BENNY GOODMAN - PURE GOLD

POPS CONCERT ARTHUR FIEDLER,

TOSCANINI CONDUCTS LIGHT CLASS

Includes work(s) by various composers. Ensembles: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Leonard Slatkin.

Let me say straight away that the Tokyo Quartet's set of the middle-period quartets is among the most impressive to have appeared in recent years. Although I would not necessarily recommend it in preference to the Vegh (Audivis Valois), the Talich (Calliope), or (in the case of the Rasumovsky Quartets) the Lindsay on ASV that have dominated the catalogue for so long, it is surely a set to reckon with. In terms of sheer technical perfection and ensemble it yields no ground to the Vermeer (Teldec), Orford (Delos), Alban Berg (EMI) or Guarneri (RCA). And their technical finesse, spot-on intonation and superb ensemble are all the more impressive for being at the service of the music. I started with the F major Rasumovsky, undoubtedly the greatest of the three, whose opening in the Tokyo's hands is magnificent in its breadth. They have a good feeling for the architecture and shape of each movement, and throughout the work they are fully aware of the depth of this music.

You may recall the hoary adage comparing a translation to a woman: if it is faithful, it is not beautiful, if it is beautiful, it is unfaithful. Similarly, if a performance sets greater store by beauty than fidelity, it risks gaining the former at the cost of the latter; if it sets its sights on truth first and beauty second, it stands to gain both. The Vegh and the Talich often risk beauty of finish in their search for truth. But at its best this sumptuously but truthfully recorded new issue has both ... I like it far more than any of the rival versions that have crossed the Atlantic in recent years.

-- Robert Layton, Gramophone [3/1992]

Leonard Slatkin's greatest asset in this blazingly assertive Tchaikovsky Third lies in his totally unsentimental approach, vital in this most intractable of the symphonies. For Tchaikovsky, the problems of co-opting sonata form, whilst incorporating national and personal elements into a large-scale symphonic structure found a novel solution in this elusive five-movement score, and yet the relative scarcity of concert performances and satisfactory recordings of the symphony, surely reflects widely held misgivings about the work.

Slatkin negotiates the first movement's major interpretative obstacle, the knotty transition from the Moderato assai to the main Allegro brillante more convincingly even than Jansons (Chandos), and although their respective timings differ by an overall margin of less than three seconds, Slatkin somehow provides his principal oboe with greater room for melodic inflexion in the second subject (5'04'') without losing momentum. Karajan (DG) is less incisively brilliant in the taxing and occasionally random development, where both Slatkin and Jansons excel in clarifying textural ambiguities, in what is arguably the most difficult passage of the symphony. Andrew Litton, incidentally, is hardly less convincing here with the Bournemouth SO (Virgin Classics) at an even faster basic tempo than either Jansons or Slatkin.

Slatkin retains an underlying tension in a very fast Alla Tedesca; incredibly some two minutes faster here than Karajan, whose goaded and charmless reading of the following Andante Elegiaco rapidly palls, especially when compared to Jansons, who again excels in refinement and heartwarming tenderness. But it is Slatkin who draws the most weighty and demonstrative playing of all, in the lovely molto espressivo passage of the Andante, with dark-hued, yet conservatively moulded string textures and quite exemplary wind contributions from the St Louis Symphony Orchestra; another tribute, surely, to Slatkin's great achievement in placing this orchestra solidly alongside the finest US ensembles.

Orchestral virtuosity is again a prime concern in the Scherzo, and Slatkin's tempo certainly places severe demands upon his orchestra, who sound a degree more comfortable than Jansons's Oslo Philharmonic, but in the festive Polonaise of the glittering finale the St Louis playing is absolutely magnificent. Vital, resplendent and exciting as the finale is, the threat of swaggering bombast remains, as Karajan ably demonstrates in a brazen vulgarization of the final anthem-like peroration. Although Jansons's Chandos performance set new standards in the symphony, his recording must now yield to Slatkin's superbly recorded account, which also offers a dashing and forthright Capriccio italien, with predictably virile playing from the superb St Louis orchestra.'

-- Michael Jameson, The Gramophone

Surging passion and great nobility from the grand old man of the keyboard - a must for Richter fans.

Now that Arrau, Serkin and Kempff are gone, the great Russian pianist Sviatoslav Richter has suddenly become a grand old man of the keyboard and we realize that he is coming up for 80, having been born in 1915 and made his debut as long ago as 1934. As it happens, Brahms's three piano sonatas were the work of a very young man (he was still under 21 when he composed the Third) and Richter here plays the first of them which, while not up to the standard of No. 3, is still a better piece than the rather grandiloquent Second. And very good his playing is.

The tempo of the initial Allegro is so deliberate as perhaps to seem cautious, but there's nothing uncertain about Richter's playing technically (in his seventies it is still secure) or, for that matter, tonally. The recording, from a 1988 live recital in Germany, is short of richness, but at least it is clear. Indeed, there is much to enjoy, not least the delicacy and fine texture of the playing—and make no mistake, there's no shortage of power, either, as in the development section of the first movement and, later, in the scherzo and perhaps especially the finale, where the awkward right-hand leaps in the opening theme still hold no terrors for the pianist. This is, none the less, a thoughtful reading rather than a virtuoso one and to be appreciated as such; for a sample of Richter's quiet but invariably telling eloquence, try the Andante based on the melody of an old German love song—marred, however, by some background creaks and clatterings of which a particularly loud example comes at 3'26''.

