CD APRIL 1976 $1.50 NENTY-FIETIONNY,EuRSAARIFY ISSUE

INR cncmusica america

DEIL 130 K 08398 PIONEER MARANTZ KENWOOD SANSUI SX-1250 2325 KR -9400 9090 ?OWER. MIN RMS. MOW-FM(1W 125W+ 1 25W 120W+120W 110W-FI IOW .° 20 TO 20.0(X) HZ

TOTAL HARMONIC 0.1% 0.15% 0.1% 0.2% DISTORTION df

PHONO OVER- LOAD LEVEL 500 mV 100 mV 210 mV 200 mV NPUT: 2/1/2 1/I/no 2/1/mixing I/1/mixing PHONO/AUX/MIC 4 TAPE MON /DUPL 2/yes 2/yes 2/yes 2/yes

TONE Twin Tone Bass -Mid- Bass -Mid- Bass -Mid - Treble Treble Treble

TONE DEFEAT Yes Yes Yes Yes

SPEAKERS A.B.0 A.B A.B.0 A.B.0 FM SENSITIVITY 1 HF 581 1.5A V 1.8AV 1.70/ I.7AV

SELECTIVITY 40dB 80 dB 80 dB 85 dB

CAPTURE RATIO 1.0 dB 1.25 dB 1.3 dB 1.5 dB -,r-r I

41111.

tat

.40 4r<

te ife

PIONEER HAS DEVELOPED A RECEIVER EVEN MARANTZ, KENWOOD AND SANSUI WILL HAVE TO ADMIT IS THE BEST. One look at the new Pioneer SX-1250, and even the most The FM front end has extremely high sensitivity, partisan engineers at Marantz, Kenwood, Sansui or any but that alone would be no great achievement. other receiver company will have to face the facts. Sensitivity means very little unless it's accompanied by There isn't another stereo receiver in the world highly effective rejection of spurious signals. today that comes close to it. And there isn't likely to be The SX-I250 is capable of receiving weak FM one for some time to come. stations cleanly because its front end meets both In effect, these makers of high-performance requirements without the slightest compromise. Thanks, receivers have already conceded the superiority of the among other things, to three dual -gate MOSFET's and a SX-1250. Just by publishing the specifications of their five -gang variable capacitor. own top models. On FM stereo, the multiplex design usually has the As the chart shows, when our best is compared with greatest effect on sound quality. The SX-1250 achieves their best there's no comparison.

1111.64. 160 WATTS PER CHANNEL: AT LEAST 28% MORE POWERFUL THAN THE REST. In accordance with Federal Trade Commission regulations, the power output of the SX-1250 is rated at 160 watts per channel minimum RMS at 8 ohms from 20 to 20,000 Hz, with no more than 0.1% total harmonic Twin tone -control system with step -type settings, distortion. permitting 3025 possible combinations. That's 35 to 50 watts better than the cream of the its tremendous channel separation (50 dB at 1000 Hz) competition. Which isn't just something to impress your and extremely low distortion with the latest phase - friends with. Unlike the usual 5 -watt and 10 -watt locked -loop circuitry. Not the standard IC chip. "improvements7a difference of 35 watts or more is Overall FM distortion, mono or stereo, doesn't clearly audible. exceed 0.3% at any frequency below 6000 Hz. Other And, for critical listening. no amount of power is too receiver makers don't even like to talk about that. much. You need all you can buy. To maintain this huge power AND TWO MORE RECEIVERS output. the SX-1250 has a power NOT FAR BEHIND. supply section unlike any other MILITINS Just because the Pioneer SX-1250 receiver's. is in a class by itself, it would be A large toroidal -core normal to assume that in the class transformer with split windings just below it the pecking order and four giant 22,000-microfarad remains the same. electrolytic capacitors supply Not so. the left and right channels Simultaneously with the SX-1250, independently. That means each we're introducing the SX-1050 and the channel can deliver maximum SX-950. They're rated at 120 and 85 undistorted power at the bass Click -stop volume control calibrated in watts, respectively, per channel (under frequencies. Without robbing the decibels..with left/right tracking within 0.5dB. the same conditions as the SX-1250) other channel. and their design is very similar. When you switch on the SX- 1250, this power supply In the case of the SX-1050, you have to take off the can generate an inrush current of as much as 200 cover to distinguish it from its bigger brother. amperes. Unlike other high -power receivers, the SX-1250 So you have to come to Pioneer not only for the is equipped with a power relay controlled by a world's best. sophisticated protection circuit, so that its transistors You also have to come to us for the next best. and your speakers are fully guarded from this onslaught. U.S. Pioneer Electronics Corp.,75 Oxford Drive, PREAMP SECTION CAN'T BE OVERLOADED. Moonachie, New Jersey 07074 Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the preamplifier circuit in the SX-1250 is the unheard-of phono overload level of half a volt (500 mV). That means there's no magnetic cartridge in the world that can drive the preamp to the point where it sounds strained or hard. And that's the down fall of more than a few expensive units. The equalization for the RIAA recording curve is accurate within ±0.2 dB, a figure unsurpassed by the costliest separate preamplifiers. THE CLEANESTFM RECEPTION THERE IS. Turn the tuning knob of the SX-1250, and you'll know at once that the AM/FM tuner section is special. The tuning mechanism feels astonishingly smooth, precise and solid. Go PIONEER' Anyone can For informational purposes only, the SX-1250 is priced under $900. The actual resale price will be set by the individual Pioneer dealer at his option. hear the difference. CIRCLE 34 ON READERSERVICE CARD

Pick -A -Pickering

0000 )01 o

Or

450 CD 66 -6Z6,10 ao

It's the least expensive way to make the greatest improvement in the sound of your system Here it is. The easy and inexpensive way to upgrade But not Pickering cartridges. They have a feathery the sound of your entire hi fi system. Simply add a Pickering touch we call e A touch that lightly covers the cartridge. Know why a good cartridge will make such a whole range of musical tones on your record - giving you the type difference in sound? Because the cartridge and stylus have first of sound you want to hear. contact with the music on your record. It's your cartridge that Upgrade your entire hi fi system the easy way, the inexpensive way. picks up the highest highs and the lowest lows in your record Just pick a Pickering cartridge, and you'll hear the difference. grooves. Not by plodding along, round and round, but by For further information write to performing an incredibly quick dance between the two small Pickering & Co., Inc Dept. HF, groove walls. Too quickly for your eye to see, but not for your 101 Sunnyside Blvd., Plainview, xv15 ear to hear. No matter how much you sink into the rest of your New York 11803 "C"19.6 equipment, a poor quality cartridge can murder the sound - bend the record grooves out of shape and blur the music. 010PICKERING -10ANIMMelr" "for those who can hear the difference CIRCLE 33 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

111(11 IIDI I II) 22Too Hot to Handle HIGH 24News and Views FIDELITY Ball's preserver p Praise -warranting warranty 26Equipment in the News andmusical america 28Hi Fi-Crostic 31Equipment Reports Harman-Kardon 730 receiver Electro-Voice Interface B speaker system Marantz Model 5420 cassette deck r;arrard Model 125SB turntable

1hose Linear Model 2000 preamp

RECORD REVIEWS 89Baker and Sills as Bellini's Romeo and Juliet Andrew Porter Angel offers a complete Capuleti 91Mozart: Genius at Play ANNIVERSARY ISSUE R. D. Darrell Vox's divertimento boxes are a delight VOLUME 26, NUMBER 4 APRIL 1976 93Half a Ring in English David Hamilton Rhinegold and Siegfried in model translations 41Starting Out in the Fifties 97Classical Leonard Marcus Queen of Spades p Karajan's Mahler Lied 0 Verdi ballets 431951: A Classical Scrapbook 98Critics' Choice-Classical Nicolas Slonimsky 129Lighter Side 491951: Pop Music at the Crossroads Kenny Starr 0 Queen p Jethro Tull John McDonough 135Critics' Choice-Pops 56Creating the LP Record 136Theater and Film Edward Wallerstein Captain from Castile 0 Paper Tiger 0 Lisztomania 62Creating the Craft of Tape Recording 138Jazz John T. Mullin More from the Smithsonian D Dick Hyman 68Creating the Movie -Music Album 148The Tape Deck Ted Wick R. D. Darrell 72High Fidelity Pathfinders Norman Eisenberg ET CETERA A new series of informal biographies 130Advertising Index 80The Critical Eye on the Early Fifties 17Product Information,131An at-home shopping service High Fidelity's Reviewing Staff Musical America begins after 16 85Record Riches of a Quarter -Century The Editors DEPARTMENTS High Fidelity and Musical America are published monthly by ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc., The Publishing House, Great Barring- 6Letters ton, Mass. 01230. a subsidiary of American Broadcasting Com- panies. Inc. Copyright c1976 by ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc. The design and contents of High Fidelity and Musical America Celibidache Arrau 0 Another Aleko are fully protected by copyright and must not be reproduced in any manner. Second-class postage paid at New York, New York, and at additional mailing 14Behind the Scenes offices. Yearly subscription in the U.S.A. and Possessions $18. elsewhere S20. Subscription including Concert Artists' Directory $30 in U.S.A. and Possessions; "The other" Price WERM returns elsewhere $32. Single copies $1.50. Subscribers: Send subscriptions, inquiries, and address changes to High Fidelity.1 Sound Ave.. Marion, Ohio 43302. Change of address: Give old and new addresses, including ZIP code. Enclose 19Music, Frisbees, and Gresham's Law address label from last issue and allow five weeks for change to become ef- fective. Postmaster: Sena Form 3579 to High Fidelity.1 Sound Ave., Marion. Gene Lees Ohio 43302. COMING NEXT MONTH 7,,,..7-it7;741.111.114 Our 25th -Anniversary Issue-Part Two H -..... The second of our anniversary -celebration is- FIIIMITY sues aims to satisfy curiosity about the state of music and audio when HIGH FIDELITY turns fifty in 2001. Anthony Burgess predicts what Cover Design: tomorrow's music will sound like; Ivan Berger Roy Lindstrom describes the home playback center of the future: "a console for would-be conductors." Isaac Asimov envisions a scenario about the combining oflaser technology and musi- cal inspiration, and Mark F. Davis tells how science will soon bring any acoustic environ- ment you wish into your listening room. High Fidelity's Astrological Chart is cast for us by the director of the New York Astrology Cen- LEONARD MARCUS ter.And, symbolic of our forward -looking Editor stance, we present the first contribution of ROBERT S. CLARK a new columnist: John Culshaw, well-known Executive Editor former Decca/London recordings producer and music director of BBC -TV. Plus: More KENNETH FURIE High Fidelity Pathfinders; reviews, columns, Music Editor and all the rest. ROBERT LONG Audio -Video Editor HAROLD A. RODGERS SOLUTION TO HIFI-CROSTIC NO. 10 Associate Audio -Video Editor [HARRY F.] OLSON, Modern Sound Reproduction SHIRLEY FLEMING Multichannel tape recording first used two or three Editor, Musical America Section channels, increased in the last few years to eight, WAYNE ARMENTROUT sixteen, and twenty-four. In the transfer to stereo Director of Production phonic and quadraphonic records, all manner of modifications can now be made to heighten the ar- REBECCA ABBOTT tistic impact. Copy Editor LYNDA CARLOTTA CYNTHIA PEASE Assistant Editors ADVERTISING Main Office: Claire N. Eddings, Director of Advertising Sales. Ra- ROY LINDSTROM mon Rustia. Assistant Director of Advertising Sales. Leonard Levine. Advertising Promotion Manager. The Publishing House, Great Bar- Art Director rington. Mass. 01230. Telephone: 413-528-1300. New York: ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc., 130 E. 59th St., 15th floor, MORGAN AMES New York. N.Y. 10022. Telephone 212-581-7777. Seymour Res- nick, Eastern Advertising Manager. R. D. DARRELL New England: The Publishing House, Great Barrington, Mass. PETER G. DAVIS 01230. Telephone: 413-528-1300. HENRY EDWARDS Midwest: ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc., The Publishing House, NORMAN EISENBERG Great Barrington, Mass. 01230. Telephone: 413-528-1300. Leon- ALFRED FRANKENSTEIN and Levine. Midwest Advertising Manager. HARRIS GOLDSMITH Los Angeles: ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc., ABC Entertainment Center, 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 270. Century City, Calif. DAVID HAMILTON 90067. Telephone: 213-553-5648. Andrew Spanberger, Western DALE HARRIS Advertising Manager. MIKE JAHN Tokyo: Japan Advertising Communications, Inc., New Ginza Bldg., PAUL HENRY LANG 7-3-13 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104, Japan. Telephone: (03) 571- GENE LEES 8748. Shigeru Kobayashi, President. ROBERT C MARSH H. C. ROBBINS LANDON Contributing Editors MILTON GORBULEW Senior Circulation Director High FitMay and High Fidelity/Musical America are published monthly by ABC Lei- sure Magazines. Inca subsidiary of American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. Warren B DAVID LEE Syer. President. IMartin Pompadur. Chairman of the Board. Claire N Eddings. Vice Pres- ident. High Fidelity Division: Herbert Keppler. Vice President. Photographic Publishing Di- Circulation Manager rreseniremb;AiiEueagioninRdersutetoperooca,vision. Milton Gobulnv Vice7;ie Circulation. at hieLnAl otssi st anttolhe Literature. Current and back copies of High Fidelity and High Fidelity, Musical America CLAIRE N. EDDINGS are available on microfilm from University Microfilms, Ann Arbor. Mich 48106 Microfiche Associate Publisher copies of these magazines (1973 forward) are available through Bell & Howell Micro Photo Division. Old Mansfield Road, Wooster. 0. 44691 WARREN B. SYER Editorial corraapandonee should be addressed to The Editor. High Fidelity. Great Bar- rington. Mass 01230 Editorial contributions will be welcomed, and payment for articles Publisher accepted will be arranged prior to publication Unsolicited manuscripts should be accom- panied by return postage

4 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE id Si

I 'I Ill

JVC, rece,vers ,top to bottomS100 S200 S300 E 400 S6( (1

JVC introduces five new stereo re- in common with the top professional- seven hundred arid fifty-thin< like a ceivers that carry the unmistakable the S600. Expensive and sophisticated professional. Think JVC stamp of high fidelity professionalism. phase lock loop circuitry. Center -of - Call tor the tame of your nearby Starting with clean cut laboratory styl- channel and signer strength tuning JVC dea'er. He's profess oral. too. ing: precision, linear slide tone controls meters. Ouadrature detector circuitry. and direct -action pushbutton function And smooth gyro -bias tuning. selectors, the professionalism of these Wh chever new JVC professional outstanding components continues you select. you can be sure it's a fea- every step of the way with VCs inno- ture -packed receiver.If you're plan- JVC America. Inc53-75 Queens M.drown vative, pacesetting engineering. Each ning to spend about two hundred Exp-essway. Maspetn. N Y 11378 model shares much of the uncommon dollars for a receiver. cr as much as (212; 476-8300 -Tol free. 800 - 221-7502 CIRCLE 20 ON READER -SERVICE CARD Sergiu Celibidache-more records by the conductor who refuses to record.

Celibidache Juges" Overture-the best of the eight I pos- sess-with the Berlin Radio Symphony Or- I have just read Paul Moor's article on Ser- chestra. giu Celibidache ["The Conductor Who Re- E. David DeVoe fuses to Record," January] and admit to a Fort Wayne, Ind. sense of outrage at that conductor's re- marks regarding Hans Knappertsbusch, In addition to the compositions Mr. Moor who, no matter what Celibidache may say, cites,CelibidacherecordedProkofiev's was very sensitive indeed to vertical pres- Classical Symphony with the Berlin Phil- sure and horizontal flow in the music he harmonic for Electrola. And as was the case If your ears are ready for chose to perform. It should be kept in mind with his recording of the Mendelssohn E $600 speakers, but your that Knappertsbusch himself was one of minor Violin Concerto (LBC 1049), it was budget isn't, we have a way those conductors who were reluctant to available here in the early 1950s as one side to satisfy both. Sennheiser make recordings.I have heard most of of an RCA Victor Bluebird LP (LBC 1009). those that he did make and with one or two Also available here then were Celibi- headphones. Using the small exceptions am deeply fond of them. dache's Tchaikovsky Fifth Symphony, as same acoustic design prin- Celibidache is certainly entitled to his London LL 168, and the Debussy and Rous- ciples that have made our opinion. I write only to register my percep- sel Petite Suites, on D 5006. professional microphones tion that he does grave injustice to Knap- The now -defunct Urania label had a few industry standards, Senn- pertsbusch, whose performances of Die performances derived from East Berlin Ra- Meistersinger, the Ring, Tristan, and Parsi- dio tapes that, considering the conductor's heiser Open -Aire head- fal will, I am sure, long be remembered by attitude toward the recording process as phones reproduce sound those fortunately at hand to witness them a expressed in the article, must have been with a realism most loud- generation ago. Nor will his recordings of made only with his grudging consent. speakers can't begin to Die Meistersinger, Parsifal, and the Bruck- Robert F. Duguay ner Eighth Symphony be forgotten so read- Hartford, Conn. approach. With wide, flat ily-again, especially by those who were response. Low distortion. present at his performances of these giant Paul Moor's article on Celibidache was fas- Excellent transient re- works. This man had a gift for making them cinating. I have read and enjoyed his work sponse (even in the bass come alive with a magic breadth and ex- since he visited us in Berchtesgaden (cour- panse, and to call his 1962 Parsifal record- tesy of the U.S. Army) in 1956. region!) And sheer intimacy ing, for example, "nonmusic to the nth de- I am fortunate enough to possess another with the music. All without gree" appalls me. recording of Celibidache with the Berlin sealing in your ears. In a sense, Celibidache's reluctance to Philharmonic;namely,Shostakovich's Whether you're waiting for record may be well founded, because I am Seventh Symphony on Urania URLP 601, that pair of $600 speakers sure that it is difficult at best to convey the issued in 1952. Coughing is audible, suggest- essence of true performance through the ing a public performance. or just curious about a pair mechanical process that recording de- Donald W. Maloney of headphones some ex- mands. Perhaps he cannot do so. Knap- Abington, Pa. pertsbusch could and did, though perhaps perts have compared with Arrau's Hungarian Rhapsodies $1000 speakers... the an- not consistently; no one is perfect. His best discs attest to his efforts. swer's at your audio dealer's. Peter M. Caron In his January review of the International *Manufacturer's suggested list for Newmarket, N.H. Piano Archives/Desmar release of Claudio Model HD414. Deluxe Model HD424 Arrau's Liszt Hungarian Rhapsodies, R. D. also available at $79.75. Paul Moor is quite correct: Sergiu Celibi- Darrell noted that the recordings of those dache is an extraordinary conductor, and five rhapsodies were "made in 1951-52 for 'tis a pity that he chooses not to record. Columbia but inexplicably never released LSENNHEISER He did record more than two discs, how- by that company." There is no inexplicable ELECTRONIC CORPORATION 10 West 37th Street. New York 10018 (212)239-0190 ever. He shares one side of Urania URLP mystery attached at all. Manulacturona PlantBISSECIdOrt /HARROW., West Germany 7024, made in 1951, of Berlioz' "Les Francs- The story is quite simple. Arrau began to CIRCLE 39 ON READER -SERVICE CARD 6 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE BASF sound is so clear, it's like the them. you get rid of most of the noise.) musicians are right there. So what you're left with is sound so rich What you experience with BASF tape is and clear, you don't just hear it. The music simply this: the music. Pure and clear. happens. Why this extraordinary clarity? BASF Which really isn't that surprising. After all, polishes the tape. Literally. Getting rid of most BASF invented audio tape in the first place. of the thousands of tiny surface bumps that can BASC We sound like the original cause background noise. (Get rid of most of I-because we are the original. The essential beauty of a tonearm is not Tonearms whose shape deviates from the straight and in its appearance, but in the performance of its critical narrow may appear interesting, but their unnecessary role in the interaction of stylus and record.The mass and hence increased resonance can only detract conversion of groove modulations into music-as from the quality of music reproduction. well as the life of one's records-is significantly influenced by every aspect of tonearm design: Why stylus force geometry, balance, mass, resonance, bearing friction must be applied perpendicular to record. and the application of stylus pressure and anti -skating. Stylus force should be applied in such a way Serious music lovers know this. And some who that there is equal pressure on each groove wall. are now Dual owners tell us they wish they had This balanced pressure should then be maintained understood more about tonearms hundreds of dollars throughout play, independent of groove velocity, in ruined records earlier. location, or turntable leveling. Further, tracking If you are uncertain about the quality of your force should be constant even under present tonearm, here are some guidelines to (all -too -frequent) record -warp conditions. consider. They are the design principles that allow All these requirements are met by every Dual tonearm -even on Dual's least expensive Dual's technique for applying stylus model-to produce optimum performance from force: a long coiled spring centered today's finest cartridges and maximum longevity around the vertical pivot. With from all records. this system, the tonearm tracks flawlessly even Why a straight line is the preferred shape under such extreme Mechanical The effective length of any tonearm is the sensor indicates conditions as the when Dual 510 distance between the pivot and the stylus tip. A chassis being semi -automated forearm straight line-the shortest distance between these is positioned precisely tilted 45° or over 12- or 7" lead-in groove. two points-achieves maximum rigidity and more. lowest mass. Both highly desirable characteristics.

(A) Mode Selector of Dual 1249 parallels tonearm to record in single -play for perfect vertical tracking. (B) Tonearm moves up to parallel center of stock in multi -play.

,.. Unique counterbalance of Dual iCS701 houses two separately tuned anti -resonance filters which absorb resonant energy in the frequency ranges of the tonearm/cartridge system and the chassis to minimize acoust cal feedback. produces microscopically smooth surfaces. All pivots are hand -assembled and individually checked with gauges specially designed by Dual. The extremely low bearing friction thus achieved is compatible with the finest cart-idges, which are usually designed for ultra -light tracking. Further, the high standards of Tonearm of Dual 1249 pivots in four -point production consistency in unit after unit assure highly gyroscopic gimbal. suspended within a rigid frame. Each gimbal is hand -assembled, and special gauges assure that each accurate stylus pressure and anti -skating calibrations. will conform to Duals stringent specifications. Other Dual models with gimbal -mounted tonearms: 1228, 510, 601 and 701. Dual owners who know the difference These are a few cif the reasons why serious music lovers-record reviewers, hi-fi magazine editors and their readers-own more Duals than any other Dual's anti -skating system also contributes turntable. This may be a I you need to know in significantly to maintaining equal stylus pressure on order to select a Dual. But which Dual? both groove walls. In addition to the three separate Until recently, all Dual turntables were fully precise calibrations for conical, elliptical and CD -4 automatic and could be used in both single -play styli, there is automatic adjustment during play for the and multi-play.There are now four such models. inherent change in skating force that occurs as the Three other Duals are single -play only (two fully stylus moves toward the record center. automatic, one semi -automatic). Dual also employs all three types of drive systems: belt, rim, or direct. Why bearing friction There's no need to decide on a specific Dual should be both low and consistent. model right now The best time and place for that is Dual uses the best (and most costly) way to when you're at your United Audio dealer, where manufacture precision low -friction bearings. The you can have demonstrcted all the differences that metal is first hardened, then honed; a process which Dual precision does indeed make.

The Dual 1225. The Dual 1249. The Dual CS701. Fully automatic, single-play/multi-play. Viscous Fully outornat:c, single-play/multi-play. Fully automatic start and stop, single -play. damped cue -control, pitch -control 10%' platter, Belt -drive 12' dynamically -balanced platter. D.C. brushless, electronic direct drive motor, less than $140.00, less base. Dual 1226, with less than $280.00, less base. Full-size belt -drive tuned anti -resonance filters. Electronic cast platter. rotating single -play spindle, models include: Dual 510, semi -automatic, pitcF -control (8%) for each speed (33Y3 and less than $170.00. Dual 1228 with gimballed less than $200.00. Dual 601, fully automatic, 45 rpm) with illuminated strobe, less than tonearm, synchronous motor, illuminated strobe, less than $250.00. (Dual CS601, with base $400, including base and cover. variable tracking angle les,. than S200 00 and cover, less than $270.00) United Audio Products,120 So. Columbus Ave., Mt. Vernon, N.Y. 10553 Exclusive U 5 Dish obution Agency for Duol CIRCLE 17 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Dual Blueprint for Flat Frequency Response

In the graph below. frequency response was measured using the CBS 1(X) Test Record, which sweeps from 20-20.000 Hz. The vertical tracking force was set at one gram. Nominal system capacitance was calibrated to be 300 picofasads and the standard 47K ohm resistance was maintained throughout testing. The upper curves represent the frequency response of the right Iredland left (green) channels. The distance between the upper and lower curves represents separation between the charnels in decibels. The inset oscilloscope photo exhibits the cartridge's response to a recorded 1000 Hz square wave indicating its resonant and transient response. Smooth, flat response from of 20-20,000 Hz is the most distinct advantage of Empire's new stereo cartridge, the 2000Z. The extreme accuracy of its reproduction allows you the luxury of fine-tuning your audio system exactly the way you want it. With the 2000Z, you can exaggerate highs, accentuate lows or leave it flat. You can make your own adjustments without being tied to the dips and peaks characteristic of most other cartridges. Fora great many people, this alone is reason for owning the Z. However, we engineered this cartridge to give you more. And it does. Tight channel balance, wide sepa- ration, low tracking force and excellent tracking ability combine to give you total performance. See for yourself in the specifications below, then go to your audio dealer for a demonstration won't soon forget. The Empire 2000Z. Already your system sounds better. Frequency Response - 20 to 20K Hz 1 db using CBS 100 test record Recommended Tracking Force -3/4 to 13/4 grams (specification given using 1 gram VIT) Separation -20 db20 Hz to 500 Hz 30 db 500 Hz to 15K Hz 25 db15K Hz to 20K Hz I.M. Distortion- (RCA 12-5-105) less than 08% Stylus -0 2 x 0 7 and diamond Eflective Tip Mass -0 2 mg. Compliance -lateral30 X10 -6 cm/dyne vertical 30 X10 -6 cm, dyne Tracking Ability -0 9 grams for 38 cm per sec 10 1000 Hz 0 8 grams for 30 cm per sec w 400 Hz Channel Balance -within 3/4 db 1 kHz Tracking Angle -20° Recommended Load -47 K Ohms Nominal Total System Capacitance required 300 pF Output - 3mv , 3 5 cm per sec using CBS 100 test record D C. Resistance -1100 Ohms Inductance -675 mH Number and Type of Poles- 16 Laminations in a 4 pole configuration Number of Coils -41 pair 'channel -hum cancelling) Number of Magnets -3 positioned to eliminate microphonics Type of Cartridge- Fully shielded, moving iron do the rhapsodies in the midst of one of his great U.S. tours-about 130 dates that sea- son. Before he could finish, the musicians' strike began. He was then persuaded to move to American Decca by the late Sy ,S Rady, who was a great Arrau fan. Rady promised Arrau Beethoven, and Goddard Lieberson at Columbia wanted to hold him to Chopin and Liszt at that time. Arrau moved to Decca but promised to finish the Liszt. He got caught up in other repertoire on your records and unfortunately never found the time to do so. you've probably Now that he is into a lot of Liszt again at never heard Philips (he is completing the Transcen- before, because of compression and other compromises made by the dental Etudes this spring), will he record the remaining rhapsodies? Unlikely. There record manufacturer (for reasons we explain in our literature). is too much else that he wants to do more. The dbx 117 expands the listening experience to restore the gritty But he may include the Rhapsody No. 2 in steel of guitar, the incisive bite of brasses and the percussive impact of his next Liszt single for the simple reason that he left off exactly at the halfway point drums and cymbals as you've never heard them before except in live per- of this piece, and I am told by the piano formance. As a bonus, the 117 dramatically reduces record surface noise buffs at IPA that it is without compare in and tape hiss, and adds a new dimension to FM listening. the entire Archives. For me, as Arrau's personal manager To hear all the music you paid for, take your favorite record over all these years, it is not the sheer vir- or tape to your dbx dealer and ask him to play it through the dbx 117 tuosity that I find so astonishing, but the dynamic range enhancer. You'll hear music you didn't know you owned. use to which Arrau (even then) puts this vir- tuosity. At last, these rhapsodies become For complete information and list viable works of art and we are in touch at of demonstrating dbx dealers, contact: first hand with the genius of Liszt. Friede F. Rothe New York, N.Y. The Other Aleko dbx. Incorporated In his January review of the newly issued 296 Newton Street Balkanton/Monitor Aleko, Conrad L. Os- Waltham. Massachusetts 02154 borne referred to the old Russian recording, with Pokrovskaya, Petrov, Ognivtsev, Or- CIRCLE 8 ON READER -SERVICE CARD fenov, and Golovanov, which was once available on Concert Hall CHS 1309. This recording was made in 1951. Contrary to what is stated, it (1) has nothing to do with the Bolshoi Theater but rather features the Chorus and Orchestra of Moscow Radio McIntoshCATALOG and (2) is still available in a Soviet -made pressing (Melodiya D 033753-54), which can nd FM DIRECTORY be obtained from Four Continent Book Get all the newest and latest informaticn on thenew McIntosh Sol- Corp., 156 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10010. id State equipment in the McIntosh catalog. In additionyou will Daniel Morrison receive an FM station directory that covers all of North America. Albany, N.Y. Boston Musica Viva The "Remarkable New New -Music Group" heard on the Delos records reviewed by Al- fred Frankenstein in January isn't quite that new. CRI recorded the Boston Musica Viva in May 1974 in John Heiss's quartet (CRI 321) and again last September in George Ed- wards' Kreuz and Quer (CRI 323). Carter Harman MX 113 Executive Vice President Composers Recordings, Inc. FM/FM STEREO AM TUNER AND PREAMPLIFIER New York, N.Y. McIntosh Laboratory, Inc. No slight was intended to CR1. The title of East Side Station P.O. Box 96 Mr. Frankenstein's essay review referred Binghamton, N.Y.13904 only to the group's first extended exposure SEND on records. NAME Not Ravel, Not Elgar TODAY! ADDRESS The counterclaimant to the title "first com- CITY STATE ZIP poser to have virtually all his major works recorded in his lifetime," for which Ravel If you are in a hurry for your catalog please send the coupon to McIntosh. (Arbie Orenstein's "Ravel and Recordings," For non rush service send the Reader Service Card to the magazine. CIRCLE 25 ON READER -SERVICE CARD 4- CIRCLE 13 ON READER -SERVICE CARD March 1975) and Elgar ("Letters," October 1975) have been nominated, is the Spanish violinist/composer Pablo Martin Meliton Sarasate y Navascues. Sarasate recorded seven of his own compositions and one transcription in 190i (all of which are cur- rently available on IDiscopaedia MB 1003). He also left three Pattie cylinders in 1898, which I have not heard: Insofar as these recordings arguably constitute the majority of works by which Sarasate is known to- day, and since he died in 1908, prior to El - gar's or Ravel's entry into the recording stu- dio,itfollows that the appellation in question should be conferred on Sarasate. Theodore A. Siedzinsiti New York, N.Y. Bruckner Repeats In his November review of the London recording of Bruckner's Symphony No. 2, Abram Chipman remarks that conductor Horst Stein omits the repeats in the scherzo and trio but claims that Bernard Haitink observes them in his Philips recording. Only half true: Haitink observes the repeats only in the first part of these sections; they are omitted in the second halves of both sections. Whatever the failings of the Turnabout recording of the sympheny, conductor Hu- bert Reichert observes all the repeats. J. M. Johnston Silver Spring, Md. Happy Anniversary With all of the uproar in recent years over various compbsers' centennials and centennials (Beethoven, J. Strauss, Ravel, et This...protects your most expensive al.), it might be wise to examine what we can expect in 1976. According to a recent Schwann catalogue, here the this year's hi-fi investment. candidates for recognition: GROUP I (by year of birth) John Alden Carpenter (1876-1951) Pablo Casils (1876-1973) Louis Nicholas Clerambault (1676-1749) Recognizing that a penny saved is a penny earned, may we suggest Francisco Correa de At'aujo (1576-16-) that trying to economize by putting off the replacement of a worn Louis Coupprin (1626-61) Manuel de Falla (1876-1948) stylus could be like throwing away five dollars every time you play a Stephen Foster (1026-64) record. (Multiply that by the number of records you own!) Since the Josef Hofmann(1876-1957) stylus is the single point of contact Giovanni Legrenzi (1626-90) Ludwig Minkus (1826-90) between the record and the balance Carl Ruggles (1876-1971) of the system, itis the most critical Ermanno Wolf -Ferrari (1876-1948) REOOIREC1component for faithfully reproduc- GROUP ll (by year of death) ing sound and protecting your rec- Juan Crisostomo Arriaga (1806-26) BUYING GUIDEord investment. A worn stylus could Antonio Maria Bononcini (1877-1726) Pier Francesco Cavalli (1602-76) irreparably damage your valuable Frani Danzi (1763-1826) record collection. Insure against John Dowland (1562-1628) this, easily and inexpensively, sim- Hermann Goetz (1840-76) ply by having your dealer check Michel -Richard de Lalande (1657-1726) Peter Erasmus Lange-Mtiller (1859-1928) your Shure stylus regularly. And, Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) when required, replace it immedi- Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1610-76) ately with a genuine Shure replace- It looks like another banner year for record - ment stylus. It will bring the entire company promotion, especially in view of cartridge back to original specifica- the American Bicentennial!Although tion performance. Stamp out waste: sometimes carried to extremes, it must be see your Shure dealer or write: admitted that this form of recognition has its values. What I am wondering is, do you Shure Brothers Inc. think we are ready for the Juan Crisostomo 222 Hartrey Ave., Evanston, IL 60204 Arriaga sesquicentennial? In Canada: A. C. Simmonds & Sons Limited II Richard J. Veit or the Dallas, Tex. FREE! 1976 Stereo Directory 8 Buying Guide with the purchase of a Shure V-15 Type III, M95 series. M75 TypeIIor M91 series of cartridges. Simply send us your warranty card with the notation ''Send Free Buying Guide." Hurry-offer subject to supply. We are if you are. CIRCLE 41 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

12 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE unarmsInk Barker on the Bose Model 301 Direct Energy Control.

aware of a problem. Since this for different types of music: design relied on side wall very spacious for an orchestra, reflections to maintain its or a much more intimate sound spacious sound, what happensfor a soloist. in a room with no convenient side wall? "We felt this was a crucial problem, since we wanted this speaker to sound very good in any listening room. Sr "The solution was the 2S -20-1S-10-5 -25 Direct Energy Control - an "When the Model 301 adjustable deflector in front of project came into the engineer-the tweeter and hidden behind ing department, our goal was the grille. The Control can be 135° to design a bookshelf speakerset to reflect sound off a side with minimal placement con- wall, or, ;f there is no side wall, MO° straints, that sold for less than it can deflect high frequency The solid line is the polar characteristic $100, yet had the unique spa- for the Model 301 with the Direct Energy Control set for maximum direct energy and tial qualities characteristic of a more intimate sound. The broken line is the Bose 901® and 501 Direct/ the polar characteristic with the Control Reflecting® speakers. set for maximum reflected energy and a "Initially, two quite uncon- more spacious sound. Frequency is 8 kHz, bandwidth is1/3octave. ventional design concepts evolved. First, we deliberately "The Direct Energy Control operated the woofer and is deceptively simple: of all the tweeter simultaneously over a things we did in the Model 301, significant portion of the mid- it's the one I get most excited range. This Dual Frequency about, because I've seen how CrossoverlM network gave us people react when they hear very smooth midrange re- the unique dimension sponse and an open spatial it produces in a quality. speaker priced "Second, we perfected a under $100." very precise asymmetrical configuration, with the woofer radiating straight ahead, and the tweeter angled to the side, to reflect sound off the room's side wall and into the listening area. From our experience with the Bose 901 and 501 speakers, we knew that this combination of direct and re- sound back toward the center flected sound would give us of the room, so energy balance.170E® the open, spacious sound we is maintained in the listening The Mountain, wanted. area. Framingham, Mass. 01701 "At this point, we felt we "Beyond that, the Control Patents issued and pending. Fo a full color brochure on the Model 301. had an extraordinarily fine lets the listener adjust the write: Bose. The Mountain. Framingham. Mass. loudspeaker. But we were alsospatial qualities of the speaker 01701.

APR!! 1971, "The other" Price. Between perform- ances as the Countess in the new Chi- cago Lyric production of The Mar- riage of Figaro late last fall, Margaret Price visited New York briefly, and we had a chance to chat with the remark- able young Welsh soprano, who has established her credentials as possi- bly the finest Mozart soprano now in business. Americans unfortunately haven't had much chance to hear her live (she appeared in San Francisco silver lining: Don Giovanni is now one for several years after her U.S. debut opera that Price and Te Kanawa can there, as Fiordiligi), and some of her sing together; the repertories of the best recordings haven't been released two sopranos are so similar that most domestically, notably the Klemperer of the major houses now seem to Cosi fan tutte, in which she sings choose between them. For the record, Fiordiligi, a pair of Lieder recitals for Price admires Te Kanawa enor- Classics for Pleasure, and the pair of mously.) Mozart -ariarecords (one operatic. Price is now feeling her way into the oneconcert)she madere- Verdi repertory, beginning with Des- cently for British RCA. (There is now demona in Solti's new Paris Otello SPECTRO-ACOUSTICS Model a strong likelihood that RCA will issue (with Placido Domingo in the title 210 Graphic Equalizer provides those discs here.) role). For the future, there is talk of 10 bands per channel of equal- Since Price now appears to be a spe- Don Carlos in Munich, and those ven- ization allowing ± 15db boost or cial favorite of such conductors as tures should determine whether she cutin each of the 10 audible Karl Bohm and Georg Solti, we were pursues that course into the heavier octaves. An exclusive circuit amused to learn how she came to par- Verdi parts. utilizes "Gyrator Synthesized ticipate in the Cosi recording: When Recording plans right now are lim- Inductors" which are almost she heard that Klemperer would be ited. She can be heard to brief but totally immune to magnetic fields and current saturation. recording the opera, she wrote to him stunning effect in Stokowski's Mahler Any equalization setting can be asking to sing Fiordiligi. Klemperer Resurrection Symphony for RCA (re- made without exceeding the had not heard her since she sang Zer- viewed this month). Coming up are specifiedsignal to noiseratio lina with him, so it is not surprising some Mozart Masses with Claudio and distortion. that he was skeptical. As the records Abbado for Deutsche Grammophon, show, he was convinced; her Fiordi- which could develop into a complete * Unique all IC construction allows ligi was described by Kenneth Furie cycle. allcircuitry to be mounted on as "a performance of technical bril- one easily removable circuit liance and aristocratic taste," and Tashi at the Bottom Line. On January board which substantially 26 a footnote tomusical history was reduces costwhileincreasing Price confirmed that she takes the role reliability and servicability. very seriously. The often cited "pa- written at New York's Bottom Line, rody" elements in the music (the wide when the chamber group Tashi (pian- For more details see your local leaps and such), she pointed out, oc- ist Peter Serkin, violinist Ida Kava- dealerorcontactSpectro cur just as frequently in Mozart's fian, cellist Fred Sherry, and clari- Acoustics, Inc. unarguably "serious" opera seria and netist Richard Stoltzman) became the SPECIFICATIONS concert arias. first classical "act" to play a rock THD Less than 0.1% of 1 volt For a singer so closely identified nightclub-well, the first we know of, RMS output 20Hz - with Mozart, Price is now looking in anyhow. 20 KHz other directions. She has phased out Tashi is now recording for RCA, IMD Less than 0.01% from Constanze in Entftihrung and Pamina and Messiaen's Quartet for the End of ten volts to 100 millivolts in Zauberflote, and Fiordiligi is apt to Time is due shortly. composite output follow-though it will shortly be the SIN Noise and hum are over role of her La Scala debut, with Bohm Operatic futures. There are a number 105 db below full output conducting. That leaves the Countess of projects in various stages of plan- and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, ning, including two recordings of which she first sang last year with Verdi's Macbeth: one for EMI con- Solti in the new Paris production. ducted by Riccardo Muti with Sherrill (Since we had imagined her as an Milnes and Fiorenza Cossotto as Mr. ideal Donna Elvira, we were intrigued and Mrs., one for DG conducted by to learn that it was Elvira, and not Claudio Abbado, based on the pro- Anna-usually considered the opera's duction that opened this season at La female "lead"-that she hoped to sing Scala (the opening -night cast was Spectro Acoustics Model 210 after graduating from Zerlina. But Piero Cappuccilli,ShirleyVerrett, when Solti was assembling his Paris Franco Tagliavini, and Nicolai Ghiau- SPECTRO cast, he had Kin Te Kanawa for El- rov). vira, and so it is Anna that she learned On the French horizon are Meyer - ACOUSTICS, INC. and will continue to sing. Though we beer's Le Prophete and a new Masse- 1304ESpokant. 509! 545-1829 Pasco. Washington 99301 will never hear her as Elvira, there is a net Thclis. Prophete, being talked CIRCLE 44 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

14 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE about seriously at Columbia, would Is it live,or, be only the second complete record- ing of a Meyerbeer opera. Marilyn Home would be the Fides (her Italian radio performance has circulated is itMemorex? widely in the underground), with Re-

nata Scotto, James McCracken, and The amplified voice of Ella Jerome Hines likely candidates for the other principal roles. The Thais is Fitzgerald can shatter a from EMI, with Beverly Sills in the glass. And anything Ella title role, Milnes as Athanael, and Jean can do, Memorex cassette Martinon conducting. tape with MRX2 Oxide can do. The WERM returns. It's far from com- If you record your own plete, even within its period of cov- music, Memorex can make erage, and it has its share of errors, but all tie difference in the Clough and Cuming's World's En- world. cyclopaedia of Recorded Music re- mains the bible of classical recordings MEMOREX Recording Tape. from the beginning of the electrical Is it live, or is it Memorex? era through1955. Afew years ago the massive three -volume compendium was reprinted in England by its origi- nal publisher, Sidgwick and Jackson Ltd., but we had to travel to London to find out that it is now available only from the Greenwood Press in-of all places-Westport,Connecticut!For further information, the address is 51 Riverside Ave., Westport, Conn. 06880. Lieder from Ludwig. Anyone who reads this month's review of Herbert von Karajan's DG recording of Mah- ler's Das Lied von der Erde may won- der whether Christa Ludwig is singing anything else these days, what with the latest Bernstein recording re- viewed only last May. Take heart. As a sequel of sorts to her recent pair of DG Schubert records, she has made a Wolf disc, accompanied by Daniel Ba- renboim. Ludwig is also scheduled to sing Magdalene in the Jochum/DG Meistersinger. Collector's Guild, Club 99. Both of these labels will be familiar to spe- cialist vocal collectors, who will want to know that both are now distributed by German News Company (218 E. 86th St., New York,N.Y. 10028).Col- lector's Guild has re -pressed recital discs devoted to Margaret Matze- nauer and Maria Kurenko, unavail- able since they were originally pro- duced for the New York Gramophone Society in the Sixties. Club 99 has just added to its extensive list five new discs devoted to individual singers and reissues of two 78 -rpm complete - opera sets: the Faust with Cesar Vez- zani and Marcel Journet (with ex- cerpts from the Damnation of Faust set featuring Charles Panzera) and the Madama Butterflywith Margaret Sheridan and Lionel Cecil. ,Dt576. Memorex Corporation. Santa Clara. Calif orni 3 .c.5052 CIRCLE 27 ON READER -SERVICE CARD APRIL 1976 You make a tape with time and thought. Carefully chosen selections recorded in the sequence that most pleasesyou.The musical coherence and percep- tion is paurs, a personal expression. And when the time is ht to share hat experi- encewithsomeone you care for, having to stop and turn the tape over can break the mood you worked to create. Interruptions like that don't happen with the A-4300. You canenjoycontin- uous music onboth sides of a tape with the automatic re- veysefunction. And with automatic re- peat a favorite tape will play as long as youlike. Whether you want the music up front or in the background, Check out the A-4300, and listen to it for as long as you like. Just call (8001447-4700' the A-4300 can for the name of your nearest TEAC retailer. give.you solid In Illinois. call 1800) 322-4400. musicfor The leader. Ahcays has been. TEACCorporation of America 7733 Telegraph Road the betteri Montebello, Ca. 90640 part of an r ©TEAC 1975 evening.- " *1 - whenyoudon't want the music to stop TEAC A-4300 HIGH APRIL 1 976 The National Endowment: FIDELITY and Is it biased?

