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I'm making my way through this set (at least a few tracks on every disc), and I'm up through disc 22 (out of 55) now. It looks like the set came out in late 2018 and it already seems to be OOP - although there is one last seller on Amazon who wants $1,200 for it.
I remember seeing so many of these titles available on LP as I was growing up, the vast majority of which I did not have the means to acquire at the time, although I did purchase a few of the RVW symphonies (1, 2, 3 and 7 - the latter with the controversial reading of the superscriptions for each movement by Ralph Richardson - the controversy lying in whether they should be recited at all - and I'm one listener who likes hearing them!). My impression thus far is that Previn seems to have been a much more vital and interesting musician in his Columbia and RCA years than he became later in his EMI, Telarc, Philips and DG recordings.
The very first CD really surprised me: the Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue and Concerto in F with Andre Kostelanetz. Previn recorded these works twice more, with the LSO for EMI, and with the Pittsburgh SO for Philips. Those later recordings are of course very good and have held sway with a lot of listeners for a long time. Yet, I'd say that this first recording (in this set) reveals even more energy and command in Previn's playing - and Kostelanetz (perhaps more known for the pops repertoire, at least on record) makes an outstanding contribution too!
There's of course no space to go over the performances disc by disc, but I have to say that the performances on the first 22 discs exceeded my expectations, and the engineering is mostly excellent for its time too (although a bit light in the bass on the RCA's I've heard so far)! Anyone else have any favorites of Previn's RCA and Columbia recordings?
Edits: 10/18/20Follow Ups:
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I also remember that it was interesting to hear the St. Louis Symphony on record again when they hadn't been heard from for awhile (since the days of Vladimir Golschman?). The music is echt Copland, and it comes up well in this new incarnation.
BTW, we once had a friend who was a composer himself and who, for some reason, hated Copland. I played him Previn's recording of The Red Pony and he got all agitated from the very opening, and started asking (sarcastically), "Now do you think that sounds like a red pony? I don't!". On another occasion, we played him the last movement of Copland's Third Symphony, and he made us stop about three minutes before the end, saying, "That's enough - I don't want to hear any more!". When I mentioned that there were only three minutes to go, he "Yeah - but I know what he's going to do. And it's going to be cheap!". ;-)
My high school music teacher turned me on the Andre Previn for his jazz piano music. Later on, I started noticing his records in the classical section and bought some of them.
His versatility is amazing. Accomplished pianist - both classical and jazz. Composer and arranger of film scores, composer of classical music. And conductor.
One of my favorites is his EMI recording of Rachmaninov The Bells with London Symphony Orchestra, John Shirley-Quirk, Robert Tear and Sheila Armstrong.
Enjoy the music.
" His versatility is amazing. Accomplished pianist - both classical and jazz. Composer and arranger of film scores, composer of classical music. And conductor.
And impeccable comedian's "feed".
"We need less, but better" - Dieter Rams
What I was trying to convey was that I discovered Andre Previn through his jazz recordings on the Contemporary label. From there, I started also getting his recordings of classical music.
As for Rochberg - I don't have the symphony, just the string quartets.
Enjoy the music.
I have the original RCA Shostakovich 5th LP, purchased ca. 1966.
Always liked the cover with the rumpled Brooks Bros. shirt lol.
I had many of Previn's RCA recordings with the LSO when I first began collecting classical music "back in the day" and I still they think hold up well now. Among my favorites:
Walton Sym 1 (still unsurpassed)
Nielsen: Sym 1
Vaughan Williams: Syms 1-9 (especially 1, 2, 3, 5,& 7)
Tchaikovsky: Sym 2 (cuts in the finale notwithstanding, still my favorite recording of this work)
Shostakovich: Sym 5
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade (maybe a little too laid-back, but still gorgeously played, and with great sound for the time; I like it much better than his remake with Vienna on Philips)
I also still love many of his early EMI recordings, like:
Shostakovich: Sym 8
Rachmaninoff: Syms 1-3
Walton: Belshazzar's Feast
Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet
Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker and Swan Lake
Britten: Sinfonia da Requiem/Peter Grimes interludes
Orff: Carmina Burana
Holst: The Planets
Messiaen: Turangalila Sym
And thanks for the remarks about his Gershwin with Kostelanetz. My father had the LP and he played it to death, so it's now a nostalgic favorite. I agree--it's very good!
