West Hill Radio Archive
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Sviatoslav Richter’s Boston Debut
first release of the complete concert from the original broadcast tapes
Sviatoslav Richter (piano)
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Charles Munch
Richter and his accompanists are elegant and airy as well as noble, with the pianist offering a curtailed version of the longest cadenza option. The slow movement has a rapt, meditative quality... —
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Wagner: Tristan und Isolde: Act 2
Kirsten Flagstad (Isolde), Eyvind Laholm (Tristan), Enid Szántho (Brangäne) John Gurney (King Marke), Daniel Harris (Kurwenal, Melot)
New York Philharmonic, John Barbirolli
Barbirolli and the NY Phil respond enthusiastically to the music’s erotic excitement. The other roles are decently sung — Tristan by the Swedish-American Eyvind Laholm — but the glory is Flagstad’s. —
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Mascagni - Cavalleria Rusticana (Two Legendary Performances)
Elisabeth Rethberg (Santuzza), Sidney Rayner (Turiddu), Carlo Morelli (Alfio), Irra Petina (Lola) & Anna Kaskas (Mama Lucia), Zinka Milanov (Santuzza), Richard Tucker (Turiddu), Clifford Harvuot (Alfio), Martha Lipton (Lola) & Jean Madeira (Mama Lucia)
Gennaro Papi
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Richter plays Liszt
From 1958-61 live concerts in Moscow & Budapest
Sviatoslov Richter (piano)
Hungarian State Orchestra, János Ferencsik
Richter in his prime and at his best, excelling in music not central to his repertoire. Could even Liszt play better? It seems unlikely. Superb booklet notes. —
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Mozart: Die Zauberflöte, K620
Laurel Hurley, Lucine Amara, Brian Sullivan, Theodor Uppman, Roberta Peters, Jerome Hines, George London, Paul Francke
Bruno Walter
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Arrau in Boston: Beethoven Piano Concertos Nos. 4 & 5
Claudio Arrau (piano)
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Charles Munch, Pierre Monteux
Arrau at his most direct and committed, with any hints of earthbound stolidity transfigured by the pianist's warm tone and the Boston Symphony's joyful playing. —
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Puccini: La Bohème
Bidu Sayão (Mimì), Armand Tokatyan (Rodolfo), Annamary Diskey (Musetta)
Giuseppe de Luca (Marcello), George Cehanovsky (Schaunard), Ezio Pinza (Colline)
Louis d'Angelo (Benoit, Alcindoro), Lodovico Oliviero (Parpignol), Ferruccio Tagliavini (Rodolfo), Mimi Benzell (Musetta), John Brownlee...
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Verdi: Don Carlo
Jussi Björling (Don Carlo), Robert Merrill (Rodrigo), Fedora Barbieri (Eboli), Cesare Siepi (Filippo II), Jerome Hines (Il Grande Inquisitore), Delia Rigal (Elisabetta di Valois), Lucine Amara (Voce dal cielo), Lubomir Vichegonov (Un frate)
Chorus and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera House,...
The great Ward Marston, the master remasterer, has performed prodigies of restoration on a set of private tapes taken from a Met broadcast of November 11, 1950, producing the first civilised... —
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Mozart: Don Giovanni, K527
Cesare Siepi (Don Giovanni), Eleanor Steber (Donna Anna), Jan Peerce (Don Ottavio), Lisa Della Casa (Donna Elvira), Fernando Corena (Leporello), Giorgio Tozzi (Il Commendatore), Theodor Uppmann (Masetto), Roberta Peters (Zerlina)
Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, Karl Böhm
Despite poor sound, there are attractions in the all-star cast, notably Siepi, the Don Giovanni of his day, but Böhm's Mozart style now seems outdated. —
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3 CDs
$34.75 -
This WHRA set is a splendid one. The sound quality is good while the documentation is fully up to the label’s usually high standards. As for the music-making, well the quality of that is quite... —
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