Arts in education: musicalamericaa battle to be won 41:111f:1111111a second Century/1976 G8ummerGSchool G-2 GFestival You've heard about it. Now, make this the year for a the ChautauquaSymphony Orchestra, seven operas by visit. Founded in 1874, Chautauqua is internationally the Chautauqua Opera Association and seven plays by known for its depth and quality in education, cultural, the Cleveland Play House Summer Theatre. Plus visiting religious and recreational programs. artists, renowned speakers and dynamic lecturers. Chautauqua's Summer Schoolattractsover Plenty of sports, too - golf, tennis, fishing, sail- 2,000 persons annually to a variety of courses, ing and swimming. Allthis, and more, in a particularly in music, the arts and dance. Over picturesque 19th century, shore -line colony. $40,000 in scholarships. 00 Come for a weekend, a week or more, for a summertime experience you'll never forget. In addition, visitors enjoy three concerts weekly by Send for free brochures and catalog now. Ckautauqua Gliiestitution, Chautauqua, New York 14722

MA -2 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america Leonard MarcusEditorial Director Shirley FlemingEditor Susan A. ElliottManagingEditor Claire Ni. EddingsAssoc. Pub., Dir., Ado Sales David B. LeeCirculation Manager Warren B. SyerPublisher HIGH FlomuTv Contributing editors:

Charles B. Fowler,education Jacqueline Maskey,dance Patrick J. Smith,book reviews musical america Dorle J. Soria,personalities

COntents highlights of april

MA -4 Letters THURSDAY 1 The Baltimore Opera presents the premiere of Thomas MA -5 Artist Life Pasatieri'sInes de Castro,with Evelyn Mandac in the title Doyle J. Soria role and Christopher Keene conducting. MA -6 Gunther Schuller Alan Rich The New York City Opera unveils Josef Tal'sA shmedai, inits first American production. MA -8 On Education Charles B. Fowler

MA -10 Can The Arts Survive FRIDAY 2 Sarah Caldwell's Opera Company of Boston stages the In The Schools? first U.S. production of Roger Sessions'Montezuma. Kathryn Bloom Donald Gramm and Phyllis Bryn- Julson head the cast. MA -12 The Dance Jacqueline Maskey WEDNESDAY 21 The Baltimore Symphony under Sergiu Comissiona's MA -14 The National Endowment: Playing Favorites? direction plays the premiere of Jean Eichelberger Ivey's Nancy Van de Vate Testament of Eve,a monodrama for mezzo-soprano. Elaine Bonazzi is the soloist. MA -15 The National Endowment: Decisions Are Objective Walter Anderson FRIDAY 23The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center performs MA -22 Summer Festivals, Part I the premiere of Lester Trimble'sSerenade. MA -26The Musical Whirl MA -28 Here & There SATURDAY 24The Minnesota Opera Company presents the premiere The Voyage of Edgar Allan Poe. MA -30 The Metropolitan Opera of Dominick Argento's

MA -33 Debuts & Reappearances Morton Gould'sBicentennial Balladsis premiered by the MA -38 The Berlin Opera In Washington Queens Symphony under David Katz. Washington/PatrickJ. Smith

Cover photo by Henry Grossman

Advertising Sales Office, 130 E. 59th Street, New York, N.Y.10022. Telephone (212) 5817777, ext.6834. George Dickey, Advertising Sales Manager. Published at Great Barrington, Mass. 01230 by ABC Leisure Magazines, Inc., a subsidiary of American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. Copyright © 1976. Musical America edition published monthly. Yearly subscription in the USA and Possessions $18; elsewhere $20. Subscription including Concert Artists' Directory $30 in USA and Possessions: elsewhere $32. Subscriptions and change of address: write Musical America subscrip:ion department, 1 Sound Ave., Marion, 0. 43302. grist to the mill of new experi- ementalism as Commanday would have us believe. I am certainly not against experimentalism (all music was once experimental), but the works performed at the festival were not in that category. Commanday finally exhausts all of his previous rabbit -punching, eye - gouging, no -holds -barred devices and concentrates on the coup de grace, delivered with stunning accuracy to the already disinherited American Indian psyche by denying me the right to know my own Indian tribal musics better than he does, disparag- ing my teaching methods and my letters own ingrained (and acquired) knowl- edge of Indian tribal musics. A recent review of my newly completed and released study on American Indian Mu- Composer vs. critic viewed by Mr. Commanday have be- sics for the Classroom, reviewed by no come staples of the American reper- less a scholar and educator than Dr. TO THE EDITOR: toire: Ritmo Indio, recipient of the first Elva S. Daniels, associate professor of I take this opportunity to voice my Marion Nevins MacDowell Award music at Temple University, states: strenuous objections to Robert Corn- for American Chamber Music, 1969; "Here at last is a complete teaching manday's highly inflammatory, pro- Desert Trilogy, commissioned by and package of American Indian songs, fessionally demeaning, and racistly performed at Texas Tech University dances, bibliography, photographs, derogatory slurs that constituted the for the 21st Symposium of American map and culture-all under the guid- review of my music in the article on Music, 1971; Cacega Ayuwipi, commis- ance of an American Indian author, "New Music at Cabrillo," in the De- sioned by the Center for Inter- composer, music educator, and lec- cember 1975 issue of MUSICAL AMER- national Studies, 1970, and per- turer on Indian affairs ... marvelous ICA. formed to standing ovations and rave reference book as well as a source of Mr. Commanday misleads his reviews (The New York Times and The teaching ideas ... Each song is de- readers into believing, by the liberal Washington Post) at the 35th annual scribed (in print) as to its form, scale use of invective and slander, what he Folk Festival, Filene Center, Vienna, (pentatonic, hetatonic, tritonic, and cannot accomplish by the more re- Virginia, 1973, etc., etc. Therefore, so on), the meter, accompanying per- spectable means of valid music criti- Mr. Commanday's suppositions that cussive sounds ..." Yet Mr. Corn- cism, that I was not "worthy of the "On any grounds... Ballard's pieces manday reduces my contribution to spotlight" accorded me at the Ca- don't hold up" are invalidated by the that of a "wholly disarming and brillo Music Festival. Yet, with the recent events of music history. equally misleading" lecturer, who, one exception of Mr. Commanday's Commanday upbraids Dennis according to him, does not even know thrice published diatribe, I enjoyed a Russell Davies, the music conductor, his subject. very spectacular popular and critical for lack of "musical discrimination" It is not important that Mr. Com- success! At every performance of my in bringing "new and unfamiliar" manday like my music; what is im- music I received standing ovations; works to the festival, another false as- portant is that he know and under- critics pulled out all stops to describe sumption leading to a spurious con- stand the Indian milieu. The true the impact of my music, ranging clusion. Most of the works on my pro- essence of Indian musics is dance, from "most informative, entertaining grams were conducted by Dennis whether it be literally or figuratively night I've ever spent in a concert Russell Davies, time and again, both depicted, a dance of the soul or the hall" to "beautiful, original music at the Walker Art Center in Min- body in unison with nature. In that, it that gives a more complete voice to neapolis (home base of the St. Paul cannot be reduced to the nihilistic the native American themes than the Chamber Orchestra, for which he pointillism of other cultural aesthet- tom-tom stereotypes of Hollywood serves in the capacity of music direc- ics and to do so would be to destroy and Madison Avenue." Several weeks tor and conductor) and many other the vitality and spirit of my culture after the festival closed, one of my cities of the U.S. as well as Eastern and my own creative vitality as an works received the indubitable honor and Western Europe. artist. of being chosen for performance by They have been tried, tested and Louis W. Ballard the Los Angeles Philharmonic Or- proven by the most exacting stand- Santa Fe, N.M. chestra under the direction of Zubin ards of musical recognition by which Mehta. new works are judged competent to Mr. Commanday replies: My review of the With the exception of the newly stand alongside the better known Cabrillo Festival speaks for itself as does commissioned work, ISHI, America's classics of former generations and Mr. Ballard's gross misrepresentation of its Last Civilized Man, all of the works re- need not now to be perpetrated as content.

MA -4 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america time it is with reason. He has a busy life which he tries to organize and control. He mentioned guest engage- artist ments for years to come. Next No- vember: London, a Beethoven cycle with the New Philharmonia, includ- ing the five piano concertos played by life Serkin. March 1977: Pellias at the Paris Opera. March 1978: Falstaff at DORLE J. SORIA La Scala, part of its two -hundredth anniversary season. November 1978: Tannhauser at the Vienna Opera. THE BERLIN OPERA (Officially May -June 1979: Covent Garden Op- the Deutsche Oper Berlin), era, London. appearing at Kennedy Center The contract with his own Cleve- last November, was the first great Eu- land Orchestra has been renewed to ropean opera company here for the 1981. He has big plans both for its Lorin Maazel Bicentennial. Next September the winter seasons and its summers at the Paris Opera will come to New York Blossom Music Center. "It has almost have been invited to the Berlin Festi- and Washington, after that La Scala 550 acres, as compared to Tangle - val." will make its grand entrance at Ken- wood's 212, and it services a tremen- How does he manage? "Every two nedy Center. These important oper- dously populated surrounding area. months I take off ten days or two atic visitors would, we feel, have de- In 1978 we want to have an inter- weeks. I like each time to find a new lighted Thomas Jefferson who, when national festival there." He does not place, like Fiji or Guadeloupe." And Ambassador to Paris, used to haunt worry about support for the Cleve- he likes sports-tennis and sailing. He the opera house. land Orchestra. "It has the second reads widely and is polylingual, and highest fund-raising in the country." his studies have included mathemat- The many moods of Maazel He spoke of its recordings, thirteen ics and philosophy. He likes good LPs in the past year and a half, in- food and good wine. "But I am a Lorin Maazel, music director of cluding the first complete stereo Porgy gourmet, not a gourmand. I lived a the Cleveland Orchestra, was artistic and Bess. "Every note, every word. long time in Italy and I prefer North director of the Berlin Opera from The last recording had thirty-seven Italian cooking. Fresh food, vege- 1965 to 1971 and guest conductor af- cuts." And he mentioned the orches- tables and fruits-no rich French ter he left. He rejoined the company tra's international reputation. "We food." He has two homes, in Cleve- in Washington to conduct Lohengrin toured Australia and New Zealand in land and in Monte Carlo. "But I'm and Tosca [see page MA -38]. During the autumn of 1973, Japan in the always dashing about trying to find the opening weekend, between per- spring of 1974, South America in unpolluted places.Ifirst saw the formances, we saw him at his Water- April 1975, Europe this past Septem- Mediterranean in 1952. Now look at gate apartment opposite the Center. ber. On our next trip to Europe we Continued on page MA -37 His four -year -old son, Ilann, played quietly with his toys while we talked. Later in the week we drove with him ,0ee sleo* to the home of our friend Martin digte° 431 eIrsos 1%\$- 0e,eero Feinstein, Kennedy's executive direc- trier` 0S t" °el 14 %%0 606,14 tor who runs the Center with an im- ssolce64460:ce i0e3e0 As° 0w \c \s`° presario's flair-learned through °4 00 00.0 o ec, 'a*44- 00 S° scacs sesetViei,20-S e% 6° c,0 years with Hurok-and with a vet- 9'0 00°0 6 .30 col° 60 01% ol°9° ° eranpublicist'spanache.Bernice, .,0.0r9 oe e2,e0 e00' Martin's wife, had prepared a de- Ntb oco _o<< licious informal supper, shared by Mrs. Maazel (the pianist Israela Mar- oe ca.etles,ot galit, slim, exotic -looking, with long, scredP of ea straight, dark hair shadowing a small 2;0,12'00° intelligent face) and little Ilann, and 0.00%06001 dominated by the towering, genial 2P a? c.01` oa 4(kooc,,4e14c figure of the managing director of the 0\e GCPvbc 00 t -s3 /3\ \ '3\5a 402' Berlin Opera, Professor Egon See- scr,tiw"\V ce-,-- ,,o ,...\0

April 1976 MA -5 COMPOSER, INSTRUMENTALIST, CONDUCTOR, teacher, and scholar: Gunther Schuller's own range of tal- ent includes virtually every area with which con- temporary music education is involved. And his own ver- satility is reflected in the current condition of his New England Conservatory of Music, which he has headed since 1967. When Schuller took the post, the outlook was not bright for this venerable Boston institution. Enroll- ment was down to below a break-even point, and student morale was undermined by factionalism among the fac- ulty that approached open warfare. "It was almost as though several schools were going on under the same roof," Schuller recalls, "each totally unaware of the other's existence." Needless to say, the school's finances were at the vanishing point. In his tenth year as president of NEC, Schuller is justifi- ably pleased with his accomplishment. "The only thing that remains the same is that we're still broke," he says. "But so is everybody else. At least we've learned how to make better use of the money we do have." The changes at the Conservatory during Schuller's leadership have been drastic, but he feels that they reflect a necessary direction inall music education today. "People are no longer talking about the 'next Heifetz.' Pure virtuosity just isn't very interesting any more. What we want today is the total musician, someone who knows in his head the background, the artistic overview, of the music he is performing. Our curriculum has changed, most of all, to develop the intelligence, the conscience, of the musician. We give that musician a thorough ground- ing in musical style, in analysis, in an awareness of the na- ture of all music. "When I say all music, I mean exactly that. I mean such things as ancient Japanese court music, and Renaissance GUNTHER motets, and the Eroica, and Duke Ellington, and ragtime, and brand-new atonality. In our performing groups, a kid might be playing trombone in a jazz combo or in Wagner one night, and the sackbutt in a Josquin des Pres piece the next night. I just cannot believe that a kid should be allowed four years of musical training and end up never having heard of Scott Joplin. If someone comes up to me- and some do-complaining about having to assimilate all these musical styles when all he really wants to do is play Paganini violin concertos brilliantly, I tell him first that the nineties. "As a matter of fact," he says with obvious that kind of musician is no longer in fashion. Then I tell satisfaction, "we haven't even reached the stage yet where him that he'd be happier in some other school." students show the least concern about finding jobs after Schuller feels that this breadth of training is equally im- graduation. They still take that for granted, although I portant for people going into music education. He does must say that in very few years now-three or four, per- little to conceal his contempt for hoary state requirements haps-we are going to have to start to worry." for music teachers-ancient psychological methods and All these statistics, he feels, are positive proof of the con- the like. But he at least sees to it that his music-ed majors tinuing relevance of the conservatory as an educational take in the same broad survey of musical styles that is institution, and of its future. "After the war," he says, compulsory for performers. "That way," he says, "kids in "there was an enormous growth in liberal arts training in public schools in the future have a fighting chance to the universities: the core humanities courses, the required learn some up-to-date things about music. God knows courses in music -listening methods, as well as a consider- they don't now." able amount of actual professional training and perform- Under Schuller's direction, the Conservatory has grown ance opportunities. Now, however, the trend is away from enormously, both in its curriculum and in its enrollment the 'multiversity' as the ideal home of the arts. As the big (740 full-time students currently, up from about 400 academic plants get bigger, and as they veer further away when he took over). Furthermore, he points with justifi- from education as their first line of responsibility, course able pride to the fact that, of present Conservatory gradu- material in the liberal arts just has to deteriorate, and ating classes, the percentage able to find jobs in music is in that's what's happening, in college after college across the country. Alan Rich is a senior editor at New York magazine. "Meanwhile, the conservatory becomes increasingly MA -6 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america SCHULLER musician of the month

relevant. During the time of university growth, some of menters anywhere in the world today. I think that this the biggest and oldest conservatories in the country went trend is going to continue-not that the university arts de- into eclipse. Some actually had to close, but even the ones partments are in danger of imminent collapse, but simply that stayed open tended to cultivate ancient teaching that the conservatory as an institution is going to continue methods. Now that's no longer happening. Eastman, to mean increasing breadth, depth, and variety in music which used to be one of the stodgiest, has greatly up- education. graded and widened its curriculum. So have we. What "It's not going to be easy. We can't begin to touch the we've actually done is to bring ourselves into step with the budgets that universities have at their disposal. But it is greatly broadened definition of what constitutes a musi- significant that foundation money-a big recent Ford cian these days. grant, for example-is beginning to flow to the conserva- "Here's an example of that. When electronic music was tories for the first time. We have our own small source of becoming an important part of the landscape, the first income at New England, because of records like the Joplin electronic studios were built by the universities-Yale, Red -Back Bookthat the Conservatory ensemble has made, Mills in California, Columbia -Princeton, and so forth. whose entire proceeds go back to the school. True, we The greatest concentration of important composers was have no endowment, and there isn't one on the horizon for to be found in university music departments; 'conserva- a long time. But one day-and sooner than most people tory' composers were normally expected to be the old folks think-the conservatory is going to regain its lead in send- who still taught C major as the musical ideal. Now there ing out great music and musicians to serve their commu- are seventeen composers associated with the New Eng- nities and the world. I daresay that New England will be land Conservatory, and they run the gamut from the C - part of that leadership." major fellows to some of the most important experi- ALAN RICH

April 1976 MA -7 Outward turning

If the Conference concentrated its focus largely upon its own member- ship, encouraging the development of a missionary spirit of advocacy on the part of individual music teachers in their own communities, it also struck up profitable liaisons with other or- ganizations in education in order to seek and win over the support of the power structure in education. The af- filiation with the National Education on Association, which is at present all but severed, began in 1908 and grew to the point that MENC became a education department of the NEA in 1938 and moved from Chicago to Washington, CHARLES B. FOWLER D.C. to be housed in the NEA build- ing itself in 1956. Down through the years, sporadic collaborations with the American Association of School The Music Educators National Conference: Administrators, the American Feder- ation of Musicians, the National As- David Faces New Goliaths sociation of Secondary School Princi- pals, the National Association of THE UNITED STATES was not only Organized in Keokuk, Iowa in Schools of Music, the American Asso- the first nation to require free 1907 as the Music Supervisors Na- ciation of Colleges for Teachers Edu- public education for allits tional Conference, MENC (the name cation, and other associations have citizens to assure the development of was changed in 1934) has grown from helped to promote the cause of music an informed and therefore respon- sixty-nine members to more than education in the schools. sible public, but also the first nation sixty-three thousand at present. As a Beginning in 1910 with the report to perpetuate a democratic view of national, nonprofitorganization of the Committee on Formulation of the arts as being good for all citizens whose membership consists of music a Music Course for High School, and therefore a part of basic or gen- educators and administrators on all committees, councils, and commis- eral education. Initially the introduc- levels from pre-school through col- sions of music teachers within the tion of drawing or "picture -making" lege and university, the organization MENC, working on a voluntary in American schools during the Colo- has assumed a unifying voice for mu- basis, have studied particular prob- nial period was done for the purpose sic education in the United States lems, proposed possible solutions of preparing people for industrial em- during the better part of the and, through the Conference's publi- ployment. What music there was in twentieth century. In contrast to cations program, made the results Colonial schools was taught in order "professional" organizations such as available to the field at large. to train people for singing in church. the American Medical Association A public relations program, estab- Music received its first formal accept- and the American Bar Association, lished in 1966, has also given sub- ance as a part of the public school the MENC has fulfilled this role pri- stanceand range to the advocacy and curriculum in 1838 in Boston. As the marily by functioning as a collector information functions, reaching out post -Civil War industrialization and distributor of information, to the public to ask them to "support made leisure time available to the rather than operating as a policy -pro- music in your schools." middle class, the fine arts, taught for claiming, project -oriented, or action - cultural enrichment rather than for taking body. MENC today some more practical purpose, won The earliest form of information general approval. Neither the accept- sharing began with the first confer- Where is the organization today? ance of music as part of public educa- ence in 1907 and developed into the Vast changes appear to be called for tion nor of the arts as part of general proliferation of meetings and confer- in the last quarter of the century. In education for all students has come ences that now take place on the lo- 1975 MENC moved into its own new easily. cal, state, regional, and national lev- building in the Center for Educa- Innovations of this magnitude re- els.Beginning in1910, published tional Associations at Reston, Vir- quire the force and persuasion of ad- accounts of these meetings were made ginia. But the strain on financial re- vocacy groups working diligently for available, but by 1914 the 350 mem- sources caused by the building the cause. One such group that has bers received, free of charge, copies of project, coupled with general infla- worked sixty-nine years for the ad- the Music Supervisors Bulletin (now the tionary pressures, has resulted in cur- vancement of music education in the Music Educators fournal) which remains tailment of some activities and pro- United States is the Music Educators the bulwark of the Conference's in- grams at a time when music National Conference. formation distribution system. education faces increasingly severe

MA -8 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america problems. With current declining en- largely to the talented, with the em- tionism dies easily, even when faced rollments in the public schools, cuts phasis on participation in band, with the probability that no single art in public budgets for education, and chorus, and orchestra. While much will make it to the core of the curricu- public demands to go "back to ba- verbiage is given to "concern for the lum alone. sics," music teachers are finding that, other eighty percent," few programs In no small sense the problem that even after all their work during the have moved to accommodate the vast the Conference faces as it approaches past three-quarters of a century, mu- majority of students, and little action the last quarter of the century is to sic is among the lowest subjects on the has been taken by the national organ- give direction to a field that is bur- educational totem pole, being easily ization to lead the profession toward dened by its reverence for tradition. cut or even totally dispensed within serving a larger constituency. High No other art form is so passionately too many school systems across the schools, it seems, are particularly dif- past -oriented. While theater students country. While older music teachers ficult to change. do not neglect Shakespeare; nor art are attempting to hold on to their Meanwhile, the other arts are on students, Rembrandt; nor archi- jobs through seniority, new teachers the move proclaiming,rightfully, tectural students, classical forms; are finding few opportunities for em- that all students deserve opportuni- these arts basically are focused on the ployment. tiesto develop their emotive and present and the future. Technique is The Conference's own Tangle - aesthetic selves; that, indeed, all stu- learned primarily through involve- wood Symposium in 1967, which ex- dents should have access to some art ment with contemporary idioms.Un- amined "The Roles and Functions of form that they can handle success- less music education accommodates Music in a Democratic Society," de- fully. Where music teachers have of- itself more to the present, it cannot as- clared that music be placed in the ten found themselves fighting with sure the viability and evolutionof the core of the curriculum. It also recog- art teachers for the last few crumbsof art form. Creativity must be given a nized the need to broaden the base of the school budget, they are now faced status equal to performance. music taught in the schools to include with the challenge of working cooper- It seems apparent that the Confer- jazz, pop, rock, electronic, and vir- atively with the other arts in evolving ence's greatest achievements in the tually all forms of music. Official ad- aesthetic education programs that past ten years have been connected vocacy in favor of the democratic reach the entire student body. For with major policy pronouncements, right of citizens to evolve their own music teachers, who have become ac- such as those that emanated from musical tastes rather than mimic the customed to their art form dominat- Tanglewood. These have been rare preferred "classical" tastes of the old- ing the public school arts scene, slic- but welcome occurrences, for all too style music teacher has been slow to ing the dwindling financial pie in often in mediating between opposing win favor and done much to fan the more (and smaller) pieces may notbe factions, consensus -taking has sought flames of the zealous missionary -elit- viewed as progress. Although cooper- middle ground that would not of- ists who still proclaim the primacy of ative solidification of the arts could fend-or help-either group. But col- the European -based musical art. win music a status and priority in oring policy beige may not satisfy the education equivalent to, say, the so- exigencies of the present situation. The other eighty percent cial sciences, music teachers are not Diversity of opinion is characteristic apt to take kindly to this invasion of of America's cultural pluralism, and Music programs, particularly at their limited but comfortably insular strong but opposing views must be the high school level, have been geared domaine. Neither elitism nor isola- given voice. Minority professionals in music, for example, may well find their own solutions in the inner city that may or may not apply in subur- ban or rural situations. But they need a voice in and the support ofthe na- tional organization that gives iden- tity and thrust to their profession. The stakes are high. America seems to be teetering on the brink of either cultural atrophy or renaissance. In- tensification of MENC's advocacy role, particularly with the public and the educational power structure, coupled with active programs and projects designed to directly assist the field, could bring important national dividends. The Conference, as one of the largest arts organizations in the world, could be a telling factor in de- termining whether famine or feast will characterize the cultural future. \ commitment to the latter-and soon -would be a momentous gift for all MENC's new headquarters in Reston, Virginia Americans. A

MA -9 April 1976 KATHRYN BLOOM

CAN THE ARTS SURVIVE IN THESCHOOLS?

vor of the arts, cutbacks continue to be made, and there does not seem to be a way to reverse this trend. School districts simply do not have funds to support programs that are considered "special," or peripheral, to the main goals of education. As concerned citizens who believe that the importance of the arts is self- evident, we sometimes fail to under- stand why they are so vulnerable dur- ing periods of financial stringency. The major reason is the teaching pat- terns that have prevailed in the schools for decades. In the elementary schools music and art may be taught by classroom teachers or teachers who are specialists in these fields, but instructionusuallyhappens-fig- uratively, at least-at the end of the school day, after the "real" business of education has been taken care of. In the high schools the arts are elec- tive subjects and usually place em- phasis on performance and making art objects that are distinguished by high artistic quality. These courses al- most automatically screen out young- sters who, presumably, are not "tal- ented," as is demonstrated by the fact that, nationally, not more than twenty percent of the high school population elects even one course in music or art. These practices may take good care of students with spe- cial abilities, but they also teach the other eighty percent of high school Fern arranging, japanese style, engrosses elementary school youngsters graduates that the arts have little relevance in their own education or their own lives. Contrary to the belief held by at Some answers to a crisis situation least some persons involved in the arts, school board members and ad- ministrators are not insensitive indi- Mon OF us who have strong that art and music programs in the viduals who are opposed to the arts commitments to the arts, ei- schools are facing a crisis situation. on principle. They are people who ther as professionals, or be- The financial problems confronting must make realistic decisions, and cause of personal interests, or as par- school systems at present are so severe their major responsibility is to pro- ents of talented children, are aware that music and art programs are vide the best possible education for all being eliminated in large numbers of children. They often do not under- The author is Director of the Arts in Educa- schools nationally. Regardless of how stand how the arts can help to meet tion Program of the JDR 3rd Fund. persuasive arguments may be in fa- this responsibility. MA -10 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america JDR 3rd Fund proves a point writing, and mathematics-more readily. Schools and classrooms be- Since its establishment in 1967 the come more humane and attractive JDR 3rd Fund's Arts in Education environments for learning. Of major Forest Program has worked with some thirty significance, the arts increasingly are school districts to find solutions to seen as useful tools for living, a means Meadows this problem. Over a period of years, for providing young people with a Center programs in these school systems broader range of choices about the have been developed and continue to environment in which they live, the 04.of the thrive, demonstrating that all of the life-style they develop, and the way arts can be made integral to the gen- they spend their leisure time. In short, nriz eral, or basic, education of every the arts have a real bearing on life. Dominican College child. A second approach used in arts in San Ralael.California In the development of arts in edu- education projects in school districts cation programs, it was recognized is the provision of continuing support from the beginning that "more of the for existing music and art programs, SUMMER '76 same''-adding more specialists, more and the gradual addition of learning The finest equipment and supplies, and more opportunities in other art forms such music and dance opportunities for cultural enrich- as theater, dance, environmental de- education and performance ment-would not be an answer. sign, filmmaking, photography, and program on the west coast. Rather, it was necessary to initiate a the literary arts. This approach may wider variety of teaching approaches appear paradoxical, considering the Live. work and perform that would enable all students to peripheral role of the arts in most with internationally learn in ways that would enhance schools. However, as comprehensive renowned artists programs demonstrate ways in which *Career Seminars their own personal understanding *Master Classes and enjoyment of the arts. the arts contribute significantly to ev- *Workshops One of the most effective ap- ery child's education, attitudes of 4Derforming Festival proaches used grew out of the aware- school board members and adminis- *Eight divisions ness that the arts are not created, nor trators change and the arts begin to BalletStringsBrass do they exist, in a vacuum. They are be viewed as legitimate subjects of P anoChorusVoice part and parcel of society and life. study for their own intrinsic sake. OrchestraWoodwinds *Electives in music and Therefore, they do not need to be Further, these positive attitudes are dance divisions taught in isolation. Building on rela- reinforced by the interests of students tionships which exist between science and their parents. For example, the or history or reading and one or first pilot project for the arts in gen- more of the arts can expand and eral education was started in the Uni- Faculty includes: strengthen learning in all these sub- versity City, Missouri, Public Schools David Del Tredici jects. in 1968. At that time about thirty Composer in residence percent of the high school population Stuart Canin - Violin elected one or more classes in art or Myra Kestenbaum - Viola A "hidden curriculum" Paul Olefsky -Cello music. Last year, approximately sev- James Dixon -Conductor "Interdisciplinaryteaching,"as enty percent of the high school stu- Robert Commanday - Choral this approach is called, is not a new dents took courses in the arts, and the William Doppman -Piano number of specialists in the arts in the Hector Zaraspe -Ballet idea and it can be found in most Atlanta Ballet in Residence school systems. In fact, it is a hidden school system has increased substan- Margaret Swarthout -Ballet curriculum for the arts in many tially. schools. However, it usually happens almost by accident and in isolated sit- Community resources Qio uations as the result of personal inter- July 25, 1976 ests and initiatives of individual The third approach is to draw fully through August 8, 1976 teachers or principals. When this ap- on community resources in the arts- Ages 15 to 25 proach is consciously built upon and artists and arts organizations such as Application/Tape used systematically in all the elemen- music, theater, and dance groups, deadline: May 15, 1976 tary schools in a district, important museums and art centers-as part of changes can be observed almost im- the total educational program. The Write today for information mediately. services which can be provided and application School administrators and teachers through these community resources, discover that as children become in- however, are not used as "cultural en- FMCA, Dominican College San Rafael. CA 94901 volved in the arts as part of the total richment" or entertainment. Artists Phone (415) 457-4440 pattern of classroom teaching, atti- and representatives of arts organiza- Dr Ted Blair. Artistic Director tudes and motivation toward other tions work closely and collabora- Robdee Fredrick. General Manager subjects of study may improve. tively with school administrators and Higher levels of motivation may help teachers in order that the services pro - children learn "the basics"-reading, Continued on page MA -40

April 1976 AS KEEPERS OF notebooks, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Martha Graham have some- thing in common: ideas jotted down in passing have a way of coming to fruition years after the original entry and in a transformed state. In 1844 Hawthorne wrote, "The life of a woman who, by an old colony the [Plymouth] law, was condemned al- ways to wear the letter A sewed on her garment in token of having com- dance mitted adultery." The Scarlet Letter was not published, however, until JACQUELINE MASKEY 1850, by which time it had assumed shape in Hawthorne's mind as "a Hunter Johnson-The ScarletLetter ture and simple steps the pride, vigor, story of the effects of revenge, diabo- does not rank very high in Graham's the sense of challenges met and goals lizing him who indulges in it." Gra- catalogue of works. A Hester almost accomplished, which must have il- ham in her published notebooks also uncharacterized obviously did not luminated the lives of pioneer women mentions The Scarlet Letter quite early animate Graham's imaginative re- more than a century ago. on, considering it, if I remember cor- sources as did, in the past, a Medea or rectly, as a possibility for a film. Not a Clytemnestra or an Emily Dickin- ABT's "Hamlet Connotations" until this, her fiftieth -anniversary sea- son. And then there was Nureyev in son, has Graham finally come to grips the central role, whose lack of experi- The opening of Hamlet Connotations, with Hawthorne's novel and made it ence working in the Graham idiom John Neumeier's latest ballet for into a theater piece. made him look diffident in action American Ballet Theatre's winter where boldness was called for (not season at the Uris Theatre, is stark: a Graham's "Scarlet Letter" until Peter Sparling took over the role few measures of amplified waves did the choreography receive some- washing against an imagined shore, As might be expected, her The Scar- thing like its full value). The chief dis- the slow illumination of a shrouded let Letter is not merely a dance drama- appointment, however, was the lack figure and behind it, against a pillar tization of Hawthorne's narrative. of vividness in the choreography and of light, Mikhail Baryshnikov as the What the choreographer does is em- its generally low energy level. Occa- Prince of Denmark. A promising be- ploy her familiar but still workable sionally a striking bit warmed up the ginning to what emerges as a lengthy, device of projecting the action as tak- proceedings; for instance, a Fury -like shapeless blob of a ballet in which the ing place in the mind of a central fig- chorus of five women led with ma- dancers labor valiantly with the con- ure, in this case the preacher Dim- licious gusto by Susan McGuire. It siderable means at their command to mesdale (Rudolf Nureyev) who is, may be that Graham, now in her manufacture a significance and co- unknown to his admiring congrega- eighties, simply waited too long be- herence unprovided by the choreog- tion, the father of Hester Prynne's fore creating her version of passion, rapher. child, the secret cause of her public guilt, and expiation in Puritan New Neumeier does not follow the nar- disgrace. (Hester Prynne is danced by England. rative outline of Shakespeare's play. Janet Eilber.) Memory brings to He divides his ballet into two parts: Dimmesdale in tumultuous success- "Adorations" the first ("Introductions") is a series of ion images of Hester in prison, her solos set to Aaron Copland's Piano torment by the townspeople, and of Two other new pieces were pre- Variations, played by Howard Barr; their elfin child Pearl (Bonnie Oda miered during the season (December the second ("Actions") to Copland's Homsey). Mingled with these recol- 8 -January 3) at the Mark Hellinger Connotations for Orcheitra and a bit of lections are those approaching hallu- Theatre: Adorations, a smooth work- his Piano Fantasy is where the charac- cination:his own flagellation by ing -up of what the company once ters are brought into emotional colli- three witches, the deformed and men- presented as a demonstration of Gra- sion. Some recognizable incidents acing figure of Hester's husband ham technique, and a murky Point of from the play stud the emoting: a Chillingworth (Tim Wengerd). Ca- Crossing (Mordecai Seter), a weary mimed passage in which Claudius tharsis for Dimmesdale is achieved variation on the Biblical theme of Ja- kills the King and seizes the crown, a when, Hester and Pearl supporting cob and Esau which disappeared be- brief almost -incestuousconfronta- him, he reveals to the stunned popu- fore the end of the run. But among tion between Hamlet and Gertrude. lace the A which he has worn for so the revivals, what a refreshment was The ending is a four-part pile-up long-not, like Hester's, emblazoned Frontier! Graham created this solo in with-reading from bottom to top- on his bosom, but within the confines 1935 and with it commissioned her the Ghost, Gertrude, Claudius, and of his own tortured heart. first Noguchi decor, a marvel made Hamlet. Despite its elaborate production- from two ropes and a piece of fence. It The wonder is that given this cast- costumes by Halston, a double -tiered takes Graham-with the splendid co- besides Baryshnikov there is Marcia set by the sculptor Marisol and, alas, operation of dancer Janet Eilber- Haydee (Gertrude), Gelsey Kirkland a thoroughly pedestrian score by just six minutes to present in bold ges- (Ophelia), Erik Bruhn (Claudius),

MA -12 HIGH FIDELITY / musicalamerica and William Carter (The Ghost of the Uris last November, Moments (Ra- children awash in roses. The premise Hamlet's Father)-that nothing vel), with Louis dancing the Nureyev of Catalogue is that America's view of richer or more original emerged in role, seems less tense, wittier, and al- woman's face/woman's place in the the solos. Bruhn does what he now together more fun to watch than it pre -vote days came from the ro- does in most of his assignments: lots appeared previously. Louis-small, manticized pictures featured in The of pirouettes and much stern staring. balding and in his middle years-is Saturday Evening Post and in the lyrics The high point for Haydee, who certainly no matinee idol, but he is a of the popular songs of the day (Louis would gladly be trampled by ele- master of the small-scale shiftin uses here some vintage recordings of phants should her choreographer movement dynamics and the startled Victor Herbert's music). The form of request it, is a severe yanking about facial expression which telegraphs a Catalogue is the music -hall entertain- by Claudius and Hamlet. Kirkland continuous interest and amazement ment, bright and shallow, with be- comes on waifish and raggedy until in the most trifling or terrifying oc- tween -the -acts interpolations of beset by a series of nervous spasms. currences. In Moments he seems to angry and despairing solos intended The sole survivor of this wreakage is evoke a fantasy playground with to show the private misery behind the the wondrous Baryshnikov, whose himself as king, at whose direction rosy-cheeked public façade. The dif- personal intensity gives the ballet four faithful minions (Michael Bal- ficulty is that Louis's style of move- what focus it has. lard, Richard Haisma, Jerry Pearson, ment and gesture does not lend itself and Robert Small) arrange them- to the expression of the more fe- The Murray Louis Company selves into a cave, gates, tunnels, and rocious emotions, and the solos, the rafts-anything at all that imagina- real meat of the piece, seem too frag- The nine -member Murray Louis tive play might require. ile and undeveloped for the emo- Dance Company, which has found a The new piece, Catalogue, is less suc- tional weight they must bear. There is congenial performing stage at the cessful, although it has outlandish in Catalogue, however, a silent mimed - New York University Theatre, and colorful costumes (by Judith and -mugged melodrama, complete presented a three-week season (De- Grease) based on the modes of c.1910, with happy family, unpaid mort- cember 19 -January 10) featuring a slide projections from early mail-or- gage, and a dashing representative of new piece, Catalogue, and the first per- der catalogues featuring ironically the Royal Mounties, which is utterly formances by the company with those instruments of freedom, the hilarious and in which Robert Small Louis himself of Moments. mangle, the wash -tub, and the wood - is recognized as the villain behind the Given its American premiere dur- burning stove, and glossy blow-ups of longest and springiest mustaches in ing the Nureyev-Fonteyn season at pompadoured ladies and angelic town.

Southeastern Summer Music June 27 -July 25, Massachusetts Institute and 1976 University Festival '76 Fourth Season

Josef Cobert. 4 Music Education Founder and Music Director Music Education Program Maureen Kenny, Ursula Klie Schorn, Orff-Schulwerk Workshop Gerald Dyck and Martha Pline, Margaret May Meredith, Orff-Schulwerk. Managing Director 5 Southeastern Massachusetts Univer- Festival of Performance sity, North Dartmouth, Massachusetts Five reasons for you to spend an A concurrent tour week festival of exciting four weeks this summer on is located at the gateway to Cape performance by participants, faculty Cape Cod at New England's Cod within easy commuting distance and guest artists. newest music institute and festival from Boston and Providence. This modern campus and its excellent Faculty classroom, living and performance 1 facilities was designed by Opera Program Partial Listing Singers Workshop Paul Rudolph. Conductors Workshop Opera Orchestra Workshop Boris Goldovsky, Fredric Popper, For fees, application and further Opera Apprentice Jacqueline Bazinet Cobert. information write: Workshop Margaret May Meredith, Chamber Music Managing Director Southeastern Massachusetts University 2 Victor Rosenbaum, piano; Eric Piano and Chamber Music Program Rosenblith, violin; Josef Cobert, Music Institute and Festival '76 woodwinds; and additional North Dartmouth, Massachusetts 02747 Instrumental Chamber Music 617/997-9321 Piano Chamber Music guest artists.

3 Beethoven Piano Seminar and Master Class Lily Dumont pianist

April 1976 MA -13 Nancy Van de Vate

THERE'S A LOT OF GRUMBLING in the hinterlands these days. The National Endowment for the Arts announced fellowship -grants totalling $419,925 THE to 128 music composers, nine librettists and two trans- lators for fiscal year 1975. The recipients are from twenty- one states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. They were selected from among 515 applicants. The fair- NATIONAL ness of these awards has been widely criticized in the pro- fession and appears on its face to be questionable. Southern composers wonder if perhaps their taxesare ENDOWMENT: being paid in Confederate dollars. Only six of the 128 awards went to persons in the thirteen southern states. Yet there were a variety of southern applicants-for example,a composer from Texas who won the Rome Prize not so many years ago; one from Jacksonville whose name is a household word among Moog -users; a youngercomposer from Memphis who had a strong performance commit- ment from the Memphis Symphony. No award has ever been made to a Tennessee resident. The onecomposer PLAYING from Florida who received an award is now a member of the Endowment. The only recipient from Texas moved there from New York not too long ago. Midwestern composers fared no better. Of the 109 FAVORITES? grants in Category I only seven were awarded to compos- ers in the midwest. Two of these went to composers from Yellow Springs, Ohio, not quite a musical metropolis. Surely it must be a coincidence that Walter Anderson, Di- rector of Music Programs for the National Endowment, formerly taught at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, A composer sees Ohio. geographic bias The Guidelines for Fellowship -Grants to Composers/ in some NEA awards Librettists say, "Generally, fellowship -grants will not be awarded to the same individual in consecutive years." Twenty-two of the 1975 recipients also received awards in 1974. Somehow it would seem fairer if one out of every six recipients had not been twice -blessed,even if the guidelinesdidnotspecificallydiscouragerepeated awards. When only one out of four applicants will receive an award, it is difficult to understand how the selection panel can justify this extremely high rate of recidivism.

What does the Endowment itself have to say about all this? Perhaps it should come as no surprise that the self- serving rhetoric we have come to expect from othergov- ernment agencies should characterize the NEA as well. I shall mention two reasons I have heard members of the Endowment give for the uneven distribution of fellow- ship -grants, more than sixty of which went to New York Continued on page MA -16

The author, immediate past president of the Southeastern Compos- ers' League and Chairperson of the Executive Board, League of Women Composers, was not an applicant for a Fellowship -Grant during the period under discussion.

MA -14 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america Walter F. Anderson

NORMALLY I WOULD PREFER not to resort to publica- tion in defense of the Music Programs of the Na- THE tional Endowment for the Arts but, instead, to leave its standing record to the judgment of those in the field and of the general public. However, in the present matter, at the invitation of the Editor, I am pleased to re- NATIONAL spond to the charges made by Nancy Van de Vate in the article which appears in this issue of MUSICAL AMERICA. First and foremost, I should like it known that the staff ENDOWMENT: at the Endowment goes out of its way to provideinforma- tion so that interested parties may be knowledgeable about the enterprise and not be subject for want of infor- mation to devising charges on the basis of misinformation or ill-conceived assumptions. HadMiss Van de Vate raised directly with the Endowment music staff any of those many questions on which her charges are presumed, we would have been aelighted to communicatewith her DECISIONS and to provide the answers here presented. The array of issues which she offers is broadly assumed, and they thus require detailed comment in order that this response will have the effect of clarificationrather than to ARE OBJECTIVE bring about further confusion. Also, when in response to charges and questions I refer to support which has been obligated by the Endowment in the past, I wish the public reached by MUSICAL AMERICA to be aware that, in accor- dance with the dictates of the Freedom of Information Act and Endowment policy, due announcement on these The Director of Music Programs grants went to members of Congress, grantee organiza- responds to the charge tions and individuals, and public/trade journals. So in- formation here referred to, except as I designate other- of regional partiality wise, already is in the public domain. Also, it should be understood that by Congressional mandate, twenty per- cent of the Endowment's funding now is earmarkedfor the use of state arts and jurisdictional agencies in offering support of the arts at the state level. And now tothose charges.

Miss Van de Vate charges thatthe Endowment discrimi- nates against composers in the South. The Endowment supports composers in a variety of ways; my reply is stated accordingly. Moreover,the his- tory of such support does not bear out discrimination against the South. 1. The earliest Endowment program to support com- posers was arranged cooperatively with theAmerican Music Center and the American Symphony Orchestra League in Fiscal Years 1966-68. As in later programs, or- chestras selected and commissioned their composers. Among them were orchestras in the South. Continued on page MA17

Walter F. Anderson is Drrector of Music Programsfor the National Endowment for the Arts.

April 1976 MA -15 Continued from page MA -14 by Eastern composers, it rests in the quality of their music, area composers or librettists. not in the reputation of the institutions at which they The first reason is that Eastern composers have more teach. performance opportunities and can make stronger appli- Walter Anderson, Director of Music Programs for the cations. Is this true? Do the New York Philharmonic, the Endowment, spoke on February 16,1975 at the Joint Na- Boston Symphony, and the Philadelphia Orchestra pro- tional Conference of the College Music Society and the gram more music by contemporary American composers American Society of University Composers in Iowa City. than the Houston, Atlanta, Louisville, or Oklahoma City He was one of three participants on a panel devoted to symphonies? Hardly. Moreover, one well-known com- "Prospects for support of musical composition, research, poser from Muncie, Indiana who applied for 1975 had let- and performance in the immediate future." Mr. Anderson ters of support from both Pierre Boulez and Robert Shaw, stated that when the allocation of awards by his office is yet did not receive an award. completed each year, they find "a big hole in the South If the recipients are in fact those composers with the and around Nebraska." He attributed this to "a lack of greatest access to performance-in other words, those al- institutional density" in those regions. This is the second ready most widely performed-then the awards are merit reason I mentioned above for the uneven distribution of badges for past success. The guidelines do not indicate this funds. It seemed to me then-and still does-an inade- to be the main purpose of the program. Applications quate answer. The South has several hundred four-year would not be necessary if it were, for tables of perform- institutions, some of the nation's largest state universities, ances could be obtained from ASCAP and BMI and and innumerable two-year colleges. It has a number of awards handed out to the Top Forty, or in this case, the fine symphony orchestras and the largest and oldest re- Top One Hundred and Twenty -Eight. The guidelines im- gional composers' group in the country, the 100 -member ply that the quality of a composer's work also has some- Southeastern Composers' League. For twenty-one years, thing to do with the awarding of the fellowship -grants. from 1951 to 1972, the University of Alabama sponsored The argument that Eastern composers have greater access a forum for new music which was one of the most success- to performance really only says that theymayhave greater ful in the country. The small number of awards made to access to Eastern performance, and Eastern Is Better. composers, not just in the South and Midwest but in the The recipients are not, in fact, all well-known or widely Pacific Northwest and Southwestern states as well, cannot performed. They are largely university -based, as one be accounted for entirely by the lack of institutional den- would expect. A composer rarely earns his living writing sity or performance opportunity. The real explanation music, and most composers teach. Institutions of higher must be sought in the nature of the selection process itself education are found in every one of our fifty states, and and the make-up of the selection panel. Who is on that some of the nation's best music schools are located in the panel and what are their real criteria for making awards? large midwestern universities. Few of us would argue that serious music is an urban pastime, but it does not follow Many composers' competitions and some award - that all good composers are in New York nor that every granting organizations name their judges in the guide- New York composer is a good one. As long as composers lines for making application. This is often helpful to the work largely within the academy, they will be widely dis- composer in deciding what type of material to submit. All tributed. Many of the Endowment recipients are aca- juries have their biases, good or bad, and the applicant's demic composers, and since the academy is everywhere, it objective is, after all, to obtain an award. The selection is unforgiveable that NEA recipients are not everywhere. panel for Fellowship -Grants to Composers/Librettists The Endowment is, by definition, supposed to be na- should be named in the Endowment's guidelines. In addi- tional. tion to helping the applicant choose his or her material, it would allay his doubts about disproportionate represen- The problem of regional hegemony in the composition tation of a particular geographic region or musical style. of serious music is not unique to the Endowment. It infects Even more important is the establishment of a selection the entire field of music composition and results from a procedure which first scrutinizes the music and only later series of assumptions most of us prefer not to articulate. asks who the composer is. The same application forms The most powerful and pervasive of these affirms the nat- now used could be employed in a different order. Scores ural superiority of the Eastern colleges and universities. and tapes would first be submitted anonymously. An ini- Since they are Better, you must be Better if you are on one tial screening could reduce this number to one-halfor of their faculties. The irrelevance of this assumption bog- one-third, the remaining applicants then submitting their gles the mind. It overlooks the fact that few of our major proposals and letters of support. Surely enough of the re- orchestras frequently perform music by any contempo- maining composers would have proposals and perform- rary American composer, least of all by one from within ance commitments of sufficient merit to satisfy the intent the academy. It overlooks public indifference to new mu- of the program. sic and frequent critical incomprehension. Most of all, it Few American composers will have complete confi- overlooks the simple fact that not until recently has the dence in the integrity of the Endowment's selection proc- liberal arts college been considered an appropriate train- ess until procedures are established which guarantee con- ing ground for composers. Palestrina, Bach, Monteverdi, sideration of a composer's music before all else. It would Stravinsky-all were terribly undereducated by Ivy be gratifying if, in a subsequent article, the Endowment League standards. Today they would be called "compos- were to tell us who is on the selection panel, how it was ers who write by the seat of their pants"-unintellectual, appointed, why the distribution of awards is so regionally panderers to the public taste, musical plumbers. If there is lopsided, and why some degree of anonymity cannot pre- any argument for the domination of contemporary music vail in the submission of applications. A MA -16 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america Continued from page MA15 commitments have come from Jacksonville, Knoxville, 2. Miss Van de Vate bolsters her argument in reference Birmingham, Richmond, North Carolina, Chattanooga, to "the largest and oldest regional composers' group in the Shreveport, and Florida symphony orchestras; but it is ex- country, the one -hundred -member Southeastern Com- pected that as many asfrom eighteen to twenty symphony orchestras posers' League ... (which) for twenty-one years, from in the Southeast will participate in this program. 1951 to 1972, the University of Alabama sponsored (as) a The fact that these orchestras, located throughout the forum for new music which was one of the most successful entire United States with generous representation in the in the country." What she does not report is that the En- Southeast, have applied on their initiative and have made dowment supported this program through grants to the their own selection of composers without guidance from the University in 1968 and 1969, long before the current pro- Endowment would seem to be sufficient reason to dispel gram of support to composers was announced nationally any alleged Endowment discrimination as charged. To in the past three years. Because of the pleasure which the clarify the point further, orchestras in the Southeast- Music Advisory Panel took in recommending support of quite rightly, I feel-have based their selection of compos- this Alabama -based program, it is my opinion that sup- ers on other bases than that of geography. We are de- port would have been continued but for the fact that no lighted with reports concerning performances which have further applications came from the organization. The En- taken place thus far in these programs. dowment cannot award support when none has been re- 5. Take another major art form-for example, opera- quested, the fact of which brings me to my next point. and the argument of discrimination falls apart again. I 3. When accusations in regard to discrimination are ex- think it is rather generally regarded by the opera field that pressed, there literally is no way by which such accusa- Of Mice and Men by the eminent southern composer, Car- tions can be justified except as it can be proven that rea- lisle Floyd, is one of the most frequently performed con- sonable efforts have been put forward to attain the ends temporary American operas throughout the country. The sought. Of the 515 applications received last year in the Endowment's assistance has gone to support many re- Composers/Librettists Program and the 544 received this gional programs where this opera has been presented. My year, none came from Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, Delaware, comment here is not intended to represent an evaluation or South Dakota. Furthermore, in the current round of of the merit of this opera as against others (to do so would applications from which no grants as yet have been obli- be an improper move on the part of Endowment staff), gated or announced, only one application each came but merely to cite the fact, which offers further proof of from Alabama, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming. the absence of Endowment discrimination. It also should These examples do not represent a complete analysis; nor help to dispel the notion that more general prejudice do I see good reason for including extensive data in this toward the South's educational and cultural attainments regard, the point being that for any states or regions so prevails. At least I would hope so, for I am well aware of represented above, it would seem pointless to argue En- the fine contributions which many able and gifted con- dowment discrimination. The only alternative, an unac- temporaries of mine have been making in the South for ceptable one, would be to fund automatically the single many years. Who, to cite but one glowing example, could application from each of the four states mentioned. overlook the fantastic contributions of the North Carolina 4. Currently the Endowment is supporting composers School of the Performing Arts? through joint commissions initiated by groups of orches- 6. The Endowment for six years has assisted composers tras which quite properly have retained the prerogative to in still another way-through support of our indigenous select the composers whose works the orchestras will per- American musics via a program titled, at present, "Jazz/ form. In 1973-74 support of this kind went to two groups Folk/Ethnic Musics." The greatness of music in our coun- respectively regarded in good humor by the field as the try, I believe, is due to its diversity. In my travels I have "Big Six" and the "Heavenly Seven." been deeply moved and impressed by the rich resources of Support was awarded in 1973-74 to enable the Boston, the indigenous arts in the South as elsewhere. Many com- Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, New York and Phila- posers in the South have received support from this pro- delphia orchestras to commission one composer each. All gram, which is rapidly expanding in all parts of the U.S. six orchestras plan to perform the new works. Support 7. Miss Van de Vate deplores the small number of similarly was awarded in 1973-74 to enable the Cincin- grants which have gone to composers in the midwest and nati, Detroit, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, San Fran- goes on further to point out what she calls a coincidence- cisco, and Washington orchestras to commission one com- namely, that two composers at Antioch college in Yellow poser each. All seven orchestras expect to perform the Springs, Ohio, where I formerly taught, received grants in seven new works. Fiscal Year 1975. I hasten to point out that Yellow Support was awarded in 1974-75 to enable the Springs is in the midwest. And as to my distinguished Springfield (Massachusetts), Portland (Maine), Rhode Is- erstwhile colleagues, I must correct the number; for ac- land, Albany (New York), and Hudson Valley Orchestras tually three, not two, in Fiscal Years 1974 and 1975 re- to commission and perform a new work by Michael Col - ceived Endowment grants. Two of these gentlemen, how- grass. Support also was awarded in 1974-75 to enable a ever, joined the Antioch faculty after I departed on much larger group of orchestras in the Southeast to com- sabbatical leave in 1967-68. My tenure at the Endowment mission and perform works by Norman Dello Joio and began immediately after the sabbatical. Ulysses Kay. In the belief that performing groups must Would Miss Van de Vate have the Endowment dis- have the opportunity to determine their commitment af- qualify my former associates? If so, then in one fell swoop, ter the commissioned score has been completed, the En- unaided, she would defeat her own argument regarding dowment never requires an advance performance com- purported discrimination against composers in the South, mitment from organizations. Thus far, we are informed, since I also have taught at southern universities.