Russell
I've heard or downloaded most of this set. The Walton 1 has never been surpassed, IMO. The Shostakovich 5 is a topnotch performance that easily betters Previn's later CSO recording. The RVW symphonies are as good as or better than many later recordings (the spoken introductions are banded separately from the music and can easily be skipped on CD, or you can rip the music tracks only onto a CD-R).
The Beethoven concertos with Ax were a pleasant surprise, especially the Fourth.
Years ago, a friend who was a French horn player told me that I HAD to hear the last movement of Beethoven 7 with Previn/RPO, and she played me the LP. My jaw dropped. Those horn players just KICK IT more than on any other recording I know, including Honeck's with those Pgh superstars; Kleiber's VPO players have beautiful sound, but they are almost polite. Now, the rest of the Previn performance is fine, except that the first movement is a little draggy; but that coda at the end--wow!
[Note: this is NOT the same performance as the Previn/RPO Japanese video on YouTube, and it is not the same performance as the boring Previn/LSO version now on Warner Classic]
From what you say, I eagerly anticipate listening to that Seventh Symphony!
The only semi-disappointment I've had so far is the Rachmaninoff Third Symphony, which in general could have used more detail IMHO (although, at the same time, there were other details Previn brought to the fore which were very interesting), and which for whatever reason didn't seem to enjoy as wide ranging engineering as the vast majority of other recordings in the set - I guess most of the LSO recordings were done by Wilkinson and Co.? I also read from some of the Amazon comments that the general dynamic level on the recordings of this set is a bit higher than it was on previous CD reissues of these Previn recordings - leading some to suppose that they had all been remastered. (And yet others say no. I'm not that familiar with these earlier CD reissues, so I can't say myself.)
It seems that it's questionable as to whether these recordings have been remastered or not. As you've probably noticed, whenever there's a big new historical CD box on Sony released, a number of the individual albums become available as hi-res downloads. This is what happened with the recent box sets of Munch, Szell, Walter, Bernstein, and others. Not so with this Previn box, which leads me to believe that they haven't been remastered. (A number of the ones from this set are available at Presto, but only at 44.1/16.) Is there any indication of "remastering" in the booklet?
Russell
I don't know if any of them have been remastered. I have copies of library CDs of Previn/LSO in RVW symphonies 1, 3, and 4. Symphony 3 sounds about the same as the 16/44.1 download, symphony 4 is a little softer on the CD-R but otherwise sounds about the same.
But the Sea Symphony sounds quite different on the CD-R, and I can't tell why. On the CD-R, the sound is muddy and muffled; I threw it out after comparing it to the downloaded version.
Recall Judy Garland saying that once on TV.
A lot of those are on QOBUZ but you have to search for them, so I'll save my $1200.
If Previn wasn't the most gifted musician of his time, across multiple genres, I'd hate to be the one given the job arguing who might be his better.
Granted, his popularity gave him opportunities that perhaps weren't available to others, especially in recording, but still...
And a way with the WIMIN!
There were a number of titles I'd completely forgotten, such as his collaboration with Erick Friedman in the Franck and Debussy Sonatas. I listened to the Debussy, and it was very well done and honest, although there were a couple of places where I was wishing for some lighter and wispier playing. (The microphones are pretty close, which doesn't help.) It seems that Previn could do anything (and he really seemed to reflect his time with his sartorial and fashion choices, such as his bowl top haircut, a la the early Beatles - LOL!).
Also: I may have mentioned (in a couple of previous posts) some of the catty comments that LSO concertmaster John Georgiadis made about Previn as a conductor. The evidence on these recordings suggests that Previn is in complete control and keeps the orchestra in good discipline. Of course, anyone can have an off night (such as the ones recounted anecdotally by Georgiadis), but the overall impression of these recordings is that Previn had a lot of know-how and accomplishment, no matter what he was doing - conducting and playing piano in both the classical and the pop/jazz realms.
It's just the sheer abundance of really excellent material from this part of his career that makes this set so enjoyable for me.
Yes - the Walton Symphony No.1. The finest ever recorded and one I play (on vinyl - RCA SB6691) over and over again.
Dave
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