The four Liszt pieces are also unfailingly interesting, although once again the recording (in another location) leaves something to be desired. Occasionally, as in the E major Consolation, the playing sounds a touch impatient, but its authority is such that one still enjoys it. The Hungarian Rhapsody No. 17 is a late work, published in 1882; it is striking in its bold invention and, having started in D minor, ends on B flat. Here, and in the 13-minute Scherzo and March (1851), Richter's playing is electric if not altogether poised. Harmonies du soir, which comes from the Transcendental Etudes but requires virtuosity only in its command of tone and texture, ends the recital effectively as a magnificent piece of pre-Debussyan impressionism: there is surging passion and great nobility here. And yes, I know, a few tiny smudges too, e.g. in the colossal passage after the six-minute mark. But who cares? Not I, anyway. Despite my occasional reservations, this issue is a must for Richter fans.

-- Christopher Headington, Gramophone [4/1992]

HUGO WOLF: ITALIAN SONGBOOK Z

WAGNER: ORCHESTRAL HIGHLIGHTS

ALBINONI: 8 CONCERTOS PETRI,

TCHAIKOVSKY: SYMPHONY NO 4, FA

This is a very appealing double album from French RCA's Jazz Tribune series. The first 22 of the 34 selections (including four rare alternate takes) feature the Cab Calloway Orchestra of 1933-1934, a vastly underrated early swing band which, in addition to its colorful leader/singer, features good soloists in trumpeter Lammar Wright, clarinetist Eddie Barefield, and tenor saxophonist Walter "Foots" Thomas. Highlights include "Harlem Hospitality," "The Lady with the Fan," "Harlem Camp Meeting," "Kickin' the Gong Around," "Margie," and two remakes of "Minnie the Moocher." In addition, this two-fer (which has all of Calloway's recordings for Victor) contains four long-forgotten items from 1949, including a hilarious version of "I Beeped When I Shoulda Bopped" (in which Calloway satirizes not only bebop but his own style), six numbers from his older sister Blanche Calloway in 1931 (highlighted by "I Need Lovin'"), and two obscure items from singer Billy Banks in 1932. This album, (which contains over 100 minutes of high-quality and entertaining music) is well worth searching for.

-- Scott Yanow, AllMusic.com

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Personnel includes: Cab Calloway (vocals), Arville Harris (alto saxophone, clarinet), Eddie Barefield (alto & baritone saxophone, clarinet), Andrew Brown (alto & bass saxophone, clarinet), Walter Thomas (tenor saxophone, flute, clarinet), Lammar Wright, Jonah Jones, Adolphus "Doc" Cheatham, Edwin Swayzee (trumpet), De Priest Wheeler, John Ewing, Harry White (trombone), Bennie Payne (cello, piano), Edgar Hayes (piano), Al Morgan, Milton Hinton (bass), Leroy Maxey, O'Neil Spencer, Ben Thigpen (drums).

Recorded in Chicago, Illinois, Camden, New Jersey and New York between 1931 and 1949. Includes liner notes by Don Waterhouse.

Track Listing

Disc 1:
1. Evenin'
2. Harlem Hospitality
3. Lady with the Fan, The
4. Harlem Camp Meeting
5. Zaz, Zuh, Zaz
6. Father's Got His Glasses On
7. Minnie the Moocher
8. Minnie the Moocher
9. Scat Song, The
10. Scat Song, The
11. Kickin' the Gong Around
12. There's a Cabin in the Cotton
13. I Learned About Love from Her
14. I Learned About Love from Her
15. Little Town Gal
16. Long About Midnight

Disc 2:
1. Moon Glow
2. Jitterbug
3. Jitterbug
4. Hotcha Razz-Ma-Tazz
5. Margie
6. Emaline
7. Ol' Joe Louis
8. Your Voice
9. Rooming House Boogie
10. I Beeped When I Shoulda Bopped
11. I Need Lovin'
12. Just a Crazy Song (Hi-Hi-Hi)
13. It Looks Like Susie
14. Growlin' Dan
15. Concentratin' on You
16. Last Dollar
17. Scat Song, The
18. Oh! You Sweet Thing

Claus Peter Flor's partially complete series of Martinu symphonies (Nos. 3 and 4 were never recorded) came out when choices were more limited than they are now. Basically, there was the sloppy but often exciting Järvi (BIS), and the more venerable Neumann and Ancerl performances on Supraphon. Other, singleton versions existed but were difficult if not impossible to obtain. Flor's prospective cycle began with Symphonies Nos. 5 and 6, adequate but not thrilling versions. This release was better. The syncopated rhythms have more swing and more confidence, particularly from the strings, and this makes the first movement of Symphony No. 1 very persuasive, while the gentle lyricism of the Second Symphony finds everyone at or near top form. Flor and his players don't quite clarify Martinu's busy textures as Thomson would do later on Chandos, nor does his woodwind section sing as sweetly as the Czechs do, but on the whole these are lovely performances, and if you're a fan of this music, they're well worth hearing--avaliable via Arkivmusic.com's "on demand" program.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

VIVALDI: CONCERTOS, STABAT MAT

"Berglund proves himself a thorough-going Straussian with his whiplash interpretation of Don Juan, one of the best of the many recent versions. . . . The performance of Till is splendidly lively, with crisp woodwind playing. . . . There have been several good performances of the Burleske in recent years and this one by the young Russian pianist Sergei Edelmann is dazzling in its virtuosity and high spirits. . . . An attractive disc." -- Gramophone