April 1976 MA -17 Continued from page MA -17 audiences. But quite apart from that study, my own cu- The charge is made that the Endowment favors eastern riosity approximately five years ago led me to request composers on grounds of `institutional density" and that the music staff to pinpoint our various grants on a map. I other geographical areas, accordingly, are denied. thus discovered that the spread of awards at that time indi- I personally must disavow any such contention, which cated that fewer music grants were going to the South and clearly is contrary to Endowment policy. Also, on inquiry in the Nebraska region. I cannot vouch for the same infor- I am not able to identify anyone on the music staff who mation in regard to other art fields. The Endowment's ini- acknowledges having made such a statement. I havesev- tial and continued vigorous support to bring about the or- eral comments in this regard. ganization of the Mid -America Arts Alliance in Lincoln, 1. At the Endowment we use the word "institution" Nebraska began in 1972-73 and has had a strong impact broadly. More often than not in the field of musicwe are on arts activity in the Nebraska region. referring to performing institutions, where the largest I, like other program directors at the Endowment, have amount of Endowment support is directed, rather than to been hard at work in encouraging more applications from educational institutions, to which less support is given. As the South. It would be extremely unfortunate if my com- directed by the Endowment's Enabling Legislation, it ments intended to demonstrate my goodwill and initia- may be expected that greater support always will go tive towards the development of more music projects from toward the performance of music which, after all, isa per- the South were to be misinterpreted to indicate an atti- forming art. We advisedly use the term "institution" in tude entirely to the opposite. Among my more gratifying both regards. experiences at the Endowment are the very good relation- 2. It would make no sense to award on institutional ships which the Music Program enjoys with arts adminis- bases except in those instances where a group of interested trators and organizations throughout the South. Reason- organizations have applied for commissioning andper- able limitation on the length of this article precludes my formance support, as mentioned earlier. However,even mention of more than a few examples of ways in which when those awards are made, the Composers/Librettists the music staff has been able to help initiate and support Panel examines most carefully the merit of the proposed music projects in the South. composer as well as the qualifications of the performing The Endowment regularly aids professional regional organizations. There is virtually no pattern which, even if opera companies in various parts of the country, includ- we tried, would permit us to put composers together with ing the South, but in the last two years the only aid of a performing organizations or individual performing artists university -based opera program in the country has gone from the same part of the country. It just doesn't work to Opera South in Mississippi. The Endowment's support that way. The location of performing artistsversus the made it possible for the premiere of Scott Joplin's Tree- residence of the composer is unpredictable. Acomposer momsha, later on Broadway,to enjoy the collaboration from one part of the country often will have his worksper- of the Atlanta Symphony. Endowment aid to the South formed in another part of the country; or the performance Carolina Commission on the Arts also helped make it pos- may perchance be in his local community. sible for the Atlanta Symphony under Maestro Robert In fact, the Composers/Librettists Guidelines in the Shaw to split into two smaller orchestras, which in turn area of "Professional Development" make assistance were joined to the Greenville and Florence orchestras so available for travel so that young composers may be able that South Carolina might participate in the develop- to visit various parts of the country to contact publishers, ment of a program of professional orchestra music that in- recording companies, artistic directors, and individual cluded works by local South Carolina composers. In Fis- performers and, as well, to become acquainted with works cal Year 1971, at the outset of the Endowment's Orchestra of their contemporaries. Additionally, a primary intent of Program, a grant of $21,050 went to the Atlanta Sym- the Endowment is to encourage repeated performances of phony, whereas support of the Philadelphia Orchestra in new works before many audiences in various parts of the that year was $15,500. country in order that the fate of the composer will not be I doubt that many states can boast of a string program subject to a single performance in one geographical loca- to compare with that in the State of Mississippi through tion but, instead, to the widest possible audience with the support from the Endowment. The program brings the availability of reviews from different critics. Also,it Jackson Symphony into a working relationship with uni- should be observed that young composers inmany in- versities, colleges, junior colleges, and public schools stances may be enrolled for advanced study or assistance- through the cooperative and able leadership of the Missis- ships in a conservatory or university. Their applications sippi Arts Commission and conductor Lewis Dalvit of the thus are likely to be submitted from the part of the coun- Jackson Symphony. I have visited the Commission and try where they are studying rather than from that part of conferred with provosts at the University of Mississippi, the country where they hold permanent residence. the University of Southern Mississippi, Jackson State 3. In my comments, during the question and answerpe- University, and numerous other institutions in lending a riod following my talk at the University of Iowa, I made helping hand in bringing various programs aboard there. certain references which Miss Van de Vate apparently National Endowment for the Arts support also extends has misunderstood. First, I referred to a study on Concert to wonderful festivals like North Carolina's Music in the Environments carried out by the Association of College Mountains and Eastern Music Festival and several or- and University Concert Managers and Arts Administra- chestra and opera programs in various parts of the South. tors under support from the Endowment. That study re- Hence, I have no problem in referring to activity sup- vealed some interesting regional characteristics of concert ported by the Endowment in the South; my problem is

MA -18 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america concerned with mentioning but a few in this article with- One further word about the panelists. They rotate in out affront to those which I cannot mention. We decid- part annually. They regularly include, as a matter of En- edly will continue the strong effort to identify and support dowment policy, one state arts executive and one state additional programs in the South. arts chairman for each of the programs. In the past three years Mrs. Lida Rogers, executive director of the Missis- Miss Van de Vate asks: "Who is on that panel andwhat sippi Arts Commission, has served on the Planning Sec- are their real criteria?" tion of the Panel, which ex officio is included in the mem- The names of all Endowment panelists are always available to bership of other special panel sections, although the the public. The Endowment maintains all such lists for Planning Section does not participate in the screening of ready distribution on request and, moreover, names all individual composer applications. I particularly should such panelists and consultants in its Annual Report. The like to emphasize that in the past six years the only music review criteria are stated in the Composers/Librettists panel meetings outside of Washington have been held in Guidelines as follows: the South, because of a continuing interest of the music "All applications are judged on the quality of the program in the institutions of the South. works submitted for review. At no time does the Finally I address Miss Van de Vate's observation that length or medium of the proposed project become a since "A composer rarely earns his living writing music, determining factor in the deliberations of the re- ... most composersteach." I agree. She seems to have for- viewing bodies." gotten, however, that at the Joint National Conference of It would be impractical for the Endowment to publish the College Music Society and the American Society of panelists' names in each of the many guidelines which are University Composers held in Iowa City in February distributed at various times of the year. Guidelines must 1975, to which she has referred in her article, a strong let- be distributed on a staggered basis so that the Agency's ter of commendation for the Endowment's support of load can be managed by the various internal offices which composers was presented from the Society to me on behalf must log applications and route them to the program of- of the universities. Contrary to her report of "grumbling fices. Also, individuals and organizations normally must in the hinterlands," the hinterlands have spoken. I felt apply well over a year in advance of the time when fund- humble indeed to have received this honor and gratified ing would become available so that sufficient time for that the midnight oil which the music staff regularly their planning will be possible. Consequently, annual burns at the Endowment had not gone unappreciated. panel rotation, as legally determined on approval of the Miss Van de Vate makes referenceto composers Chairman, often will occur after issuance of guidelines. within the context of their relationship to the liberal arts Thus the inclusion of names at the time of guidelines pub- college and states that "Palestrina, Bach, Monteverdi, lication would be misleading. Stravinsky-all wereterribly undereducated by Ivy Panel procedures, as explained by composer Donald League standards. Today they would be called 'com- Erb at the meeting of the American Society of University posers who write by the seat of their pants-unintellectual, Composers referred to in Miss Van de Vate's article, still panderers to the public taste, musical plumbers." I must pertain. Small groups of panelists make several trips to the confess to having considerable trouble when I try to think Endowment to pre-screen applications. Every application of Stravinsky as not being an intellectual, as I recognize is pre-screened. Later the entire panel meets and divides him also to be an unqualified great composer. And Bach, into small groups of three or four, where cross-exam- who must have rocked to sleep almost as many babies as ination of applications brings them to the attention of the fugues he composed, surely deserves credits in the so- groups different from those which originally reviewed cial sciences in keeping with the current strong educa- them. Finally the total panel meets to discuss each appli- tional trend toward accrediting study and experience. cation individually. The stress in review is on the sample In summary let me assure any persons who may have of the composer's work submitted in the form of manu- questions in their minds that the Endowment has no idle scripts and recordings. If the panel wishes further docu- rhetoric to spread while practicing discrimination on a re- mentation of any kind, a great effort is made to get the gional basis. My chief assumption in all my work is that maximum material so that each application can be the gifted and deserving may be found anywhere that judged fairly. people reside. Toward that end I would hope that the En- Since my name has been mentioned in Miss Van de dowment music staff always will seek the grace and hu- Vate's criticism, I wish to make it clear that no music staff mility to accept criticism in an effort to do a better job. I member ever offers an opinion on an individual com- therefore plan to bring Miss Van de Vate's article to the poser's application. Although we make observations on attention of the Composers/Librettists Section and the applications from organizations, we simply do not partici- Planning Section of the Music Advisory Panel for their se- pate in judgments on an individual's creative work. The rious consideration. In particular I shall question them panel works extremely hard and with great objectivity. about the advisability of considering composer applica- One foundation expert of long standing remarked a year tions anonymously. ago that those days of screening composers' applications Having written at this much length, I can only con- were the most exhausting of his life. Far from collusion, clude that the greatest affront to any composer in the the panelists work independently. No one of them would South or elsewhere would be the receipt of a commission- have chosen the identical group which finally was selected ing grant on the basis of regional distribution instead of for grants. On the other hand, they individually respect artistic merit as judged by peer panels of composers and the decision of the total panel. performers. A

April 1976 MA -19 "A majorevent in the history of opera in America". TimeAugust 4, 1975 "If Valhallaever existed then it must have been ina place such as this." Le Figaro (Paris) July 28, 1975

"A full house...applaudeda full 30 minutes after thefinal curtain of Gotterdammerung." Sankei Shimbun(Tokyo) August 6, 1975 "Seattle has stakeda boisterous claim toa place in the international operaticsun." Newsweek August 4, 1975 7 THE 1976 FOR DETAILS: PACIFIC NORTHWEST Please send me more details about Seattle Opera'sPacificNorthwestFestivaland FESTIVAL PRESENTS travel to the Pacific Northwest. WAGNER'S NAME ADDRESS

THE RING OF THE NIBELUNG CITY ZIP MailtoPacificNorthwestFestival,c/o JULY 13-25, 1976 I Seattle Opera, P.O. Box 9248, 305 Harrison, I Seattle, Washington, 98109, U.S.A. ma

MA -20 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america The odyssey of an unregenerate record critic

Music, Frisbees, andCresham's Law

by Gene Lees

WHEN I WAS ABOUT THREE,my mother ber little except her laugh, her choco- tell the truth, Itold him. My father and father dropped in to visit friends, late cake, and a family legend that she was furious for three days. But I had a couple who owned a radio and went placidly through life with the learned another great lesson: You can record shop. While the four of them unshaken conviction that the earth tell the truth about music, but it won't chatted, I wandered off, stuck some- was flat, was moving, and she gave me make you many friends. thing or other into an electrical outlet, all her records, to do with as I wished. Soon I was a confirmed record col- and blew out everything in the store. So I stood on her front porch and, in lector myself. I learned that music has There are, no doubt, those who the great sound of her indulgent many uses besides its more general would insist that this was only the in- laughter, invented the Frisbee. Unfor- function of elevating the spirit.I advertent act of a curious child, but I tunately, there was a flaw in my in- found, for example, that in tandem think it must be considered my first ef- vention, the 78 -rpm shellac Frisbee with soft lights it tended to put girls in fective act of criticism, not to say pro- being frangible, which is why some- the mood. Particularly effective was test. When I ponder what we have body beat me to the patent. But at an album by Morton Gould called done with electricity since then-from leastI had learned what should be "After Dark," which had lovely string the kid on the next street who ineptly done with most phonograph records. arrangements of songs by Cole Porter "practices" rock guitar at 120 dB with By the time I was twelve, my inter- and others of his caliber. (Years later, the windows open and from the ple- est in music had become dangerously at one of Gould's recording sessions, I thora of transistor radios on once -pla- serious. My mother and father were expressed my gratitude for "After cid beaches to the recordings of John again visiting friends, and the gentle- Dark." "A lot of my friends have told Denver, the world's most reliable man of the house had a large collec- me that," he said. "Funny, it never did bore-I'd like to unplug the whole tion of records by the Andrews Sis- me a bit of good." Later, when the pro- planet. ters, the Three Suns, Dick Kuhn, ducer of the session suggested calling A few years later I took another step Freddy Martin, Sammy Kaye, and oth- the present album "Latin, Lush, and toward my questionable calling when ers of their ilk. He asked me what I Lovely," Morton said, without batting I acquired my first phonograph rec- thought of his collection. Since my an eye, "I think 'Jolly, Jewish, and ords. An aunt, about whom I remem- family had, in their folly, taught me to Jaded' would be better.")

APRIL 1976 19 The In 1948 Columbia Records brought out the first LP, and RCA gave us the phono cartridge 45, insisting that it was better. RCA's argument, as far as I could understand that doesn't compromise it, was that people had become accus- tomed to interruptions in the move- ments of symphonies and actually any liked them. The owner of a small record shop insisted that both systems modern record. were passing fancies and that the 78 frangible Frisbee was the true faith. He went broke and was replaced by Sam Goody. AT15Sa By 1950, I was inviting young ladies to my bachelor apartment to hear my new highfidelitysystem("After Dark" had been superseded by a SAEL Frank Sinatra LP called "Songs for Young Lovers") and to have a quiet candlelit dinner. I couldn't afford all the records thatI wanted, and I learned that reviewers got them free. So I asked the music editor of the newspaper for which I was a reporter if I could review popular music and jazz. (He picked the classical records for himself.) To my amazement, he let me do it. To my even greater amaze- ment, people took my opinions seri- ously, which scared the hell out of me and led me to resume the formal study Choosing an AT15Sa any good tone arm or of music. can add more listen- player at reasonable In the Fifties Stan Kenton said that ing pleasure per dollar settings (1-2 grams), stereo was a drag. Years later, I said than almost anything else yet sharply reduces record that quadriphony was a drag. You see in your hi-fi system. wear. Even compared to ellipticals that there is a certain cosmic rhythm it is one of our UNIVERSAL phonotracking at a fraction of a gram. Your to these things. But when I look back cartridges. Ideally suited for everyrecords will last longer, sound better. over the last twenty-five years, I don't record of today: mono, stereo, ma- think that "progress" has done us trix or discrete 4 -channel. And look much good. In the early days of high at what you get. fidelity, HIGH FIDELITY, FM, and the LP, we naively believed that all this Uniform response from 5 to 45,000 would bring about a steady rise in the Stress analysis photos show concentrated high pres- Hz. Proof of audible performance is sure with elliptical stylus (left), reduced pressure. level of public taste, little knowing on an individually -run curve, packed less groove distortion with Shibata stylus (right). that Gresham's law also operates in with every cartridge. The AT15Sa even helps improve the aesthetics. We have more bad music than ever before. We also have more Stereo separation is outstanding. Notsound of old, worn records. Because good music than ever before, but it only at 1 kHz(where everyone is prettythe Shibata stylus uses parts of the _ - faces an interminable struggle to sur- good) but also at 10 groove wall probably untouched by vive in the flood of profitable audible kHz and above (where other elliptical or spherical styli. And flotsam. others fail). It's a result the AT15Sa Shibata stylus is mount- Like most people, I sometimes yearn of our exclusive Dual ed on a thin -wall tapered tube, using for a simpler time-a time before the Magnet* design that la a nude square -shank mounting. The 33, the 45, and Top 40, a time before uses an individual low -mass magnetresult is less mass and greater precision some clown took a picture of the earth for each side of the record groove.than with common round -shank styli. from the moon and proved that it's Logical, simple and very effective. It all adds up to lower distortion and round (secretly,I had always sus- pected that my aunt was right). Even Now, add up the benefits of a genu-smoother response. Differences you Marshall McLuhan has waxed indig- ine Shibata stylus. It's truly the styluscan hear on every record you play. nant about the noisy electronic of the future, and a major improve-Don't choose a cartridge by name or "media" world in which we now live. ment over any elliptical stylus. Theprice alone. Listen. With all kinds of I was amazed; I had been under the AT15Sa can track the highest record-records. Then choose. The AT15Sa impression that he was its enthusias- ed frequencies with ease, works inUNIVERSAL Audio-Technica car- tic herald. "Like it?" he said. "How could I? I'm a professor of literature! °TM. U.S. Patent Nos. 3,720,796 and 3,761,647 tridge. Anything less is a compromise. If I could throw a switch and turn it all off, I would!" It warmed me to think that once audio-technica long ago, in my own small way, I tried. INNOVATION -- PRECISION INTEGRITY AUDIO-TECHNICA U.S., INC., Dept. 46H. 34 Shiawassee Ave.. Fairlawn, Ohio 44313

20 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE If You Can't Put aLot of Money Into Stereo Equipment, Be Sure To Hear The Advent/3.

should be, since there's no reason why a low- cost speaker has to sound like a poor cousin of the same company's more expensive models.) The Advent/3 has accurate, convincing, truly wide -range sound. Its bass response comes within a half -octave of the best you can do at any price, and its octave -to -octave musi- cal balance sounds right not just with one kind of music or recording but with the entire range that you are likely to listen to at home. If you're looking for the best possible low- cost sound system, or if you would like to improve one that s obviously limited by its speakers, we think you will find the Advent/3 a unique product. The more you've been If your budget for a complete stereo system exposed to the limitations of other low-cost won't stretch very far past $300 (and can go speakers, the more amazing we think you will that far only if you're sure of a long-term find its performance. investment in something good), the Advent/3 If you will senc us the coupon, we will be can make an all-important difference in your happy to send you full information on the enjoyment. Advent/3 and a list of Advent dealers. The limit on the sound of most low-cost Thank you. component systems is the speaker. Often that speaker is a "house brand" designed mainly (or solely) for a cost low enough to allow a Advent Corporation, 195 Albany Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 store to offer a good name -brand receiver and record player in a low-cost system. Please send information on the new Advent/3. The result is that most low-cost systems Name don't really have the kind of sound that people Address identify with component audio equipment. The Advent/3 changes that. For roughly City $50*, it offers sound that's very much like our State Zip more expensive speakers'. (Which is as it

Advent Corporation, 195 Albany Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139.

*The Suggested Price of the Advent/3, subject to change without notice, ranges from $50 to $53 (depending on the part of the country to which it's been shipped). Cabinet construction: Non -resonant particle board finished in walnut -grain vinyl.

APRIL 1976 21 from which discs are cut is a major point. since the improvements itrealizes in dy- namic range, transparency, and spacious- ness are clearly audible. But beyond this the state of the art in recording equipment has improved considerably since the years before 1960. Tape recorders are quieter (even with- out Dolby), have less phase distortion, and have better figures for wow and flutter; tapes have been improved, enhancing quietness still more. Electronics are better, having less distortion and noise. In addition to improve- ments in recording lathes, cutterheads, and cutting styli, automation is increasingly find- Your review [January 1976] of the Hitachi D- may well be a candidate for replacement. But ing its way into the mastering and mixing 3500 cassette deck talks of two mechanical beware of installation errors: incorrect verti- rooms. where it makes possible gain -riding problems and says that Hitachi plans to cor- cal angle, stylus force, overhang, etc. and compression (stillnecessary, lament- rect them. Has it done so? If not.I wouldn't ably) that are less obtrusive than when done want to buy the unit.-Richard Markham Jr., I am the owner of a Crown IC -150 preampli- manually. New Haven, Conn. fier that is used to drive a Dynaco Stereo 4Q0 It is of course true that some of the early We wouldn't either. But Hitachi says that it power amp (200 watts per channel). Most of LPs are excellent and that not all recordings has made the changes and that it was able to my listening is from discs played on a Dual of today are made with state-of-the-art do so before dealer stocks for sale in this 701 turntable, using a Stanton 681EEE equipment or even the care that they de- country were manufactured. With those trou- pickup. The preamp has a control that adjusts serve. Add to this the quality -control prob- bles removed, so are our reservations. At the sensitivity of the phono input. There is a lems that even some major companies have about $400 for a cassette deck with separate similar control that adjusts the sensitivity of with their final pressings, and it becomes ob- playback head elements, it seems like an ex- the power amp. How can I set these for best vious that the industry still has a way to go. ceptionally good value. signal-to-noise ratio while keeping the out- But it seems safe to say that it is at least pos- put levels for any setting of the preamp vol- sible now to make a better disc than could be I own a pair of Scott Q-100 omnidirectional ume control the same when my FM tuner and made pre -1960. speaker systems correctly installed and posi- tape recorder are in use?-Peter J. Tomlin- tioned in a moderately "live" room, roughly son, Batavia, N.Y. I need some assistance in selecting an FM an- 19 by 12 feet, and powered by a Sony TA - The general ruleisthat, to assure best tenna. My present hookup through a TV an- 1144 amplifier. Their sound gives me the im- signal-to-noise ratio over-all, the amplifier tenna is not fully satisfactory. Which model pression that they would do a much better job handling the lowest signal level (the phono would be suitable for a location sixty miles in a larger room, especially with respect to a preamp in this case) should run at the high- from New York City with the ability to receive certainexcessivereverberationthat est gain possible as long as it is not driven stations coming in from other directions?-C. "doubles" the low frequencies and "blurs" into overload. That way, less gain is needed Pfeiffer, Chester, N.Y. the highs. Is this because they have a built-in further on, and the noise generated in this It is impossible for us to recommend a spe- reverb device or some sort of internal out -of - low-level stage is amplified less. Therefore. cific FM antenna since the type you buy will phase wiring, or is it because of their "om- (1) using the loudest disc passage you have depend on the topography of the area in nidirectionality"?-George0. Frangoulis, (or a test record with a high modulation which you live. There may be an FM trap on Athens, Greece. level), advance the gain of the phono stage your TV antenna that is causing the present To the best of our knowledge. these loud until audible distortion occurs and back off difficulty. Generally speaking, those who in- speakers contain no reverberation devices, until it disappears, adding a moderate safety stall antennas are the only "experts," since and we certainly cannot recommend tamper- margin. Double check to be certain that the they alone have practical experience with a ing with the internal wiring. From your de- distortion came from the phono stage, not range of reception problems in a given area. scription of your problem, we doubt that the later on in the system. Then (2) set the It may repay you to consult one. speakers are correctly positioned and that preamp volume control between halfway and the room is only moderately live.If the low two-thirds open and (3) adjust the gain of the I need some advice on whether to buy compo- frequencies are overprominent and muddy, power amp so that you hear an appropriate nents for stereo systems from name -brand try moving the speakers farther away from level of sound. Then (4) without touching the companies or well -distributed imports. I have the walls and especially from the corners of preamp volume control set the output con- talked with some people recently who indi- the room. Omnidirectional speakers tend to trols of the FM tuner and tape recorder so cated that getting repairs made on imports or cause more reflected highs (bass is prac- that sound levels for similarly loud passages getting some parts is nearly impossible at tically omnidirectional from any speaker), so match those of the phonograph. If there is a most shops. Is this really the case?-Wayne additionalabsorptivematerial-drapes, loudness control in the preamp and it does Fair, Sikeston, Mo. rugs,upholsteredfurniture-mayrelieve not track correctly, repeat steps 2 through 4, We know of no real difference in ease and some blurring of the highs. as may a ju- starting with a different position of the vol- speed of repair between U.S. products and dicious treble cut with your amplifier tone ume (loudness) knob. imports. Both seem fairly slow, especially controls. Your supposition that a larger room The power amp gain may now be such that when one is deprived of one's system. Fac- would improve matters is probably correct. the loudspeakers could be damaged if the tory -authorized repair can normally be ar- volume control is set too high, so some addi- ranged by contacting your dealer, the manu- I have a Thorens TD -III turntable and an ESL - tionalprotectionmay beneeded. facturer. or the U.S. distributor. 2000 tone arm. They appear to be working (Dynaguard shouldbe sufficientinthis well, but I have distortion on records with case.) The introduction of IHF standard 201 for choral music and loud orchestrations. My car- headphones ["News and Views," October 1975] tridge is a Shure M-91ED. I've been told that Just how are today's discs superior to those is good news, and it ties together a lot of the ESL -2000 is too old and massive to use of the early stereo years? Almost all of your loose ends. But I was surprised to find that with newer cartridges. Do you think I should reviewers seem to agree that older recordings the IHF standard connection (tip -left) is oppo-

get a different arm?-A. M. Goodman, Los are per se inferior. I maintain that with re- site to that of the pre-existing EIA standard Altos, Calif. spect to dynamic range, transparency, spa- RS -331. Is the EIA standard defunct, or is the Your letter does not really give us enough in- ciousness, and freedom from distortion the IHF standard misquoted?-John V. von Snei- formation to be sure where the problem lies. best pre -1960 discs are the equal of anything dern Jr., Bronxville, N.Y. Use of a test record, such as the CBS STR- made today. (Iwill concede that pre -Dolby Since the EIA standard was only about 50% 100 or Shure TTR-103, may help. discs have more tape hiss.) Any comments?- effective, there really was no standard in ef- If the cartridge is in good condition ana Paul G. Bodine, Charleston, III. fect until the IHF-201 was introduced. All fails to meet specs by a significant margin First of all,it seems to us that your conces- recently made headphones we have encoun- (as checked on the Shure disc), the tone arm sion re Dolby processing of master tapes tered follow the IHF standard.

22 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Our Contribution to the Realization of High Quality Music Reproduction in the Home over the Past 25 Years.

Our company was founded at the time of rapid The fact that REVOX tape recorders are in developments in the field of magnetic tape constant demand in such an increasingly recording. quality -minded During this period there were few machines market is available, but they revolutionized professional indicative 4Ib sound recording. of their This high 4 advancing standard of technology soon constructicn introduced a new and 41. 46 performance, era to the amateur 1.46%, recordist, because Age but it also reflects the it was now 41/41:10F -40110- - increasing - 'Oa possible to co*4hruir record sophistication 4. sound on of the serious a reusable audiophile whose requirements can only be met by storage a small number of select products. medium, Our involvement in the design which could and production of even be cut and professional spliced together again. equipment has led Itis with us to think in terms considerable pride only of professional that we note our standards, even for participation in these our consumer developments right from the products. very beginning. This approach As long produces far-reaching agc as effects; the 1954, performance of our REVOX recorders with recorders regard to durability, mechanical were and electrical s:ability, and already closely -held 6. equipped specification with the tolerances, will professional stand three motor drive system. comparison What isit that makes REVOX recorders so with professional successful? equipment and The answer to this 3. this is our main question must take - "".;-, 411k contribution to the into account the dir realization of true changes which high fidelity sound have occurred reproduction in the in the home. consumer Does your equipment meet the since the high standards you require? early days of Visit ycur nearest REVOXdealer or writeto: recording. Today's audiophi les 155 MICHAEL DRIVE have an increasing REVOXSYOSSET, N.Y. 11791 awareness of true quality, and only a first-class 1. DYNAVOX (1950)2. REVOX A36 (1954) product has a chance of being accepted by the 3. REVOX D36 ('960)4. REVOX A77 MK I(1967) serious recording enthusiast. 5. REVOX A700 .1973) 6. REVOX A77 MK IV (1975) CIRCLE 56 ON READER -SERVICE CARD /./s C eViS

means less noise and distortion for longer periods com- pared with untreated records. But since Ball had made no decision on marketing, it swore us to secrecy for the time Ball's Canned Preserver being. Now Sound Guard, as the phonographic product has been dubbed, has been officially announced. Delivered in About a year ago we heard from a gentleman at the Ball a Freon solution, itis squirted onto the disc surface and Corporation, the company that has been making canning buffed to form a uniform film. The Freon-which is there jars since 'way back when, asking if we could meet him to simply as a vehicle and is not the propellant type that is discuss a possible new product in our field. A high fidelity alleged to be a contributor to ozone -layer destruction- product from the Ball Corporation? Fortified with more evaporates rapidly, leaving the dry lubricant bonded to the questions than answers, we attended the meeting. vinyl. (According to Ball, Sound Guard can be removed Ball,it seems, has had a significant role in space re- with detergent and water, but not readily.) Wear to the film search, notably the development of a dry lubricant that may begin after about twenty plays, some spokesmen say. can be used on moving parts in the high vacuum and tem- although in testing at an independent laboratory retained perature extremes of outer space. It made possible, we by Ball the discs were subjected to 100 plays without re - were told, many projects (such as the Lunar Rover) that coating and still gave excellent results. When a second ap- would have been mechanically impossible otherwise. plication is required, the lubricant will adhere wherever the As it turns out, the lubricant-called Vackote-also ap- vinyl is exposed but not to those portions of the groove wall pears to have interesting properties for earthbound that retain protection. phonograph records. It can be applied as an extremely thin Sound Guard initially is being made available in a 2 -oz. film and will dissipate electrostatic charges. It will, accord- Windex -type bottle (enough, says Ball, to treat about ing to Ball, improve life expectancy of both records and twenty discs) with a buffing pad, at about $6.00 for the kit. styli and, at the same time, reduce the quantities of dust A refill bottle may be on the market shortly. and vinyl debris to be expected in the record groove. That CIRCLE 153 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

A Full Warranty

Allison Acoustics has implemented the first full warranty, as that word "full" is defined under the recently enacted Magnuson -Moss Warranty Act, that we know of on a con- sumer audio product. The document begins: "Allison Acoustics warrants that each of our loudspeaker systems will perform within ±2 dB for five years from the date of original purchase." It provides that the manufacturer will pay shipping both ways ifitis necessary to return the equipment to the factory for warranty service. Abuse and damage resulting from unauthorized repair are among the few conditions omitted from coverage, and Roy Allison, president of the company, indicated in a clarifying letter to us that any reasonaole doubt will be resolved in favor of the consumer. One provision of the new federal law is that a full warranty must be transferable with the ownership of the product, and that is fulfilled by Allison as well. This is Betamax LV-1901, Sony Corp.'s Allison's letter concludes: "The Magnuson -Moss War- recentlyintroduced home videotape ranty Act gives the consumer some remedies against non record/playback system, whichin- compliance that he did not have before and prohibits some cludes a 19 -inch Trinitron color receiver deceptive practices in warranty statements. . . . It should and sells for $2,295. A deck version with- be welcomed by every manufacturer who sincerely wishes out the receiver costs about $1,300. to deal honestly and fairly with his customers." Well said, Roy Allison. And congratulations to you and your company on apparently setting a precedent for the high fidelity industry.

24 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE where QUALI-N hcsoeen ctrccifion TO -125 AB MAR. 7D-125 BIN.ARIC II 'AI,* Availabi, forayer90yecrs.

t all s:arted in 1883 ii Et_ Croix, Switzerland where Herman Thorens began p-orn_c- ion of what was to begone the world's reroavned Thorens MJSiC Boxes. For almost a century Thorens has p cneered n many phases of soind reproduct on Thorens introduced E uunber of indi_s:ry fists, a direct drive turn:able in 1928, auc turntable standards, suci as the famed Thorens TD 124 Model. TO -160G Over its long history Thorens has learned that an exceptional turntable requires a blend of precision, refined strength, and sensitivity. Such qualities are abundantly present in all five Thorens Transcription Turntables.Speaking of quality, with Thorens it's the last thing you have to think about. At Thorens it's always been their first consideration. So if owning the ultimate in a manual turntable is important to you. then owning a Thorens is inevitable. ELPA MARKETING INDUSTWES, INC. EAST: New Hyde Park, New York TH N WEST: 7301 E. Evans Rd., Scottsdale. Arizona 85260 The Accent ,s on Quality EquipZ

Epicure offers a compact speaker system

Epicure Products, Inc., boasts a ten-year warranty on the Epicure Five, a

compact loudspeaker. The two-way air -suspension design features a 6- inch low -mass woofer and a 1 -inch air -spring tweeter with a balanced voice -coil assembly. The Epicure Five also has a tweeter level control de- signed to tailor the system's sound to room acoustics. Epicure claims a frequency response of 50 Hz to 20 kHz, ± 3 dB, for this 8 -ohm unit. Fin- ished in walnut laminate with an acoustically transparent grille cloth, the Epicure Five costs $70. CIRCLE 146 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Technics offers belt -drive servo turntable

Now available from Technics is the SL -23 turntable. It is belt -driven by a DC motor with a frequency -generator servo -control circuit. Technics claims rumble figures of -40 dB DIN -A and -65 dB DIN -B, and wow and flutter of 0.05%. Features include electronically controlled speed switching, antiskating, and viscous -damped cueing. The SL -23 is semi- automatic. It comes with a hinged, detachable dust cover and costs $139.95. A similar, manual model, the SL -20, costs $99.95. CIRCLE 149 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Three heads are better than one

A new line of modular electret condenser microphones is available from Sennheiser Electronic Corp. This line features a common power module and three screw -on heads: omnidirectional, cardioid, and shotgun (hy- percardioid). The K -2U power module, which uses a 5.6 -volt battery rated for 600 hours, can also be remotely phantom -powered from aux- iliary equipment. Accessories such as windscreens and shockmounts are available. The shotgun head, ME -80, costs $108; the cardioid head, ME -40, is $78; and the ME -20 omnidirectional head is $55. The K -2U power module is available for $79. CIRCLE 150 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Infinity's newest speaker: Monitor Jr. Principles refined in Infinity Systems' Servo-Statik 1A are said to be employed in the Monitor Jr. The speaker may be mounted on a book- shelf or on an optional matching pedestal. Using a 12 -inch trans- mission -line woofer, 11/2 -inch dome midrange, and 1 -inch dome tweeter designed to act in accurate phase, the system is said to enable the lis- tener to hear stage placements of individual instruments in orchestral recordings, not only left -to -right, but front -to -back as well. The price of the Monitor Jr. is $225; the optional pedestal is approximately $25. CIRCLE 146 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Abstracta Home Entertainment Centers introduced Rapoport & Associates of California has announced the Abstracta line of home entertainment centers. The system consists of plexiglass pan- els and glass shelves mounted on lightweight, chromed -steel tubes and die-cast alloy connectors. The sturdy structure enables the audiophile to install and display separate components without interfering with room decor. Cables may be hidden behind the opaque vertical panels, and each shelf of the Abstracta is supported on rubber pads for min- imum vibration. There are three models in the line. Pictured here is the Abstracta 2000. Also available are the Abstracta 1000 and 500, both smaller units. Prices range from $177.50 to $299. CIRCLE 152 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

26 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE L8910 VIA1 "uolbuluul!M ADM PP/srPul V.9 aul`swelsASPIOCI 6011:XJV'say :OalumJOJepea say inoA ees uotiouwojui0.10W JCH .welsAs Jawads ,kpionb opnis einioipw s,ppom eq snof eu!Lpow woeip p eq Aow p noA of 1.10 ei4 Jo epols mau V S

oozsoti

(uottiocioid tadoid ut umous P)00.9J puo 00Zsay)

TVAS ICI\ 'OS HiFi-Crostic No. 11 by William Petersen

0 1 V 2 3 H 4 N 6 V 7 19 0 C 8 9 13 110 12 N 13 0 14 DIRECTIONS T 15 F 18V 17 U 18 20 A 21 C 22 0 23T 24 H 25 N 27 W 29 To solve these puzzles -and they 110 aren't as tough as they first seem - I 30 H 31 J 34 I 35 N 36A 37 T 38K 390 40 F 41 R 42 supply as many of the Output words as you can in the numbered dashes

0 43 48 following the InputUnless otherwise 0 47 U 48 F 49N 50W 51 D 52A 53 0 55U 56 F 57 specified in the Input. the Output con- sists of one English word "Comp .1 58 60 I 61 C 62 U 63 D 64 L 65 F 660 67 N 680 69 means compound. or hyphenated. AP Vr word v 71 D 74J 75 0 76 0 77 N 78T 79 K.....-11 01 81 C 82 F 83 Transfer each letter to the square 5 p ...4-- in the diagram that bears the corre- 0 85 W 86 840 89 G 91 0 92 V 93 0 94K 95 J 980 97 sponding number After only a few II correct guesses you should begin to B 98 N 99 F 100 0 105 U 106 A 109 R 110 see words and phrases emerging in the diagram. which when filled in will

D 111 contan a quotation related to musc. N 114F 1150 116 J 117W 118C 119 F 121 0 122V 123 recordings, or audio The words in the quotation are 0 124 K 126 A 127N 128 H 129 0 132D 133U 134 N 135 separated by darkened squares and 111/ do not necessarily end at the end of F 136H 137T 1380 139 0 140 A 141 L 142 U 145 C 146 F 147T 1480 149 a row Try to guess at these words and D 151 J 152T 153 .1 156 N 1580 159 D 160W 181 transfer each newly decoded letter Walli back to its appropriate dash in the ligG 164 B 165 0 166 P F 169N 170 0 171 U 173N 174F 175 OutputThis willsupply you with further dues A final clue The source of the A 177 181 T 182 W183G 184 U 185 0 187 D 188 R 189 quotation - the author and his work -will be spelled out by the first letters 0 190 J 191 H 192 N 193 0 194 A 195B 0 197V 98 196 L 200 U 201 0 202 in the Output reading down The answer to I-1R-Crostic No 11 EU, A 204 0 205 0 206 D 207 N 208C 209 will appear in next month's issue of Figh Fidekty

INPUT OUTPUT M 1959 Danny Kaye movie based on the life of band- 150 1.881 (---).12t-0.3 Eft:i 46 131 44 leader Fled Nichols (3 wcfs ) A English composer of movie 1=- .11 S: music (b1904) Warsaw 204 177 21 53 195 141 109 127 54 143 179 120 102 70 Concerto 37 B. Songwriter Richard (Pa- N Cab Galloway's compila- 78 50 135 6 174 27 193 158 jama Game [1954]; Damn tion ofJive talk- (2 wds ) Yankees [1955) and his 144 36 father. Clarence. the Acros- 9 196 98 165 130 155 208 170 114 99 13 tidarts piano teacher 89 68 128 G Frederic American composer, long resident in Europe(b. 1938). His Corn- O Noted Amencancomposer 47 116 77 1 ing Together was recorded 146 82 62 8 119 209 22 (b1908)piece for four 94 190 205 159 by Opus One kettledrums(1952)(full name) 67 55 124 12 166 D 1959 Salvatore Martirano 202 105 139 194 84 111 160 207 composition, 0 0 0 (4 wds.) P Phineas . jazz pani 74 188 23 52 92 133 162 171 (b 1931) 199 107 32 168 125 10 157 O In 1945 this Austrian com- 64 40 122 151 180 11 poser (b1900). whose 140 113 187 43 206 197 76 14 jazzy Jonny spelt auf fir -4 E. -Nanette (2 wds ). con- _AL _C2 brought him acclaim, be- temporary Italian compos- 163 45 108 5 came a U S citizen(full 149 3 87 e( (1 erd ) name)

F Catch phrase of the most R 147 175 115 49 66 16 100 41 of Endor. composed popular musical TV show and recorded for Columbia 110 103 42 189 172 of the '50s (2 wds ) by Word S 57 181 169 83 136 121 S N Y beggar. landmark. and musician,bornLouis C2 176 186 19 104 f;.1 b9 167 G Reed blowers 85 164 97 69 184 132 91 Thomas Hardin. in the 1950s the object of a jazz- meris cult H. Sweet (ocanna) 4 192 137 129 31 25 T American composer (b 1905) many piano works, 90 153 15 182 138 24 148 38 includingtwo conceits I Berners 61 33 35 30 (full name) 79

J Jazz bassist (b1919). U Electronic instrument. e.g . played with Dizzy Gillespie. 75 191 117 96 46 156 58 34 201 173 72 185 106 145 48 18 Count Base (fullprofes- Babbitts Composition for sional name) 152 20 63 134 56 K Joaquin _____. Cuban pia- I -I nist/composer (1879- Singer and leader of an all - IP 1949):In the Service of 126 39 95 T98 101 154 28 71 178 2 60 Art girl band (b1916), a TV hit in the '50s (full name: L James Philip Ameri- 17 7 123 93 can composer (1884- 200 142 81 65 1936)We. Overture on W Curtis Lee (b19261. Negro Themes jazz bass player in Word IA 183 161 118 51 86 29 Solution to last month's HiFi-Crostic appears on page 4.

28 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE If you're surprised to learn that tubes solve some amplifier problems best, youhave something to learn about amplifiers. And about LITX.

It may seem courageously retrogressive for a company conventional tubes. The only tube previously capable of to introduce a tube amplifier-even a highly advanced high -power amplification-the pentode-has inherently higher type-to the semiconductor audio world of 1976. Especially levels of distortion than the triode. Existing lower -distortion for a company only recently established in the U.S. market triode tubes cannot deliver sufficiently high power as a with a comprehensive line of solid-state amplifiers and tuners. simple push-pull pair. But LUX, together with NEC engineers. But for LUX, it is simply consistent with our philosophy has developed the first of a new breed of triode tube, the whatever path may lead to improvement in the accuracy of 8045G. which with otner related technological advances, music reproduction will be explored by our audiophile/ makes possible a high -power. low -distortion triode engineers. Whether it leads to transistors or tubes. amplifier-the Luxman MB -3045. Among the differences in Certainly, transistors are not about to be obsoleted this new triode: the plate -electrode uses a special bonded by tubes. However, there are some amplifier problems that metal with high heat -radiation characteristics. Also, the tubes still handle better than transistors. Overloading fin structure further aids heat dissipation. is one such problem. LUX also developed a low -distortion high -voltage driver When a solid-state amplifier is driven beyond its rated tube. the 62400, capable of delivering over 200 volts of power, it clips abruptly. Engineers call ithard clipping. The audio signal to the output triodes. Also. a new output term is apt, as the sound from the spurious high -order odd transformer (LJX's,long-time special area of expertise) has harmonics is raspy and irritating. Further, if the overall been designed to take optimal advantage of the triode circuitry is not stable, and the protective circuits not very configuration feeding it. The quadrafilar winding and core well -designed, the distortion is extended in time beyond the technology of this transformer represents another break- moment of overload. Drive a tube amplifier beyond its rated through. Overall, from input to output, the use of advanced power and it too clips the waveform, but gently and design direct -coupled and self -balancing differential amplifier smoothly. This soft" clipping introduces much smaller stages ensures stability and minimum phase shift. amounts of odd harmonics. The distortion is far less irritating, The MB -3045 produces a minimum of 50 watts hence less noticeable. continuous power into 4, 8, or 16 ohms, at any frequency Notch (or crossover) distortion. present in many from 20 to 20,000 Hz, with total harmonic distortion no more transistor amplifiers, is another source of spurious high -order than 0.3%. As the MB -3045 is monophonic, a pair of them odd harmonics. It occurs when the transistor output connected to a stereophonic preamplifier will not be circuits are not able to follow the musical waveform accurately subject to stereo power -supply interaction. at the points where it changes from positive to negative Now, we don't expect the MB -3045 to become the and back again. Since notch distortion, unlike clipping, is at a world's best-selling amplifier, any more than Our highest - constant level regardless of the power the amplifier is power solid state power amplifier, the M-6000 priced delivering, the ratio of this distortion to signal is worse at lower at nearly $3000. power. The gritty quality heard from many transistor amplifiers. You'll find both at our carefully selected LUX dealers particularly when they are playing at low levels, is usually who will be pleased to demonstrate them for you. And any due to crossover distortion. of the other dozen or so LUX models. It's why they're Of course, tubes also have their limitations. Especially LUX dealers in the first place.

When a typical transistorized amplifier tries to deliver more Power than it can, the top and bottom edges of the waveform clip sharply and abruptly and not always sym- metrically Result high -order har- monic distortion raspy and irritating

When a tube amplifier such as the Luxman MB -3045 is driven into over- load. the clip- ping is softer uxman MB -3045 monophonic tube power amplifier. with more 50 watts minimum continuous power into 4. 8. or 16 rounded edges ohms. 20-20 kHz. total harmonic distortion no more output signals Frequency response 2-80 kHz. +0 to the waveform than 0 3% Frequency response 10 to 40 kHz. ± 1 dB -0 5 dB RIAA equalization -±-0 3 dB Features The resulting Signal to noise ratio 95 dB Variable sensitivity. control include tape monitoring and dubbing. 6 selectable distortion is 'or matching gain to any preamplifier $445 00each turnover frequencies. twin high and low noise filters. much less audi SLuxman CL -35111 stereo tube preamplifier. Total switchable phono-input impedance (30. 50. 100 bly bothersome narmonic distortion 0 06% at 2 01V. 20-20 kHz. all kohms). variable input sensitivities $745 00 LUX Audio of America, Ltd. 200 Aerial Way. Syosset. New York 11791

In Canada AMX Sound Corp Ltd . British ColJrnbia. Gentroni: Ltd . Quebec KLIPSCHORN® X-3 LOUDSPEAKER, CIRCA 1942, IS STILL ALIVE AND REPRODUCING. The Klipschorn you buy today will be doing the same in the 21st century. Paul W. Klipsch recalls building the first models: "The experimental corner woofer "X-1" was made in the garage of an acquaintance of mine in Houston in March of 1940. After I made the X-3, the original X-1 was stored in a barn behind my house in Hope; the termites ate it and it had to be burned. It was not a good speaker. The X-3 was the prototype from which the K-3 KLIPSCHORN woofers evolved and is really KLIPSCHORN

1 since X-1 was an entirely dif-

ferentstructure with a response limited to 200 Hz. Klipsch-designedhigh frequency horn. The X-3 is still in existence and in Then, with the addition of a tweeter the operating condition. X-3 was built KLIPSCHORN emerged asvirtuallythe entirely by me by hand-not a ma- same speaker that is produced today. And chine made cut.I whittled the thing because the design is fundamental to the out with a hand saw and wood rasp laws of acoustics it's an investment for a (1942)." lifetime. This coupon will bring the latest By 1946 a few modifications were made information on the full line of Klipsch and the KLIPSCHORNhad acquired a loudspeakers.

