. I've got a couple..., posted on January 9, 2021 at 04:58:45
ghost of olddude55
Audiophile

Posts: 32579
Joined: July 14, 2017
 The best is two clarinet concertos, Weber's and Spohr's. Colin Davis and the LSO.
Pressed by London, mastered by Ted Burkett.



The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.

 

Yes, agreed. Not sure if K. Wilkinson recordings . Do check out Argo as well. nt, posted on January 9, 2021 at 18:18:13
jdaniel@jps.net
 .

 

The only thing you gotta watch with Argo..., posted on January 10, 2021 at 07:01:11
ghost of olddude55
Audiophile

Posts: 32579
Joined: July 14, 2017
 a lot of them are the dreaded "electronically rechanneled to simulate stereo." Apparently, Decca used the Argo label for reissues of old mono recordings and cut them in fake stereo. Hard to listen too, even if you have a mono switch.



The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.

 

RE: The only thing you gotta watch with Argo..., posted on January 10, 2021 at 09:48:54
frankwm
 Ha! TOTALLY INACCURATE!!
(Try thinking: "Eclipse" )

 

Egad, you're right!, posted on January 10, 2021 at 10:31:03
ghost of olddude55
Audiophile

Posts: 32579
Joined: July 14, 2017
 But not all Eclipse. I've got one, just one, in true stereo.
The other one, that's my recording of little value. Used only for alignment purposes.



The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.

 

This thread is confusing two L'Oiseau-Lyres, posted on January 10, 2021 at 17:16:39
PAR
Audiophile

Posts: 1732
Location: South London, UK
Joined: June 4, 2019
 L'Oiseau-Lyre has a life dating back to the 1920s as both a publisher and record label.

It was an independent label until 1971 shortly before the last of the two original owners died and when the record side was sold to Decca (its UK distributor). The disc referred to by the OP is from that independent era.

Decca released its first LP using the marque in 1971 and continued to issue recordings, mainly featuring contemporary works, until 1974 when catalogue number DSLO 501 became the first of what became an exclusively HIP label with the familiar Florilegium Series sous marque.

As someone whose main interest is in pre-Romantic music I have a fair number of their releases. I would describe their Decca era recording quality as variable. AFAIK Wilkie did not work on them. The balance engineers were e.g. Colin Morecroft , Peter Wadland, John Dunkerley etc.

"We need less, but better" - Dieter Rams

 

This thread confuses The Innocent.........., posted on January 10, 2021 at 18:57:31
frankwm
 Ha! The elpee originally mentioned was recorded by Wilkinson...
(16-17 March 1961 @ Kingsway Hall) & 3 more titles that year.
& other (more accurate) info is @

 

Many thanks for the link. nt, posted on January 10, 2021 at 23:36:22
alaskahiatt
Audiophile

Posts: 7508
Joined: December 9, 2000
Contributor
  Since: November 1, 2005
 nt

 

RE: This thread confuses The Innocent.........., posted on January 11, 2021 at 00:15:05
PAR
Audiophile

Posts: 1732
Location: South London, UK
Joined: June 4, 2019
 Thanks for that info. That 1961 record was, of course, from the pre-Decca ownership era and it is interesting to learn that during that time L'Oiseau-Lyre must have had similar arrangements to those of Richard Itter and his Lyrita label.

"We need less, but better" - Dieter Rams

 

RE: Yes, agreed. Not sure if K. Wilkinson recordings . Do check out Argo as well. nt, posted on January 11, 2021 at 01:50:50
jennconducts
Audiophile

Posts: 164
Location: Central CA Coast
Joined: April 5, 2005
 Oh yes, I have a lot of Argo. In fact, at this moment I'm listening to Handel: Jephtha. Marvelous.

 

RE: This thread is confusing two L'Oiseau-Lyres, posted on January 11, 2021 at 01:52:22
jennconducts
Audiophile

Posts: 164
Location: Central CA Coast
Joined: April 5, 2005
 Great information PAR, thanks.

 

RE: This thread confuses The Innocent.........., posted on January 11, 2021 at 02:51:09
frankwm
 Her husband actually died in 1971 (correctly stated in Wiki's internal link to Louise).
There's much Oiseau-Lyre material from the 78/pre-stereo period - but don't know of a proper discography; however Philip Stuart's ECO discography (downloadable from CRQ Editions) adds some items that don't appear in his Decca listings - being independently produced (such as Colin Davis's 1961 JC Bach Symphonies - only released in 1970 (and not on CD)...and a few more are found in his 2009 ASMF listings (probably still available from CHARM).
The engineer for those, Allen Stagg, also recorded for Isabella Wallich's 1954 label 'Delyse'. His Wyn Morris/Mahler's got reissued on Ace of Diamonds - not exactly in improved sonics..

 

"I'm listening to Handel: Jephtha. Marvelous" - Ah yes!, posted on January 11, 2021 at 12:28:10
Chris from Lafayette
Audiophile

Posts: 26477
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: February 17, 2004
Contributor
  Since: February 6, 2012
 Those halcyon days, before the HIP pandemic had taken over! ;-)

 

Thanks Par, posted on January 11, 2021 at 23:11:22
Mark Kelly
Manufacturer

Posts: 7175
Location: Willy, VIC
Joined: February 28, 2002
 Thanks for that info. I have always had a soft spot for L'Oiseau Lyre (I named my bicycle company after their namesake bird) but didn't know about the takeover.


Mark Kelly

 

RE: This thread confuses The Innocent.........., posted on January 14, 2021 at 07:29:22
ptaylor
Audiophile

Posts: 65
Location: Florence
Joined: April 25, 2006
 The Oiseau-Lyre records from the early 1960s resemble Decca LPs/sleeves of the period 100%: grooved pressing, Decca stamper code in the dead wax, folder-over sleeve with no information on the spine.
But the name DECCA does not appear anywhere. Instead one finds LONDON in capitals, both on the label and as part of the rectangular Oiseau-Lyre logo on the sleeve. This is on records that were intended for sale in the UK market.
I happen to have a US edition of one of these early Oiseau-Lyre records: SOL 60010 Handel's Water Music (Philomusica of London - Thurston Dart). The record inside is exactly the same as a UK issue. The sleeve has the same artwork as the UK issue, but there is a London STEREOPHONIC badge in the top left corner and the rear is blue like a CS issue.
Could it be that the LONDON name originally belonged to L'Oiseau-Lyre? Or did Decca combine it with the Oiseau-Lyre name as a way making it clear that the records were not French?

 

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