KLIPSCH AND ASSOCIATES, INC. P.O. Box 688 H-4Hope, Arkansas 71801 In Canada: Superior Electronics, Inc. Please send me your latest brochure and list of dealers. Name Address City State Zip Plywood construction CIRCLE 21 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE A CONSUMER'S GUIDE 215Ou harman/kereen730

4

Harman-Kardon 730 An Outstanding Performer with Fast Reflexes

The Equipment: Harman-Kardon 730 stereo receiver in switches in CONTOUR (loudness compensation), and the metal case. Dimensions: 171/2 by 5'/2 inches (front), 13% other converts the un t to L & R mono operation. Next are inches deep, plus clearance for controls, connections, and five knobs: tone controls (bass and treble), a balance con- ventilation. Price: $419.95. Warranty: "limited," two years trol, a volume contro., and a selector knob that chooses parts and labor. Manufacturer: Harman-Kardon, Inc., 55 any one of six inputs: PHONO 1 and 2, AUX 1 and 2, FM, or Ames Court, Plainview, N.Y. 11803. AM. The back panel holds the usual array of pin jacks, Comment: Sometimes, in testing a piece of equipment, we stacked, at the upper left, in stereo pairs with two pairs find that its behavior reminds us of a subtle but important each for phono, aux, and tape -monitor inputs, plus two point that had slipped away from our conscious attention. more pairs for tape-recording outputs. Joined to the panel The Harman-Kardon 730 is such a case. Usually one al the center is a rotatable ferrite -rod AM antenna. Below thinks of a power amplifier simply as a device that turns this and slightly to the right are the reset buttons for the out an amplified version of the input from the preamp to circuit breakers that protect the loudspeakers in lieu of feed to the loudspeakers, which change it into a sound fuses. At the lower .eft are a binding post for chassis wave. But the amplifier has a more active role to play in its ground and a small knob that adjusts the FM -muting relationship with the speakers-it has to overcome their threshold level. Further to the right are three binding mechanical inertia and keep them under control. We posts, one for an external AM antenna and two for a 300 - found in our listening tests that the amplifier section of the ohm FM antenna. If you want to use a 75 -ohm antenna, 730 does this very well indeed. (It made our reference the manual suggests a matching transformer at the input speakers sound much better than usual.) We will discuss connections. Next is a set of preamp-out and main -in this point further when we get to the lab tests. jacks. (They are supplied with the common, uninsulated, In its appearance, the Harman-Kardon 730 can be de- U-shaped jumpers-which, be it noted, can be shorted if scribed as mild-mannered and functional. Itis pleasant they contact metal objects.) Spring -loaded connectors, en- enough to look at but could easily escape notice in a living gineered for bared -wire leads, are provided for two sets of environment. The upper section of the front panel is a loudspeakers. And there are switched and unswitched smoked plastic window that obscures most of what is be- convenience outlets (one of each) rated at 200 watts hind it until the power is turned on. At that time FM and apiece and the AC power cord. AM dials and a logging scale spring into prominence (of In the lab tests at CBS and in our listening tests the 730 which only the logging scale is well calibrated-complicat- receiver scored very well. Curiously, we found that the FM ing unnecessarily, we think, the process of tuning to a section sounded a good deal quieter than the lab figures given frequency), flanked at the left by an unusual tuning for stereo quieting would suggest. The explanation ap- meter. Superimposed on the rightmost end of the window pears to lie in the figures for midband harmonic distortion, are a large tuning knob and a small pushbutton that en- which-though they are below 0.5%-are high enough to gages FM muting. The lower section of the panel, which is a brushed metal plate, has a self -illuminating plastic pushbutton at the left end that doubles as an AC on/off switch and a pilot light. REPORT POLICY Equipment reports are based on laboratory measurements and controlled listening tests unless otherwise noted. test data and measurements are Just to the right of this is a headphone output jack, which Obtained by CBS Technology Center, Stamford. Connecticut a cl,vision of Uoiumbia Broad- casting System. Inc. one of the nation's leading research organizatiOns The choice or is live for all settings of the speaker selectors. Then there equipment to be tested rests with the editors of Hion Flown, Manufacturers are not are two vertical rows of pushbuttons. The first two each permitted to read reports in advance of publication. and no report. or portion thereof. troy be reproduced for any prrpose or in any fOrrn withOut written permiattiOn of the can connect a pair of speakers (8 -ohm impedance, min PublisherAll reports should be construed as applying to the specific samples tested. imum if both sets are to be driven simultaneously). The neither Hid. FIDELITY nor CBS Technology Center assumes responsibility for product performance or quality next pair engage tape monitors 1 and 2, and the next high - cut and low-cut filters, respectively. Of the last two, one

APRIL 1976 31 Harman-Kardon 730 Receiver Additional Data account for most of the hum, noise, and distortion that limits stereo quieting to 47 dB at best. More significantly, this quieting is reached at a mere 50 -microvolt input. In Tuner Section mono, where the best quieting figure is an excellent 58 dB (at 500 microvolts), total hum, noise, and distortion is at Capture ratio 1% dB least 50 dB down for any input greater than 3.0 microvolts, Alternate -channel selectivity 81 dB an excellent mark for other receiver designers to shoot at. Mono sensitivity is 1.5 microvolts (better than claimed); S/N ratio 83 dB stereo switching occurs at 12 microvolts. FM frequency re- sponse is almost perfectly flat in both mono and stereo, THD Mono L ch R ch and separation measurements ran off the bottom of the 80 Hz 0.13% 0.30% 0.58% 1 kHz 0.18% 0.40% 0.42% lab's strip -chart recorder throughout the bass and mid- 10 kHz 0.14% 1.8% 1.4% range. Separation was checked at 1 kHz; it proved to be 47 dB in the left channel, 45 in the right. This represents ex- IM distortion 0.10% traordinary performance, especially for a receiver of this

price class. Muting for FM is both adjustable and defeat- 19 -kHz pilot -65'/z dB able at the user's option. 38 -kHz subcarrier -68 dB The amplifier section too sounds better than the meas- ured parameters -excellent though they obviously are- Frequency response mono +0, -1 dB, 20 Hz to 15 kHz L ch + %, -1/2 dB, 20 Hz to 15 kHz R ch 1/2 dB, 20 Hz to 15 kHz

Channel separation >40 dB, 20 Hz to 2.2 kHz >30 dB, 20 Hz to 8 kHz

Amplifier Section 50 HZ

Damping factor 57 (see text) Square -wave response Input characteristics (for 40 watts output) Sensitivity S/N ratio phono 1, 2 2.2 mV 73 dB 0 tape monitor 1, 2 140 mV 88 dB m aux 1, 2 140 mV ci 88 dB FM SENSITIVITY & QUIETING CHARACTERISTICS zg -10 Total harmonic distortion o MONO SENSITIVITY STEREO THRESHOLD at 40 watts <0.085%, 20 Hz to 20 kHz cc1= -20 \ (for 3C dB quieting) 12.0 pV at 90 MHz. for 41 dB quieting at 20 watts <0.034%, 20 Hz to 20 kHz o 1.6 pV at 90 MHz 12.0 liV at 98 MHz, for 411/2 dB quieting In % 1.5 pV at 98 MHz 12.0 RV at 106 MHz, for 411,2 dB quieting at 0.4 watts <0.12%, 20 Hz to 20 kHz o % 1.6 IN at 106 -0,30 ' I 1.5 pV (mono) cn t RIAA equalization accuracy WMHz, + 0, -11/2 dB, 20 Hz to 20 kHz -40 ; (stereo) + 0, -1/4 dB, 30 Hz to 20 kHz = _50 ..., -a .. I< -

CZ_60 POWER OUTPUT DATA '

CHANNELS INDIVIDUALLY 730 (1) Left at clipping: 46.0 watts for 0.014% THD Left at 0.1% THD: 47,0 watts 1 10 100 1K 10K 100K Right at clipping. 46.0 watts for 0.018% THD RF INPUT IN MICROVOLTS Right at 0.1% THD: 48.0 watts

CHANNELS SIMULTANEOUSLY Left at clipping, 46.0 watts for 0.11% THD 0.2 Right at clipping: 46.5 watts for 0.12% THD , INTERMODULATION CURVES 0.1 0.07 ------POWER BANDWIDTH 2 0.05

+2 63 0.03 +1 50 0.02 0- 40 For a I% THD: below 10 Hz to 40 kHz -1 For 0.5% THD (1/4 dB additional output at 32 measured frequencies) 0 0.01 -2 25 0.007 -3 20 0.005 FREQUENCY RESPONSE 8 -ohm load: 0.045%, below 0.2 to 50.4 watts (1 watt output) +5 0.003 4 -ohm load: 0.088%, below OA to 66.5 watts - 16 -ohm load: .:.0.050%, below 0.1 to 31.9 watts 0 0.002 =14 d8, 10 Hz to 40 kHz -5 730 (3) 730(5)

1020 100 1K 10K 20K 100K 1 2 5 10 20 50 100 200 500 1K FREQUENCY IN HZ OUTPUT IN WATTS

32 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE would suggest. Continuous power exceeds specifications The FM tuning meter is a special bright spot. It indicates by a comfortable margin, the less powerful channel (the the point at which the quietest signal can be received, a left, in our sample) producing a 47 -watt output with just point that does not necessarily coincide with the center of 0.1% harmonic distortion-at 1 kHz. Harmonic distortion the channel. Since quieting-instead of signal strength-is remains low throughout the power range, rising to slightly indicated, the meter is tuned for minimum instead of max- more than 0.1% only in the 0.4 -watt tests (1% of rated imum indication. This may take a little getting used to. power). More important, the meter, unlike one for channel center- The measurements of intermodulation distortion are ing, does not indicate which direction the tuning knobs sterling: All are well below 0.1% throughout the power should be turned to improve tuning. This still is a minor range, as shown in the accompanying graph. This sug- point. For AM the meter shows signal strength. gests that the power amp section of the 730 behaves well The "fast reflexes" to which we allude in this receiver re- when called upon to deliver extremes of voltage or current, fer to its excellent transient response, which it not only has which the the reactive loads presented by loudspeakers of- in and of itself, but can impose on a set of loudspeakers. ten demand. As one would expect in a Harman-Kardon Why and how it is capable of doing this is not entirely clear amplifier, the power bandwidth (0 dB at 10 Hz to -3 dB at to us, but we suspect that it results from the frequency re- 40 kHz) and 1 -watt frequency response ( ± 1/4 dB, 10 Hz to sponse, current and voltage capabilities, and dampingfac- 40 kHz and only -1 dB at 100 kHz) are superb. This is con tor, which though modest at something less than 57 (the firmed by the extraordinary square -wave response at both output circuit breaker trips when this is measured on a ends of the audio band. continuous basis) is sufficient and appears to hold up well The controls of the receiver do not have the feel of lux- to extremes of frequency. But speculation aside, the Har- ury, but they are straightforward and simple to use. The man-Kardon 730 is one truly fine receiver, and it is avail- low-cut filter (-3 dB at 70 Hz with a 12 -dB -per -octave able at what is, in our opinion, a very attractive price. To slope) is very effective against rumble; the high -cut filter us, it looks like a real winner. (-3 dB at 3.6 kHz, 6 -dB -per -octave slope) is less useful. CIRCLE 144 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

The Marantz Studio -at -Home Cassette Deck

The Equipment: Marantz Model 5420, a stereo Dolby cas- sette deck with built-in four -input mixer, in wood case. Di- mensions: 171/4 by 123/4 inches (top), 61/2 inches high at tallest point. Price: $399.95. Warranty: three years parts and labor. Manufacturer: Marantz Co., Inc., 20525 Nord- hoff St., Chatsworth, Calif. 91311. Comment: This is a top model in the tape equipment recently added to the Marantz components catalogue. As the company is quick to point out, it is no newcomer to tape equipment, since its parent (Superscope, Inc.) is the four controls Dolby processing. The ON button cuts in the longtime U.S. distributor of all Sony -made tape units. And circuit in the normal way-for encoding during recording while the 5420 bears little obvious similarity to any Sony and decoding during playback. The EXTERNAL button al- model, it's difficult to believe that Marantz could have lows you to use the built-in Dolby processor with a second, crammed so many desirable features into a deck without non -Dolby deck attached to the appropriate jacks at the such a solid background of experience. back of the 5420. The last two switch a Dolby -FM function One striking idea is apparent as soon as you unpack the (in which a Dolby recording can be made from a Dolby -en- deck: It has a metal bracket built into its underside so that coded incoming signal while itis heard, Dolby -decoded, it can be angled upward, making it easier to use as a mix- from the output jacks) in or out and can be used as well for ing console during live recording. Even with this bracket copying Dolby cassettes from another deck with only the folded back against the underside, the meter panel is still monitoring signal decoded. The next three buttons control angled, the remainder of the top parallel to the surface on bias and recording equalization. There is one each for NOR- which the deck rests. MAL (ferric), CR02 (chromium dioxide), and FECR (ferri- The meters are large and boldly styled. The area below 0 chrome). The lab tested these with Sony tapes: UHF, CRO, VU lights up in blue, the area above in red. Tie meters and Ferri -chrome cassettes respectively. The final button themselves are the averaging type; there are peak indica- switches a limiter (for tape -overload protection when sig- tors-one for each channel-between the meters, along nal levels cannot be predicted or cannot be compensated with a mode indicator for recording. A long row of indica- for-as in unattended recording) in or out. tors for other functions extends to the left of the meters. The cassette well has a removable lid-important for Below these indicators, but still on the angled meter head cleaning and demagnetization. In front of it are the panel, is the counter (which appears to conform to the 2X usual transport levers: EJECT, REC, REW, PLAY, FF (fast for- standard that has been proposed for educational cassette ward), STOP, and PAUSE. The motion controls (REW, PLAY, equipment) with RESET and MEMORY rewind buttons. To FF, and snip) have no interlocks; the user can choose them their right are eight more pushbuttons. The first group of in any sequence. The EJECT lever will not activate until the

33 APRIL 1976 tape has been stopped. The PLAY lever will not activate un ing of Dolby broadcasts from a non -Dolby tuner. To the left less the inner cassette -support platform has been pressed of the jacks is another pair of screwdriver adjustments, down into play/record position. The RECORD lever will lock this time for Dolby alignment of signals coming from a sec- down when the tape is stopped so that you can preview ond deck and availing themselves of the EXTERNAL feature recording levels. This is, in sum, a carefully thought-out in the Dolby switching. Next is yet another pair of screw- transport -control system. driver controls, which set levels at the regular lineoutput The front -right portion of the top panel is occupied by jacks next to them. There also is a second pair of output the input level/mixing controls, which are unlike those of pin jacks (without level controls) to feed back to the exter- any other deck we've tested. There are four mixer/faders, nal deck. (Level adjustments, when recording on the exter- each with its own signal -selector button: left mic-1 /LINE -1, nal deck, are made at that deck, as explained in the man- right mic-1 /LiNE-1, left miC-2/ LiNE-2, and right miC-2/ LINE- ual.) And there is a chassis ground connection. The four 2. This means that a maximum of four mikes plus four line mike inputs (phone jacks) and a stereo headphone output inputs can be handled sequentially, with a total of four in are on the front panel just below the pan pots. use simultaneously. To the right of these faders is a fifth This is a whopping 'ist of features, all of whose ramifica- one that controls over-all output to the recording amplifier. tions are beyond our power to catalogue within the con- But that's not all. At the front are two large pan -pot knobs. fines of a test report. Inventive readers will surely conceive A pushbutton to their left switches them in or out of the some that neither we nor the writer of the manual have mic-2/ LINE -2 circuits. The left knob "moves" the left input thought of. If you already own an FM tuner or receiver and anywhere in the stereo perspective -from fully left to fully a tape deck -both non -Dolby -this unit will, at one swoop, right; the right knob does the same for the right input. add dubbing, Dolby for your existing equipment, and mix- The manual does a very good job of explaining the mul- ing versatility that otherwise would be unobtainable with- titudinous features and necessary Dolby -alignment proce- out investing in a fairly elaborate outboard unit. dures when the FM or external -deck features are used. The All this for under $400, and good performance, too! The instructions are complete and couched in simple language response curves show some rise in the high frequencies, with few of the philosophical asides that can confuse the but it is not severe -not severe enough, for example, that novice. The approach is simply, "If you want this, do that." we could fault the deck on this ground in listening tests. A knowledgeable user may, in some cases, find variant The response numbers, incidentally, seem to fall a little procedures that work better under certain circumstances; short of those in the Marantz specs. This appears to be be but the manual is written, as it should be, with the un- cause, although Marantz references its specs to -20 VU knowledgeable in mind. (many manufacturers appear to measure at -30 VU, And the manual is indispensable when you confront the though they may not state this fact, making "the num- back panel. There are two pairs of input pin jacks, one for bers" look very attractive), their measurements are keyed LINE 1 or FM, the other for LINE 2 or an EXTERNAL deck. To to the unit's meters, whose 0 VU is approximately 5 dB

ments for Dolby alignment of incoming FM signals, plus a switch to equalize the Dolby FM signal for the difference Marantz Model 5420 Additional Data between the de -emphasis of a normal FM tuner (75 micro- seconds) and that needed for correct reproduction of de Speed accuracy 0.03% fast at 105, coded Dolby broadcasts (25 microseconds). This switch is 120, & 127 VAC left at the FLAT position for all situations except the decod Wow and flutterplayback: 0.09% record/play: 0.12%

Rewind time (C-60 cassette) 91 sec.

Fast -forward time (same cassette)94 sec. DIN PLAYBACK RESPONSE 5420 (1) (0 dB- -20 WI +5 S/N ratio (re 0 VU, Dolby off) playback L ch: 51 dB R ch: 49'/a dB 0 record/play L ch: 491/2 dB R ch: 481/2 dB -5 Left channel: +41/2, -1/2 dB, 40 Hz to 10 kHz Erasure (333 Hz at normal level) 67 dB Right channel: +5, -1/4 dB, 40 Hz to 10 kHz Crosstalk (at 333 Hz) RECORD/PLAYBACK RESPONSE record left, play right +5 -20 VU) 42 dB record right, play left 421/2 dB 0:1 0

z -5 CHROME TAPE. DOLBY OFF Sensitivity (re DIN 0 VU) Left channel: +21/2, -3 dB, 34 Hz to 14.5 kHz line inputs L ch: 1.0 V R ch: 1.1 V Right channel: +21/2, -3 dB, 43 Hz to 13.5 kHz mike inputs L ch: 0.40 mV R ch: 0.42 mV P+5 LAJ 'X 0 Meter action (re DIN 0 VU) L ch: 4 dB high R ch: 41/2 dB high FERRICHROME TAPE. DOLBY OFF Left channel: +21/2, -3 dB, 31 Hz to 15.5 kHz Total harmonic distortion (at -10 VU) Right channel: +234, -3 dB, 33Hz to 15.5 kHz +5 L ch <1.8%, 50 Hz to 10 kHz R ch <1.8%, 50 Hz to 10 kHz 0 -5 IM distortion (record/play, -10 VU) FERRIC TAPE, DOLBY OFF 11 L ch: 5.0% R ch: 4.5% Left channel: =3 dB, 43 Hz to 12.5 kHz (Dolby on: ---) ---- Right channel: +4, -3 dB, 43 Hz to 13 kHz (Dolby on: ---) Maximum output (re DIN 0 VU) L ch: 1.2 V R ch: 1.2 V 20 50 100 200 500 1K 2K 5K 10K 20K FREQUENCY IN HZ

34 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE lower than the DIN 0 VU that CBS references its data to in does not specify its weighting. The difference is, under any testing. Hence tape saturation begins to affect the upper circumstances, inconsecuential.) Harmonic distortion is end of our curves before itaffects those provided by not quite as low as that in some decks we've measured, Marantz at the lower level. (The level to which the meters though it is within Marantz's 2% spec. Noise, erasure, and are keyed is, incidentally, under consideration as a new crosstalk measurements all are good to excellent. cassette standard in Europe-presumably in recognition While some other decks at similar prices may do a little of the fact that the original standard allows insufficient better in this measurement or that, we have yet to examine headroom for recording typical music with conventional a unit that offers anything like the 5420's encyclopedic averaging meters. This is why few decks today have meters features plus this performance class at the price. When keyed to the DIN 0 VU.) you consider the cost of a good mixer-to say nothing of The speed accuracy is-thanks, undoubtedly, to the the extra Dolby features, which cannot be bought in an servo -DC drive system-topnotch at 0.03% fast, with no outboard add-on that will perform the same functions- variation as line voltage is changed in the CBS tests. Wow the $400 price seems a steal. The 5420 is one heck of a and flutter, too, is excellent. With ANSI/ IEEE weighting, deck. the playback figure is 0.09%. (Marantz lists 0.07% but CIRCLE 142 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

A Fine $100 Turntable from Garrard

The Equipment: Garrard Model 125SB, a two -speed (33 and 45 rpm) automatic single -play belt -drive turntable as- sembly with tone arm, base, and dust cover. Dimensions: 16'/2 by 15', inches (base); 8VEI inches high, 16 inches ver- tical clearance needed to open cover without removing it. Price: $109.95. Warranty: one year parts and labor, ship- ping prepaid. Manufacturer: Garrard, England; U.S. dis- tributor: Garrard Div., Plessey Consumer Products, 100 Commercial St., Plainview, N.Y. 11803.

Comment: This is a very attractive product for what must figure as a modest price. Garrard's formerly luxury -prod- uct -only Synchro-Lab motor design plus belt drive deliver quiet, accurate performance; the arm design includes a full complement of adjustments; the base and cover allow better than average flexibility of placement. To achieve all more than one pickup, you can get extra clips. The clip's this at the price, Garrard has had to dispense with auto- wires have the normal four-color coding. The output-via matic -changer operation and some of the finer details of low -capacitance cables suitable for CD -4 and terminated finish that can be found in its highest -priced turntables. in pin plugs-is coded gray and black. There is a grounding The tradeoffs seem well chosen for the cost-conscious wire as well. audiophile. Another optional extra is the adapter for large -hole 45s. The speed -change (33 and 45) lever is to the left of the With this one possible exception (depending on whether platter, the main motion -control lever (off/manual/auto- you own and play 45s), the 125SB is virtually ready to in- matic) is to the right. In addition, there is a single-play/re- stall in your system as delivered. Not only is there min- peat lever near the tone -arm mounting and a size -indexing imum work to unpacking and setting up, but both the base lever (12/10/7 -inch) to the right of the tone -arm support. and dust cover are supplied. The cover is as cleverly de- You can play-once or repeatedly-any type of micro- signed as it is unelaborete: a simple plastic shell with no groove disc either manually or fully automatically: that is, back. What normally would be the back portion is per- with automatic arm setdown and return. There is a cueing manently attached to the base. The whole cover can be lever, of course. It is mounted near the arm pivot and has tilted up-just as though it were on hinges-until it rests damped descent. against this back member in the up position, or it can be Other adjustments at and near the pivot include the ver- slid forward and removed. The latter option reduces verti- tical tracking force (VTF) knob on the counterweight, a cal clearance required for the entire assembly to little over dual -scale (for conical and elliptical styli, with the former- 8 inches; the former makes the cover self -storing while you surprisingly-recommended for CD -4styli), antiskating are starting or removing a record. bias lever at the far right corner of the top plate, and The Synchro-Lab motor was unaffected by voltage screws (all built into the pivot assembly) that tr m auto- changes in the lab tests at CBS, remaining 0.3% fast at 33 matic setdown point, automatic lift -up height, manual and 0.7% fast at 45 for all test voltages. Average weighted cueing height, and a vertical arm -swing stop. The speed (ANSI/IEEE) peak flutter measures an excellent 0.07%, change belt guide (accessible through the platter once its with a maximum instantaneous value of 0.14%. These val- mat is removed) can be adjusted, but this should never be ues are typical of those we are seeing on belt -drive turn- necessary if your sample-like ours-was set correctly at tables today-meaning that they are notably better than the factory. those we would have expected on a unit at this price (where The cartridge is fitted (using supplied screws) to a clip idler drive was the rule) only a few years ago. The platter that automatically makes contact with the arm harness weighs in at 20 oz. Rumble, measured by the CBS-ARLL when it is inserted into the "shell," actually little more standard, is an excellent -63 dB. Performance in this re- than a guide for holding the clip in place. If you want to use spect exceeds not only the best turntables of only a few

APRIL 1976 35 years ago, but also Garrard's own specs, though they are range. There is no appreciable side drift to the cueing; au- written to the less -critical DIN B standard. tomatic cycling time is 12 seconds. The tone -arm resonance (using our regular Shure V-15 All told, this is splendid performance. We could find no Type III cartridge -though at a minimum recommended fault with the unit's operation or with its presumable de- VTF of 1.5 grams, the 125SB presumably is engineered for sign intent. There are several things itis not: a record somewhat less deluxe pickups) shows a rise of only 1.5 dB changer, a piece of machinery that dazzles by its sophis- at 7.5 Hz. Arm friction proves too low to measure; 0.45 tication of appearance and finish, and an appropriate ve- gram is needed for tripping of the automatic arm return. hicle for the mounting of the very best pickups. It is an Vertical tracking force is exact for all calibrations (from 0.5 inexpensive (and relatively uncomplicated) device of at- to 3.5 grams, measured in half -gram steps. The gauge ac- tractive appearance that, fitted with a good cartridge, will tually is calibrated in quarter -gram steps and can be set for hold its own sonically with just about any player on the VTFs above 4 grams, which coincides with the zero calibra- market in terms of rumble and wow. It should, in our esti- tion so that each full rotation of the control adds an addi- mation, find a reacy market. tional 4 grams). Antiskating bias is within the normal CIRCLE 145 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

Electro-Voice Interface B: The Loudspeakeras a Filter

designed to display most of the advantages of that system at a somewhat reduced cost. In addition, the efficiency has been raised by about 2 dB on the reasonable premise that a lower -priced loudspeaker is likely to be used in conjunc- tion with a lower -powered amplifier. The low -frequency design of the Interface systems is based to a large degree on the work of A. N. Thiele, who developed a theoretical analogy between the low -end cut- off of a loudspeaker and that of a high-pass filter. Looking at the problem in this way, Thiele was able to relate enclo- sure volume, cutoff frequency, and conversion efficiency. Electro-Voice has chosen to optimize this system for high efficiency, medium size, and moderately low cutoff. Snapping the grille cloth (secured by the usual Velcro fasteners) away from the front panel of one of these speakers reveals what appear to be a large woofer, a large midrange driver, and a small tweeter. They are in fact a small woofer, a small tweeter, and a large passive radiator. This last component, essentially a woofer cone with no voice coil and magret, acts in a manner similar to the port of a conventional bass -reflex system in that it derives its energy from the back wave of the woofer. But it differs in The Equipment: Electro-Voice Interface B loudspeaker sys- having more easily adjustable parameters that allow more tem, supplied as stereo pair with matching equalizer. Di- leeway in designing for a desired response. According to mensions: 14 by 23 inches (front), 91/4 inches deep. Price: Electro-Voice, the system in conjunction with its equalizer $325. Warranty: five years parts and labor on loud- uses a sixth -order Butterworth characteristic (one of the speakers; three years parts, one year labor on equalizer. high-pass characteristics investigated by Thiele), a fre- Manufacturer:Electro-Voice,Inc.,600 CecilSt.,Bu- quency response that remains quite flat to the cutoff fre- chanan, Mich. 49107. quency and then "falls off a cliff" at 36 dB per octave. Lab measurements made at the CBS Technology Center con- Comment: The Electro-Voice Interface B is a spinoff of the firm that the omnidirectional anechoic response curve has earlier Interface A (HF test report, February 1974) and is this general shape and show that it is within ±4 dB from

RESPONSE CHARACTERISTICS (1 watt input) Electro-Voice Interface B Harmonic Distortion* 100

Output Frequency 90 Level 80 Hz 300 Hz \,/..... (dB) % 2nd % 3rd % 2nd % 3rd

80 70 0.07 0.15 0.06 0.05 75 0.30 0.20 0.09 0.13 C/) 80 0.45 0.40 0.13 0.15 70 0_Z 85 0.73 0.65 0.11 0.13 90 I.' 1.0 0.24 0.15 95 2.0 60 AVERAGE OMNIDIRECTIONAL RESPONSE 1.8 0.47 0.11 4dB, 40 Hz to 13 kHz, re 831/2dB) 100 6.8 6.2 1.5 0.27 AVERAGE FRONT HEMISPHERIC RESPONSE 105 3.0 0.65 - ON -AXIS RESPONSE Interface B (I)

X20 50 100 200 500 1K 2K 5K 10K 20K 'Distortion data are takes on all tested speakers until distortion exceeds the 10% level or the speaker produces the spurious output known as buzzing, FREQUENCY IN HZ whichever occurs first.

36 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE 40 Hz to 12 kHz (with respect to a sound pressure level of equalizer delivers maximum boost. Thus, despite the fact 83'/2 dB). that the instruction manual indicates that two of these sys- The equalizer section of the system is active-it requires tems can be driven by a single amplifier (and with just one its own power connection-and is designed for connection equalizer, incidentally), we advise caution in making such into the amplifier via the tape -monitor facilities. (The tape a connection. The impedance rating based on the lab find- monitor connections are duplicated on the back panel of ings is 4.9 ohms-well under the 8 ohms at which Electro- the equalizer so that this useful function is not lost.) The Vo ce rates it. (Use of any other kind of speaker in parallel job of the equalizer is threefold:It boosts the low -fre- with this one would, of course, require disconnection of the quency response in the neighborhood of 39 Hz, rolls off re equalizer, which Interface B cannot tolerate.) sponse rapidly below 36 Hz to guard against woofer dam- In our listenirg tests, we found that fundamental bass age due to subsonic signals, and, by means of a three - tones remain audible to about 38 Hz. High frequencies are position switch, allows the upper end of the system re- there up to about 17.5 kHz and are well dispersed, remain- sponse to be tailored to the listening environment. This ing audible to about 45 degrees off axis. White noise is re- last function it performs extremely well-far better than produced cleanly and smoothly with just a hint of heavi- the usual balance controls-allowing almost exactly equal ness in the bass. The sound of the system in playing music increments in high -frequency level (approximately 4 dB at is pleasantly warm, with a transient response that can be 13 kHz) for each change of switch position. We find con- called graceful, rather than incisive or extremely precise. nection of the equalizer via the tape monitor somewhat That is, the Interface B's way of blurring transients is not problematical, however, in view of its protective function. the common -garden sort that tends to cause fatigue. Murphy's law virtually assures that sooner or later the Over-all, we would characterize Interface B as a loud- tape -monitor switch inadvertently will be turned off. speaker system that is pleasant and friendly-and in sev- Capable of producing a sound -pressure level of 94 dB eral ways. It produces a well -blended sound-such as one (at 1 meter on axis, 250 to 6000 Hz) with 2.65 watts of in- might hear from halfway back in a concert hall-rather put power, Interface B is above average in effic ency. The than the sharply etched sound that some listeners prefer. unit will accept a steady drive of 40 watts at 300 Hz for an But this characteristic makes it a forgiving speaker that output of 105 dB before buzzing sets in; pulsed input at will tolerate or even ameliorate minor foibles of other the same frequency reaches 163 watts average (326 watts equipment or the program material, rather than expose peak) before excessive distortion occurs. The peak sound them with uncompassionate accuracy. This is not, in other level produced (114 dB) bespeaks good dynamic range. words, intended as a speaker system for the superfussy Lab measurements reveal a rather uneven impedance audiophile. It is, rather capable of making a modest audio curve that rises above 16 ohms at three frequencies; more system rise to new heights-and, when all is said and done, important, it approaches 4 ohms between 100 and 300 Hz at quite an attractive price. and between 30 and 40 Hz, just the region in which the CIRCLE 141 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

The "Phase 2000"-A Solid Preamp with Some Surprises

preamp has features aplenty. There is one-ambience re- covery-we cannot recall seeing elsewhere. The optional walnut case adds a measure of warmth to the almost bland brushed gold of the faceplate. Near each of the four corners of the front panel there is a large knob. The one at the upper left is marked SELECTOR and has positions for PHONO, AUX, TUNER, TAPE 1, and TAPE 2. At the lower left is a knob labeled AMBIENCE (about which more later). The respective positions at the right side are occupied by a combination power on/off switch and vol- ume control and by a balance control. Four smaller knobs arranged in a row between the selector switch and volume control represent the tone controls-left treble, left bass, right treble, right bass. These are detented, each having five positions of boost and five of cut. Halfway between the The Equipment: Phase Linear Model 2000, a stereo pream- left and right channel controls is the pilot light. plifier/control center, in metal case with optional walnut Centered below the tone controls is a row of rectangular case. Dimensions: 5'/2 by 19 inches (front panel), 6 inches pushbuttons. The leftmost two of these are source/tape deep, plus clearance for controls and connections. Price: monitors for tape 1 and tape 2. The next chooses stereo or $299; walnut case, $37. Warranty: three years parts and mono operation. Ther there is one that (partly) defeats labor. Manufacturer: Phase Linear Corp., 20121 48th the ambience function. followed by another that engages a Ave., W. Lynnwood, Wash. 98036. low -frequency equalizer. The last three relate to the tone controls: the first to move the treble turnover point from 5 Comment: While the Phase Linear Model 2000 could not to 2 kHz; the next to move the bass turnover from 50 to be accused of hiding its light (it does have one, a light - 150 Hz; the last to defeat the tone controls entirely. This- emitting diode pilot) under a basket, the unit has an un- like many pushbutton arrays we've seen-is not the most usually laconic front panel in the context of today's fea- convenient arrangement for keeping track of which func- ture -waving. But inits substantialifsubtle way this tions are engaged and which are not. Though itis well

37 APRIL1976 thought-out for average purposes, it falls short of the une- quency response does not exhibit the nearly perfect flat- quivocal labeling possible with levers, for example. ness found in some preamps, the largest deviation in the The back panel of the Phase Linear 2000 is fitted with range from 20 Hz to 20 kHz is a mere 1/2 dB. Inaccuracy in the usual pin -jack input and output connections. The com the RIAA curve also is minor; it is down 3 dB at 20 Hz. mon practice of stacking stereo jack pairs with the left Reference output (2 volts at 1 kHz, into 100,000 ohms channel above the right is not followed here; the connec- shunted by a capacitance of 100 picofarads) is produced tions are side by side, with the left channel at the left as by a 360 -millivolt drive at any of the high-level inputs; the one faces the back of the unit. At the left of the panel are phono input is 20 dB more sensitive, requiring just 3.6 mil- four stereo output pairs. The first two, labeled MAIN, pro- livolts to achieve the same output. Hence we foresee no vide driving signals for left back and right back (for the problems in matching the preamp to other equipment. ambience effect), left front and right front. Then there are, Among the other measurements shown in the "Additional continuing toward the right, two stereo sets of tape out- Data" table, noise figures also are good-though they puts. Next are stereo input pairs for TAPE 2, TAPE 1, TUNER, don't precisely corfirm Phase Linear's specs, presumably AUX, and PHONO. Below the phono jacks is a binding post because of differences in measurement technique. Note for chassis ground, and there are three convenience out- that our reference level is 2 volts. If you wish to translate lets just below the tape outputs. Two are unswitched and for a reference level of 1 volt, a not uncommon practice, rated at 400 watts; the other is switched and has the same simply subtract 6 dB from the numbers shown. This still rating, with the total of all three not to exceed 850 watts. leaves 60 dB of signal-to-noise ratio in the phono input Before going on to the laboratory measurements, an ex- with the gain control wide open-standard (and worst- planation of the ambience function and the back outputs case) testing procedure at CBS. is in order. The ambience signal is derived by matrixing the The Model 2000 is as super in the listening as itis left and right signals so that L -minus -R and R -minus -L are smooth in the handling. Once one has become used to the available. These appear, respectively, at the left back and controls, they are convenient to operate and satisfying to right back outputs at a level controlled by the AMBIENCE touch. The extra flexibility in the tone controls (the sepa- knob on the front panel. These signals also are injected rate knobs for each channel, as well as the variable turn- into the front channels (L -minus -R into L, R -minus -L into over points) delivers worthwhile options. We find the am- R), the level of the injected signal being controlled by this bience recovery feature a decided plus, particularly if extra same knob. The ambience pushbutton defeats injection power amps and speakers are available for the back chan- into the front channels only. Once the rather complex op- nels. The unit does not dazzle; it offers instead solid per- eration of this system is learned, it can be used to create a formance-and for not too many dollars at that. pleasant quasi -quad effect, although in fairness one must CIRCLE 143 ON READER -SERVICE CARD say that some of the complexity arises from the addition of ambience to the front channels. But this allows use of this function (at least in part) without extra power amplifiers and loudspeakers. For reproduction of the straight differ- ence signals at the back outputs, of course, a second pair I I of amplification channels and speakers is required. a In measurements made at CBS, the Model 2000 proved itself a strong performer. In neither channel did output 50 HZ 10K HZ, clipping occur at less than 12.2 volts, whether driven singly or together. At an output level of 2 volts (more than enough for full output from most power amps), harmonic Square -wave response distortion was less than 0.02% in all cases-well below Phase Linear's 0.1% spec. And if we ignore as inaudible all Phase Linear 2000 Preamp Additional Data harmonics above 20 kHz, harmonic distortion is no more than 0.0066%. Intermodulation distortion (less than 0.002% for a 2 -volt output) likewise is very low. While fre- Frequency response (at 2 volts) +'h, -1/4 dB, 20 Hz to 20 kHz +'/x, -3 dB, below 10 Hz to 40 kHz PREAMP & CONTROL CHARACTERISTICS +5 Output, channels driven individually Left at clipping12.2 V for 0.023% THD

-5 RIM EQUALIZATION. -3 dB. 20 Hz to 20 kHz; 14 dB. 40 Hz to 20 kHz Right at clipping 12.2 V for 0.025% THD

Output, channels driven simultaneously +20 Left at clipping12.2 V for 0.023% THD +15 Right at clipping 12.2 V for 0.025% THD 50 Hz boost

+10 150 Hz boost 5 kHz boost Harmonic distortion (2 volts output) N+5 2 kHz boost L ch <0.0140%, 20 Hz to 20 kHz c) <0.0053%, 20 Hz to 10 kHz R ch <0.0190%, 20 Hz to 20 kHz L.,-5 <0.0066%, 20 Hz to 10 kHz 2 kHz cut -0 - 10 150 Hz cut 5 kHz cut IM distortion <0.002% (at 2 volts) -15 50 Hz boost - 20 Input characteristics (for 2 volts output) TONE CONTROLS - 25 --- "EQUALIZER' Sensitivity SIN ratio phono 3.6 mV 66 dB aux, tuner 360 mV 83 dB 2000 (2) tape 1, 2 360 mV 83 dB 20 50 100 200 500 1K 2K 5K 10K 20K FREQUENCY IN HZ

38 CIRCLE 38 ON READER -SERVICE CARD --O. Power, features and performance. That's what the new Sansui 9090 and 8080 stereo receivers are all about. Listen to what the new Sansui 9090 at under S750.00 has to offer: A whopping 110 watts minimum RMS power per channel with both channels driven into 8 ohms over the 20 to 20,0001-z range with no more than 0.2% total harmonic distortion. Twin power meters to monitor the output for each channel Advanced PLL IC Multiplex Demodulator for improved channel separation, eliminatingdistortion and reducing detuning noise Twin signal meters for easy, accurate tuning 7 -position tape play switch for total creative versatility in dubbing and monitoring and many other exciting features. Cabinet finished in walnut veneer. All in all the Sansui 9090 represents what is probably the most advanced receiver available today. Watt for watt, feature for feature, dollar for dollar, an almost unbelievable value. Also available is the Sansui 8080 at under 5650.00 with 80 watts of continuous RMS power under the same conditions with almost all the same features. Cabinet in simulated walnut grain. Try, and then buy, one of the new Sansui receivers at your favorite Sansui franchised dealer today. You will be glad you did. For years to come. 'The value shown is for informational purposes only The actual resale price will be set by the individual Sansui dealer at his option. SANSUI ELECTRONICS CORP. Woodside, NY 11377 Gardena, California 90247 SANSUI ELECTRIC CO., LTD., Tokyo, Japan SANSUI AUDIO EUROPE S.A., Antwerp. Belgium Sa_n_sui In Canada: Electronic Distributors Compliments ofa colleague.

In the high-fidelity field, excellence is everything. Excellence in editorialcoverage. Excellence in product performance. From ourcompany, their first advertiser, who haveB 0 C supplied the latter since 1937, congratulations to High Fidelity magazine for 25years of supplying the former. (And here's to the 25 coming up).

British Industries Co., Westbury, L.I. 11590. Makers of BIC Multiple v Play Manual Turntables and BIC Venturi speakers.

le EIRIIISH INDUSTRIES CO. A DIVISION 01 AVNET INC C 1976 Starting Out in the Fifties

0 NOW THE EARTH has more or lesscompleted twenty-five revolutions around the sun since the first issue of HIGH FIDE- LITY appeared, and civilized traditiondeclares that it is time to celebrate. At first thought, if you stop to thinkabout it at all, the number seems to have little real significance-cer- tainly not for the earth or the sun; if we'd had six fingers per hand and had developed a duodecimal system of counting, thirty-six years would have been the likely milestone.Twenty-five years would also seem to havelittle significance for most of you, for, if our recent research is correct, lessthan half our readers had been born in 1951. Yet the tradition of assigning the rubric "silver" (andthus by implica- tion "important") to an anniversary derived from one -quarterof our ten fingers times ten does have great benefitfor a journal like ours, which itself grew up with the field it covers. HIGH FIDELITY wasborn when the long-playing record was just a few years old, whenthe qual- ity tape recorder and wide -frequency disc were just a few yearsolder, and when the high fidelity industry that emerged from thesedevelop- ments was still in its infancy. Twenty-five years isjust about right for looking back, since it is long enough to have transformed the erainto legend, but not so long as to have deprived us of some of thepeople re- sponsible for the legend. The following articles, celebrating 1951 and the surrounding years, fall into three categories. (Next month we will project twenty-five years into the future-which brings us to the year 2001!) First comethe musi- cal evocations, both classical and popular. Nicolas Slonimsky,conduc- tor, musicologist, author (Music Since 1900, ALexicon of Musical In- vective,etc.), and editor (Baker's Biographical Dictionaryof Musicians, etc.), recalls for us significant-and someinsignificant- events in the concert and opera fields circa 1951.And being privy to so much of what went on at the time, he is able to let some cats outof the bag. To chronicle the importance of the early Fifties pop scene, weorig- inally commissioned veteran pop critic Ralph Gleason. WhenRalph died last year, Downbeat critic John McDonough, who has writtenin these pages before, offered to carry the ball. John grew up inthe Fifties and has made the era a specialty of his. His article, too, containsthe reminiscences of musically active personalities of the time: TonyBen- nett, Jerry Wexler, and the Millers, Mitch andHoward. Next we have three articles on early developments inthe high fidelity field-written by men instrumental in those developments.Edward Wallerstein was president of Columbia Records duringthe time that the LP was created and introduced to the public. Whenhe died in Sep-

41 4- CIRCLE 3 ON READER -SERVICE CARD tember 1970 it seemed as though the world wouldnever learn his ver- sion of the conflicting reports surrounding that important episode in the history of recording. Fortunately, a year anda half before his death he had recorded an oral history for his good friend Ward Botsford, then vice president of Vox Productions (now executive producer for Caed- mon Records), and it is presented here for the first time. Then there is the legend of the Yankee soldier who, at the end of World War II, came across a German tape recorder, shipped it home, and thereby stimulated an American tape industry. Well,we came across that former soldier. His name is Jack Mullin, and he sub- sequently had a distinguished career in the tape business. His story of those postwar days is also told this month. Though the beginnings of movie -music recordingsmay not have had so radical an influence on subsequent high fidelity history as those of tape recording and the LP, the field has certainly blossomed in recent years. Again, the man most responsible, Ted Wick, tells how it all came about. With this issue we also begin a new series, not by, but about those high fidelity pioneers, many of whose names have today become living- room words. By now everybody must know who Avery Fisher is, but is there really a Mr. McIntosh, a Mr. Pickering, a Mr. Marantz? Youmay have come across references to Henry Kloss, often identifiedas "the K of KLH," but who are L and H? (And what did H have to do with the great pianist Josef Hofmann?) Whose name is camouflaged in Ampex? Our former audio -video editor Norman Eisenberg will tellyou, begin- ning this month. The third section of features consists of selections fromour early record reviews (our first review of a George [sic] Solti recording-some Suppe overtures-didn't even mention his name; norwas Leonard Bernstein referred to in his first appearance in our pages, except in the listing, as an arranger in "Corinne Chochem's Collection of Folk Dances"; but we early spotted such newly exposed talents of the time as Herbert von Karajan, Janos Starker, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and Da- vid Oistrakh) and a selective enumeration of the most important recordings of the past quarter -century. I wonder if there isany reader who will agree with the entire list; I know no editor does. H. L. Mencken once said that nobody ever went broke under- estimating the taste of the American people. When HIGH FIDELITYwas being conceived, originally as a one-shot publication, the decisionwas made to emphasize and encourage quality-in music, in equipment, and in the magazine itself. In quick succession we became a quarterly,a bimonthly, and a monthly. There is, we happily found out, a market for quality, and we have generally been prospering ever since. Because of that original decision, we were born with a silver anniversary inour mouths. We just didn't realize it at the time. Happy reading!

42 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE 1 51 A Classical Scrapbook by Nicolas Slonirasky

ONE MUSICAL EDITORIALIST issued a confident prophecy on New Year's Day 1951 that, "barring major catastrophes, the year 1951 should be a pro- ductive one in all categories of music." Well, there were minor catastrophes and unpleasant military encounters, but otherwise the year was surely pro- ductive. The memories of the war were still too fresh in 1951 not to have painful repercussions. Willem Mengelberg, one of the greatest conductors of modern times, died in Switzerland on March 21, after having been sentenced by the Netherlands Honor Council to lifelong exile for his controver- sial collaboration with the Nazis during their oc- cupation of Holland. He denied his involvement; he made music, not politics, he said. Had he not conducted a famous Mahler festival in Holland at the time when it still took guts to champion Mah- a ler's music? And Mahler was a Jew. a. On January 22, 1951, the great Norwegian so- prano Kirsten Flagstad sang Isolde at the Metro- politan Opera House after a ten-year absence. She was greeted by a "storm of joyous applause," to quote a report. "If there were dissenting voices, they were silent," the report added. Yet Flagstad ran a considerable risk of hostility in returning to America, for she and her husband were under Above: grave suspicion of having collaborated with the Willem Mengelberg. Nazi occupation authorities in Norway. As in the Left: case of Mengelberg, the question was of the degree Kirsten Flagstad of her nonresistance to the rape of her country. as Isolde. The American public felt that her offense, if there was any, was venial and not mortal. When she ap- peared in Fidelio at the Metropolitan Opera on March 6, Bruno Walter conducted the orchestra; if Walter had thought that she was a collaboration- ist, he would have refused to conduct. On March 26, Flagstad sang Isolde again at the Met and took more than thirty curtain calls.

APRIL 1976 43 Relentless Stalinism still held Soviet music in its grip in 1951. Soviet composers had an impossible dilemma: They were damned for residual modern- ism, and they were castigated for their desperate attempts to create works tailored to the demands of Socialist Realism, with simple harmonies and sweet folklike tunes. A Ukrainian composer, Her- man Zhukovsky, was called to account in a stern article in Pravda for the lack of substance in the music of his opera From the Bottom of My Heart, produced in Moscow on January 16, 1951, andwas accused of misrepresenting the workerson col- lective farms. Another Ukrainian, Konstanin Dan- kevich, was denounced for his historic opera Bog- dan Khmelnitzky, produced in Kievon January 29. His egregious fault was the erroneous inter- pretation of the historical realities of the role of the Cossack chieftain Bogdan in the seventeenth century. But there was a happy ending for both composers. In a statement of the Central Com- mittee of the Communist party issued in 1958, Zhukovsky's opera was specifically rehabilitated. Dankevich revised his libretto and depicted in the finale the joyful reunion of the Ukraine and Russia in a patriotic celebration. The revised version was performed in Kiev on June 21, 1953, with the musi- cal score virtually unchanged. Other musical occurrences had political over- tones in 1951. President Harry S. Truman obtained a new piano for the White House: It was fashioned Frankfurter was the guest speaker, and the eve- of South American mahogany, Australian wool, ning was crowned with a concert played by the or- Canadian nickel, and American steel to symbolize chestra and conducted by Leonard Bernstein. In the unity of the United Nations. The Florence April, Vladimir Horowitz consented to the first ra- Maggio Musicale festival, which had announced dio broadcast (by WQXR in New York) of his play- the first appearance in the West of the Bolshoi Bal- ing-but only of the second half of the concert. The let, was disappointed: Only a handful of artists ar- airwaves carried the pianist's performances of the rived-just before the Florentine city elections- Haydn Sonata Op. 78, Brahms's Intermezzo in B- and among them were several making their first flat minor, Chopin's Polonaise-Fantaisie, Barca- Western appearances since the war: pianist Emil rolle, Nocturne in F minor, and Scherzo in B mi- Gilels, ballerina Galina Ulanova, and cellist Msti- nor, the pianist's own arrangement of Pictures at slav Rostropovich. an Exhibition, and-unbelievably-four encores: a Scarlatti sonata. Schumann's Traumerei, Mosz- In East Berlin a man named Kruger stole Beetho- kowski's Etincelles, and Horowitz' transcription ven's conversation books from the State Library of Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever! and took them to West Berlin. He was later caught A new medium of communication, which also in connection with another theft in Gottingen, but served music, entered its uncertain adolescence: a decade of negotiations was required to restore television. Its commercial application was still the books to the State Library. seen through a glass darkly. So dubious were its prospects that ASCAP, in a generous mood, Like every other year, this one had its share of waived retroactively all its fees for copyrighted important first and lasts. The 1950-51 season was musical works. But it had some second thoughts. Rudolf Bing's first at the Metropolitan Opera and Admitting that it had renounced its fees "on the Pierre Monteux's seventeenth and last as conduc- theory that television was still experimental," tor of the San Francisco Symphony. Dimitri Mitro- ASCAP soon arrived at the jarring realization that poulos took sole possession of the New York Phil- the new medium was "definitely commercial." harmonic podium after sharing it with Leo- And since television transmitted not only the au- pold Stokowski in 1949-50. On January 8, at a din- ral, but also the visual, part of a musical spectacle, ner honoring the Israel Philharmonic's first tour of ASCAP ruled that its fees should be 10% higher the United States, Supreme Court Justice Felix than those charged to radio. Indeed, television cel-

44 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE complete recording of Stravinsky's Le Sacre du printemps conducted by Ernest Ansermet was re- leased by London, as was the entire second act of Die Meistersinger, with Hans Knappertsbusch leading the Vienna Philharmonic and the Vienna State Opera. Though making long-playing records of orchestral and operatic ensembles was still a matter of considerable technical difficulty in 1951, recordings of chamber music in uninterrupted performance suddenly became easy. RCA Victor put out a recording of what its advertising depart- ment grandly described as a "million -dollar trio," with Rubinstein, Heifetz, and Piatigorsky per- forming Mendelssohn's D minor Trio and the trios by Tchaikovsky and Ravel on two long-playing discs. Delving into the past, the same company is- sued a "Treasury of Immortal Performances," an impressive assemblage on twelve discs, with the voices of Caruso, Chaliapin, Tetrazzini, and other opera stars of yesteryear, as well as the piano play- Above: a scene from NBC -TV's Amahl and the Night Visitors, an annual Christmastime feature after its successful ing of Paderewski and violin performances of bow in 1951. Facing page: Mr. and Mrs. Vladimir Horowitz Fritz Kreisler in his prime. Columbia released a aboard the Cunard liner Queen Elizabeth as it complete Porgy and Bess conducted by Lehman departed from New York in September 1951. Engel and Ravel's String Quartet played by the Juilliard Quartet. Suddenly record companies abounded: performances taped in Europe found their way to American store bins on labels ranging from Allegro, Eterna, and Haydn Society to Urania, Vanguard, and Westminster. ebrated its first operatic success with the produc- tion on Christmas Eve in 1951 by the National Rudolf Bing hastened to make his mark on the Broadcasting Company of Gian-Carlo Menotti's fortunes of the opera house newly in his charge. opera Amahl and the Night Visitors, to Menotti's There were fresh productions of Verdi's Don own libretto. So successful was the production Carlo (Margaret Webster was the producer) and that it became a regular annual show on television Wagner's Fliegende Hollander, and the first Fle- at Christmastime. dermaus since 1905, with Richard Tucker, Rise The year 1951 marked the first determined effort Stevens, and John Brownlee in the cast, and con- to record complete symphonic works or whole ductor Eugene Ormandy making his Metropolitan acts of operas. No longer was it necessary to cart a debut. After many years of inactivity, the great so- heavy load of shellac platters home in order to prano Maria Jeritza returned to the Met to sing play a Beethoven symphony. No longer was the Rosalinde in Fledermaus on February 22; her conductor required to find a fortuitous semi - triumph was a foregone conclusion. Helen Trau- cadence to stop the music at the expiration of four - bel sang her first Rosenkavalier Marschallin at the odd minutes of recorded time, then to resume house, and Musical America reported that she playing from the same pause on the second side. "never sounded warmer and lovelier, ...[she] was What made it possible was the emergence of long- perfectly conscious of her dramatic limitations, ... playing recordings from the cocoon of ephemeral and wisely remained more or less static in the epi- shellac platters limited to four minutes and twenty sodes calling for vehemence of movement." seconds. The new era had dawned on June 18, In January the first Ring cycle in three seasons 1948, when Dr. Peter Goldmark, director of the En- began: It was graced by Hans Hotter's first Wotan gineering Research and Development Labora- at the Met, Margaret Harshaw as Fricka, Erna Ber- tories of the Columbia Broadcasting System, gave ger as Woglinde, Lucine Amara as Wellgunde, and a demonstration for the press of LP microgroove, a Set Svanholm (once hailed as Melchior's suc- nonbreakable 12 -inch vinylite disc capable of cessor) as Loge. An important newcomer to the playing recorded music for half an hour on each house's roster was a young baritone who would side [see separate story]. become a celebrated Don Giovanni: Cesare Siepi. Among the most important LP releases of 1951 Operatic news in New York is not made at the was Schubert's Unfinished Symphony conducted Metropolitan alone, and 1951 was no different by Arturo Toscanini, issued by RCA Victor. A from any other in this regard: in April, Dimitri

APRIL 1976 45 Mitropoulos led the now -famous New York Phil- engravings dealing with a profligate swain who harmonic broadcast of Alban Berg's locus clas- marries a bearded lady and winds up in an insane sicus of German musical expressionism, Wozzeck, asylum. When a colleague asked the composer with Mack Harrell and Eileen Farrell. why, since both the subject matter and the basic One of the casualties of the war was Bayreuth. It musical style were eighteenth -century, he found it suffered cruelly from air bombardment, and the necessary to include modern dissonances, great Wagner festivals were canceled. In 1951 Bay- Stravinsky replied, "I put them in to satisfy the reuth was resurrected under the guidance of Wie- bourgeoisie." Benjamin Britten's new opera Billy land and Wolfgang Wagner, the sons of Siegfried Budd, after Herman Melville's novel, was presented Wagner ("the little son of a great father"), grand- at Covent Garden in London on December 1. sons of Richard Wagner, great-grandsons of Liszt. Among symphonic world premieres the most An awe-inspiring pedigree! But the productions extraordinary was the performance on February were the very antithesis of the lusciously romantic 22 by Leonard Bernstein and the New York Phil- original Bayreuth spectacles. Gone were the harmonic of the Second Symphony by Charles brightly lighted rocks on which the ample- Ives, half a century after its composition. This per- bosomed Teutonic Valkyries pranced. Gone was formance contributed to a growing recognition of the intricate machinery propelling the Rhine Ives as an American composer of genius. Charac- Maidens across the gauze waters of the river. Gone teristically, Ives himself abstained from attending were the red tongues of paper flame that con- the performance, but he heard parts of it on the ra- sumed Valhalla. The staging was sober and sub- dio in a neighbor's house in West Redding, Con- dued, almost abstract in its geometric configura- necticut. tions. Dark hues dominated. Indeed, it seemed that The original version of the Second Symphony the new Bayreuth emphasized darkness as the mo- ended harmoniously on an F major tonic triad. But tive of the entire Ring. Furthermore, Freudian ele- when the work was published, Ives slyly added a ments seemed to permeate the scenery. A pillar whole lot of dissonant sharps and flats to the chord conspicuously placed on the stage was taken as a as latter-day decorations. Most performances of phallic symbol. the work take this addition into account, and in The first Ring cycle at the Bayreuth Festival of recordings this otherwise mellifluous score ends 1951 was conducted by Hans Knappertsbusch, a on a jarring Ivesian dissonance. Wagnerian conductor who preserved the tradi- (A personal note: When I conducted the Ives tions Hans Richter inherited from Wagner him- Second Symphony in New Haven in connection self. The second cycle was led by Herbert von with the celebration of the centennial of his birth, I Karajan, who was born in the twentieth century decided to combine the original ending with the and sought new ways of interpreting Wagner in later dissonant elaboration. I asked the orchestra keeping with Wieland Wagner's modern ideas on to play the dissonant ending as it stood in the pub- scenic production. lished score, and then to take off all the super- Among the Bayreuth debutantes that year were numerary sharps and flats and let the F major two from this side of the Atlantic: the Canadian chord sound in all its pristine serenity. From my George London, who sang Amfortas in Parsifal, long and close acquaintance with Ives, I am some- and the American Astrid Varnay, who sang all the how sure that he would not have objected to my Briinnhildes. London's career had been made in double ending for his youthful symphony.) Europe; he had not sung opera professionally in the United States, though he had toured with a Early in 1951, Leonard Bernstein announced that group called the Bel Canto Trio, the other mem- he was taking a year -and -a -half sabbatical from bers of which were Mario Lanza and Frances conducting in order to compose. The result of that Yeend. In the 1951-52 Met season London's was sabbatical was Wonderful Town. And a young among the new names on the roster, along with man named Lorin Maazel who was in the Pitts- mezzo-sopranos Mildred Miller, Nell Rankin, and burgh Symphony's first violin section in 1950-51 Elisabeth Hongen, sopranos Brenda Lewis, Hilde did not return for the 1951-52 season. He had other Gueden, and Walburga Wegner, tenors Hans fish to fry. Hopf, Anton Dermota, Giacinto Prandelli, Gabor Carelli, and Mario del Monaco, baritone Renato On July 7 the great cellist Pablo Casals opened Capecchi, and basses Norman Scott and Alois Per- his second festival of music in Perpignan, France, nerstorfer. on the Spanish border in the Pyrenees, near the The most important operatic premiere of the town of Prades, where he made his home after the year was The Rake's Progress by Stravinsky, defeat of the Spanish Republican forces to whose which he conducted himself in Venice on Septem- cause he pledged his loyalty. Eleven concerts in all ber 11. The libretto was fashioned by W. H. Auden were given, the final event taking place in the ca- and Chester Kallman, after Hogarth's moralistic thedral.

46 1-1I nu Finn ITV M ACI71AIF the rehearsals, of difficult modern works from memory. Koussevitzky could never really com- pose (his double -bass concerto was actually writ- ten by Gliere; Koussevitzky's contribution was limited to the Dvotak-like opening) and had scant knowledge of music theory. But Bernstein com- posed brilliant music, both in an advanced mod- ern style and in a fetching popular idiom. Koussevitzky did not have absolute pitch; he could never specifically fish out a wrong note when something went awry. Both Carvalho and Bern- stein were omniaudient; they heard anything and everything. So why was Koussevitzky so eager for them to inherit the orchestra that he regarded as his exclusive patrimony? Because he knew, and his listeners felt, and the music critics admiringly noted, that he possessed a surpassing genius for commanding, and inspiring in an orchestra, an un- flinching determination and unbounded faith in the absolute value of his interpretation. That is why the Koussevitzky legend is still so powerful, indeed cannot be challenged by anyone, however talented. The management did not take kindly to Kodssevitzky's notion of placing two young men at A proud Serge Koussevitzky is seated between two protégés, the helm of the Boston Symphony, and engaged Eleazar de Carvalho and Leonard Bernstein. in a 1950 photo. Charles Munch. Koussevitzky had no alternative but to make the best of it, and he even mustered considerable enthusiasm in public for Munch as a Two of the most significant musical careers of worthy successor. But privately Koussevitzky modern times were closed on opposite sides of the made no secret of his unhappiness about the cir- U.S. in 1951, when Serge Koussevitzky died in Bos- cumstances of the termination of his contract with ton on June 4 and Arnold Schoenberg died in Los the orchestra. His feelings were such that a few Angeles on July 13. Koussevitzky had resigned the short weeks before his death from leukemia he im- post of conductor of the Boston Symphony Or- pulsively rescinded his original generous bequest chestra in 1949 after completing a tenure of a quar- to the Boston Symphony Pension Fund. The Li- ter -century. He was given a sumptuous farewell at brary of Congress was the new beneficiary, and a his concluding concert; the tributes, floral and ver- very grateful one. The bulk of his estate went to bal, were in the grand tradition. But Koussevitzky the Koussevitzky Foundation. was far from happy. Even though he had to miss Schoenberg had a genuine case of triskaideca- several concerts because of illness, he was not phobia, the morbid fear of the number 13. He was ready or willing to resign. And if he had to go, he born on the 13th of the month of September 1874, was determined to name successors to the Boston and he regarded the date as an omen of evil things scepter. His hope was to have two of his young stu- to come. So deeply ingrained in his mentality was dents, Eleazar de Carvalho and Leonard Bernstein, this curious quirk that he cut out the second "a" in take charge of the orchestra, with himself reigning the name of Aaron in the title of his opera Moses over them as a benign deity, advising them, en- and Aron so that the number of letters would no couraging them, chiding them if the occasion de- longer add up to 13.* He was genuinely upset when manded. a friend remarked jocularly on his seventy-sixth Neither of them could eclipse him in depth of birthday that the sum of the digits of his age was musical penetration, but in technical expertise 13; he died at the age of seventy-six on July 13, and capacity of adaptation to new musical idioms 1951, 13 minutes before midnight. (Schoenberg they far excelled him. Koussevitzky never con- was not the first triskaidecaphobiac among musi- ducted without a score, not even the Tchaikovsky cians. Rossini feared each recurrence of Friday the symphonies that he had played as a member of the 13th. He died on the 13th of November 1868, a Fri- double -bass section in Moscow orchestras and led day.) innumerable times in Russia and America. But 'The only other such spelling of this name known to the editors appears in the Carvalho, as guest conductor of the Boston Sym- article following this one, in the fourth paragraph, five lines from the bottom of phony, conducted not only the concerts, but even the page.

APRIL 1976 47 requested. It may well be that at some not too dis- tant time, Schoenberg's letter of application fora Guggenheim will be worth more than the amount of the grant itself. The episode caused Stravinsky to remark that just a few more bars of music of the unfinished score of Moses und Aron, written in the time provided by a Guggenheim, would be more valuable than all the works composed by all recipients of the Guggenheim bounty. All his life Schoenberg nurtureda suppressed animosity towards Stravinsky, and once wrotea sarcastic chorus mocking "Herr Modernsky" who tried to be "just like Papa Bach." Although Schoenberg and Stravinsky lived within walking distance of each other in Los Angeles, theynever met socially. A letter from Schoenberg addressed to a friend in Vienna, which remains unpublished and isper- haps unpublishable because of his scurrilous com- ments on venerable figures of the podium, con- tains a hilarious list of good guys and badguys among conductors. The latter include Toscanini, Walter, Koussevitzky, and practically every other famous orchestra leader; the former groupcom- Arnold Schoenberg with his family in 1951: The elder Schoen- prises only two names, those of Eugene Goossens bergs embrace sons Larry and Ronny and daughter Nuria. and the author of this article.

Schoenberg never believed that his music was Mortality among musicians has its ironies. But it difficult to play or too abstruse to enjoy. He once is rare that death strikes two concert performers asked a person from Boston why Koussevitzky on the stage within a few weeks of one another. On never played his works. When told frankly that April 2, 1951, the Russian pianist Simon Barere Koussevitzky simply could not understand his mu- collapsed and died on the stage of Carnegie Hall sic, Schoenberg countered in all sincerity: "Aber during his performance of Grieg's piano concerto. er spielt doch Brahms!" ("But he plays Brahms!"). On May 15, the cellist Felix Robert Mendelssohn, It seems ironic that Schoenberg should have suf- great -grandnephew of Mendelssohn, died in Balti- fered penury throughout his life. After his retire- more while playing Konzertstiick by Dohnanyi. ment from the University of California, Los An- The reaper's harvest of 1951 included, besides geles, on a ludicrously meager pension, he applied Mengelberg, Koussevitzky, and Schoenberg, Har- for a Guggenheim Foundation fellowship to com- old Bauer, the pianist, who died in Miamion plete the score of Moses und Aron. The application March 12; John Alden Carpenter (born in the was turned down. Mozart's letters to his banker American centennial year 1876), a railroadexecu- friend asking for a loan now fetch, on the auto- tive who wrote modernistic pieces on the side, and graph market, many more times the originalsums died in Chicago on April 26; conductor Fritz Busch, who died in London on September 14; Sig- mund Romberg, the composer ofmany popular musicals, who died in New York on November 9; and Nicolai Medtner, the Russiancomposer of Ro- Artur Schnabel mantically inspired piano pieces, who died in Lon- at ease. don on November 13. Artur Schnabel, who incul- cated a generation of young pianists in the true art of classical piano playing, died on August 15 in Axenstein, Switzerland, or so it was reported; all reference books duly incorporated this informa- tion.* Well, there is no such town as Axenstein in Switzerland (or elsewhere). Axenstein is thename of a hotel in Morschach in Canton Schwyz, and it was in that hotel that Schnabel died.

Including Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians. As its long-time editor. I can assure readers that this error will be corrected in future.

48 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE L1951 Pop Music at theCrossroads by John McDonough

THE THIRTIES and the Forties may have had the You Ma'am" from the air. In May, Douglas MacAr- rolling stride of big -band swing and the funky beat thur bade a dramatic farewell to the American of bebop. The late Fifties and the Sixties may have public before Congress, and every a&r man in had the giddy writhing of rock and roll and the America had the same brainstorm-a quick raucous defiance of hard rock. But 1951! Nineteen recording of "Old Soldiers Never Die." Decca beat fifty-one had-well, what did it have? the deluge by simply lifting a Bing Crosby version Somewhere along the way to the nostalgia boom directly from his weekly Chesterfield show and of the Seventies, someone seems to have mislaid getting it into the stores within forty-eight hours. 1951. In fact, that curiously nondescript era of the As "Tennessee Waltz" slipped off the charts at early Fifties has yielded to posterity no clear musi- midyear (after sales of 2.4 million), Patti Page's cal definition of itself. Our memory's ear catches a "Mockingbird Hill" reached the top rung just hundred unrelated melodies but no overriding above "How High the Moon" (Les Paul and Mary message-only fragments of pop culture memo- Ford), "On Top of Old Smoky" (the Weavers), and rabilia that, from the perspective of a quarter -cen- "Too Young" (Nat "King" Cole). tury, seem a shapeless montage of musical bric-a- New stars were coming along faster than at any brac. At least, that is how it appears from the pub- time since before the war: Rosemary Clooney, Ed- lic's point of view. die Fisher, April Stevens, and the Four Aces. And For those in the music business, 1951 was quite country singers like Tennessee Ernie Ford, Eddy another matter indeed. Several trends, up until Arnold, Red Foley, and Lefty Frizzell were emerg- then ambiguous and blurry, suddenly snapped ing from regional to national renown. RCA was into sharper focus. For the music men, 1951 was mounting a big publicity campaign for its comers nothing less than a watershed year. But before we June Valli, soon to be a Hit Parade regular, and start generalizing, perhaps a look at the eclectic- Mery Griffin. In November the Ames Brothers ism of the year's output will provide some clues to turned a 1938 jazz riff called "Undecided" into a the reasons why. hit. In December, Frank Sinatra jumped Columbia "You're Just in Love" (Perry Como with the Fon- for Capitol, and Johnny Ray sprang from nowhere tane Sisters) hit the charts in January of 1951, join- with a lacerating record of "Cry." And Tony Ben- ing "Tennessee Waltz" (Patti Page), "The Thing" nett, who had started the year as a nonentity, (Phil Harris), "Harbor Lights" (Sammy Kaye), ended it as a star. "Rudolph, the Red -Nosed Reindeer" (Gene Autry), "Nevertheless" (Paul Weston), and "Thinking of TONY BENNETT: I guess HIGH You" (Eddie Fisher). "Aba Daba Honeymoon" FIDELITY and I have more in from MGM's Two Weeks with Love was on its way common than just an inter- up. In a Boston tryout only days before its Broad- est in music, since we both way opening, The King and I got an addition to its sort of got launched in 1951. score: "Getting to Know You." Gladys Knight Twenty-five years ago I was made her first network television appearance, but playing small clubs on a few noticed. It was on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour, little circuit that went as far and she was seven; among those who didn't even west as Chicago. After get- get past the auditions that year was a sixteen -year - ting out of the infantry after old Memphis kid by the name of Elvis Aron Pres- the war, I went to the Ameri- ley. Mercury Records signed Fredda Gibson and can Theater Wing to study music under the GI made her famous as Georgia Gibbs. Frankie Laine Bill.I learned my music right on Fifty-second left Mercury for Columbia and "Jezebel." L.A. sta- Street, hearing Pres, Billie, Tatum, Shearing, and tions banned Dean Martin's "Wham Bam, Thank Bird. Then early in 1951 I went on the road with

APRIL 1976 49 Frank Sinatra: He bolted Columbia for Capitol.

Nat "King" Cole: His "Too Young" came close to the top of the charts.

Two early -Fifties "bobby-soxers' delights": Frankie Laine and Guy Mitchell in London.

Bob Hope and did an early Chesterfield Sound- tened, changes were consolidating behind the Off Show with him. Mitch Miller, who'd just scenes. joined Columbia and was looking for artists to Traditionally, music in America had been the produce, heard about me through Hope, got hold exclusive domain of the song publishers. They of an audition record, and decided to record me. picked the tunes and plugged them, with a little The first record I ever made was "Boulevard of luck, to prosperity. A "hit" meant high sheet -music Broken Dreams," and it was a semihit, selling sales. That was the profit center: Music could be about 500,000. It advanced my career to the point printed for less than a cent and sold for 10 or 12 where, by the early summer, I could play as the cents. Everything else-live performances,air second act on a bill with a major star. And that got play, records-was a means to sell sheet music to me into better clubs-the Chez Paree in Chicago, folks for the parlor piano. where you could chat between shows with Jack Records were a quarter -century old before they Eigen on NBC Radio, Moe's Main Street in Cleve- even became a factor in pop music. Before about land, where I followed Billie Holiday, and the 1919, catalogues emphasized opera excerpts, Copa in Florida, where Sophie Tucker headed the marches, vaudeville souvenirs, and classical tid- bill. Then Mitch got me back in the studios to do bits. When the industry did get with pop music af- "Because of You" and some country and western ter World War II, it did so without an indigenous things like "Cold, Cold Heart." The rest of the year star system. Records sold on the strength of a was largely spent going across the country pro- song's popularity. They were little more than sheet moting the records. I'd go to towns like Wilkes- music on shellac. Performers who could sell rec- Barre and Scranton with my pianist and a Colum- ords were those who first made their reputations bia promotion guy, and we'd meet the DJs, the dis- elsewhere-movies, radio,nightclubs, orball- tributors, the rack jobbers-everyone. I loved it. rooms. You really got a feeling for the business that way. The publishers and the record men: the Old It made you a professional. And you got in touch Guard and the Upstarts. What happened in 1951 with the music that people wanted to hear. Some was the complete overthrow of the entrenched by of it was sad. A lot was frivolous. But it was infi- the insurgents. nitely varied. It had begun more than twenty years before with improved recording techniques and theemer- But while the music played and the public lis- gence of the performer on record. Sheet -music

50 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Dorsey in a move that roughly resembled an in- vestment in Christmas trees on December 26. A bevy of new bands was hatched by other labels- Ralph Marterie, George Auld, Ralph Flanagan, and Ray "Bunny Hop" Anthony. Like the old-line pub- lishers, the bands seemed to be presiding at the burial of their era without knowing it. But there were teenagers, and in 1951 they were starting to listen to DJs and buy stacks of records. The secret, it became apparent, was in new people and new styles. "Youth takes hold of music," Bill- board proclaimed in September. "Not in a decade have so many new stars come up so fast." But there was no distinct culture or set of assumptions, and that was crucial. Born in the decade of the Great Depression when birthrates dropped precipitously, the white adolescent population of the early Fifties was an easily managed minority growing up disguised as miniature adults-the willing, invisible, silent gen- eration of consensus. These young people went to dancing school and learned all the steps their par- a\<,. ents danced at the country club. Pop music was a An Australian Good Samaritan helps Johnny Ray recover from commodity that could be shared among gener- the enthusiasm of fans greeting him at the Sydney airport ations. The impact of teenagers on TV consisted of the TV Teen Club-with Paul Whiteman! And Your Hit Parade. The latter, which began on radio in 1935 and jumped to TV in 1950, was ideally sales began to slip as "record artists" rose. The disc suited to a youthful generation caught between jockey became part of radio programming in the culture heroes. As DJ Howard Miller put it, "Hit Thirties and formed a natural alliance with the Parade reflected the twilight of the era of the song record men. Records and air time, which had once in America. As long as the song was important, helped publishers peddle sheet music, now there was a Hit Parade. When rock and roll estab- seemed on the way to replacing it. By the Forties lished the cult of personality over the song, there record sales were at a peak and still climbing. was no place for a repertory -company approach to In January 1951, Variety declared: "For the mu- pop music. In the early Fifties, however, it brought sic publishing business, the past year has been one a kind of unity to a drifting music scene." of uncertain transition. A strong dependency on There was another kind of unity to music then, records for starting a song off and on the disc and it was Mitch Miller. Although Columbia Rec- jockey as the key song exploiter-all trends that ords was America's first record company (1889), it the industry hoped to reverse-were instead inten- lived for decades in the giant shadow of Victor. sified." And a year later, reviewing 1951: "The CBS bought it in 1938, but Columbia did not come squeeze is on. The record companies are firmly in of age in pop music until 1950, when Goddard Lie- the saddle, sheet -music royalties have continued berson hired the delightfully eccentric goateed to sag, and mechanical royalties aren't paying the oboist away from Mercury and started an un- overhead." precedented cycle of hit -making. And what about the consumer in 1951? Before Miller was the ideal man for his time. Willing to the war youngsters had cut a fairly distinct cul- try new things-but not too new-he had an eye for tural swath with their support of the big bands. talent and an ear for tunes. But basically he was But when the draft drained the country of its among the first to have a feeling for the record as a youth, all that fell apart. Control of public taste medium and its potential for the gimmick. He es- and pursestrings was left to a spongy sort of "tav- tablished his reputation with Frankie Laine's ern trade." The postwar years saw the record in- whip -cracking recording of "Mule Train," and, dustry in a confused and lethargic state. Where when he started building his talent stable at Co- were the teenagers? The pundits talked in 1950 lumbia, Laine was one of the first he sent for. about "reawakening the younger set" by reviving Miller was partial to corn. When Frank Sinatra interest in "name bands." It made sense to Decca, rejected an innocuous little tune by Percy Faith in which quickly signed Artie Shaw and Tommy 1950, it seemed condemned to the dust of Colum-

APRIL 1976 51 bia's files. But what was soot to Sinatrawas in- young gal whom I'd just hired out of Tony Pastor's cense to Miller. He quickly devised an arrange- band rushed into the studio thesame day to ment and dispatched it to a new singer he had just recordit.Within forty-eight hours Rosemary signed. "My Heart Cries for You" launched Guy Clooney's "Come On -A My House"was in the Mitchell on a career that produced "The Roving mail to the DJs and distributors around thecoun- Kind," "Truly Truly Fair," "Belle, Belle," "Pitts- try and on its way up the charts. Columbia's rela- burgh, Pennsylvania," and "Singin' the Blues." tionship to the independent labelswas ironic in a In two years at Columbia, Miller brought the way. We encouraged them, because by renting company from a poor fourth among the majors to them studio space, engineers, and theuse of our an undisputed Numero Uno in 1952. In those years pressing facilities we were cutting our overhead. he stage-managed fifty-one hits, and in the eight- Yet without realizing it we were also nurturing een months after "Tennessee Waltz" the country's competition that later in the decade broke only two -million -plus sellerswere Ray's "Cry" through to really challenge us. and Jimmy Boyd's "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus." Both were Mitch Miller's. In 1952 he It's impossible to think of the early Fifties with- turned out eleven of the year's most profitable hits. out the Miller stock company: Doris Day ("Secret Victor was a distant second with five. Love," "A Guy Is a Guy"), Jo Stafford ("Shrimp Boats," "Make Love to Me"), Rosemary Clooney MITCH MILLER: The thing ("This Ole House," "Hey There," "Halfas Much"), that made Columbia the No. the Four Aces ("Moments to Remember," "Stand- 1 outfit was that it was a ing on the Corner," "Istanbul"), Johnny Ray ("The company run by musicians. Little White Cloud That Cried"), Frankie Laine ("I We had Percy Faith, Paul Believe," "Wild Goose") as well as Tony Bennett, Weston, Teo Macero, Al Mindy Carson, and (by 1956) Johnny Mathis. Notto Ham. Nearly all the produc- mention Miller himself, who scored with "Yellow ers were musicians. The Rose of Texas" and "River Kwai March." Hewas president, Jim Conkling, was nothing less than the pre -rockczar of American a musician. Goddard Lieber - pop culture. son was a musician. ... You But there were other sounds as well. Capitol had could spot a Columbia record: There was a vital- Les Paul and Mary Ford ("The World Is Waiting ity of sound and ideas about our products. They for the Sunrise," "Vaya Con Dios"), Frank Sinatra always sounded louder than others on jukeboxes, ("Young at Heart"), Nat Cole ("Too Young," "A for example, because we used a trick or two in en- Blossom Fell"), Kay Starr ("Wheel of Fortune"), gineering them. If you had a volume peak on a and Dean Martin ("That's Amore"). Mercurypro- record, it tended to keep the rest of the perform- duced regular hits with Georgia Gibbs ("Kiss of ance at a low level, particularly on jukes where Fire") and that perennial profit machine Patti Page volume was constant. So I always made sure our ("Doggie in the Window," "You Belong to Me," "I peaks never peaked. Went to Your Wedding," "Old Cape Cod"). Atone As for the songs, they came from all over. Pub- point in 1952 RCA had five best-sellerson the lishers would bring in tons of stuff, and I'd come charts, and four were by Eddie Fisher. into the office early to go over it. That's how I No material was intractable as long as it could found "Cry" in 1951. It was on the back of a demo be echoed, overdubbed, or otherwise adjusted to record someone sent to audition another tune. We one of the rules of pop fashion. The movies pro- were among the first to bring country and western duced "High Noon," "The High and the Mighty," songs into the pop charts. Jerry Wexler put me "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," and onto Hank Williams early in 1951, and I went on "Three Coins in the Fountain." Broadway yielded to do "Cold, Cold Heart" with Tony Bennett, "Hernando's Hideaway," "Bushel and a Peck," "Jambalaya" with Jo Stafford, and "Cheatin' and "I Love Paris." There were funny novelties: Heart" with Frankie Laine. Independent labels "The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane," "Shanghai," were a great source. Many times a publisher "Strange Things Are Happening," and Stan Fre- would use an independent label as a demo when berg's deadpan "St. George and the Dragonette." presenting a song to a major company. In fact, it Nonsense numbers: "Ooop Shoop" and "Sh- wasn't uncommon for a small label to be spon- Boom." And a crazy quilt of odds and ends: "Eh sored by a publisher just to get a song rolling.... Cumpari" and "Anywhere I Wander" by Julius La- Once in 1951 I ran across a master from some Rosa; "Crying in the Chapel" by June Valli; "Why small West Coast label on its way to our custom Don't You Believe Me" and "I'm Walking Behind pressing plant in Bridgeport for production. It was You" by Joni James; Teresa Brewer on Coral with a little novelty tune by Kay Armen that had been "Music, Music, Music" and, in 1953, "Ricochet Ro- reworked by William Saroyan for an off-Broad- mance." way show. I thought it had something, so I had this New people, new styles. These singers were all

52 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE pure-bred record artists. This was the first gener- HOWARDMILLER: DJ shows ation of major stars developed entirely from before the war tended to imi- scratch by the record industry-and its alter ego of tate live broadcasts. But by the air, the disc jockey. the time I took to the air on a "The modern disc jockey is only a little more regular basis on WIND in than a five -year -old phenomenon," said Variety in Chicago around 1950, no- January 1953, "but in the half -decade span he has body seemed shy about sprung up as the dominant factor in the music doing a straight record show. biz." And the modern disc jockey owed it all to I programmed according to television, which was devastating network radio my tastes then. There was at midcentury. Millions of ad dollars, along with really no other yardstick to the famous shows they supported, were leaving ra- go by. I really didn't think in terms of selling rec- dio for TV, which quadrupled its gross billings in ords, only programming music for general con- 1950 and then again in 1951. Local radio stations sumption....If I heard something in a record and became increasingly dependent on their own pro- played it, I was interested in it becoming big be- gramming resources as network programming cause it would add to my laurels as being a person shrank. And no one could fill the airways cheaper who could see a hit before anyone else. The people and longer than a hot DJ. He was the crucial link who were interested in selling records were the between the record companies and their custom- record pluggers. ...They had the gift of gab, knew ers. So with vast slots of local time opening up, ra- music, and were basically good salesmen. But you dio turned into a giant coast -to -coast listening couldn't let yourself be too influenced by their booth and became the key factor in the record in- puff....I felt very strongly about picking my own dustry's burgeoning prosperity after 1948. material to play, therefore I always listened to

Top left: Les Paul and Mary Ford in a typical Fifties publicity shot. Above: Patti Page-a "perennial profit machine"-dabs at Julius LaRosa's brow before a TV appearance as host Ed Sullivan beams benignly. Lett: You can almost hear the silvery voice and cascading strings as Jo Stafford and hubby Paul Weston record one in their skein of hits.

APRIL 1976 53 both sides of a record. One day back in 1950 Mer- cury sent out a new Patti Page record accom- panied by the usual plug sheet: "Enclosed you will find a copy of 'Boogie-Woogie Santa Claus,' which we expect to be the big Christmas hit of 1950," and so on. Most DJs played it, but I flipped it over and heard a unique sound. I called Mercury and said I thought the B side could be a great hit. ...It was "Tennessee Waltz." They stuck by "Boogie-Woogie Santa Claus," but I went ahead and played the B side. I think "Tennessee Waltz" did as much for my career as for Patti's. As the DJs multiplied (there were more than 2,000 on the air by 1952) so did their specialties- country and western, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues. Dials began to turn and horizons began to expand. Certain DJs became arbiters of popular tastes-Miller, Eddie Hubbard, and Linn Burton in Chicago; Buddy Dean in Baltimore; Robin Sey- mour in Detroit; Bill Randle in Cleveland; Dick Clark in Philadelphia. They also scouted the scene for new sounds. There was a hustling comer from Cleveland called Alan Freed, who launched his Moondog Show in 1950, and through him a new phrase entered Bill Haley and the Comets: They signaleda new age. American usage: rock and roll. The times were changing. that. I'd scream at Bill Randle and call him racist. And changing fast. The transistor radio (1953) But he was about as racist as a green dollar bill. extended the DJs' reach further still and speeded He and the others went where themoney was the turnover of material and talent. Ten records then. Black music was not part of his audience's made No. 1 on the Billboard chart in 1951; in 1960, culture. ... Some said we put out dirty songs- it would be nineteen. The quickening pace meant "Honey Love" and so on. But it was just thatwe there was more room for competition. The inde- had a black sound. Even whenwe had a record pendent labels, which in 1951 were mainly provid- like "Tweedle Dee" it had to be sanitized by ing the majors with tune material their superstars Georgia Gibbs before they'd put it on the radio. A could "cover," were racking up important sales for song like "Key to the Highway" is acceptable to a themselves as the decade wore on. thirteen -year -old virgin from Scarsdale when And no independent grew bigger from less than sung by four androgynous people in long hair. It's Atlantic Records. A key figure in the Atlantic oper- not acceptable when sung by a big sweating black ation was Jerry Wexler, a complete record man. like Bill Broonzy. They can't handle it-andno one should expect them to. They represent differ- JERRY WEXLER: In the early ent cultures and experiences. Fifties there were certain in- But as early as 1951 I was predicting that white dependent companies cater- audiences were going to buy this music someday. I ing to certain limited au- began to notice the crossover in those days when diences.The Atlantic young whites in the South began to buy Atlantic market was black, all black. and the budding southern gentlemen at the Uni- We built a giant $80 -million versity of Virginia started listening toguys like company from a small inde- Gene Nobels out of Nashville, Dewey Phillips in pendent operation because Memphis, and Jivin' Gene in the Carolinas-all we staked an early claim in white DJs playing black music. Thecrossover a neglected area of music. started in the South-I can't emphasize thattoo When rock and roll came in, we found ourselves strongly. If it could happen in the South, I knew it sitting on riches. In the early Fiftiesour product was only a matter of time before it would happen was considered the ragtag garbage of the business, in the North and Atlantic would havea shot at a and the signs were up at the white radio stations: mass audience of singles -buying youngsters in ur- Atlantic need not apply. I used to get red hot about ban areas.

54 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Above: The young Elvis Presley tears loose with his own brand of rhythm and blues, ending the dominance of the more sedate early - Fifties pop style and giving the new breed of disc jockey, such as Alan Freed (right), a rallying cry for the young: "rock and roll."

If the kids captured the pop single, one reason main title sequence of Blackboard Jungle, a movie might have been that the older buyers abandoned on juvenile delinquency. So the Haley number it in favor of the LP. And if Mitch Miller made Co- was released for the soundtrack. The crashing rim lumbia king of the single, Ted Wallerstein made shots of the opening theme detonated a new age in the company king of the LP. [See separate article.] American pop music. In January 1951, Columbia issued its ground- The kingmakers of the early Fifties felt chal- breaking "Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall Con- lenged, as indeed they were, and they fought back. cert," and the live concert recording became the A Memphis radio station summarily banned all fashion. Decca rushed to release "Louis Armstrong r&b and blacklisted seventeen other discs consid- at Pasadena Auditorium," and Dave Brubeck was ered too "indigo." And the grandaddy of all DJs, recorded before college audiences by Fantasy and Martin Block, blasted "the mediocrity of all these Columbia. But the master of them all was Norman recordings." Granz, whose ubiquitous documentations of "Jazz Traditional pop music certainly didn't vanish. at the Philharmonic" became an annual ritual. Sinatra, Bennett, Como, and even Bing Crosby The first LP recordings of film background ("True Love"j continued to produce hits. Doris scores had come out in the mid -Forties. [See sepa- Day's "Whatever Will Be" could outsell Presley's rate article.] By 1951, film soundtrack albums were "Heartbreak Hotel" as late as 1956. Johnny Mathis limited almost entirely to the big musicals. And came up right in the middle of the rock insurgency. MGM, which set up a record division in 1948 to do But now there was a new music and a new au- just that, was the leader. There were spoken -word dience. And part of the fascination of the new mu- LPs on specialist labels trading in full-length dra- sic was that the old audience hated it. mas. But Columbia was first with the word: "Don "Don't knock the rock," shouted Bill Haley to Juan in Hell," "John Brown's Body," "I Can Hear It cheering teenagers. To which Mitch Miller and a Now," and "This I Believe." And Victor scored big nation of parents snarled back, "Rock and roll is a in 1951 with George Jessel narrating "Show Biz." blight." Most LP buyers hardly noticed the creeping The attacks on rock and roll surely strengthened emergence of rock and roll. Decca signed a chap the determination of its defenders to stand and named Bill Haley in 1954 and was pleased when fight for their cause. What might have been a pass- "Rock Around the Clock" scored some impressive ing fad turned into the symbol of youth, and the sales. About that time MGM was looking for a suit- great generational schism of American culture had ably raucous, urban -sounding chunk of r&b for the begun.

APRIL 1976 55 Creating the LP Record Edward Wallerstein (1891-1970)

How the long-playing disc was piloted through lab and boardroom to the public

by Edward Wallerstein as told to Ward Botsford

I first met Ted Wallerstein in 1947 while laboring in the was ripe and begged, ordered, and cajoled a thousand vineyard of New York City's classical music station men into bringing into being the now accepted medium WABF. His son Perry also worked at WABF, and I was of the record business. invited for a weekend to the big Wallerstein home in After the introduction of the LP, Ted left Columbia Westport, Connecticut. That home had several attrac- Records and-under terms of his separation contract- tions: Perry's beautiful sister, a forty -foot sailboat, his kept out of the record business for some time. Later he charming mother, a brother, and Edward Wallerstein. was to be an independent adviser at Kapp; then there I trust that none of the former will take offense if I say were eighteen months as president of Everest Records, the true object of interest for me was the undoubted when that interesting company was in its heyday; and master of this ménage. finally for several years he was in the prerecorded -tape Ted had been head of RCA for some years, from 1933 marketing business for Ampex. to 1939, and then went to Columbia under circum- In November 1967, with the twentieth anniversary of stances that he relates in the following article. He had a the birth of the LP coming up, it occurred to me that reputation for being a tough, levelheaded businessman Wallerstein was the perfect person to tell it as it was. A who had a mind like a steel trap and a temper-when telephone call brought the familiar voice to the other roused-like a good-natured grizzly bear with gut- end of the line, and, after a hastily phrased question, he aches. He had a habit of commanding attention with a allowed as how he'd like to do such an article. Some- soft voice, but I have heard him call up executives for a how it got sidetracked until recently, when I mentioned reckoning in a manner that made me glad I worked its existence to Leonard Marcus, editor of HIGH FI- elsewhere. He had a way of creating excitement and of DELITY. Marcus was looking for original material by getting the best out of people. people who were instrumental in the development of In his article Ted gives credit to a lot of fine men with high fidelity for HF's silver -anniversary issue. I hope it whom it has been my privilege to work. He does make will clear up a lot of misconceptions about those early an error, however, which I must correct. He was the days of the LP. man most responsible for the LP. He was no inventor- I wish that Ted could have had the satisfaction of he was simply a man who seized an idea whose time seeing it in print, but he died September 2, 1970. W.B.

56 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE GilN 1938 I HAD persuaded William We were able to work on the longer record for S. Paley, president of the Co- only about a year until the outbreak of World War lumbia Broadcasting System, to II. Despite the interruption, the staff that was purchase the old American working on the project in 1939 was pretty much Record Corporation, which the same as the one that finally finished it in 1948. controlled Columbia Records, From Columbia Records there were Ike Rodman, for the sum of $700,000. On Jan- Jim Hunter, Vin Liebler, and Bill Savory. I had per- uary 1, 1939, this purchase be- suaded Bill Bachman to leave General Electric and came final, and I found myself president of the come to Columbia just before the work had to be newly acquired company. As soon as we had stopped. Bill's contribution was tremendous. CBS moved from the small place American Records was represented by Rene Snepvangers, who con- had at Broadway and Fifty-seventh Street to 799 centrated on the problem of developing the light- Seventh Avenue, there was discussion of a joint weight pickup that was a key factor in the success research project with CBS for the purpose of mak- of our plans. Peter Goldmark was more or less the ing a longer -playing record. Nine years later this supervisor, although he didn't actually do any of was to culminate in the LP. the work.* Such records were not new to the record busi- I want to emphasize that the project was all a ness, of course. RCA had made them in 1932 and, team effort. No one man can be said to have "in- as a matter of fact, when I became general man- vented" the LP, which in any case was not, strictly ager of the Victor Division of RCA on July 1, 1933, speaking, an invention, but a development. The my first act was to take them off the market. The team of Liebler. Bachman, Savory, Hunter, and idea was good and they might have sold, but there Rodman was responsible for it. If one man is to be were technical problems. Most of the records were singled out, it would have to be Bachman, whose made from Victorlac, a vinyl compound devel- work on the heated stylus, automatic variable oped by Jim Hunter; the pickups available at that pitch control, and most especially the variable re- time were so heavy they just cut through the mate- luctance pickup was a starting point for a great rial after several plays. The complaints from cus- deal of what was to come. tomers all over the U.S. were so terrific that we Very quickly they went to work on what even- were forced to withdraw the LPs. If you could get a tually was the final approach: the 1 -mil groove and new pressing of one of these records todayand more lines per inch. Even a 1 -mil groove was not play it with a modern lightweight 2 -mil pickup, it unique. When I was at RCA, engineer Fred Barton probably would sound pretty good. asked me if he could cut some 1 -mil records. That In 1933 records had fallen into disuse to such an was in 1935 or '36. He did a number of sessions, extent that the problem was to find some way to mostly with Stokowski and the Philadelphia Or- get people to listen to them again. RCA developed chestra, which we used to record in the old Church at Camden the Duo Jr. player, which could be at- studio in Camden. But the records wouldn't stand tached to your radio. There were by this time 20 up after he made them, because he didn't have the million radios in the U.S., and it seemed to me that proper equipment to play them on. this was our big hope in trying for a comeback of When the war was over and the project began the business that had shrunk nationally to prob- again, the health of the record business was excel- ably only $10 million. It worked beautifully, and lent. Columbia Records' sales had increased from the little attachment, which was sold at our cost, about $1 million when CBS purchased it to $10 $9.95, was instrumental in revitalizing the indus- million or $12 million by 1945. Columbia's artist try. Years later I was able to use this idea again list had grown greatly as well. I managed to get the with the LP. New York Philharmonic -Symphony, the Phila- When we were getting ready to move to Seventh delphia Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Orchestra, the Avenue, we were pondering the type of recording Chicago Symphony, and the Cleveland Orchestra, equipment to use. Thinking ahead to the longer and on our pops list were Benny Goodman, Mary record, I insisted that our setup be built so that ev- Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Eddie Duchin. The erything that was recorded at 78 rpm was also time was ripe for the introduction of something done at 33 rpm on 16 -inch blanks. This gave Co- new into the industry. lumbia a tremendous advantage over its competi- Every two months there were meetings of the tors, who, when LP finally appeared, were forced Columbia Records people and Bill Paley at CBS. to make copies from their old, noisy shellac rec- ords for any material predating tape. RCA issued 'Goldmark. of course, is traditionally credited with being the "inventor" of the LP. Wallerstein's remark seems to indicate a degree of bad feeling between him many of these old records with words of apology and Go:dmark. The latter. in his. autobiography. Maverick Inventor (Saturday for their poor quality printed on the jackets. Co- Review Press. 1973). claims that, when he first proposed developing a long-play- ing disc to Wallerstein in 1945. -he listened to me patiently for exactly three lumbia had masters of good quality going back minutes put an arm around my shoulder, and suggested in a fatherly manner that I should drop the entire project aid do something in the television line instead." almost ten years, and this made a great deal of and that Wallerstein continued to discourage the LP's development right up until difference in our early technical superiority. its success.-Ed.

APRIL1976 57 Ted Wallerstein, flanked by conductor Fritz Reiner and Goddard Lieberson, then a recording director in the Masterworks Division, examines some of the early LPs, while conductor George Szell listens intently.

Hunter, Columbia's production director, and I It was decided to have the record ready for the were always there, and the engineering team fall of 1948. We made a rapid investigation tosee would present anything that might have devel- whether we could manufacture our own players oped. Toward the end of 1946, the engineers let and very quickly discovered that we had neither Adrian Murphy, who was their technical contact the skills nor the time to develop them. Con- man at CBS, know that they had something to sequently we talked to other manufacturers about demonstrate. It was a long-playing record that making a player. Although several were willing, lasted seven or eight minutes, and I immediately Philco was chosen to make the first models. Iwas a said, "Well, that's not a long-playing record." They little unhappy about this, because I felt that all of then got it to ten or twelve minutes, and that didn't the manufacturers should be making a player of make it either. This went on for at least two years. some sort-the more players that got on the mar- Mr. Paley, I think, got a little sore at me, because I ket, the more records could be sold. Philco dida kept saying, "That's not a long-playing record," good job, and it really took some very fancy tricks and he asked, "Well, Ted, what in hell isa long- to develop the player and have it ready to go on the playing record?" I said, "Give me a week, and I'll market in such a short space of time. Our engineer- tell you." ing group showed them how; in fact all of the basic I timed I don't know how many works in the technology came from Columbia Records. classical repertory and came up with a figure of In the field of plastic engineering we had the ad- seventeen minutes to a side. This would enable vantage of having with us Jim Hunter, who had de- about 90% of all classical music to be put on two veloped Victorlac. Actually, for a short time RCA sides of a record. The engineers went back to their had an exclusive on the use of vinyl from Union laboratories. Carbon and Carbide. Vinyl also had been used in When we met in the fall of 1947 the team the transcription business by all manufacturers brought in the seventeen -minute record. There since about 1932. Its quiet surfaces made it an ideal was a long discussion as to whether we should material for the purpose, and its short life, because move right in or first do some development work of the heavy pickups, was not important because on better equipment for playing these records or, transcriptions were played only once. most important, do some development work on a Nothing much had to be changed at our Bridge- popular record to match these 12 -inch classical port, Connecticut, plant. The same plating facil- discs. Up to now our thinking had been geared ities and the same record presses were used. completely to the classical market rather than to Scully lathes were used, as they are today. The cut- the two- or three -minute pop disc market. ting heads were, of course, ours too. To Hunter I was in favor of waiting a year or so to solve must go a great deal of praise, because it is one these problems and to improve the original prod- thing to build a prototype and quite another thing uct. We could have developed a 6- or 7 -inch record to make a product in quantity, and this he man- and equipment to handle the various sizes for aged to do within an extremely brief period. pops. But Paley felt that, since we had put $250,000 Apparently nobody in the record industry had into the LP, it should be launched as it was. So we any faint idea of what we were doing. The only didn't wait and in consequence lost the popsmar- people who knew about it were those directlycon- ket to the RCA 45s. nected with the project, and they had instructions

58 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE From Transcription Disc to LP

Howard Scott with SirThomas Beecham

In the "good old days" the limitations of 78 rpm cutting room consisted of the lathe-with the new required the breaking up of movements of a work 1 -mil cutting'gtylus-controlled by Savory; beside into segments lasting four minutes and twenty it were two heavy turntables with appropriate seconds-or less-per side. This was changed by switches and faders controlled by Gordon; at a Columbia at the insistence of Ted Wallerstein in music stand was a very nervous Scott with a score 1939. That year Columbia began recording on 16 - properly marked for the breaks between acetates. inch, 331/2 -rpm, 3 -mil transcription discs. These He had a right to be nervous. Savory lowered the sides could last a maximum of fifteen minutes. cutting head, and at a signal Gordon released Ace- How were 78s and, subsequently, LPs made from tate A with what we'll say, for purposes of expla- them? nation, was the first eight minutes of the C minor. As an example, let us take the Beethoven Sym- Scott watched his score carefully for the magic phony No. 5 with Bruno Walter, which was point where Acetate A stopped and Acetate B had among the first LPs Columbia issued (ML 4009) to start. Scott gave the signal, Gordon released but which was first issued some time before the Acetate B and faded out Acetate A, and-eureka!- advent of the LP as 78 -rpm set M 498. The follow- no break in continuity. ing is not a literal description of the transfer of the Theoretically! For even if the first segue was 16 -inch acetates of the C minor to LP and 78, but it right, the second or third or fourth or fifth might is close enough for illustration. blow, and the three men would say impolite Columbia's concern when the C minor was first words and go right back to the beginning. To say recorded was production of 78 rpms. For this an that all of this required a certain knack is to say engineer and a musical assistant would dub the the least. Ted said that he considered this trio to 16 -inch 33 -rpm records down to 12 -inch discs at 78 be the unsung heroes of the early success of the rpm. (There were no tape recorders in those days.) LP. Along the way, somebody at CBS thought up a At points where a 78 side was to break-they had computer that would sync the three turntables been determined in advance-the 16 -inch acetate somehow and eliminate Scott and company. It was either stopped or faded as the music required. worked beautifully-on the drawing board. Also, Even in 1939 Wallerstein had faith that a real LP when the team was about a third of the way would someday be feasible, so he instructed that through the project, Bachman broke the news that two 16 -inch acetates be cut simultaneously (at they had been inadvertently cutting with the considerable expense). Acetate A was used for the wrong size stylus. And so, three months already process described above, and Acetate B (a shot, they had to start from scratch. Things got se- "safety") was stored in air-conditioned vaults. rious then, and Scott brought in a mattress. Then came the time to make the LP. Wallerstein It is well to remember that the reason that Co- asked Bill Bachman how long it would take to re- lumbia went to all the fuss was to have, unplayed, duce a hundred records' worth of these stored in perfect condition, a superior -sounding record treasures to the new LP. Bachman said he guessed from which to copy when the LP became an ac- about six months. Ted said, "Bill, don't guess, be tuality. By the time RCA threw in the sponge in sure!" Bachman hedged his bet by three months. 1950, the tape recorder had become standard op- To transfer these 16 -inch discs to LP format erating procedure and the latecomers to LP had took the simultaneous combined talents of three no such trouble. On the other hand, RCA had to go men: two engineers and a musical producer. Most back to either mint -copy records or worn metal of the first LPs were transferred by cutting engi- mothers to derive their early LPs, and that is why neer Bill Savory with the assistance of Paul Gor- early Columbia LPs from 1948 were far better - don; the musical producer was Howard Scott. The sounding than early RCAs. W.B.

59 APRIL 1976 Development of the LP was a team effort. but the work of Bill Bachman (I ) and Jim Hunter (C.) seemed to Wallerstein of prime importance. CBS president William Paley prodded and lent support.

to tell no one. When we were pretty well ready to RCA was free to do its own research. They came go I showed the plan to an official of EMI and to back to us in a few days and said they weren't in- Ted Lewis of English Decca. Both were impressed, terested, and I think it was a bit of a blow to Paley but EMI was in a spot because in most of the that he wasn't going to make a lot of money in li- world, except the U.S., it was tied up with both censing. RCA and Columbia. So it tried to stall. For that rea- Within a few weeks RCA in turn invited us to son I was perfectly willing to help Lewis as much view what their developments were. They laid as I could, because we felt that if he brought these particular emphasis on tape on a consumer level. records on the market in Europe, it would force Well, we had been working with tape longer than EMI's hand. This turned out to be necessary, be- they had, and we saw no prospects for revolution- cause, while English Decca was the first major izing the record industry with tape. This was just a firm to accept LP, EMI was one of the last. Sir bluff, as they had nothing to show. As a matter of Louis Sterling, the onetime head of EMI, told me fact, they didn't even demonstrate a tape recorder in 1950 that the company had lost almost $4 mil- to us-only talked about it. The 45 wasn't even lion and were almost out of the classical record mentioned and probably wasn't even on their business at the time they finally introduced LPs. minds at the time. Apparently it was an idea they Columbia also had an advantage in that we were had come up with earlier, discarded, and thenre- the first people in the U.S. to use tape for master surrected as some sort of answer to Columbia. recording. Murphy was one of the first to see a Ger- I was glad it went the way it did. Actually I think man Magnetophon tape recorder in newly liber- that Paley was badly advised on the possibility of ated Luxemburg after the war. He quickly packed a licensing arrangement, which was the only rea- it up and shipped it back to CBS. Not long there- son he showed it to RCA. The only protection that after both EMI and Ampex came out with ma- Columbia had for its new developmentwas the chines, and we immediately placed an order for term "LP" itself, which I had originated and which both. By mid -1947, we were using them and had we had then copyrighted. As a consequence, al- discontinued direct disc cutting. The Ampex though many other firms could make long-playing proved to be the better machine, so we sent the records, only Columbia could make an LP. How- EMI machines back.* Of the originally issued LPs ever, because of its constant usage, the term has about 40% were from tape originals. since passed into the vocabulary along with nylon In April 1948, two months before the LP's first and aspirin. public showing, Paley called David Sarnoff of On June 20, 1948, the first public demonstration RCA and told him that we had a new development was held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. By this in the record field that we would like very much time, Bachman and the rest of the team had man- for him to see. A meeting was arranged in the aged to lengthen the LP to about twenty-two min- board room of CBS, and I demonstrated the LP. utes. As I stepped up to the podium to address the Not much was said, but I did have the impression fifty -odd representatives of the press, onone side that General Sarnoff was pretty upset. In the si- of me was a stack of conventional 78 -rpm records lence that followed, Paley said he'd be glad to dis- measuring about eight feet in height and another cuss an arrangement for licensing. stack about fifteen inches high of the same record- Probably, when they left, Sarnoff's men told him ings on LP. After a short speech I played one of the that there was nothing patentable about the de- 78 discs for its full length of about four minutes, vice. In fact there are no basic patents on the LP, so when it broke, as usual, right in the middle ofa 'Wallerstein's memory seems to be faulty here. Ampex did not come out with its first tape recorder, the Model 200. until April 1940. The first two of these went movement. Then I took the corresponding LP and to John Mullin (see following article) for ABC's Bing Crosby broadcasts.-Ed. played it on the little Philco attachment right past

60 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE that break. The reception was terrific. The critics fine for short pops numbers but no good at all for were struck not only by the length of the record, classics. With both companies firmly committed, but by the quietness of its surfaces and its greatly the battle of the speeds was waged. RCA espe- increased fidelity. They were convinced that a cially spent huge sums of advertising money trying new era had come to the record business. unsuccessfully to convince the public that the 45 At our annual sales convention a little later in was really a good thing for classics. Our policy for Atlantic City, Paul Southard, our sales manager, advertising was not to compare the products. We had a rather clever idea: He designed his speech so were pushing LPs, and there was no comparison. that it ran exactly the length of The Nutcracker Other things, too, conspired against RCA. I was Suite, which was on one side of an LP. When Paul lucky enough to get the recording rights to South began to speak the stylus was placed on the record, Pacific with Ezio Pinza and Mary Martin, and the which continued playing very softly in the back- record was released just about the time of the in- ground. When the speech ended and Paul re- troduction of the 45. It is still the third largest sell- moved the stylus, the distributors went wild. ing album of all time* and was a huge hit in 1949 And the reception in the stores was over- on LP. Then there were little things like a meeting whelming. Columbia had a large stock of good will of dealers and distributors at the New Yorker Ho- with dealers, thanks to the fact that we had been tel, with Joe Elliot of RCA and I answering ques- responsible for the renaissance of sales in both tions. It must have been embarrassing for poor El- pops and classics. liot, who had no answers. Columbia made its technical know-how avail- Actually the introduction of 45s didn't touch the able to any who wished it, and it was not long until sales of LPs at all. Columbia quickly began to issue other companies began issuing LPs. I believe that single pops records on 45s, which were, and in- the first three to do so were Vox, Cetra-Soria, and deed still are, the accepted medium for singles. Concert Hall, with Columbia doing the pressing. I was amazed when I learned that during the pe- But soon Capitol, Mercury, Decca and indeed all of riod in which RCA held out against the LP-that is, the other companies, large and small, were issuing from June 1948 to January 1950-it lost $4.5 million. them. It had lost practically all of its classical sales and Columbia had to remain in the attachment busi- was beginning to lose its artists. Pinza, whose rec- ness for less than a year. We quickly reduced the ords had been released by Victor since the begin- price of the attachments from $29.95 to $9.95, ning of his career, signed an exclusive contract which was our cost. As it had been in 1933 so it was with Columbia. And there were others. Rubin- now: What we wanted were record sales. We were stein, Heifetz, and other big -name RCA artists not in the equipment business and were delighted were threatening to leave. During the same time, to see other manufacturers almost immediately Columbia had cleared over $3 million. begin to include LP -playing equipment as a stand- I don't remember having any particular interest ard part of their lines. Before long the "Tomb- in RCA's announcement on January 4, 1950, that it stone," as the first jacket design that was used on was making available its "great artists and unsur- most of our LPs was called, became a regular dis- passed classical library on new and improved play at record stores. Long Play (33 rpm) records." By that time the The records sold right from the start. During the whole thing was academic. first two years of sales, our profits were down, but we did always make a profit. Up until February of 'This was as of 1968. Since then a number of records have surpassed **South Pacific" in sales, including the film soundtrack of another Rodgers and Hammerstein show. 1949, nothing was heard from RCA. Then it an- The Sound of Music. But the sales of the album "South Pacific" are still a very re- nounced the 45 -rpm record, which of course was spectable 2 million.

IICAVICIPOR RIVE, 4111100.

RICO IIe IMMORI41

PERFORMANICES

Columbia's first LP release (left)

Thnnt5VIV. displayed the now -classic

S ROW. .i Owl. Or.. "Tombstone" design. RCA

CONCERTO IN 110.11001 made its LP bow with "Theme I MINOR .101.

1.4.. Y.I. Songs" in 1950.

MATRON.

1141.

FM I IC RI Ai, M ORCII or NIT TOIL 0 V Z. ILv MIN 910R [33 MANI 0.116.4.11

APRIL 1976 61 6-8-6?szszses-eseszszszsesaseszs Z52952521

by John T. Mullin Creating the Craft of I've Recording

When a GI sent a German tape machine back home to America, he only glimpsed what it would mean to his-and recording's-future.

111N 1944 -LI KE THOUSANDS of broadcast, and a selection might continue for a other GIs just before D Day-I quarter of an hour or more without interruption. was in England. Because of my In Germany at that stage, of course, Hitler could background in electronics, I have anything he wanted. If he wanted a full sym- was assigned to the Signal phony orchestra to play all night long, he could get Corps, troubleshooting a prob- it. Still, it didn't seem very likely that even a mad- lem the Army was having with man would insist on live concerts night after night. radio receivers that were pick- There had to be another answer, and I was curious ing up severe interference from the radar installa- to know what it was. tions that blanketed Britain. As the Allied armies moved on Berlin, my unit I became so intrigued with what I was doing that was reassigned to Paris and lodged in a building I would work until two or three in the morning. I that had been a maharajah's palace. It was quite wanted music while I worked. The BBC broad- something. Each of us had a big room of his own, casts filled the bill until midnight, when they left with lots of space to store equipment in. We were the air. Then, fishing around the dial in search of given the job of rooting out technological develop- further entertainment, I soon discovered that the ments-particularly those with military applica- German stations apparently were on the air tions-that the Germans had made in electronics twenty-four hours a day. They broadcast sym- during the war. That meant taking trips into Ger- phony concerts in the middle of the night-music many from time to time. that was very well played, and obviously by very On those trips, I kept finding battery -operated large orchestras. portable magnetic recorders: about a foot long and I had some experience with broadcast music eight inches wide with tiny reels. All of them used and knew what "canned" music sounded like. The DC bias, which meant fairly poor signal-to-noise American networks wouldn't permit the use of ratio, limited frequency response, and distortion recordings in the early 1940s, because they in the high frequencies. But that didn't matter, be- claimed the quality was inferior. You could al- cause they were intended for dictation in the field; ways spot the surface noise and the relatively bare intelligibility was the prime criterion. We short playing time of commercial 78 -rpm discs. found so many of these recorders that we started Even transcriptions had some needle scratch and a dumping them in the maharajah's courtyard. limited frequency response. There was none of When I left Paris there was quite a pile of elec- this in the music coming from Germany. The fre- tronic hardware out there, rusting in the rain. quency response was comparable to that of a live In July 1945 a Lt. Spickelmeyer and I were sent to

62 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Germany to look into reports that the Germans escape the bombing of Frankfurt, and it was then had been experimenting with high -frequency en- being operated by the Armed Forces Radio Serv- ergy as a means to jam airplane engines in flight. ice. In response to my request for a demonstration Our mission was to investigate a tower atop a of their Magnetophon the sergeant spoke in Ger- mountain north of Frankfurt. There, in an man to an assistant, who clicked his heels and ran enormous basement room, were two gigantic die- off for a roll of tape. When he put the tape on the sel engines and generators, apparently designed to machine, I really flipped; I couldn't tell from the pump out high -frequency energy to resonate the sound whether it was live or playback. There sim- ignition systems of enemy planes. Nothing ever ply was no background noise. came of it. The Magnetophon had been used at Radio While we were poking around I met a British Frankfurt and at other radio stations in occupied army officer who was there on the same mission. Germany by the time I stumbled onto it, but there The subject of music and recording came up, and was no official word that such a thing existed. The he asked if I had heard the machine they had at Ra- people who were using it to prepare radio pro- dio Frankfurt. When he told me it was a Magneto- grams apparently were unaware of its signifi- phon-the term that Germans used for all tape ma- cance. For me, it was the answer to my question chines-I assumed it was similar to the recorders about where all of that beautiful night -music had we had been junking in Paris. He raved about the come from. musical quality of this recorder and urged me to Lt. Spickelmeyer and I went to work photo- listen to it, but I thought he simply didn't have a graphing all the manuals and schematics. I saw very good ear. to it that the Signal Corps got two Magneto- On the way back to my unit, we came to the pro- phons. When we came upon more, I kept two for verbial fork in the road. I could turn right and myself. During my last few months in the Army, I drive straight back to Paris or turn left to Frank- took these machines apart and sent them home to furt. I chose to turn left. It was the greatest deci- San Francisco in pieces. Regulations specified that sion of my life. a war souvenir had to fit inside a mailbag in Paris The radio station actually was in Bad Nauheim, or it couldn't be sent. I made little wooden boxes a health resort forty-five miles north of Frankfurt. for the motors, shipping each one separately. In The station had been moved into a castle there to all, it came to thirty-five separate items. Any one of

A Magnetophon from the wartime Frankfurt radio station, similar to those discovered and sent come by the author. Machines such as these were the source of the strange nighttime broaccasts heard by Mullin when he was a GI stationed in England during the war.

APRIL 1976 61 John. T. Mullin, center at Magnetophon, gives the first demonstration of professional -quality tape recording in America for the San Francisco chapter of the Institute of Radio Engineers on May 16,1946 Mullin's partner, William Palmer,is second from left. The unusual doughnut -shaped nine -celled folded -horn speaker in a four -foot -square enclosure, dubbed "the tub," was made by Western Electric.

those boxes could have been lost or damaged, but He's a very casual person, and he resented the regi- all of them arrived safely. Reassembly, early in mentation imposed by live broadcasts. Some 1946, must have taken me three or four months, in- weeks he wasn't in the mood and hated doing a cluding the assembly of the electronics, which I broadcast. At other times he was ready to do two wired anew with American parts. or three at a crack. He didn't like having to keep an Once I got the units together, I started showing eye on the clock and being directed to speed things them to audio professionals. The chairman of up or draw them out. what was then the Institute of Radio Engineers The obvious solution was to record the shows. (now the Institute of Electrical and Electronics En- But NBC had told Crosby flatly that it wouldn't air gineers) heard about them and asked me to give a a recorded show on the network: It never had, and demonstration at the May 1946 IRE meeting in it wasn't about to start. So Crosby took a year off, San Francisco. With Bill Palmer, my business part- and when he returned it was with Philco on the ner in those days, I had recorded some music at new ABC network. ABC and Philco had agreed to NBC and at station KFRC in San Francisco. The let him record. station had a pipe organ, which was particularly But because the process involved recording and effective for showing off the Magnetophons. re-recording on transcription discs, quality did In the audience for the first San Francisco dem- suffer-at times to the point where the sponsor onstration was Harold Lindsay, who, a few months threatened to cancel the show because, during that later, was retained by Ampex. That company had first year at ABC, the audience rating was falling been making aircraft motors during the war but off. Philco blamed the poor audio. Crosby's voice was now looking for a new product, preferably in didn't always sound very good after two or three professional sound. The tape recorder seemed to transfers. be a natural. During the 1946-47 season ABC's engineers re- In June 1947, before Ampex really got in- corded each show in its entirety on 16 -inch tran- volved, I was invited to give another demonstra- scription discs at 33 rpm. If everything went per- tion-this time for Bing Crosby. He had been with fectly, there was no problem-they simply would NBC until 1944, doing the Kraft Music Hall live. air it as transcribed-but that seldom happened.

64 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Mullin, wits Bing Crosby, listens to a tape -edited show being played back via tne Magnetophon

season. Crosby's people didn't say, "You have the job." They only wanted to see how tape would compete with the disc system they had been using. When I taped that first broadcast, they asked me to stay right there after the show and edit the tape, to see if I could make a program out of it. I did, and they seemed to like what they heard. Once the Crosby people bought the idea, they had to find a place for me to work. The American Broadcasting Company had been the Blue Net- work of NBC until, a short time before this, the government ordered NBC to sell it. NBC and ABC were still in the same building at Sunset and Vine in Hollywood. Crosby broadcast from what had been one of the major NBC studios. Prior to the breakup, there had been what they called a standby studio, scarcely larger than a ho- tel room, with two little control rooms at one end. One was the Blue control room, the other was for the NBC Red Network. There was nothing in this studio but a piano, a table, and two microphones. If one of the networks lost its feed from the East, as they did once in a while, somebody could dash into the standby studio to play the piano. An en- gineer would run into the control room for which- Almost invariably, there was editing to be done. ever network was out, and it was on the air again That meant copying some discs onto new ones, with local programming. making adjustments as they went, maybe substi- Once the networks split and ABC had adopted tuting a song that had gone better in rehearsal for the principle of using recordings on the air, there the final take. Since they recorded everything in was no need for the standby studio. So that's rehearsal as well as what took place before the au- where they set me up. I installed my machines, dience, there were plenty of bits and pieces to moved in a sofa and a couple of chairs, and it be- work with. came a little living room. It was a delightful place Sometimes it was necessary to make what were to work. called predubs. Say they wanted to use three cuts Crosby's taping schedule was determined by from three different discs, all within a matter of a two factors: when he was available, and when Bill few seconds. That didn't allow enough time to get Morrow, the writer, could come up with the mate- each one cued up during re-recording. So they rial. Sometimes we went right up to the wire. At would make little pre -transfers, or predubs, mak- other times we would be two months in advance. ing copies until all the cuts were added. The final We might do three shows in a row-one a day- record, therefore, might be two or three gener- particularly if we were in San Francisco, where ations removed from the original. Crosby liked to work because of the audiences. Bill Palmer and I had been using tape for sound- Murdo McKenzie was a very meticulous man. It track work (he already had a going business in the was his responsibility to make sure that a studio film industry before we joined forces), where mag- was available, that the musicians would be there, netic recordings were far better in quality and and that Morrow would have the script. After the more easily edited than the optical tracks that were show was recorded, it was Murdo's responsibility standard for films at that time. We were intro- to satisfy Bill that his script had been handled duced to Murdo McKenzie, the technical producer properly. And if there was anything at all that indi- of the Crosby show, through our Hollywood con- cated where I had made a cut, I would have to re- tacts. And after our demonstration we were in- work it until it was inaudible-either that or aban- vited back to record the first show of the 1947-48 don it. Sometimes it would take me a whole week

APRII 1976 65 to put a show together after Bing had performed it. cluding me-had confidence that this newfangled I had two recorders and fifty rolls of tape to thing could be relied on to feed the full network. work with-just what I had sent home from Paris. When someone asked me what would happen if With those fifty rolls I was able to do twenty-six the tape were to break, I didn't have an answer. Crosby shows-splicing, erasing, and recording Since each roll ran for twenty-two minutes (at 30 over the splices. ips), a half-hour show took two rolls and required There were no textbooks on tape editing in 1947, the use of both machines. I would have no backup so I had to develop my own techniques. There was if the machine that was on the air failed. no such thing as actual splicing tape, as we have it We continued to record all of the material from now. I began with a cement very similar to that the afternoon rehearsals. Crosby didn't always used in film editing. The problem with it was that know his songs very well, and he might start one you could hear the splice-a sort of thump-if there and blow it. John Scott Trotter, the music director, wasn't complete silence where it occurred. I then would play the tune on the piano. When Bing got switched to ordinary Scotch mending tape, along it, we would record two or three takes. with a pair of scissors and a can of talcum powder. In the evening, Crosby did the whole show be- Mending tape was fine for the first day or so, but fore an audience. If he muffed a song then, the au- before long the adhesive would begin to bleed. dience loved it-thought it was very funny-but we sticking one turn of tape to the next. Then the tape would have to take out the show version and put in would break, and we would have a real mess. Be- one of the rehearsal takes. Sometimes, if Crosby fore I used a roll,I always went through it and was having fun with a song and not really working rubbed powder on the back of every one of those at it, we had to make it up out of two or three parts. splices. That would get me by for a while, but soon This ad-lib way of working is commonplace in they would be sticky again. recording studios today, but it was all new to us. When the show was finally assembled on tape, it The BASF tape I was using had the iron particles had to be transferred to disc because nobody-in- imbedded in the plastic instead of coated onto it, and since the tapes were not of a consistent thick- ness the sound quality and volume would change from one roll to another. The thicker the tape, the louder the low frequencies. So, having put together a show with various rolls, it was necessary for me to take them apart again afterward and sort the pieces by thickness. I didn't dare throw away an inch of that German tape, because I didn't know where I could get any more. The salvaging of the tape is a story in itself. Many a night I stayed in my studio, doing just that. In those days, the building was supposed to be closed after hours. The guard would try to throw me out, but unless I stood my ground there would be no tape for the next day's recording session. In order to get some sleep, I made use of the Buzz Bomb Effect. In England during the war, if a

Above, Crosby with Bob Burns, whose off-color jokes provided the program material for the first canned laughter. Right, the show's cadre: writer -producer Bill Morrow, with bow tie; music director John Scott Trotter: and technical producer Murdo McKenzie.

66 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Mullin in 1950 with two "portable" Model 200 Ampex tape recorders (note the handles) and the first Model 300 to leave the factory. With these three machines, Mullin had available a full range of advanced editing techniques.

buzz bomb came our way, we woke up. But if it We considered the ability to splice in laughs a created a Doppler effect, that meant that the bomb technical achievement. We had to trim carefully was going over to one side, and we stayedasleep. so that, where we went into or came out of a laugh, That kind of sensitivity will develop after a while. the levels would be the same as those on the laugh So I would put a low -frequency tone onto the tape, we were replacing. It was pretty tricky; we had no with the machine set to monitor this tone, and lie way of fading in or out. down on the couch for a little sleep. When the About two years later, Chesterfields had re- level of the tone changed, I'd wake up, stop the ma- placed Philco as sponsor of Crosby's show. One chine, take the tape apart, sort out the new piece night Bing had a cold. While doing a commercial onto the correct roll, and go back to sleep. with announcer Ken Carpenter, Bing said, "If you The first two Ampexes (modeled on the Mag- like smoking (cough)"-and blew it right there. The netophon) finally appeared in April 1948 and were audience laughed. As soon as the show was over, followed immediately by twelve more for ABC. the ad -agency men were in my control room. In the The ABC order had, in fact, made possible the fi- end, we had to re-record the commercial. nal financing of the first two-Ampex Model 200, Then there was the time that Crosby was ad-lib- serial numbers 1 and 2, which were presented to bing with Bob Hope. Hope loved to take the script me. They went into service on the twenty-seventh that Morrow had written and throw it out into the Crosby show of 1947-48. Still, ABC insisted on audience, saying, "Let's go on from here without a broadcasting from discs until its technical people script." Crosby didn't like that very much, but they were sure of their backup capacity and ofthe would make a good show of it. On this particular reliability of tape. But we retired my Magneto- occasion, Hope said, "It's a lucky thing for you that phons, which were getting pretty tired by that .. . ." Before the show was over the people from time. Chesterfields were in demanding, "What can you As we became more familiar with tape, and as do about it?" I didn't know what they were talking blank tape became available from 3M and others, about. "That reference to Lucky Strike," they ex- we found that we could do all sorts of thingsthat plained. We had to replay the tape, find the offend- weren't possible on disc. One time Bob Burns, the ing word, and assure the sponsors that it could be hillbilly comic, was on the show, and he threw in a removed. few of his folksy farm stories, which of course Much of what we did-things like making up a were not in Bill Morrow's script. Todaythey song out of several takes, "inventing" canned wouldn't seem very off-color, but things were dif- laughter, tight editing to take out offending mate- ferent on radio then. They got enormous laughs, rial-has become commonplace. But I had to learn which just went on and on. We couldn't use the for myself. It was part of a process of discovery- jokes, but Bill asked us to save the laughs. A couple sometimes serendipitous-that began at that fork of weeks later he had a show that wasn't very in the road outside Frankfurt. Sometimes I wonder funny, and he insisted that we put in the salvaged what would have happened had I turned toward laughs. Thus the laugh -track was born. It brought Paris. Perhaps, for the tape recorder, the story letters, because those big guffaws sounded ri- would have had much the same outcome; for me it diculous after the corny jokes. would have been quite different.

APRIL 1976 67 5252525ISE5E52575 ERSE 51525625

by Ted Wick Creating the Movie Music Album Gloria Swanson's eyes inspired the quest for motion picture scores on discs.

S FAR BACK as I can remem- the title of "Director of Radio Advertising and Ex- ber I have been fascinated ploitation" at the little Culver City movie studio by movie music. In fact, at ruled by David 0. Selznick. It was here that Gone age fourteen I was al- with the Wind had been filmed, and often I atemy lowed to play an entire lunch, surrounded by the ghosts of Scarlett and Saturday matinee while Rhett, on the porch of the still -standing set for the theater organist took Tara. off for a rendezvous. I was But it was like being shoved out to sea on a raft. in seventh heaven, inventing sensuous love music A man who made it quite clear he had no idea why while, on the flickering screen above the console, I had been hired, and therefore wanted little or Gloria Swanson drove her lover crazy with those nothing to do with me, curtly explained that I was magnificent eyes. Alas, my toe touched a button to write and produce radio spot announcements that activated a fire -alarm -bell sound effect. Miss advertising Selznick's films and to get free plugs Swanson glared at me from above. Soggy water- on as many radio shows as possible. This assign- melon rinds and apple cores pelted me from be- ment was among the many things of which I knew hind. absolutely nothing. During the ensuing years the screen images My first project was Since You Went Away, found voices and whole symphony orchestras un- which then (early 1944) was about to be released. I derscored the action with music that, to me at liked the film immensely, but most impressivewas least, was often as interesting as Bach, Beethoven, Max Steiner's score. As I listened to it, Lou Forbes, and Brahms. Once heard in a movie theater it was Selznick's musical director and brother of Leo ended, however, unless one wanted to sit through Forbstein of Warner Bros., walked into the cutting a second or third showing of the film. The idea of room. I found myself blabbering to him about how having some of the better motion -picture musical wonderful the music was and why we should scores committed to disc so they could be pur- make some records of it. He listened patiently chased in any record store and enjoyed over and while I, without really knowing what I was talking over again became an obsession with me. about, outlined a plan to make a promotional It was an almost unheard-of California frost that record that we could give to radio stations, hoping wiped out half the orange crop that provided me thereby to get some of those plugs that I was ex- with the opportunity to realize my dream. Sunkist pected to produce. was forced to abandon the radio show on which I Forbes agreed to take the existing score, edit it, was working, and I found myself staggering under write transcription bridges where necessary, and

68 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE record it as an experiment. I assumed he had the Selznick's office. I didn't require an invitation to money in his budget to do this, and he assumed it be seated. The bellow of rage that greeted me was was I, with my high-sounding title, who had the so powerful Iliterally was thrown back into a budget. On this plateau of misunderstanding, we chair. "Just who in God's name gave you permis- plunged ahead. sion to hire seventy-seven musicians and record On a balmy September night in 1944, Lou gath- the music from my picture?" he demanded. "And ered seventy-seven musicians at the huge record- exactly why?" ing stage he had rented for the occasion at the He was horrified that no radio announcer's Samuel Goldwyn studios. Since many radio pro- voice would be on the promotion disc extolling the grams were fifteen minutes long, we limited the greatness of David 0. Selznick as a producer, to length of the recording to fourteen minutes, allow- say nothing of mentioning all the names of his ing the stations a little time to insert a commercial. great cast. He insisted that no announcer in his Forbes gave the initial downbeat and exactly four- right mind would read the printed material I'd sent teen minutes later concluded the disc in one take. out with the discs. He was aghast that I planned to He was something of a genius. I was a quivering spend more than $10,000 of his good, money on bundle of emotion. such a ridiculous idea. But there, at last, was the music from Since You I trembled mightily as I left The Presence, but Went Away, neatly transcribed on one of those since no pink slip appeared to be forthcoming, and huge 16 -inch transcription platters. From this mas- since there was no turning back anyway, I pressed ter we made over a thousand pressings, which, ac- on with the project. companied by a printed commentary I had writ- Roughly a month before the world premiere of ten, were sent to every radio station in the country. Since You Went Away, not only was practically Now all we had to do was wait to see if anything every radio station in the country playing all or happened. part of the musical score, but the announcers were The first thing that happened was a summons to mentioning the names of the film, its exalted pro -

2 2

E LL C

E

rn

A promotional recording of Max Steiner's score for Since You Went Away (1944), with Shirley Temple, Jennifer Jones, and Claudette Colbert, proved that a widespread interest in movie music existed.

APRII 1976 V 0

O

Max Steiner (left) and Miklos R6zsa-their movie scores won Oscars in 1944 and 1945.

David 0. Selznick. "Just who in God's name gave you permission to record the music from my picture?"

ducer, and the entire cast as well. This amounted the needed master, a matter of $4,000 or $5,000. He to over a thousand plugs per day nationwide. did make one concession: He would happily sell to Certainly not to my surprise, Steiner won the us, at a dollar each, the 1,500 albums we needed for 1944 Academy Award for his score. What did sur- radio promotion of our film. These terms nettled prise (and delight) me was the terse memo from me, butI was desperate, and so with fingers Selznick that arrived the following morning. "I crossed I signed the contract. bow to your wisdom," it read-probably the short- If ever there was a kind, courteous, enthusiastic, est memo Selznick ever wrote. and hardworking gentleman, it was Mickey Rozsa Many radio stations had passed on to me great when he went to work arranging the recordedver- batches of letters from listeners asking where the sion of his score. I had explained that many radio Since You Went Away discs might be bought. Of stations had played only short portions of the course, they couldn't be. But the letters were proof Since You Went Away music and asked what he'd to me that there was an audience and a market for think of making the last disc side a complete entity commercial movie albums. in the form of an olio to be called Spellbound Con- So, armed with the letters and a carefully pre- certo. He accepted not only that idea, but my pared sales pitch, I set out to get a soundtrack al- urging to allow two young friends of mine, Eadie bum for Selznick's next picture, Spellbound Griffith and Rack Godwin, who had just formeda (1945), starring Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck marvelous two -piano team, to play it. and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Miklos Rozsa The only available recording studio I could find had written a wildly interesting score involving was a rather seedy former sound -stage at the old the use of an electronic instrument called the Warner Bros. studio on Sunset Boulevard. Itcame theremin. equipped with two ancient Baldwin concert grand An appointment was arranged with James B. pianos, one of which simply would not stay in Conkling, then head of Capitol Records, whose of- tune. It took me a frantic hour just to find a piano fices were above a large record store at thecorner tuner who would remain with us for the whole of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street. (The famous evening. round Capitol Tower had not yet been conceived.) Tape was unheard of in those days. An entire Conkling rejected my idea as "commerciallyun- side had to be recorded in one take. If somebody sound." I was similarly rebuffed by all the other made an error, it all had to be startedover from major recording companies. scratch. R6zsa managed to complete all but the Finally, I found myself talking to Boris Morros, concerto side in two and a half hours. Then Eadie who had a tiny recording company called ARA and Rack took their places at the keyboards, and Records on Robertson Boulevard. He agreed to the problems began. That infernal piano keptgo- press and distribute for sale an album consisting of ing off pitch, and the poor tuner was losing his five double-faced 10 -inch 78 -rpm discs, but only if mind. So were we all. our studio, at Selznick's expense, would produce When Rozsa realized there were but ten minutes

70 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE left before we would go into a large overtime ex- and rearranged for the five -disc set that RCA Vic- penditure, he called for a take. I puffed nervously tor had agreed to make with Arthur Fiedler and on my umpteenth cigarette. The piano tuner was the Boston Pops Orchestra. Two hundred pounds in a state of collapse. But the take went off like of music were shipped to Boston. Fiedler was ap- clockwork. Even the miserable piano behaved. We palled. had, at last, given birth to the first commercial set "Are you aware," he asked me, shortly after my of motion -picture music discs. arrival, "that the entire resources of the Boston On Academy Awards night ROzsa happily ac- Symphony Orchestra were not enough for your cepted his Oscar for Best Musical Score for a Dra- Mr. Tiomkin? Not only have I had to engage matic Picture in 1945. That made the second in a twenty more musicians than we normally use, ... row for a Selznick film score. but I've had a staff of copyists working round the An inquiry came from RCA Victor asking who clock correcting all the errors in the parts." owned the copyright of the Spellbound music and Then came the rehearsal at Symphony Hall. who published it. (This I turned over to Selznick's Amid the deafening noise and chaos of the music, legal department, inadvertently stirring up a hor- the conductor glanced at me occasionally with a nets' nest. The studio took the position that, having baleful "See what I mean?" look. paid Rozsa to write the music, it automatically be- But the Duel in the Sun score was recorded, and came studio property. R6zsa took the position that I had even convinced myself that half a million the studio had the rights to his work only for use in copies would be sold. Our publicity campaign pro- the movie. Ican't remember the outcome, but, ceeded as usual, the recordings being distributed whatever it was, composers were thereafter rather to the growing list of radio stations, to various mu- careful about the contracts they signed.) RCA sub- sic critics, and to my mother. sequently released a 12 -inch 78 disc of the Mother thought it was marvelous. (Later I Spellbound Concerto, becoming the first major learned that she had no phonograph.) From the company to issue such a recording. rest of the world: silence. My dreams were realized, and I was thrilled Well, I learned to be selective. with my good fortune. But I soon found that not all Today recordings of music from films of the For- movie scores are fit for commercial release. ties and Fifties are being re-released. I have bought Even the process of composing the music for all I can find and revel in listening to them while Duel in the Sun was in itself a duel, between two the music conjures up images of such stars as Bette volatile men-producer Selznick and the lovable Davis, Ingrid Bergman, and Humphrey Bogart. Russian composer Dimitri Tiomkin. The finished Even my parrot likes them. But I wish he'd quit product was heavy going, even after being edited whistling themes from Duel in the Sun.

It was Rozsa's score for Spellbound (with Gregory Peck aid Ingrid Bergmai) that resulted in the first commercial movie -music album (by ARA Records) and later in RCA Victor's Spellbound Concerto disc.

APRII 1976 by Norman Eisenberg

findersThe Men Who Made an Industry THE PERIOD OF HIGH FIDELITY magazine'sconception, founding, and growth to maturitywas also, to a great extent, the period in which the high fidelity industry did thesame. Perhaps, therefore, A new series the editors can be forgivena bit of nostalgia for the prominent of informal names from that era, now inextricably woven into the fabric of audio industry history. But it ismore than mere nostalgia that biographiesleads us to undertake the series that begins withthe random group below. Surely a good portion ofour readership today was not present at the birth of the industry in the Forties and Fifties,and even those who were can profit by being reminded of what themen who will be treated here contributed to thecurrent state of the art. The subjects of these sketcheswere quite literally pathfinders: by 1951, when HIGH FIDELITY published its first issue, theywere strik- ing out into uncharted territory, helpingto create a new kind of reality, and all have since left well -marked trails forothers to follow. So, without further ado,we inaugurate "High Fidelity Pathfinders." -The Editors

I. AVERY FISHER

For openers, perhaps inescapably, there is Avery Fisher, whose company, from which he recently retired, still bears his name and has proclaimed it- self at times not only the midwife of high fidelity sound, but also its parent-to wit, "We invented high fidelity." To many, Fisher is the man who turnedover about $10 million to maintain and improve New York's Philharmonic Hall in Lincoln Center, which was subsequently renamed Avery Fisher Hall. To many others, he is theman who built a company from a young man's dream in the De- pression of the 1930s to one of the industry's top- ranking firms, while never losing touch with the two preoccupations at the core of his pursuit of high fidelity: an abiding love of music andan

72 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE high-energy companies Discwasherbringingto theTwo audiophile. small -sized, Examine the research Group D'STAT anti -static mat. The cure for audible static ef- fects during playback. [D'Stat] "Gave tt e best results-". [of any mat tested] (Gramaphone, Jan. 1976.) $.C.95

SC -1 The only Stylus cleaner. Now Available. Calculated den- sity brush plus Magnifying mir- ror. Arer't you tired of cleaning your exjensive styluswitha cloth slab, mascara brush or shaver c eaner?? $6.00

ZEROSTAT. "-We believe that the Zerostat Is the most effective unit avail- able today for removing static charge-" (Audio Electronics Laboratory.) The ultimate anti- static device-nothing to re- place. $29.95 STAX SR-5/SRD-6 electrostatic STAX SRA-12S P rean p. STAX DA -300 Power Amp. System. The listeners'instrument. Un- Ss /-\(_,.,..uitr) that is simply The most comfortable and best matched low distortion, fre- :he best sounding power amp. -- 4 --F. for $130.00. quency articulation and RIAA. If you are an audiophile who is $5C0. convinced that al' high-powered, DISCWASHER SYSTEM. 'otv-distortion amplifiers sound most STAX SRX Mk3/SRD-7 electro- 'List about the sa.-rie, you may be researched record cleaning sys- static earspeaker system. 'n for a pleasant surprise. Make tem available, "The Discwasher $230.00. tour own assignments-but only got rid of all the dirt and finger- "-an astonishing listening ex- 9fier you have a chance to liSten prints in one easy operation- perience." (High Fidelity, March `a this most unusual and fantas- far more effective than any other 1976). The standarc of head- 'ic power amplifier from Sfax. - record -cleaning toolIhave phones the world over. "The :FM Guide, Jan. 1976.) come across".(Accen.t on amplifier Tester." Audio,Electronic Engineering STAX UA-7M. Times, Jan. 27, 1975.) $15.00 NEW STAX SR -44iectret ear - Proof that Tonearms are "Listen - ,,,,Larcur A $75 head- able." Polymer -damped micro phcne that challenges the best Deanpg, all gold contacts and anyplace at any price! ow resonance headsell. $183. Discwasher, Inc. Audio accessories which start with science and end with superior performance.

Check with your dealer for our new technical bulletin.

909 University Ave., Cclumbia, MO 65201

discwasheR GROUP American Audioport, Inc. Exclusive agent for Stax-builders of the listenable legend.

For a treatise on "Listener's Logic- The Way of Stax", see your franchised dea'er or write us directly.

al American Audioport 909 University Ave. Co umbia, MO 65201 uninhibited penchant for "playing with the problem-from concepts of products to the em- knobs" on equipment. blem that adorned them. The lettering for "The Whether Fisher, or indeed any single individual, Fisher" logo was a custom job; no existing type- actually "invented" high fidelity is subject to de- face would please the man who himself had been a bate. But certainly he pioneered the ideas and the book designer. Wise enough to entrust hard tech- products for getting high fidelity sound into a lot of nical decisions to professional engineers, he nev- homes. What's more, no one has yet disputed that ertheless had a far-reaching grasp of technical ar- the company he formed in 1937, known as Philhar- cana and took real joy in demonstrating new monic Radio, was the first of what came to be products, often manning the controls himself at known as "high fidelity manufacturers." the big audio shows. His insistence that audio Like so many others who helped launch, or fur- components should sport ample control features ther the growth of, high fidelity, Fisher backed into but still present a visual design for home appeal this field from another. At New York University he not only set the pattern for Fisher products, but in- majored in English and biology. His first job in the fluenced the styling of many other companies' early 1930s was at the publishing house of Dodd, lines too. At one time, in fact-around the late Mead, and Company, where, as he puts it, "I held 1950s-it was said among insiders that most of the two jobs in order to earn a salary [$18 a week] components made for home use had either "the equal to half a job." He worked as both an adver- Fisher look" or some other look. tising manager and a book designer, and "just to An astute marketing man, Avery often used the make sure I earned my money they started giving specification sheets for a new product to call atten- me manuscripts to take home to read." tion to his pioneering efforts, listed under "Fisher But there was another, potentially more impor- Firsts" and including such items as: "1937-First tant side to Fisher. He had grown up in a home in high fidelity sound systems featuring a beam - which music was prominent. His father owned a power amplifier, inverse feedback ..."; "1956- huge collection of acoustic -horn gramophones, Firstall -transistorpreamplifier -equalizer";or and as a boy Avery studied the violin-an avoca- "1961-First complete FM -multiplex stereo receiv- tion he continues. ers." Also a man of wide acquaintance, he could While toiling at publishing, Fisher became at- deal with the heads of state and spend hours with tracted to the kind of outsize electronic and audio some unknown hi-fi buff off the street. He could equipment that was then sold in Radio Row-a charm a visiting magazine editor in the morning downtown district of Manhattan cluttered with and read the riot act to a difficult sales rep in the parts -supply outlets. Determined to enjoy better afternoon. With his background in publishing, he sound at home than was available from conven- has always been aware of the "power of the press," tional home equipment, he began haunting these and it in turn-and as a consequence-has been shops, lugging home such monsters as 18 -inch very good to his company and its products. (One of woofers. Visitors, hearing his home-grown system, the fledgling firm's real press breaks came about asked him to build similar rigs for them. The idea two years afterit was formed, when Fortune of going into business to do so thus planted, it took magazine, that arbiter of corporate status, praised root in the formation of Philharmonic Radio in Fisher equipment.) 1937. (Two coincidences: as Philharmonic Hall With all of this, the aura built up around "The was to become Avery Fisher Hall, so Philharmonic Fisher" over the years meant that finally the one- Radio was to become Fisher Radio; and a Fisher time "pioneer" became "the Establishment." But warehouse once stood on the site of Lincoln the basic drive of the early days and the overriding Center.) devotion to music never were lost sight of. Today, During the war years, Philharmonic was sold Fisher is a comfortable retiree from the high fidel- and became involved in nonconsumer electronics. ity business, though he remains active in the af- Fisher stayed on as president until 1945, when he fairs of such institutions as Lincoln Center and the resigned to form the present company. Fisher Ra- Marlboro Music Festival. As for the violin playing, dio moved about Manhattan, constantly expand- he still enjoys it; in fact, his home is the scene of ing, and in the early 1950s reached Long Island regular chamber music sessions. Avery plays un- City, where space was more readily available. In less the musical visitors "are above my league. I 1960 Fisher opened another plant, in Milroy, Penn- am, after all, only an enthusiastic amateur." sylvania, which has since grown from its original Among recent guests at the Fisher evenings: violin- 62,000 square feet to something like 300,000 square ists Felix Galimir and Jaime Laredo, cellist Leslie feet. The Long Island City operation moved in 1965 Parnas, and pianists Alicia de Larrocha and Gar- to a larger place and has since expanded again. rick Ohlsson. All through his rising fortunes, Avery seemed to He has come a long way from the $18 -a -week be everywhere at once, always on top of every factotum.

APRIL 1976 77 Fisher. One of the first Scott units to include the noise suppressor was the Model 210-A integrated amplifier, for years regarded as one of the staples of home and studio audio gear. Novel as the cir- cuitry was, Scott's early method of distribution was more so: It included such dissimilar outlets as Boston's Radio Shack and New York's Aber- crombie & Fitch. As the enterprise grew, it got into FM, thanks largely to the genius of another young MIT gradu- ate, Daniel von Recklinghausen, who joined the company in 1951. Thereafter Scott equipment took on a distinctive look that was in sharp contrast to the home -decorator "Fisher look." The "Scott look" was lean, modest, and almost antiseptic. It was a classic study in restrained elegance: brushed metal with neatly engraved dial markings. One of its most characteristic features was the round sta- tion dial instead of the long multicolored dial. II. H. H. SCOTT This approach to product styling had its own kind of appeal, and it worked for years for Scott. Of course it was underpinned by solid engineering "You mean there really is an H. H. Scott?" ex- and creative innovation. Some important "Scott claimed a surprised master of ceremonies at a New firsts" (which, typically, the company soft-pedaled York reception a few years ago, when first intro- in its promotion) were automatic variable band- duced to Hermon (not a variant of Herman, but an width for AM tuners, the first stereo FM multiplex old family name, after Mount Hermon in the Bible) tuner built to FCC specifications (Von Reck- Hosmer (after ancestor John Hosmer, described on linghausen was, in fact, a prime mover in the de- a plaque at Concord, Massachusetts, as one of the velopment of multiplexed FM and in arranging for Colonial Minutemen who made that first stand the field tests that finally led to FCC approval), and against the British in 1775) Scott. Though by the the use of integrated circuits and of field-effect time he died in April 1975, H. H. Scott had become transistors' (FETs). Probably the most dramatic one of the less visible of the important figures in and influential innovation was the "pancake" audio, in his heyday he was very much alive and chassis for amplifiers before transistorization: By active near his Hosmer ancestor's stamping installing the vacuum tubes horizontally instead ground: in Maynard, Massachusetts, to be exact. of straight up as in the past, Scott lowered the sil- In the early days he contributed his share of sur- houette of the amplifier to make it more accept- prises to the field. His approach to high fidelity able in home installations. Old-timers cluck- was that of a music -loving engineer turned audio- clucked at this radical step, but soon other com- phile. Barely after graduation in 1931 from MIT, panies were building low -profile amplifiers this where he was reputedly a straight -A student, Scott way. was awarded a patent-for a video circuit! He soon With all this emphasis on the technical, it is easy joined General Radio, where he continued to come to forget that Scott the man-whimsical, proud, up with new answers to old problems. The one and unconventional-was also passionately de- that really got him out of General Radio and into voted to music. A visitor to his home might have the high fidelity field was the dynamic noise sup- expected to be greeted with something like, "You pressor, generally conceded to have been the must listen to this new speaker we have." Instead, most sophisticated device of its time (1946) for re- the "new equipment" Scott was likely to show off ducing noise on records while preserving most of would be an electronic organ. the musical signal. General Radio had no interest In addition to turning out products and ideas, in it, so Scott took his brainchild and his patent his plant also proved to be the breeding ground for and set up his own plant in Cambridge, Massachu- other prominent names in the audio field. Among setts, keeping twelve employees busy wiring up them was Martin Borish, who worked with Scott noise suppressors for use by radio stations. for four years beginning in 1959 and is today the For a while he had a licensing arrangement with president of Acoustic Research. The Acoustech the then recently formed Fisher Radio: Fisher used Company, for which Borish worked briefly, was the noise suppressors in his products. Eventually started in 1962 by Morley Kahn, who had joined Scott began producing his own amplifiers incorpo- Scott in 1958. Kahn's most recent company iden- rating the circuit, a step that resulted in a sharp tity has been as head of Dolby's U.S. operations. and never fully healed break in relations with After Scott became ill he gradually withdrew

78 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE from active control of the company. His interest in voice coils. These designs proved so successful audio never flagged, however, and in his later that he soon lost interest in his previous "conven- years he was active in the Audio Engineering tional" products and turned full time to high -qual- Society and became one of the most enthusiastic ity reproducers and such related devices as power supporters of equipment standards. As he put it amplifiers, dividing networks, and DC power sup- once, in typical Yankee style, "The purpose of the plies. These all were made specifically for installa- IHFM standard is to permit the buyer to know just tion in the better theaters as well as in movie sound what he's paying for.... When you buy fabric, for studios. instance, you don't expect the clerk to measure it The year 1934 is given as the date of Lansing's out for you with a rubber yardstick." first professional speaker system. Hand -built,it contained a 15 -inch woofer in a large bass -reflex enclosure, crossed over to a horn -loaded compres- sion tweeter. The unit became an immediate suc- cess and proved to be the prototype for a whole "family" of subsequent speaker -system designs. In 1938 Decker was killed in a plane crash. Two years later Lansing-who, audio lore tells us, was far more a creative engineer than a businessman- sold the firm to a group of engineers who had left Western Electric and had formed Altec Theatre Service Corporation. Lansing joined as vice presi- dent, and the company reconstituted itself as Al- tec-Lansing, which continues to this day. In 1945 Lansing left Altec-Lansing, and the fol- lowing year he teamed up with William H. Thomas, former general manager of Marquardt Aircraft, to form his own organization. Thomas persuaded Marquardt to contribute space and fi- nancial support, and Lansing was off again, exper- III. JAMES B. LANSING imenting and perfecting. According to reports, he often spent days at the factory without leaving. One of the great achievements of this period was Although his name found its way onto two major the Model D-130-created in 1947 and widely ac- audio companies-Altec-Lansing and, later, James claimed as probably the best extended -range B. Lansing, which was eventually shortened sim- single loudspeaker ever made. Among its features ply to JBL-the man himself was never known by are a four -inch edge -wound voice coil, aluminum most of the activists in the high fidelity field. The center dome, special curvilinear cone, massive Al- reason: Lansing died in 1949, before most of us had nico V magnet, and very high efficiency. This 15 - grasped the difference between a woofer and a inch driver is still in the JBL catalogues. tweeter but not before he had implanted that and When Lansing died in 1949, Thomas succeeded some other basic ideas from which much was to him as president of JBL, and the company's activi- develop in the future. ties gradually broadened to cater to the ground During the 1920s, when James Bullough Lansing swell of interest in high fidelity sound in the 1950s. was also in his twenties, he somehow became A high point of this new phase of the enterprise compellingly interested in loudspeakers, which at came in 1955, when Life magazine, reporting on the time were as much a source of wonderment the high fidelity craze, described the JBL Harts - and confusion as the rapidly expanding field of ra- field as the "ultimate dream speaker." The hard- dio of which they were a vital part. By 1929 he had working, restless, elusive, but devoted experi- established, with Ken Decker, the Lansing Manu- menter Jim Lansing would have liked that, and facturing Company in Los Angeles to produce probably would have approved no less of the suc- loudspeakers for use in the radio and phonograph cession of high -quality audio products that have industry. continued under the JBL escutcheon. With the growth of talking films in the 1930s, Lansing really came into his own. Working with Western Electric to improve loudspeakers for use in theaters (both the frequency range and the dy- Next Month namic range had to be much greater than in exist- Saul Marantz, Paul Klipsch, ing speakers in order to fill theaters with sound), and Rudy Bozak he came up with such novelties as highly efficient compression drivers and edge -wound ribbon

APRIL 1976 79 A Critical Eyeon the Early Fifties Excerpts from HIGH FIDELITY record reviews

BRAHMS: VierErnste Geeing.; SCHUMANN: ried over the years: Witness "Bewitched" Frauenliebeand Leben. Kathleen Ferrier, and "I Could Write a Book." ... A lively, contralto.LONDON. Reviewed by John F. well paced and atmospheric performance, lndcox (Summer 51). under Lehman Engel's direction, adds a good deal to the enjoyment of the record- ... Miss Ferrier's voicing of !the Brahms] is ing.... It's good to have a pal like Joey back thrilling for the nobility of feeling, the col- oration of her tones, her beautiful diction and attention to detail. Her phrasing is su- perb. It might be thought that the tessitura The first review of a Solti disc: of some of these songs would cause her SUPPE: Overtures-Poet and Peasant; some trouble, as it has others before her, Pique Dame; Morning, Noon and Night; but she meets every vocal challenge with Light Cavalry. London Philharmonic Or- apparent ease.... It would seem to me that chestra, George Solti, cond. LONDON. Re- Miss Ferrier has less success with [the viewed by C. G. Burke (Fall51). Schumann] than with the Brahms ... for reasons that I am unable to state, from just ... The four perennial dazzlers of the one hearing of the recording. Her sump- Belgo-Italo-Austro-GermanSuppeare tuous tones, careful phrasing and musical played with appropriate gusto, but subject integrity are here in plenty, but I seem to and manner are far less memorable than feel a constraint, a holding back of her inner the conveyance, which is FFRR of the days feeling.... before LP, with all its spaciousness and ef- fortless sonority, the massed brass and Starker makes his HF bow: winging strings woven into an encircling curtain of velvet and gold, a wall of splen- KoDALY: Sonata for Unaccompanied Cello. Kathleen Ferrier-nobility of feeling. did sound imprisoning the hearer. Unless Janos Starker, cello. PERIOD. Reviewed by the disc is a fortuitous freak we have here J. F.I. (Summer51). the beginning of a restoration of true FFRR, COLUMBIA. Reviewed by J. F.I. (Summer and shall have to revise our values.... The idea of a sonata for unaccompanied 51). 'cello may sound rather dull to you. If so, here is a recording to change that view- The Rodgers and Hart musical, produced in POULENC: Piano Music. WM: Plano Mu- point. A work of the eminent Hungarian 1940, starring Vivienne Segal and Gene sic. Francis Poulenc, piano. COLUMBIA. Re- composer, Kodaly, at the age of 33, this is Kelly remains a landmark in the history of viewed by J. F. I. (Fall 51). exciting rhythmic music which exploits the American musical comedy. Based on the use of the instrument to the full ... and then stories of John O'Hara, and originally writ- The first of a new Columbia series entitled some.... Starker gives a stunning perform- ten for the New Yorker, with a show -busi- "Meet the Composer" finds Poulenc play- ance of a technically difficult score, for ness heel and his loves as leading charac- ing several short works of his own, and of which it is apparent he has great affection. ters, it boasted of what was probably the his compatriot, Erik Satie. His tone in the middle register seems a little most adult and realistic book ever to grace There is a certain old world charm in the thin at times, but thisis a minor criti- a musical play. .Even so, Hart's sophis- seven movement Suite Francpise of Pou- cism.... ticated lyrics, Rodgers' tricky score and a lenc, with its evocation of early French fine production by George Abbott could not dances, while the Mouvements Perpetuels make ita smash hit. ... Rodgers' score. sounds like a suitable accompaniment to an RICHARD RODGERS: Pal Joey. Vivienne Se- while hardly one of his major efforts, still early Max Linder comedy. The alleged wit gal and Harold Lang: Lehman Engel, cond. contains enough good things to have car- and humor of Satie's music always strikes hll HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE me as being contrived, and I can be counted among the initiated who, according to Vir- gil Thomson, "find his works trifling." Some of these pieces have received more knowing performancesthanthose presented here by Poulenc, who doesn't strike me as being any virtuoso. They may be said to be definitive recordings in much the same way as Stravinsky's are of his works.

Karajan "noticed," and more: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf- MOZART: Le Nozze di Figaro.Three sets; an opulent Fernando Previtali(CETRA-SORIA),Fritz Countess Almaviva. Busch(RCAVICTOR), and Herbert von Karajan (COLUMBIA), cond. Reviewed by C.G. B. (Winter 51). ... In da Ponte's hands the witty and bitter social satire of the dramatist (who outfitted privateers for use against the British in the American Revolutionary War) becomes a commonplace and vulgar farce of sexual in- trigue, pushed at too rapid a pace and thus crammed with puzzling stagy expedients. What is commendable in the dialogue is translated direct from Beaumarchais, but there is not much of it. We know that da Ponte had no concept of the nature of the Mozartian genius.... The Marriage of Fig- aro has exceptional demands to make of women [IrmgardSeefried,Elisabeth and this certainly has enough strength to the members of its cast, and in three re- Schwarzkopf, and Sena jurinac] partic- stand on its own.... corded versions we have the remarkable ularly are unsurpassed, with sure technique feature that there is not a bad singer in the carrying the round endowment of their SCHUMANN: Concerto in A minor, for Piano lot. voices to near perfection. The men are little The earliest version, Glyndebourne, has behind them; for if George London's Alma - and Orchestra, Op. 54.Dinu Lipatti, piano: been since its issuance a true phonographic viva has less distinctive style than [Roy] Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Kara- classic. It is delivered in a most consistently Henderson's [on the Glyndebourne set], it jan, cond.COLUMBIA.Reviewed by J. F.I. delicate -styled way by a completely unified has a greater warmth and breadth of essen- (Winter 51). company under the direction of the re- tial voice while Erich Kunz, Figaro, cannot gretted Fritz Busch [who had died in Sep- he reproached for anything. The orchestra The finest version of this popular Concerto tember]. ... The new Columbia edition by is very rich, Karajan's direction of it is not currently available on records. For some members of the Vienna National Opera la- dissimilar at any important point from time, European critics have been loud in vishes an amazing vocal opulence. The Busch's leadership of the Glyndebourne their praise of Lipatti, who died last Decem- band. ... The qualities specified form a ber at the early age of 33. That such praise basis for the most captivating performance was well-founded and deserved, this beau- of Figaro this writer has ever heard.... The tiful performance proves. It shows him to recitativo secco, borne by all the charac- be an artist of rare sensitivity and commu- ters. bearing the plot and expressive of min- nicative powers, fleet of finger, clean in exe- utiae of sentiment and impulse, has been cution. and a molder of lovely phrases. I cut out; from beginning to end, all excised. was hardly prepared to find his playing as What isleftis a senseless and formless virile, thinking the ravages of the disease monster of exceptional, continuous and from which he died, leukemia, might well clashing beauty, a parade of disconnected have robbed him of such digital power. I wonderful essays on the art of singing: flesh was mistaken; his playingisforceful and blood without bones and sinews: a gor- though not rough, at other times affecting geous tragic monument to Olympian inepti- but not sentimental. tude.... The Philharmonia, under von Karajan's discerning leadership, affords him excellent support.... The first mention of Bernstein: Corinne Chochem's Collection of Folk PROKOFIEV: Lieutenant Kije Suite, Op. 60; Dances: Four Hora Dances (for orchestra Scythian Suite, Op. 20.Vienna Symphony and chorus).Music arranged by Leonard Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen,cond. Bernstein, David Diamond, Darius Milhaud. WESTMINSTER.Reviewed by C. G. B. (Win- Ernst Toch. Max Goberman, cond. ALco ter 51). Reviewed by J. F. I. (Winter 51). This is the best orchestral recording ever Not knowing a thing about the music of Pal- made. Itis so exceptionally effective that estine, I can only report that this recording we face the dismal prospect of hearing of folk dances interested me for the surging Lieutenant Kije as a test recording on all rhythmic impact of its music, some splen- sides until all manufacturers have attained cfid choral work, and for the excellence of the same standards. The disc triumphs the recording.... I would like to hear these above all in distinctiveness of timbre and done without benefit of the orchestrations differentiation of choirs and instruments. of the above eminent composers. Folk mu- whether in solo or in mass.... The cymbals George (sic)Solti -Suppe for starters. sic is seldom improved by such attentions. are intimidating and the drums as solid as

APRIL 1976 81 ordnance.... Dr. Scherchen plainly has an bach cheerfully contributed to the downfall Beethoven First, with Toscanini and Scher- affinity for it, and the orchestra disports it- of a nation. The musical vaudeville of Or- chen officiating again.... London had noth- self with enthusiastic brilliance.... pheus in Hell depends on the vulgar device ing to throw into this breach except the of anachronism for its humor, and the star- scorching typewriter of Remy Van Wyck tling vigor of the music-lyrical and rowdy Farkas. WAGNER:Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg. in alternation-with which he adorned the Mr. Farkas, a London executive en- Soloists; chorus and orchestra of the Bay- cheap cynicism of his subject, gave it an in- trusted with publicity, among other func- reuth Festival 1951, Herbert von Karajan, fluence it is too bad it had, and maintains a tions, never has refused a battle in his life, cond. COLUMBIA. Reviewed by C. G.B. vehement interest even now, decidedly and didn't now. ... The vocal portions of (Spring 52). stimulated by the participants in this the London Ninth, he affirmed, with a flick recording, done with traditional bump- of his shift -key, "NEVER HAVE BEEN [... This recording of Die Meistersinger] ... tiousness and energy. Everyone is thor- BETTER PERFORMED ON RECORDS has some distinct and almost compelling oughly trained, and M. Leibowitz's break- AND IN ALL LIKELIHOOD NEVER WILL virtues of its own. Karajan's direction is neck drive is exhilarating.... BE." Moreover, he pointed out, the London sublime, if one can say so about so earthy a version was "COMPLETELY FREE FROM work. The singing by Elisabeth Schwarz- TAMPERING WITH CONTROLS IN OR- kopf (Eva), Otto Edelmann (Sachs) and Er- BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 9. Three sets: DER TO ESTABLISH FALSE DYNAMIC ich Kunz (Beckmesser), is consistently ErichKleiber(LONDON), Hermann Scher- EXCITEMENT." The latter dig was di- splendid; Gerhard Unger is good most of chen (WESTMINSTER), and Arturo Toscanini rected, seemingly, not at the illustrious the time as David; but regrettably the good (RCA VICTOR), cond. Reviewed by John M. Maestro A ----o T i, but at those sinister tenor, Hans Hopf, had a wicked day as Conly (11-12 / 52). characters, the sound -engineers of W r, Walther. gentry famed for an uncanny knack with London Records had an excellent idea for a trumpets and drums. musical surprise to brighten the 1952 All Mr. Farkas's valor was needed. The BERG: Wozzeck. Soloists; New York Phil- Christmas shopping season for lovers of the odds against him did not lighten as the harmonic -Symphony Orchestra and cho- classics. So did RCA Victor. So did West- three versions of the giant symphony were rus, Dimitri Mitropoulos, cond. COLUMBIA. minster. heard, movement by movement. Kleiber's Reviewed by Alfred Frankenstein (Spring London's project was a very ambitious first movement is respectable and accurate. 52). and expensive one. So was Westminster's. Scherchen's is deeply intellectual, reminis- So was RCA Victor's. cent of the famous Weingartner reading. . Hearing the work on these records, with In the natural course of time, October ar- Toscanini's is hair-raising: to this listener the score in hand, one is not only filled with rived, and out came London's surprise. It an adventure for which there is no descrip- the idea of the Opera but is seized and was a brand new, two -LP recording of tion. After this, Toscanini takes the second shaken by itin a feverish and over- Beethoven's great "Choral" Symphony, No. movement strictly as a scherzo. So does whelming experience. Seldom, if ever, has 9, in D Minor. Kleiber. Scherchen slows and deepens it, one heard such a skein of ominous sounds. So was Westminster's. makes it a violent, sardonic masque. In the Wozzeck is a truly great tragedy, a work So was RCA Victor's. adagio, Kleiber again is competent and re- of intense expressiveness and subtle pathos At this point, the season became almost strained; Toscanini etches starlit solitude as well as a stark, sinister drama; it "purges dazzlingly bright for music -loving shop- and yearning; Scherchen brings forth a through pity and terror" in a fashion rarely pers, with such a wealth of Ninths to heartfelt song of rapture. In the last move- attained by operas of this or any other time. choose among. ... The Toscanini name ment, ... Toscanini, more than either of the The recording, taken from the Philhar- gave RCA Victor an initial advantage, and others, seems at one ... with Beethoven: he monic broadcast of April 15, 1951, is superb, it had another, shared by Westminster. truly believes in the possible brotherhood and so is the performance. Looking at the Both their sets offered the Ninth on three of humankind, he thinks it worth fighting printed music one wonders how it can be record sides and, on the fourth side, the for and his baton sings like a sword. ... performed at all, but it is done with com- plete conviction, clarity and apparent ease by all concerned. The principal singers are Mack Harrell, Frederick Jagel, Joseph Mor- dino, David Lloyd, Ralph Herbert, and Ei- leen Farrell....

Bernstein considered as conductor:

MILHAUD: Le CreationduMonde. CopLAND: El Salon Mexico. Columbia Chamber & Symphony Orchestras, Leonard Bernstein. cond. COLUMBIA. Reviewed by J.F.I. (Spring 52). Two sparkling performances under the stimulating direction of Bernstein, who projects, particularly in the Milhaud, just that little more than I remember having heard in these scores previously. ...

A critic's musings on Offenbach:

OFFENBACH:Orphee aux Enters.Soloists. Paris Philharmonic, Rene Leibowitz, cond. RENAISSANCE. Reviewed by C. G. B. (Sum- mer 52).

Inperverting his own genius, in destroying gods for an endangered people who could not afford to dispense with them, Offen- Hermann Scherchen-sterling readings for the sinister soundmen of W r.

82 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Well, this is it. For years, whenever we ven- timidated by convention. A grave and even tured into mild raptures over one current restraint, particularly in the matter of ac- musical or another, some vintage playgoer cent, shapes the first two movements into a has squelched us by remarking that, after measured reflection of philosophy and im- all, Broadway hasn't been Broadway since perturbable courage, more suggestive of the the great days of the topical review. It is our Imperator Marcus Aurelius than of the First pleasure to report that 1952 has a review Consul Bonaparte. ... To this writer nei- and, furthermore, a review that is easily as ther the nervous élan of the Corsican from good as The Bandwagon or As Thousands Paris nor the huge aspiration of the Rhine- Cheer, which is as far back as we go.... lander from Vienna is illumined by the firm One skit combines the trial of Lizzie Borden composure of the conductor's fluent disci- with a hoe-down (You Can't Chop Your pline. There are explosions in the score Papa Up In Massachusetts); another stifled by these beautiful modulations.... presents Eartha Kitt, owner of a steam - Mr. Leinsdorf's Entree upon the con- whistle voice that must be heard to be be- tested field is on a charger of more formi- lieved, in a fantastic account of amatory dable size and intrepid gait than Sir conquests which ends with the politically Thomas's palfrey. The mount is built to blasphemous phrase: "Ike ... Likes ... fight, and the horseman's substantial weap- Me!"... ons, flashing with purpose and of an uncon- taminated steel, unhorse-with electronic assistance-every champion in the lists.... Oklahoma! COLUMBIA. Reviewed by E. L. M., Jr. (1-2/53). Eartha Kitt-a fresh face in '51 On Stravinsky's skill as conductor: ... The casting of Nelson Eddy as Curly is a particularly happy adventure. This re- STRAVINSKY: The Rake's Progress. viewer has never been an Eddy fan in the Soloists; orchestra and chorus of the Met- Sauter -Finegan Orchestra. RCA VICTOR. usual sense of the term, but this appearance ropolitan Opera, Igor Stravinsky, cond. CO- Reviewed by Edward L. Merritt, Jr. (1 1-12 / comes off the record as one of those tremen- LUMBIA. Reviewed by James Hinton, Jr. 52). dously right meetings of talent and mate- (3/54). rial. ... In this Oklahoma! recording we ... Ed Sauter and Bill Finegan are clever, find another impelling performer. This is . . . Itis common knowledge that youngish (38 and 35) men who contributed the basso, Lee Cass, who shares "Pore Jud Stravinsky is not the world's best conduc- heavily to the popularity of a much better Is Daid" with Mr. Eddy, and sings-for the tor. However, this is one of his better ef- known pair-Benny Goodman and Glenn first time on records-the fine, atmospheric forts as a batonist.... His performance of Miller, whose arrangers they were (Sauter "Lonely Room." In the resonant, virile Cass The Rake's Progress differs considerably in also wrote the Goodman showpieces Benny voice, "Lonely Room" leaves a strong im- conception and detail from those Fritz Rei- Rides Again, Superman and Clarinet a la pression and it is a matter of real surprise ner conducted at the Metropolitan. ... In King). In 1952 a cagy manager named Will- that it has never been caught on wax be- the Reiner performances the conductor ard Alexander and Fine- fore. gave way occasionally to allow the singers gan to start a dance band of their own, and tomake wordsfitrhythms.Notso a most unusual dance band it has turned Stravinsky; he sets a tempo and keeps it go- out to be. It has a percussion section, in- CHoPia: Sonata No. 3, in B minor, Op. 58; ing, and to hell with words, singer, and any- corporating a xylophone, orchestra bells, Ten Mazurkas. William Kapell, piano. RCA thing but the musical idea. triangle, chimes, celesta and kettledrums. It VICTOR. Reviewed by Ray Ericson (3-4/53). The recorded cast is that of the Metro- has also, apparently, a recorder or two, and politan premiere. The most satisfactory, as afife.In one record, Moonlight on the Although it is ten years since he made his in the opera house, is Mack Harrell, who is Ganges, there is also what seems to be a remarkable, if splashy, debut, William Ka- as superbly secure a musician as always kazoo. pell has made his biggest strides toward and whose rather light-colored voice gains This does not add up to monkey business. maturity only in the last season or two. This in commanding presence from the micro- Both men have sound musical back- recording is a good example of how far he phone. ... grounds: Sauter attended the Juilliard has come recently. His technique is as su- School, Finegan the Paris Conservatory. perb as ever, but less obtrusively so. He They have a fine ear for unusual tonal ef- plays the scherzo and finale of the sonata WOLF: Sixteen Songs. Dietrich Fischer- fects, and RCA Victor's engineers are with seeming abandon, all the while main- Dieskau, baritone; Gerald Moore, piano. clearly on their side. Prize item so far is taining the utmost transparency of texture HMV. Reviewed by J. H., Jr. (11/54). Doodletown Fifers, a really fascinating ar- and beauty of tone. ... The admirable rangement based on the old tune, Day of Ju- choice of mazurkas ranges from one writ- It is almost impossible to write about per- kilo. For our money, this is the kind of thing ten when Chopin was fifteen to his final formances as fine as these without feeling they should do more of.... composition. Mr. Kapell has captured the terribly clumsy and inadequate. Certainly spirit of these wonderful works, handling this is some of the best Lieder singing, and their abrupt shifts in mood and subtle playing, on records; but comparisons of Our "discovery" of Oistrakh: rhythmic hesitations with an ease and value are entirely aside from the point exactness that is almost comparable to Ar- when vital fire is struck and the music itself KABALEVSKY: Concerto for Violin, Op. 48. tur Rubinstein's in his magnificent 78 -rpm comes alive.DietrichFischer-Dieskau's David Oistrakh, violin; State Orchestra of album.... voice is almost incredibly lovely in quality, the USSR, Dmitri Kabalevsky, cond. VAN- and quite incredibly varied in color. It is all GUARD. Reviewed by J. F. I. (11-12/52). very well to speak of the intelligence and BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 3,In E -flat taste, the skill, the combination of great Oistrakh's performance is a dazzling ("Erolca"). Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, sensitivity and manly strength that mark display of violin virtuosity. In sharp con- Sir Thomas Beecham, cond. COLUMBIA. his work. But the total accomplishment is trast is the slovenly orchestral playing un- Rochester Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf, something more than the sum of these, for der the composer's direction, the last move- cond. COLUMBIA -ENTREE. Reviewed by everything he does is informed by a natural ment being particularly out of hand. ... C. G. B. (11-12/53). musicality that cannot be taught or learned or-least of all-described. However it hap- ... Sir Thomas Beecham has never ex- pens, in these performances the songs be- New Faces of 1952. RCA VICTOR. Re- ploited a commonplace concept, and the come the singing of them, and the singing viewed by E L M .Jr. (11-12/52). "Eroica" modeled by his wand is not in- becomes the songs....

APRIL 1976 83 When a good friend tells you "I can't afford Interface:A," tell her about the new Interface:B.

Our neNvInterface:B is a Way ofof that, inandon't disperse theirlevels, we think practically nothing acquiring most of the excellence ofhigh -frequency output uniformly,beats our Interface:B (except our our vented, equalized Interface:Aeither. We haven't resorted to theseInterface:A). Give us a hearing. speaker system for much less money.design tradeoffs in Interface:B. Inter- Free manual. Interface:B is friendly advice in an-face:B puts out an earful of uncom- Send for our frcc Interface in- other way too: we designed it to work monly uniform acoustic powerformation package.Itincludes an with lower powered electronics andbecause. first. its midrange is radiatedInterface:B Owner's Manual that is still provide superior sound at satis-by a relatieb small diameter driver,practically an education in vented fying levels. plusithas a simple but effectivespeaker design and application. Hat, accurate response here. acoustic lens on the tweeter com- UMMan 2C a Hz. bined with a compensating amount Below the lowest reach of a bassof high -frequencylx)ost from the Specifications Interface:A Interface: B equalizer. Response. :32 -18.000 :30 -18.000 guitar is a whole acoustical world On Axis Hz.±:3 (113 Hi. -±- :3 (113 We mixed the equation so that Total Acoustic :32 - MOM 18.000 that's costly to reproduce. And most Power Output Hz. :3 dB II. 4: Jls speakers missit.Yet down there, Bequals A, nearly. Sound Pressure 1.evelll Meter. Interface:B responds With startling Sothat k ) er pos ered receivers I -W In) 89 dB 92 dpi accuracy to a 36 -Hz toile, We used ancould be used ith lnterface:B, we Suggested Amplifier Minimum: Minimum Interface:A technique to achievealtered the mathematics of Inter- Power Rating 10 Watts 5 Watts (HMS per Maximum, Maximmn this; it is not unlike squeezing a 16 -face:A's enclosure. Alx)ut an inch channel at 250 Watts 181) \1-:.1t. foot organ pipe into a box of trueincrease in size all around permits, 8 ohms) Long-term bookshelf size. The device that en-with only a 4 -Hz change in low - average power handling ables this is the same vent substitutefrequency limit, a conversion effi- capacity we developed to meet the designciency fully 3 dB higher than Inter- ( !hand) 25 \Valls 18 \\ Peak Power goals of the Interface:A. It looks likeface:A. So it takes half the power to Handling Capacity I mid - an extra woofer, but it duplicates thedrive Interface:B's to the same hand I (10 function of a column of air ten inchesvolume level. milliseconds) 250 Watts 180 Watt. Dimensions 14" x22" x 14" x 2:3" \ in diameter and nearly 20 feet long. And so that subsonic signals such 7:14"deep 914"deep Its record rumble don't distort the Suggested Highs the way the composers Retail Price 5450.00per S:325 per flat response of Interface:B, we de- pair includingpair including wrote them signed the equalizer to roll off sharply Higher in equalizer equalizer In the midrange, most high - Western States) efficiency bookshelf speakers in thebelow 36 Hz. lnterface:B price class come on A -Bour new Interface:Bagainst strong. Overly so, we think. On top the higher priced systems. For accurate response. superior Dept. 464H, 619 Cecil Street dispersion, and deeply satisfying Buchanan, Michigan 49107

'NC ElectroVoice 111.5":1 Me aTiltoncompany Interface:A Interface: B

CIRCLE 12 ON READER -SERVICE CARD S4 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE cRecord cRiches ofaQuarter -Century Great recordings of 1951-76 selected by the editors

THE INTRODUCTION TO HIGH FIDELITY'Stenth -anniver- and other familiar monuments of the repertoire have sary recordings retrospective in 1961 noted "the been made over the past quarter -century, critics and barely credible bounty" of our first ten years: "For music -lovers are still arguing-there is nothing like a the maturation of microgroove discs and the nas- consensus. So we wind up with the anomaly that the cence of stereo have brought both a quantity and a list contains Mozart's early symphonies but not his quality of recorded sound hitherto quite inconceiv- Fortieth and Jupiter. Similarly, though everyone able." Fifteen years, five Mahler symphony cycles, agrees that the past quarter -century has produced and five complete Rings later, our idea of the con- great Mahler recordings, nobody agrees which they ceivable has changed dramatically. Choosing the are. So we have recognized the major "cyclists"; all best of a quarter -century's bounty isn't easy. have greatly enriched the catalogue. And we cannot What follows isn't really a compilation of "the be blasé about all those Rings: Though Furtwangler's best" recordings of the past twenty-five years; it was sacrificed, regretfully, because of the poor qual- would take a list four or five times as long even to ity of its sound, both the Solti and the Karajan cycles cover all the likeliest contenders. We can, however, demanded inclusion. say that everything here offers a unique illumination Perspectives change. A number of recordings on of a vital portion of our musical legacy. our tenth- and twentieth -anniversary lists no longer Many items should be taken as shorthand symbols. seem quite so special and have given way; at the same Had such artists as Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Ne- time, a number of releases from our first two decades ville Marriner been represented as often as they make their first appearance on these lists-e.g., the could have been, this might have turned into theirToscanini Otello, the Beecham Boheme, and Knap- "best recordings" list. The outstanding contempo- pertsbusch's first Parsifal, all surely among the great- rary -composer series-Columbia's Stravinsky and est operatic documents. Copland, London's Britten, DG's Henze-are likewise For convenience (and sanity) we have limited the represented by single exemplars. list to recordings first issued during our twenty-five Still, there are problems. It would seem that, in the years; the date of our review follows the listing, in very nature of a listing of this kind, the late sym- parentheses. Nothing has been omitted on the phonies of Mozart, some Haydn quartets, Brahms's grounds of current unavailability, but the number of piano concertos, and the like would be included. But out -of -print recordings (indicated as OP) is agreeably though it is arguable that great recordings of these small. KENNETH FURIE °Yze4.4J.Jed BACH: Brandenburg Concertos Nos. 1-6. London Baroque NikolausHamoncourt,cond. TELEFUNKEN 4635047 Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, cond. ANGEL S 36727 Ensemble, Karl Haas. cond. WESTMINSTER WL 5113, 5172, (7/71). (1/71). 5114 (11.12/52, 3-4/53; OP). English Chamber Orches- tra, Benjamin Britten, cond. LONDON CSA 2225 (4/ 70). BACH Violin Sonatas and Parlitas (6). Nathan Milstein. BEETHOVEN: Mina Salamis. Soloists; New Philharmonia DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2709 047(1/16). Chorus and Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, cond. ANGEL SB BAGII: Mass in B Minor. Soloists, Akademie Kammerchor 3679 (9/66). Soloists; Netherlands Radio Chorus; Con- and Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen, BARTON QuartetsforStrings(6).JuilliardQuartet. certgebouw Orchestra, Eugen Jochum, cond. PHILIPS cond. WESTMINSTER WAL 301 (9/55; OP). Soloists, Vienna COLUMBIA D3S 717 (9/70) 6799 001 (5/73). Choir Boys and Chorus Viennensis; Vienna Concentus Musicus, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, cond. TELEFUNKEN SKH BEETHOVEN: Concertos for Piano and Orchestra (5). Leon BEETHOVEN: Quartets for Strings (16). Vegh Quartet. TELE. 20/1.3 (7/69). Fleisher. Cleveland Orchestra. George Szell. cond. COLUM FUNKEN 36.35042 (3/76), 36.35041 (9/74), 46.35040 BIA M4X 30052 'from EPIC BC 1136/9. 11/611. (8/75).BartOk Quartet.HUNGAROTON SLPX 11423/5

BACH:St.MatthewPassion.Soloists;Philharmonia (6/73), SLPX 11470/2 (6/73), SLPX 11673/6 (5/75). Chorus and Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, cond. ANGEL SEL BEETHOVEN: Concerto for Violin, Cello, Piano, and Orches- 3599 (9/62).Soloists;Vienna Concentus Musicus. tra. Oistrakh, Rostropovich. Richter, Berlin Philharmonic BEETHOVEN. Sonatas for Piano: Nos. 3, 23. Arthur Rubin -

APRIL 1976 85 stein. RCA RED SEAL LSC 2812 (8/65). Nos. 21,23. Vladi HMIDEL Messiah. Harper, Watts, Tear, Shirley -Quirk; Lon. MOM: Le Noue di Figaro. Evans. Grist, SOderstrOm, mir Horowitz. CoLumBiA M 31371 (4/74). No. 29. Rudolf don Symphony Choir and Orchestra. Colin Davis, cond. Bacquier, Berganza: John Alldis Choir; New Philharmonia Serkin. Comm* M 30081 (12/71). PHILIPS SC71AX300 [from PHS 3992, 12/66]. Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, cond. EMI ODEON IC 191 02134/7 (5/73). BEETHOVEN: Symphonies: Nos. 1-9. NBC Symphony Or HANDEL Cantata Lucretia; Arias. Janet Baker, mezzo -so chestra. Arturo Toscanini. cond. RCA VICTROLA VIC 8000 prano, English Chamber Orchestra. Raymond Leppard, MOZART: Sinfonia concertante for Violin, Viola, and Or- [from RCA VICTOR 6901, 6/561. No. 5. Vienna Philhar cond. PHILIPS 6500 523 (3/75). chestra, in E flat, K. 364. Stern, Primrose, Perpignan Fes monic Orchestra, Carlos Kleiber, cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMO tival Orchestra. Pablo Casals, cond. COLUMBIA M5X 32768 PHON 2530 516 (11/75). No. 7. Marlboro Festival Orches HAYDN: Symphonies: Nos. 82-87. New York Philharmonic, [from COLUMBIA ML 4564, 78/53]. tra,PabloCasals,cond.COLUMBIA M 33788 [2/76, Leonard Bernstein. cond. COLUMBIA D3S 769 (11/ 64, 4/ recorded 1969]. No. 9. Soloists; Bayreuth Festival Chorus 67, 5/68). Nos. 93-99. Cleveland Orchestra, George MOZART: String Quintets; Clarinet and Horn Quintets; etc. and Orchestra, Wilhelm Furtwangler, cond SERAPHIM IB Szell, cond. COLUMBIA D3M 32321 (2/69, 6/71. 11/71). Danish Quartet et al. TELEFUNKEN 56.35017 (12/74) 6068 [from RCA VICTOR LM 6043. 11/56, recorded 1951].

HENZE: Der lungeLord.Mathis,Johnson.Grobe, MUSSORGSKY: Khovanshchina. Arkhipova, Ognivtsev, Kriv- BERLIOZ: Romeo et Juliette*: Les Troyens'; Requiems. McDaniel; Chorus and Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper chenya, Pyavko, Maslennikov; Bolshoi Theater Chorus Various soloists, choruses, and orchestras, Colin Davis, Berlin, Christoph von Dohnanyi. cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMO and Orchestra.BorisKhaikin,cond. MELooca/ANGEL cond.PHILIPS *839 716/7from PHS 2909, 3/691; PHON 2709 027 (2/68; OP). SRDL 4125 (12/74). '6709 002 (8/70). n6700 019 (1/71). HUMPIRDINCK: Hansel und Gretel. Moffo, Donath. Ludwig. PROKOFIEV: Romeo and Juliet. London Symphony Orches BENUOZ: Symphonie fantastique. Berlin Philharmonic Or Fischer-Dieskau; Bavarian Radio Chorus and Orchestra, tra, Andre Previn, cond. ANGEL SC 3802 (10/73)- chestra. Herbert von Karajan, cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON Kurt Eichhorn, cond. RCA RED SEAL ARL 20637 [from Eu 2530 597 (2/76). Concertgebouw Orchestra. Cohn Davis, RODISC 85 340, 6/72]. PUCCINI: La Boherne. De los Angeles, Bjoerling; chorus and cond. PHILIPS 6500 774 (5/75)- orchestra, Thomas Beecham, cond. SERAPHIM IB 6000 or Iva: Symphony No. 4. American Symphony Orchestra, SIB 6099 [from RCA VICTOR 6042, 9/56]. BEMISTEM: Mass. Soloists, choirs, rock and blues bands; Leopold Stokowski, cond. COLUMBIA MS 6775 (11/65). orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, cond. COLUMBIA M2 31008; London Philharmonic Orchestra, Jose Serebrier, cond. Pucceu: Tosca. Callas, Di Stefano, Gobbi; La Scala Chrous quadriphonic: QMA 31008 (2/73). RCA RED SEAL ARL 10589; quadriphonic: ARD 10589 and Orchestra, Victor de Sabata, cond. ANGEL BL 3508 (10/74). (2/54). Boui.a Le Marteau sans maitre. Minton; Ensemble, Pierre Boulez, cond. COLUMBIA M 32160; quadriphonic: LiSZT: Concertos for Piano and Orchestra (2). Sviatoslav Pucam: Madama Butterfly. Scotto, Bergonzi, Panerai, MQ 32160 (9/73). Richter; London Symphony Orchestra, Kiril Kondrashin, Rome Opera Chorus and Orchestra, John Barbirolli, cond. cond. PHILIPS 835 474 [from PHS 900 000, 5/62]. ANGEL SCL 3702 (9/67). BRAINS: Quintet for Piano and Strings. Rudolf Serkin; Budapest Quartet. COLUMBIA MS 6631 (11/64). Mama Symphonies (complete). Leonard Bernstein (Co- PURCELL: The Fairy Queen (ed. Britten andI.Hoist). lumbia),Bernard Haitink(Philips),RafaelKubelik Soloists; Ambrosian Opera Chorus, English Chamber Or BATTEN: Peter Grimes. Pears, Watson, Pease; Chorus and (Deutsche Grammophon), and Georg Solti(London), chestra, BenjaminBritten, cond. LONDON OSA 1290 Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Covent Garden. cond. (7/73). Benjamin Britten, cond. LONDON OSA 1305 (3/60). MAHLER: Das Lied von der Erde. Ferrier, Patzak: Vienna RAVEL Gaspard de la nuit; Sonatine; Valses nobles et sen- CARTEk Quartets for Strings: Nos. 1-2. Composers Quar Philharmonic Orchestra, Bruno Walter, cond. RICHMOND R timentales. Martha Argerich, piano. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON tet. NONESUCH H 71249 (2/71) Nos. 2-3. Juilliard Quar. 23182 [from LoNooN LL 625/6. 3/531. 2530 540 (12/75) tet. COLUMBIA M 32738 (7/74) MONTEVERDI: Madrigals, Books III -IV*, VIII -X'. Soloists ROSSINI: II Barbiere di Siviglia. Berganza. Ausensi, Benelli, CHOPIN: Etudes. Maurizio Pollini, piano. DEUTSCHE GRAMMO and chorus. Raymond Leopard. cond. PHILIPS *6703 035 Ghiaurov.Corena:Rossini Chorus and Orchestraof PHON 2530 291 (3/73). (2/74). '6799 006 (9/72). Naples, Silvio Varviso, cond. LONDON OSA 1381 (10/65).

Croon* Mazurkas. Arthur Rubinstein, piano. RCA RED SEAL MONTEVERDI: Orfeo";L'IncoronazionediPoppea'. Rosso: Overtures. Academy of St. Martin -in -the -Fields. LSC 6177 (4/67). Soloists;ViennaConcentusMusicus,Nikolausliar. Neville Marriner, cond. PHILIPS 6500 878 (2/76). noncourt, cond. TELEFUNKEN *36.35020 (1/70), COMAND: Appalachian Spring (complete concert version). '56.35247 (2/75). SCHOOIBERC Moses und Aron. Devos, Reich; Austrian Ra Columbia Chamber Orchestra. Aaron Copland, cond. Co dio Chorus and Orchestra. Michael Gielen, cond. PHILIPS Low M 32736; quadriphonic: MQ 32736 (5/74). MOZART: Concertos for Horn and Orchestra (4). Dennis 6700 084 (2/75). Brain:Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, of CRUMB: Ancient Voices Children.JanDeGaetani. cond. ANGEL 35092 (12/54). SCHOENBERG, Bum, WEBERN: Works for String Quartet. La. mezzo soprano; Contemporary Chamber Ensemble. Ar Salle Quartet. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2720 029 (3/72; set thur Weisberg, cond. NONESUCH H 71255 (8/71) MOZART: Early Symphonies. Academy of St. Martin -in -the- OP -some single discs available). Fields, Neville Marriner, cond. PHILIPS 6747 099 (2/75). DAVIES: Eight Songs for a Mad King. Fires of London, Peter SCHUBERT: Octet. Melos Ensemble. ANGEL S 36529 (12/ Maxwell Davies. cond. NONESUCH H 71285 (4/74). 68)

Owens: Sylvia. New Philharmonia Orchestra, Richard Saimaa: Sonatas for Piano (complete). William Kempff. Bonynge. cond. LONDON CSA 2236 (1/75). piano. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2720 024 (6/11; set OP - some single discs available). Domain: Luciadi Lammermoor. Callas,DiStefano. Gobbi, Arie: La Scala Chorus and Orchestra, Tullio Sera SCHUBERT: Symphony No. 9, in C (The Great). Philadelphia fin, cond. SERAPHIM IB 6032 [from ANGEL BL 3502. 1/54]. Orchestra Arturo Toscanini, cond. RCA VICTOR LD 2663 [10/63. recorded 1941]. DUFAY, DUNSTABLE: Motets. Pro Cantione Antigua, Bruno Turner. cond. ARCHIV 2533 291 (3/76). SCHUBERT: Trios for Violin, Cello, and Piano. Henryk Szeryng, Pierre Fournier, Arthur Rubinstein. RCA RED SEAL DvoQMc Quartet for Piano and Strings, Op. 87. Arthur ARL 20731 (6/75). Rubinstein; Guarneri Quartet. RCA RED SEAL LSC 3340 (8/73). SCHUMANN: Kreisleriana; Variations on a Theme by Clara Wieck. Vladimir Horowitz. piano. COLUMBIA MS 7264 (8/ HMIDEL Giulio Cesare. Troyanos, Fischer-Dieskau; Mu 70). nich Bach Chorus and Orchestra, KarlRichter, cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2711 009 (2/71; OP). SCHUMANN: Scenes from Goethe's "Faust." Soloists:Al.

86 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE deburgh Festival Singers, English Chamber Orchestra, cond. COLUMBIA D3S 705 [from *MS 6328, 7/62, '035 DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2709 014 (12/64). Benjamin Britten, cond. LONDON OSA 12100 (8/74). 614, 1/61] WAGNER: Tristan and Isolde. Flagstad, Suthaus; Chorus of SCHUMANN: Symphonies Nos. 1-4. Cleveland Orchestra, JOAN SumEntano: The Art of the Prima Donna. Joan Suth- the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Philharmonia Or- George Szell, cond. ODYSSEY Y330844 [from EPIC BSC 110, erland, soprano; Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Op chestra, Wilhelm Furtwangler, cond. ANGEL EL 3588 [from 5/61].. era House, Covent Garden, Francesco Molinari-Pradelli, RCA VICTOR LM 6700. 11/53]. cond. LONDON OSA 1214 (2/61). SHOSTMOVICH: Symphony No. 13. Tom Krause, baritone; WAGNER: Der Ring des Nibelungen. Soloists; Vienna Phil- Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia; Philadelphia Orches- Tcw*ovs*y: The Sleeping Beauty. London Symphony Or. harmonic Orchestra. Georg Solt', cond. LONDON OSA 1309 tra, Eugene Ormandy, cond. RCA RED SEAL LSC 3162 (6/ chestra, Andre Previn, cond. ANGEL SCLX 3812 (3/75). (8/59), OSA 1509 (11/66), OSA 1508 (4/63), OSA 1604 70). (7/55). Soloists; Berlin Phiiharmonic Orchestra, Herbert TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No.6,inB Minor (Path- von Karajan, cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2709 023 (9/ SIBEUUS: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra. Jascha Nei- etique). London Symphony Orchestra, Leopold Sto 68), 2713 002 (5/67), 2713 003 (10/69), 2716 001 (9/ fetz; Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Walter Hendl, cond. kowskl, cond. RCA RED SEAL ARL 1.0426, quadriphonic' 70). RCA RED SEAL LSC 2435 (10/60). ARD 1-0426 (6/75). WAGNER: Parsifal. Windgassen, Mbdl, London, Weber; Snixuss, R.: Ariadne auf Naxos. Schwarzkopf, Seefried, TIPPM: A Child of Our Time. Norman, Baker, Cassilly, 1951 Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra, Hans Stretch, Schoch; Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Shirley -Quirk; BBC Singers, Choral Society, and Sym- Knappertsbusch, cond. RICHMOND RS 65001 [from LONDON Karajan, cond. ANGEL CL 3532 (1/56). phony Orchestra, Colin Davis, cond. PHILIPS 6500 985 LLPA 10. Summer '52]. (2/76).

STRAUSS. R.:Elektra.Nilsson, Resnik,Collier,Krause, WEILL: The Seven Deadly Sins. May, Schreier, Rotzsch, Stolze: Vienna Philharmonic, Georg Solti, cond. LONDON VERDI: Otello. Vinay, Nelli, Valdengo; NBC Symphony Or- Lek, Polster; Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra, Her- OSA 1269 (2/68). chestra. Arturo Toscanini, cond. RCA RED SEAL LM 6107 bert Kegel, cond. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 139 308 (9/68). [9/53, recorded 1947]. Sntauss, R.: Der Rosenkavalier. Reining, Jurinac, Gueden, WOLF: Songs. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone; Gerald Weber; Vienna State Opera Chorus; Vienna Philharmonic VERDI: Requiem Mass. Soloists, Philharmonia Chorus and Moore, piano. EMI ODEON IC 181 01470/6 [9/74; from Orchestra, Erich Kleiber, cond. RICHMOND RS 64001 [from Orchestra, Carlo Maria Giulini, cond. ANGEL SD 3649 (12/ various originals, recorded 1958-60]. LONDON LLA 2. 11/54]. 64). WOLF: Spanish Songbook (selections). Jan DeGaetani,

STRAVINSKY: TheFirebird',Petrushka'; TheRiteof VERDI: Rigoletto. Fischer-Dieskau, Scotto, Bergonzi; La rr.ezzo-soprano: Gilbert Kalish, piano. NONESUCH H 71296 Sprint. Columbia Symphony Orchestra, Igor Stravinsky, ScalaChorus andOrchestra,ReaelKubelik,cond. (9/ 74).

ROLLING STONES: Let It Bleed. LONDON NPS 4.

IPAUL SIMON: There Goes Rhymin' Simon. COLUMBIA KC

SIMON AND GARFUNKEL:Parsley,Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme. COLUMBIA KCS 9363

FRANK SINATRA: September of My Years. REPRISE S 1014.

SINGERS UNLIMITED: Feelin' Free. MPS 22607. 'Pops CAT STEVENS. Teaser and the Firecat. A&M SP 4313. JOHN STEWART Wingless Angels. RCA APL 1.0816.

ART TATUM:Solo Masterpieces. PABLO 2625 703 (13 discs).

JAMES TAYLOR: Sweet Baby lames. WARNER Brios.BS 1843.

SARAH VAUGHAN: Feelin' Good. MAINSTREAM 379.

THE WHO. Tommy. ODE SP 99001 (2 discs). THE BAND. Rock of Ages. CAPITOL SAB 11045 (2 discs). KEITH JARRM Cologne Concert. ECM/Pi:moon 1064/5 (2 STEVIE WONDER: Inner Vision. TAMLA T 326. COUNT Boor. Basle. ROULETTE 52003 (OP). discs) HERRMANN: Psycho (original film score). Bernard Herr- THE BEATLES: Abbey Road. APPLE SO 383. JEFFERSON AIRPLANE. Bark. GRUNT FIR 1001. mann, cond. UNICORN RHS 336. Eton JOHN: Tumbleweed Connection. MCA 2014. BLOOD, SWEAT. & TEARS. COLUMBIA KCS 9720. KORNG01.1): Classic Film Scores. Charles Gerhardt, cond. JUDY Cowns, Who Knows Where the Time Goes. ELEKTRA Quinr JONES: Body Heat. A&M SP 3617 RCA RED SEAL LSC 3330. 74033. JANIS . OPLIN: Pearl. C2L umpla KC 30322 LERNER AND LOEWE: My Fair Lady (original Broadway cast JOHN Comm, Ballads. IMPULSE S 32. GORDON LIGHTFOOT: If You Could Read My Mind. Rlr=sl MS recording). COLUMBIA OL 5090 (OP; original London cast CROSBY, Snus, & NASH. ATLANTIC SD 8229. 6392 recording on OS 2015).

MILES DAVIS, Miles Ahead. COLUMBIA CL 1041. Ciaaus MINGUS: The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady. I MANCINI: The Pink Panther (originalfilm soundtrack PULSE S 35. recording). RCA LSP 2795. JAN DEGAETANI/LESLIE GUINN: Songs of Stephen Foster. JoNI MITCHELL Court and Spark. ASYLUM SD 1001. NONESUCH H 71268. Mum, The Sandpiper (original film soundtrack record- ing). MERCURY SR 61032 (OP). Boo DYLAN. Blonde on Blonde. COLUMBIA C2S 841 (2 discs). Mown JAZZ QUARTET. Last Concert. ATLANTIC SD 2-909 (2 discs) NORTH: Spartacus (original film soundtrack recording). DUKE EWNGTON:Such Sweet Thunder. COLUMBIA JCL 1033. JOAN MORRIS: After the Ball. NONESUCH H 71304. MCA 2068 BILL EVANS: The Best of. VERVE 68747. GERFY MULLIGAN. Concert Jazz Band. VERVE 8388 (OP). ROTA:Julietof the Spirits(originalfilmsoundtrack GIL EVANS: The Individualism of. VERVE 68555 (OP). recording). MAINSTREAM 56062 (OP) RANDY NEWMAN: Sail Away. REPRISE RS 2064. Room* FLACK, Killing Me Softly. ATLANTIC SD 7271. MIKLOS RDZSA CONDUCTS HIS GREAT FILM MUSIC. POLYDOR ?know Son of Schmilsson. RCA LSP 4717. ARETRA FRANKLIN Young, Gifted, and Black. ATLANTIC SD 2383 327. LAURA NYRO: Eli and the Thirteenth Confession. COLUMBIA 7213 SONDNEIM: A Little Night Music (original Broadway cast KU 9626 STAN GETZ: Focus. V, u.vifq.11,1' recording). COLUMBIA KS 32265. EDI'H PiAF. PATHI FSX 154 163. MAHAUA JACKSON: The Great Mahalia Jackson. COLUMBIA WALTON: Music for Shakespeare Films. William Walton, KG 31379. ELMS PRESLEY. RCA LSP 1254. cond. SERAPHIM S 60205.

APRIL 1976 87 TOSHIBA CASSETTE DECKS PLAY GREAT MUSIC. STANDING UP OR LYING DOWN.

If you're looking for a great front loader, check out our But most important it comes with specifications that PC5060 and PC6030. one trade paper called the "best anyone had seen." There's nothing to load or switch or fiddle with on If you want to buy a great top loader without paying top. So you can squeeze our front loaders between two shelves. top dollar there's Toshiba's PC4030. But its what's inside that makes these machines really It's got features found on machines costing twice special. Features like DC Servo motors that cut down on wow as much. Like a cassette compartment that can open a full 90? and flutter. And, of course, Dolby noise reduction. For easier access to the head for cleaning. You'll also find a host of features that make recording It also has a DC Servo motor. Nonslip control sur- not only more professional. But more fun. faces. Ideally located switches. Two VU meters built at an Like the auto counter button on the PC6030. Press angle for easy checking. Discreet lighting from the light emiting it at a section you want to hear again. And, at the end of the diodes. And, of course, built in Dolby. cassette, the tape will automatically return to that section. No So, if you're in the market for cassette decks that more jockeying back and forth to find it. play great music, see your Toshiba dealer soon. He's got just what you want. Standing up or lying down.

TOSHIBA Toshiba America. Inc. 280 Park Ave., New York. N.Y. 10017

CIRCLE 50 ON READER -SERVICE CARD HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE In the control room: from left, Janet Baker, Giuseppe Patane, producer Christopher Bishop, Raimund Herincx, and Beverly Sills.

Angel Records Wilson Baker and Sills as Romeo and Juliet Angel's strongly cast I Capuleti e i Montecchi favors expressive lyricism at the expense of the fire and vigor of Bellini's sixth opera. by Andrew Porter

IN DONIZETTI'S Maria Stuarda there is an encounter a weak opera with some very beautiful pages in it- entitled "Dialogo delle Due Regine." In this perform- but I don't believe it to be as weak a work as it has ance of Bellini's I Capuleti e i Mon tecchi, America's seemed in all these Abbado performances." most celebrated Maria Stuarda meets Britain's most That nonbelief was justified. Sarah Caldwell justi- celebrated Mary Stuart; Beverly Sills plays Juliet to fied it when she produced I Capuleti in Boston last Janet Baker's Romeo. The encounter should assure June, with Tatiana Troyanos and Beverly Sills as success for the set on both sides of the Atlantic. Romeo and Juliet. Her baton proved to be a more I Capuleti, Bellini's sixth opera, was composed for subtle, trenchant, and precise instrument of ap- Venice in1830(after the unsuccessful Zaira, before praisal than the most learned of thematic and har- La Sonnambula). Mezzo Giuditta Grisi, Giulia's el- monic analyses. I was carried away. der sister, was the Romeo, and the gentle, delicate Whereas Maazel and Abbado, with ears only for Maria Caradori-Allan the Juliet. At La Scala in 1966, the lyrical side, for the Bellini of long, limpid, gentle the role of Romeo was usurped by a tenor in an edi- lines, had taken Tybalt's cabaletta at a snail's pace tion by Claudio Abbado that for a while held the and turned Romeo's defiant allegro marziale, "La tre- stage both here and abroad. Abbado revised some of menda ultrice spada," into a funeral march, Cald- the scoring and made several small cuts. Meanwhile well was fiery and fearless in her employment of an earlier Italian Radio performance of the original Bellini's heavy brass. Her dashing approach to the version, conducted by Lorin Maazel with Antonietta spirited episodes, her almost reckless but never un- Pastori and a young Fiorenza Cossotto, circulated on justified tempos, gave, by contrast, new depth to the pirate discs with rather dim sound. romantic and the pathetic scenes and showed I As if in anexcessof loving tenderness, Abbado as Capuleti to be a more various, interesting, and conductor tended to slow down allegro to andante, shapely opera than it was generally held to be. and andante to adagio, and to put the cabalettas I wish I were reviewing a Caldwell -conducted per- through dainty, moderate paces. Maazel did much formance with the eminent cast of these records. But the same. And I was never "completely carried I am not and so must regretfully state that the Angel away" by the piece, as Berlioz had been by its first Capuleti, for all the sensitive and beautiful things it finale when he heard the opera in Florence in 1831. contains, seems to me to lack fire and dramatic en- After a Scala production in 1968 (which had opened ergy. Bellini made his name, in II Pirata and La in Montreal the previous year), I noted: "I Capuleti is Straniera, as a composer whose energy and pas -

APRIL 1976 89 sion-even violence-of declamation brought a new Herincx a slightly rough Laurence (Lorenzo). The note to Italian opera. Donizetti went on to develop recording, made in EMI's Abbey Road studio, is ac- this vigorous dramatic manner, while Bellini himself ceptable, not particularly spacious. moved into a milder, more lyrical vein. There are beautiful things in I Capuleti. Juliet's "0 I Capuleti is a transitional work. At the Venetian quante volte" is an elaborated and refined reworking premiere, a critic discerned in it "a completely new of a romanza in Bellini's first opera, Adelson e Sal- genre, not noisy, but pensive, harmonious, and very vini. In the new version, a horn solo, warm and a gentle." That describes some but by no means all of little solemn in tone (kin to the melody of the duet "II the opera. Juliet's keys are G minor and A major; the rival salvor to puoi" in I Puritani), introduces the tempo indications of her three solos are andante so- scene. Juliet sings recitative, unaccompanied but stenuto, lento, and andante; her melodies move by punctuated by the orchestra. The flexible horn solo step. But the solo music for Romeo and Tybalt is in C is resumed, and above it Juliet sings of the fever that major and G major, and their melodies leap. Giu- burns her. She goes to the window, and cooling seppe Patane conducts too much of I Capuleti as if it breaths seem to spring up from the harp. Then the ro- were La Sonnambula. manza begins. Both the situation and some turns of In the first paragraph of the introductory essay phrase recall Desdemona's scene in the last act of that accompanies this set, Philip Gossett writes that Rossini'sOtello.Perhaps unconsciously,Bellini "I Capuleti e i Montecchi is one of Bellini's great transposed his Adelson number into Rossini's key, G achievements, a masterful blend of passionate decla- minor, and remembered Desdemona's harp. Juliet's mation and exquisite lyricism in the service of dra- subsequent solos, the aria and its cabaletta at the matic truth." Baker and Sills both treat it as such, start of Act II, open with exactly the same rhythmic probing each line, phrase, even word for its expres- pattern as "0 quante volte," whose second measure sive possibilities. I hate to have reservations about moreover recurs as the second measure of the aria Dame Janet's performances. As Berlioz' Dido, Pur- and the sixth of the cabaletta. Such thematicconnec- cell's Dido, and Monteverdi's Penelope she has tions, rhythmic and melodic, are surely unconscious seemed to me a goddess, made of some finer, nobler (in Schoenberg's phrase, "a gift from the Supreme substance than mere mortal clay. She can don Commander"). In any case, the Act II melodies-like breeches convincingly, so to speak vocally as well as much else in I Capuleti-are adapted from themes in physically; roles as diverse as Handel's Ariodante Zaira. and Richard Strauss's Octavian have shown it. (The I Capuleti was written at speed, to take the place Composer in Strauss's Ariadne is her latest assump- of an unfulfilled commission from Pacini. Bellini tion.) And yet I cannot feel that either the sound or called it "a most perilous undertaking"; Felice Ro- the style is quite right for ottocento opera. mani, in a preface to his libretto, apologized for its Others disagree. I was in a minority in feeling that scrappiness. But Gossett reminds us that La Son- she and Donizetti's Mary Stuart were somehow mis- nambula took scarcely longer to create, and he com- matched; and about her Romeo I may well be in a mi- mends the libretto for its "single-mindedness of di- nority again. One of her glories-in the right music- rection and unity of action." True-but the is a kind of uncovered, totally unreserved timbre that dramaturgy is not very smooth, and it is difficult not exposes the raw nerve of feeling. But in this opera it to feel that Romani has sometimes simply ordered seems to me the wrong sort of sound. More conven- events in a way to make Zaira material reusable. Dif- tional Romeos-and singers with a simpler, more pat- ficult, but not impossible, in a really gripping per- ently theatrical, less nobly earnest approach to the formance. interpretation-can be more satisfying in such music. The edition is complete. In fact, "more than com- Dame Janet tries to do too much with Romeo's final plete" in that a brief arioso for Juliet-"Morir dovessi scene, I think. Rather that than too little, but still not ancora," fifteen measures of allegro agitato not "just right." That reluctantly said, praise for her in- found in the Ricordi vocal score-is heard between tensity, for the very individual timbre, for the care- the Act II air and its cabaletta, just before Juliet fully studied and boldly executed performance can drinks the potion. Bellini added it for the Scala pre- be unstinted. miere of the opera in1830.The music, first published Sills is more of a "natural" for such music, though by Friedrich Lippmann in1967,is reproduced in Her- she in turn-as in Boston-tends to make rather bert Weinstock's Bellini. heavy weather of, to give almost Sutherlandian over- emphasis to, some recitative lines that call for no Baum:I Capuletiei Montecchi. more than simply, unaffectedly touching delivery. Galatia Beverly Shcr (s) Tebaldo Nicola! Gedda (t) Romeo Janet Baker ims) Lorenzo Raimund Herincx (b) Her "0 quante volte" sounds very, very careful, and Capella Robert Lloyd (ts) sometimes her assumption of sadness borders on the John Alldis Choir; New Philharmonia Orchestra, Giuseppe lachrymose. She is in better, less fluttery voice than Pater* cond. [Christopher Bishop, prod.]ANGELSCLX 3824, in the Siege of Corinth set (SCLX 3819, June 1975). $21.98 (three SO -encoded discs, automatic sequence). What Ifeel, about both dive, is that Patane has allowed them to overdo the quest for expressiveness, to "interpret" beyond the point of eloquence, in a In quad: The stage is at the front with abundant, but way that impedes the naturalness of Bellini's music. not excessive, ambience from the back. The over-all Nicolai Gedda sounds strained; his aria is not an sound is clear and well defined. What is more, the ap- easy flow of clear, ringing tone. The other roles are parent dimensions of the singers are realistic. It all subaltern. Robert Lloyd, one of Britain's best young adds up to a believable sonic illusion. Very nice in- basses, is a good Capulet (Capellio), Raimund deed. HAROLD A.RODGERS

90 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE The New York Philomusica in 1975. A. Robert Johnson, its director, is at lower left.

timentos tossed off in the years 1771-79 by the fif- teen- to twenty -three -year -old Mozart. With the ex- ception of the 11 RP pastore Divertimento, the seventeen in Vox's monumental three -volume, nine - disc survey before me have all been recorded before, and many of them are already well known. But this is their first large-scale integral collection. Hence it must be taken very seriously indeed, but I hope not solemnly, not without acute susceptibility to its tick- lish sportiveness, not without a relish of its kalei- doscopic play of tonal color and arabesque that is no less keen than one's delight in its incomparable me- lodic and rhythmic poetic grace. Excluding Mozart's so-called Hausmusik and dances, sixty-five items (some of them sets) of his oc- casional music are listed in the elaborate synopsis/ table occupying 101/2 pages of Robert D. Levin's 16 - page booklet supplied with each of the Vox Boxes. Some of these are lost, fragmentary, doubtfully or definitely Olde Spuriosity Shoppe works. And among those generally known as divertimentos (al- though the composer himself was wont to call some of them cessations), the list boils down to seventeen (numbered by their Breitkopf & Hertel edition se- quence) plus a smaller group of unnumbered works, of which the best known are for strings only: the K. 563 Trio and K. 136-138 Quartets. (There are several others scored for woodwinds only, which are of Genius at Play more doubtful authenticity and hence relegated to the Michel catalogue's supplement.) It is the former, B&H, group-except for No. 5, K. 187, now recognized The New York Philomusica's to be spurious-that is represented in the present set. integral Vox recording of No. 5 (actually by Starzer and Gluck in what may or may not be Mozart transcriptions) is replaced by a the Mozart divertimentos Re pastore "symphony"/divertimento of unques- tioned Mozartean authenticity but partly assembled demonstrates that frivolity by other hands. Thirteen of the divertimentos are quintessentially can be serious business. Salzburg works, written for particular occasions or people in the city of Mozart's birth. And, aptly illus- trating the diversity of the divertimento as a species by R. D. Darrell rather than a strict form, they fall naturally into three main types plus a fourth group of mavericks. THE AMERICAN BICENTENNIALhullabaloo shouldn't Group I comprises six divertimentos (Nos. 8, 9, 12, 13, blight our lighter -hearted commemoration of that 14, 16) scored for wind sextet-paired oboes, horns, revolutionary period as one of the most golden eras and bassoons-and intended as Tafelmusik ("table" in the whole history of fun music. It was in the 1770s or dinner music) for repasts in the Mirabell Castle of that an incredibly gifted Austrian youngster served Mozart's dreaded employer, Archbishop Colloredo. his apprenticeship as a composer by busily turning Group II comprises five scored for strings and two out music for varied occasions-as background for horns. Group III consists of only two works, Nos. 3 an archbishop's repasts, to celebrate patrons' and and 4, scored for ten wind instruments (paired oboes, friends' name days, as vehicles for his own creative clarinets, English horns, horns, and bassoon), which and executant virtuosity-that differs from any other are exceptions to the general Salzburg provenance- occasional music of any time only in what has clarinets and English horns were unavailable in proved to be its miraculous agelessness. Salzburg at that time. Commissioned by an unknown As the perceptive Dutch historian/philologist Jo- Milanese, they were written at least in part toward han Huizinga stresses in his great study of the play the end of Mozart's 1772-73 Italian trip. element in culture, Homo Ludens, "Genuine and Among the remaining four miscellaneous diver- spontaneous play can also be profoundly serious.... timentos, No. 1-alternatively called a concerto by The joy inextricably bound up with playing can turn Mozart-also was written in Milan, but on an earlier not only into tension, but into elation. Frivolity and trip in the fall of 1771 when he was not yet sixteen. It ecstasy are the twin poles between which play is scored for strings with paired horns and clarinets, moves." with much more independent concertante wind And never, surely, has occasional music moved as parts than in the later divertimentos for strings and freely and far between these poles as in the diver - horns. The same independence and still more bra -

APRIL 1976 91 vura horn -writing characterize No. 2, scored for own main objection, indeed, is to their lack of any strings with four horns plus flute, oboe, and bassoon. light touch, any reminder that this music was writ- Although set down on paper in Salzburg in June ten -and should be listened to -as sheer fun. Levin 1772, this extraordinary work (one of the greatest often uses the words "wit," "comic effect," "high achievements of Mozart in his teens) reveals that he spirits," "buffo style," etc., but only once is the chill hadn't yet begun to accommodate his writing to the of professorial grimness momentarily dissipated by more limited skills of the Salzburg hornists vis-a-vis the reminder that, if the author is no homo ludens, he the players he must have heard in Italy. No. 6,pre- isn't entirely devoid of a sense of humor. Discussing sumably intended, like its spurious companion No. 5, the fermatas in the first movement of No. 12, he finds for equestrian -exercise displays of the Salzburg Rid- it difficult to decide whether they are indications ing School, is even more unusually scored: for two that Mozart "really wished the first oboe to impro- flutes, five trumpets (three in C, two in D), and tim- vise" there or "whether he was wittily stopping the pani. music for a few seconds to see whether the arch- Finally, there is the unnumbered replacement for bishop would look up from his plate!" No. 5. Mozart himself prepared a "symphony" tran- The variously constituted New York Philomusica scription of the overture to his 1775 opera II Re pas- ensembles are made up of top -rank New York per- tore and the first aria, "Intendo, amico rio" (with its formers. In general the playing here is distinctive for soprano part now given to oboe), to which he added its high degree of professional skill, its crisp vivacity, a new finale, K. 213c/102. And since there is a March, and genuine yet nonsentimentalized expressiveness K. 214, written about the same time, in the same key as demanded. For me, the expert first violinists in the and scoring and using thematic material similar to quasi -violin -concerto movements (Isidore Cohen in that in the finale, it too may well have been intended some, Felix Galimir in others) are sometimes just a fora divertimento/cassation/serenade version of the shade too sweet -toned. And elsewhere, in the larger- Re pastore "symphony." The apparentreason why scaled works in particular, there are moments when I this work in its entirety has not (as faras I know) crave just a little less objectivity, a little more overt been performed or recorded is that all but the first enthusiasm, a bit more truly infectious sense of rel- few bars of the aria transcription has been lostor ish -in short, somewhat wider swings between Hui- was never completed by Mozart. This missing sec- zinga's play -music frivolity/ecstasy extremes. tion is played here in Levin's reconstruction. But that's quibbling. And there's no need to Even so much exegesis doesn't begin to account for quibble at all about the recording quality. The actual the diyersity of these divertimentos. The number of sessions, as the notes dutifully inform us, were their movements ranges from three to six, and there spread over the years 1971-75, and the personnel for is considerable variety in movement types, including some of the identically scored works is not always minuets with one or more trios or withoutany at ally identical -all the more reason for praising the sonic Only No. 11 includes -in the same manuscript-a consistency the producers/engineers have achieved march movement, which in traditional cassation/ in these beautifully transparent recordings, done serenade fashion often was played (especially in with vivid yet not oppressively close presence and summertime) before as well as after the othermove- in a warmly expansive acoustical ambience. There ments, presumably as audiences entered and left. are good disc surfaces, for the most part, but the But in four other cases there are marches that in their rather high modulation level processing probably is keys, scoring, time of composition, and (sometimes) the cause of considerable pre -echo and in anycase is thematic materials apparently are linked withcer- likely to call for lowering home -playback levels. tain individual divertimentos; the present perform- Quite regardless of its budget price, this set is a ma- ances of the four, the Re pastore divertimento and jor addition to the Mozart discography, one ranking Nos. 7, 10, and 17, include presumably appropriate with the memorable 1964-67 Boskovsky/London ten- march prelude/postludes. disc collection of the complete marches and dances Nevertheless, there are legitimate differences of (currently available in Stereo Treasury reissues STS opinion and practical considerations not only where 15275/9 and 12580/4). And if most of the pieces have the inclusion of marches is concerned, but also in the been recorded before, the only serious competitors choice of how many string players there should be: extant are the Netherlands Wind Ensemble's eight the minimum one to a written part, as is the usual (in Philips 6500 002/4 of 1970-71) and several larger- choice in this recording, except for the bass part, scaled versions of the bigger works, especially the where both a cello and a string bass are used; or sev- Szell/Columbia No. 2 and Marriner/Argo No. 17. But eral to a part, in chamber orchestra fashion. These the completeness and integral character of this Vox performances of the Re pastore and No. 2 diver- survey puts it in a class by itself -one indispensable timentos double up on the violin and viola parts but to every comprehensive Mozart record collection never go any farther, even in such large -scaled works and one essential to every Mozartean homo ludens. as Nos. 10, 11, 15, and 17, which normally are played by string choirs of chamber orchestra size. Again, the MOZART:Divertimentos (17).New York Philomusica, policy decision is a legitimate one, perhaps partic- BA. Robert Johnson, dir. [Joanna Nickrenz and Marc J. ularly justified by the very fact that strictly one -to-a- Aubort, prod.] Vox SVBX 5104, 5105, and 5106, $10.98 each part versions of the bigger works are so uncommon. three -disc set (manual sequence). Vol. 1:No. 1, in E flat, K. 113; No. 2. in D, K. 131; No. 3, in E flat, K. 159d '166: No. Personally, I'm much less bothered by the actual 4, in B flat, K. 159b /186; No. 7, in D, K. 167a/205 (with March, K. 167b 290): No. practice than by the imperious, all black -and -white 8, in F, K. 213 Vol. 2:No 6, in C, K. 240b/188; No. 9, in B flat. K. 240. No 11. in D. K. 251 (with March). No. 13, in F, K. 253; No. 15, in B flat, K. 271h 287II Re arguments advanced for them by annotator Levin. pastore Divertimento. in C, K. 208 and 213c/102 (with March, K. 214). Vol. 3: His notes are less likely to infuriate than to stupefy No. 10, in F, K. 247 (with March. K. 248), No. 12, in E flat, K. 240a/252: No. 14, in B flat, K. 270: No. 16, in E flat, K. 2719 / 289: No. 17, in D, K. 320b/334 (with lay readers by their pervasive leaden pedantry. My March, K. 320c/445) (from CANDIDE CE 31074, 19731.

92 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE In conductor Reginald Goodall's casts Derek Hammond Stroud's malevolent Alberichis first-rate. Halfa Ring inEnglish A remarkable translation, a sturdy cast, and Reginald Goodall's epic conception make a potent case for opera in the vernacular.

by David Hamilton

NEARLY TWO DECADES AGO, when Decca /London un- has been made. The Rhinegold, recorded a year ago, dertook the first recording of Das Rheingold, a com- now makes its appearance on the domestic Angel la- plete recording of Wagner's Ring began at last to bel (though the records are in fact manufactured by seem a viable prospect (although we have since EMI in England); The Valkyrie was recorded late in learned, from John Culshaw's Ring Resounding, how 1975, leaving only a complete Twilight yet to come. chancy it was, even after that). Little did we dream, A Cinderella tale indeed. During its course, the certainly, that by 1973 five complete recordings of the Sadler's Wells Opera Company rechristened itself cycle would be available, or even less that a sixth the English National Opera Company, and these would be under way-and sung in English trans- Wagnerian successes surely played a role in that de- lation, at that! cision, bringing the company a new level of public The recording of the "English Ring" came to pass attention and status (at a time, too, when the depar- in gradual stages. The whole story began with a suc- ture of Sir Georg Solt i was diminishing Covent Gar- cessful production of The Mastersingers at London's den's position as a Wagnerian mecca). But removed Coliseum in 1968 by the Sadler's Wells company, from the London context, and offered without visual conducted by Reginald Goodall. The acclaim led to counterpart, what purpose do these recordings the undertaking of the Ring, using a new translation serve? commissioned from Andrew Porter, building on the First off, I think they comprise the best argument strengths of the Mastersingers cast. The four operas ever offered on records for opera in English trans- were unveiled, year by year, beginning in 1970. lation. Not, of course, that all opera performances Again, audiences and critics responded, and in De- should be sung in the vernacular or, even less, that all cember 1972 the enterprising Unicorn label made a recordings should be. Rather, they tell us that trans- studio recording of the final scenes of The Twilight of lations can be as literate, elegant, and stylish as origi- the Gods (UNS 245/6) that became something of a nals, that they can fit the music comfortably, can be best-seller (I reviewed it in these pages in February sung convincingly and comprehensibly. Porter's 1974). translations meet all these criteria; the tone is ele- Now EMI became interested, and with the help of vatedwithoutstiffness,word orderisnever the Peter Moores Foundation recorded Siegfried dur- awkward, and the verbal rhythms fit the musical ing performances the following summer. Another ones with almost unfailing naturalness (once or success, and so the commitment to a complete cycle twice, a very long note briefly distends the pacing).

APRIL 1976 93 Only once during these two operas did a phrase well into the picture. An exception is Loge: His strike me oddly (and that one is probably a result of wobble and reliance on parlando are disconcerting, my own curious penchant for twisting clichés more and only because he really does characterize,even than anything else): Briinnhilde's reference to Grane with this shred of a voice, is he acceptable in thecon- as "my sacred horse" set me wondering if a sacred text. horse is anything like a sacred cow. If you areaccus- And that context is really quite impressive. There tomed to being continually jarred by opera trans- is a sense of ensemble and spontaneity here-the lations-unnatural constructions, forced inversions, positive side of performance recording-that is enor- false -ringing "elegance," clumsy accents-try these; mously involving. Reginald Goodall certainly knows there is nothing so good on records, and they just how these pieces ought to go: The shapes of the might alter your whole perspective on opera in trans- phrases, the direction of the sentences and para- lation. graphs, the weight of the climaxes are all essentially Don't expect every single word to be intelligible, "right" in their sound. I think Siegfried the more suc- and don't worry about it. The standard of projection cessful performance of the two, for Rhinegold isoc- is certainly very high on the part of all the singers-at casionally spacious to the verge of slackness, at least least as high as in performances of the original-and I on disc; the effect of the same tempo in the theater am sure that Germans who go to Der Ring without and on a recording can be very different. But the careful study of the libretto don't understandas sense of a long line, of motions converging on crucial much of it as Sadler's Wells audiences do. The point moments, is always present even when details go is that, at a performance in a foreign language, you awry, and the essential tonal color, rich and warm, is have virtually to memorize the sense of the libretto, also always present. action by action, speech by speech-and then corre- Theater recording means some noise: Theau- late this with occasional visual clues and with the dience is restless during the prelude to Act II of Sieg- stray key word in the foreign language in order to fried, and various thumpings, banging, anda smidg- grasp the appositeness of the music. When your own eon of prompting intrude now and then. Balances are language is being sung, your prior study of the li- generally good, and the sound is a fair specimen of bretto is called upon only to fill in the sporadic gaps in-house recording. in comprehensibility resulting from awkward tessi- If you're timorous about the "English Ring,"you tura, orchestral overbalancing, or the like. In the lat- might try the Unicorn set first; as I mentioned, it's ter case, the sense comes at you directly, and the ex- better recorded and more polished, with atre- perience is of another order altogether, skipping that mendous account of the Funeral Music. But I'llwa- intermediate crossword -puzzle -solving exercise of ger that you'll want to hear the rest. Among their memory and deduction. other uses, I should think these recordings a fineway Some of this applies even on to introduce younger have the libretto to read. But what also countson least because the essential grandeur of the music is records, of course, are the musical performances, so capably expounded, and anything less would and these have considerable interest. They are more have traduced even this fine translation. than good routine, although the circumstances of live -performance recording do mean that theyare WAGNER:The Rhinegold (sunginEnglish). less polished, less evenly registered, than Solti'sor Woglinde Valerie Masterson (s) Froh Robert Ferguson (t) Wellgunde Shelagh Squires (s) Mime Gregory Dempsey (t) Karajan's. To begin with, the Sadler's Wells/English Flosshilde Helen Afflield (ms) Wotan Norman Bailey (b) National Opera orchestra is not in a class with the Free Lois McDonall (s) Alberich Derek Hammond Stroud (b) Fncka Katherine Pring (ms) Donner Norman Welsby (b) Vienna and Berlin bands. The contrabass tuba in Erda Anne Collins (a) Fasolt Robert Lloyd (bs) Siegfried is obviously feeling his way rather ner- Loge Emile Belcourt (t) Fafner Clifford Grant (bs) vously, and even among the more usual instruments English National Opera Orchestra, Reginald Goodall, cond. intonation and ensemble can be rough. Not careless- [John Mordler, prod.] ANGEL SDC 3825, $20.98 (four SO-en- listen to things like the violin run before Siegfried's coded discs, manual sequence) [recorded at performances, March 10, 19, 25, and 29, 1975]. "Das ist kein Mann" to hear that this is indeed a well- prepared performance-but no orchestra can play WAGNER: Siegfried (sung in English). Brunnhilde Rita Hunter (s) Mime Gregory Dempsey (t) over its head all the time. (In this respect, and in mat- Woodbird Maurine London (s) Wanderer Norman Bailey (b) ters of balance, the Unicorn set is certainly superior.) Erda Anne Collins (a) Alberich Derek Hammond Stroud (b) Siegfried Alberto Remedios (t) Fatner Clifford Grant (bs) Several of the singers are very impressive. Rita Sadler's Wells Opera Orchestra, Reginald Goodall, cond. Hunter is a commanding and touching Briinnhilde, [Ronald Kinloch Anderson, prod.] EMI ODEON SLS 873, $39.90 rock -solid of pitch if a little unvaried of timbre. Nor- (five discs, manual sequence) [recorded at performances, Au- man Bailey sounds splendid as the Wanderer, but gust 2, 8, and 21, 1973] (distributed by Peters International, rather less focused in the more complex demands of 619 W. 54th St., New York, N.Y. 10019). the Rhinegold Wotan. First-rate is Derek Hammond Stroud's Alberich, firmly and malevolently voiced. Rhinegold in quad: Front stage, rear ambience. The Alberto Remedios is no real Heldentenor, and the singers appear to have been close-miked (and pos- strain is manifest in some uncertain pitching and un- sibly compressed); in any case, they sound far too comfortable production-but the freshness of voice large (although some listeners may find such gigan- and feeling in the lyrical passages is really quite tism appropriate for Wagner). Also, the characters treasurable (and his hammering is remarkably accu- do not retain their apparent sizes as they move about rate). Gregory Dempsey is a vivid, only occasionally the virtual stage-what should sound like changes extravagant Mime. in distance often come across as changes in size. The Most of the other voices are at best utilitarian; they over-all sound is pleasant enough but sets no new are well rehearsed and musicianly, however, and fit standards for clarity. H.A.R.

94 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Photographed at 200X magnification with 1.5 grams tracking :Owe, Photographed at 200X magnification with 1.5 grams tracking force, you can see record vinyl being worn away. record shows no visiale wear.

This is what happens This is what happens every time you play a record. after you apply Sound Guard. Introducing Sound Guard. The first product ever that itself to the groove surfaces to Like it or your money back protects records against wear, substantially reduce wear. As of now, :he only way you without resulting loss in (The film thickness is less than can buy Sound Guard is by order- frequency response or fidelity. 0.000005'9 ing direct. Just fill in the coupon Every time you play a record Unlike sticky silicones, it is (or write: Sound Guard, you destroy some of its sound. dry with a built in anti-stat. P.O. Box 3300. Muncie, IN 47302) Under 200X magnification you But does Sound Guard ad- and enclose your check or money can see the stylus peeling flakes versely affect frequency response order payable to Sound Guard. of vinyl off groove or fidelity? For conclusive proof, $5.99 for one Sound Guard kit plus surfaces. You literally seewe asked the most respected of $1.00 for postage and handling. sound being worn away. the independent audio laboratories For two or more kits, pay Until now, no product for an exhaustive evaluation. $5.99 each and we'll pay postage could protect records Their results were astonishing! and handling. If not satisfied, re- turn the unused portion and we'll Test results refund your money or replace 1. The application of the product at your option. Sound Guard Sound Guard keeps your good to a stereophonic souna.; sounding good. or CD -4 quadra- Turntable used: Empire Model 598111. phonic disc r does not in any .found Guard way degrade P.O. Box 3300, Muncie, IN 47302 Yes, I'm interested in Sound Guard. audible frequency Please send me one Sound Guard response. kit. I am enclosing a check or money against wear without interfering 2. Sound Guard increases the with sound fidelity. order for $6.99 ($5.99 plus $1.00 life of the records by significantly for postage and handling). An answer reducing record wear. El Please send me Sound from outer space 3. Sound Guard significantly Guard kits. I am enclosing a check or money order for ($5.99 each From Ball Corporation retards increases in random noise kit -postage and handling free). research into dry lubricants for content (surface noise) and total Make check or money order payable NASA's Orbiting Solar Obser- harmonic distortion caused by to Sound Guard. vatories came a new technology, repeated playing. Name one derivative of which is now 4. Records treated with known as Sound Guard? Sound Guard do not attract dust Address City State Zip_ Applied with a non -aerosol as read:ly as untreated discs. HF 4 pump sprayer and buffed with a A 12 -page report of the com- (please print clearly) *Sound Guard is Ball Corporation s velvet pad (both provided), plete test results will be mailed trademark for its record preservative. Sound Guard molecularly binds with every order. c Copyright Ball Corporation, 1976. C

ars Vladimir Atlantov Daniel Barenboim Sir Thomas Beecham, Royal Phil. Lazar Berman Mormon Tabernacle Choir Leonard Bernstein, N.Y. Phil. David Oisirakh Judith Blegen Eugene Ormandy, Phila. Orch. Pierre Boulez, N.Y. Phil. Murray Perahia Antonia Brico Jean-Pierre Rampal The Budapest Quartet Sviatoslav Richter Walter Carlos Paul Robeson Robert Casadesus Leonard Rose Pablo Casals Charles Rosen Aaron Copland Thomas Schippers Ileana Cotrubas Renato Scotto Philippe Entremont Rudolf Serkin Eileen Farrell Beverly Sills Leon Fleisher Isaac Stern Zino Francescatti Leopold Stokowski Glenn Gould Igor Stravinsky Gary Graffman George SzelI, Cleveland Orch. Jascha Heifetz Joseph Szigeti Vladimir Horowitz Michael Tilson Thomas Istomin-Stern-Rose Trio Richard Tucker Juilliard Quartet Frederica Von Stade Igor Kipnis Bruno Walter Andre Kostelanetz Andre Watts Ruth Laredo John Williams 7usic From Marlboro Pinchas Zukerman

/r/01?v/1 o\or/ Isa/ a//

VAFCA, c . BSNC reviewed by ROYAL S. BROWN ABRAM CHIPMAN R. D. DARRELL PETER G. DAVIS SHIRLEY FLEMING ALFRED FRANKENSTEIN KENNETH FURIE CLIFFORD F. GILMORE HARRIS GOLDSMITH DAVID HAMILTON DALE S. HARRIS PHILIP HART PAUL HENRY LANG ROBERT LONG ROBERT C. MARSH ROBERT P. MORGAN CONRAD L OSBORNE ANDREW PORTER H. C. ROBBINS LANDON JOHN ROCKWELL HAROLD A. RODGERS PATRICK J. SMITH SUSAN THIEMANN SOMMER Zubin Mehta-tor Berlioz, lusty Romanticism but little poetry.

BACH: Orgelbachlein, S. 599-644. Robert may set the motif in all three lower parts, or tween hymn tune and the rest is good, but Noehren, organ (organ of the First Presby- only in the two middle parts with a free in others the relative importance of the terian Church, Buffalo, N.Y.). [Giveon Corn- bass, or the pedal can have a motif of its voices is blurred. Noehren's use of agogic field, prod.] ORION ORS 75200/1, $13.96 own, not shared by the others. Finally, accents, of paramount importance in organ (two discs, manual sequence). there is one prelude, "The old year now playing, is not of the best; his grace notes hath passed away," that is a free fantasy on can be a little nervous, his trills too fast. He Bach's Little Organ Book was intended for the chorale tune. seems to be a firm believer in colorful regis- young organists to improve their playing, Robert Noehren's performance is quite tration, which is all right-Bach likedit especially their pedal technique, but, the di- variable. Some of the preludes are ni.ely too-but some of his choices approach the dactic aim aside, these little chorale prel- balanced, but in others the chorale tune is garish, and at times his solo stops are unat- udes are among Bach's most personal utter- stentorian to the point of overwhelming the tractive in the particular combination in ances. Whoever masters these settings, rest. Since with one exception the tune is which they are used. some scarcely a dozen measures long, will always in the treble, its very location as- In sum, this is an uneven presentation. have entered the innermost regions of that sures it the position of primus inter pares; The sound is excellent. P.H.L. giant's infinite realm. therefore it should not be detached from There is a system in this anthology, and the rest, lest the other parts become mere the performer must be aware of it. The type background. BELLaii: I Capuleti e i Montecchi. For an es- of chorale prelude Bach follows here con- A particularly mistaken interpretation say review, see page 89. sists of a cantus firmus-the hymn tune concerns No. 24, "0 man, bewail thy griev- (which with very few exceptions remains ous sins." This is a warm, outgoing, highly intact, its purpose being to apprise the con- decorated, arialike, and expansive piece, BERLIOL Harold in Italy, Op. 16. Daniel Ben- gregation of what chorale they are about to the epitome of baroque effusiveness, which yamini, viola; Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, sing)-and three other parts that elaborate a is marvelously conveyed by the multitude Zubin Mehta, cond. TRay Minshull, prod.] given motif. In some instances this motif is of suspensions and passing dissonances LONDON CS 6951, $6.98. derived from the hymn tune by diminution. that' are smoothly resolved after lingering Comparisons: It is usually pregnant, especially rhythmi- for a while. "Arialike," but not an aria: The Pnmrose, Toscanini / NBC Sym. (1939) unissued Cooley, Toscanini/NBC Sym. (1953) RCA LM 1951 (OP) cally, hence always easily discernible. The "accompaniment" is every bit as important Primrose, Beecham /Royal Phil. Odys. Y 33286 three lower parts !pay interact in the form as the melody, and without it the whole Menuhin, Davis/Philharmonia Ang. S 36123 of a canon, even a double canon if the can- thing would be something different. Noeh- tus is made one of the "acting" parts, but ren disregards the distinction and does Harold in Italy is a work of contradictions, most of the time they weave a freely flow- make a real aria out of it by assigning to the by turns declamatively public and almost ing contrapuntal web. However, within this treble an insistent reed stop while holding painfully shy and introspective, simulta- last type there are distinct subspecies. Bach down the rest. This is particularly upsetting neously Romantic and scrupulously classi- when the upper parts move in chords. cal. Increasingly it seems to me the ideal de- Then toward the end of this magnificent parture point for listeners wishing to piece there is a rising excitement, and the journey into Berlioz' inner sanctum, but Explanation of symbols dissonances become sharper and more fre- paradoxically itis an especially elusive Classical quent, nearing the climactic point, a Nea- work for performers. It requires the utmost Budget politan sixth of deathly pallor. Noehren vir- in both delicacy and virtuosity, for though 181 tually eliminates the drama by slowing it is not a viola concerto it is a double con- H Historical down inordinately before the climax. This certo-one soloist playing the viola and the Reissue is one of the very few instances where Bach other, the conductor, playing on the entire 114 gave explicit tempo directions, obviously to orchestra. Recorded tape avoid just what happens in this perform- All of its elements fused memorably on Open Reel ance: he marks the beginning adagio assai, January 21, 1939, when William Primrose, . 8 -Track Cartridge and exactly over that fearful chord he first -stand violist of the just -formed NBC writes adagissimo. By slowing down in ad- Symphony Orchestra, joined forces with Cassette vance, a performer ruins the whole effect. Arturo Toscanini, still very much in his In some of the preludes, the rapport be- prime. The orchestral playing was incred- APRII. 1976 97 ibly beautiful and colorful. Ironically, lioz' con gravitO marking at those rhythmi- cism of a generalized sort, but they never Primrose played with greater freedom and cally complex spots in the finale where the seem to get into the peculiar local color and took more chances with this "despotic" violins juxtapose straight eighth notes and pastoral yearnings of Berlioz' conception. conductor, purported bane of soloists, than triplet eighth notes while the brasses blare In a sense, poetry is lacking. he subsequently did on any of his three out a motto in triplet quarters. The short ex- It is to be hoped that Colin Davis' forth- commercial recordings, of which only the position repeat in the first movement is coming Philips recording with Nobuko Beecham is currently available. To be sure, rightly observed, and the finale is uncut Imai will provide a truly first-class modern Toscanini insisted on strict adherence to (pace Markevitch/DG, deleted, and Lom- version. His Angel account has the requi- Berlioz' sul ponticello directions for the fa- bard/Erato and MHS). site clarity of texture missing from Mehta's mous viola arpeggios in the "Pilgrim's Daniel Benyamini (presumably the first but suffers from stodgy tempos (especially March," an important detail that Primrose violist of the Israel Philharmonic) isa in the Orgy) and from Menuhin's anemic, ignored with Beecham. Yet Toscanini per- warm -toned, technically accomplished art- unidiomatic viola playing. If you must have mitted-indeed encouraged-Primrose to ist, and the orchestra plays with spirit and stereo and can't wait to see whether the use much more portamento and tempo ru- lusty abandon. This is, for the most part, a new Davis improves on the old, you will bato, and the gain in characterization was very good performance. have to weigh the relative (and consider- immense. There are, however, a few problems. For able) merits of the London and Angel ver- Fortunately, a Toscanini Harold has one thing, details aren't always judiciously sions. My preference remains the Tosca- been issued commercially. (Though out of balanced. The double-time orchestral nini. H.G. print domestically,itis available inex- violas are admirably clear at the end of the pensively in English RCA's Toscanini Edi- Abruzzi mountaineer's serenade, but the tion as AT 112.) That performance, derived delicate string triplets in the coda of the CHOPIN:Piano Works. SCHUBERT: Piano from rehearsals for the broadcast of No- Orgy are obscured by too much ambience, Works. Sviatoslav Richter, piano. COLUMBIA! vember 29, 1953 (not from the broadcast it- and other passages are similarly scrambled. MELOOiYA M 33826, $6.98. self, as erroneously stated on the original Tuttis are occasionally boisterous and CHoesii: Ballade No. 2, in F. Op. 38. Etudes: in E. Op. 10. domestic issue), is relatively formal and un- coarse -toned but,paradoxically, not No. 3. in E minor, Op. 25. No. 5. Polonaise in C sharp mi- eventful, but only "relatively." For me it re- nor, Op. 26, No. 1. SCNIAINT: Impromptu in A fiat. D 936. ideally incisive. The brass triplets in those No 2. Moments musicaux. D 780 No1. in C. No 3, in F mains, by a comfortable margin, the finest con gravitti episodes seem a trifle rushed minor; No. 6, in A flat. Harold ever released. and imprecise. And although Mehta's ac- In fact,I strongly suspect that Mehta's celerations at the end of the first movement As the years pass, Richter seems to be new edition is based on a careful study of are justified by Berlioz' markings, he some- evolving a style that is closer and closer to the Maestro's interpretation. There is much times seems to be losing control, which such bygone masters as Rachmaninoff, the same forthrightness of tempo and, for happens again at the conclusion of the Friedman, and Gabrilowitsch. He retains the most part, a similar coherence of organ- Orgy, where the mounting progression from his unique timbre-an engaging mixture of ization. Harold's leitmotiv, for instance, half notes to triplet halves to quarters and a watercolorist's transparency and an oil moves at approximately the same pace in then to triplet quarters is not continently painter's judicious murkiness-and objec- each of the four movements. Then too, elucidated. tive concern for voicing and observing ev- Mehta follows Toscanini in ignoring Ber- Mehta and Benyamini give us Romanti- ery expression mark. But at the same time he shows ever-increasing fondness for stretched rubatos and personal inflections. This shift in attitude is apparent in the three Moments musicaux, though not ob- trusively so. These are, afterall,short pieces with enough built-in irregularities of rhythm and stress that an artist of Richter's sophistication wisely perceives that itis. The best classical records reviewed in recent months for the most part. best to play them straightforwardly and let the surprises fend for themselves. Even so, one can note a BACH, C.P.E./J.S.: Oboe Works. Holliger, Leppard. PHILIPS 6500 830, Feb. subtle inflection on one note or a declama- BACH: Cantatas, Vols. 11-13. Harnoncourt; Leonhardt. TELEFUNKEN 26.35269 (2), tory coloration on another that are not to be 26.35283 (2), 26.35284 (2), Feb. found in most of his earlier Schubert per- BEETHOVEN:Symphony No. 7. Casals. COLUMBIA M 33788;Feb. formances. For all the deceptive simplicity BERLIOZ: Symphonie fantastique. Karajan. DG 2530 597, Feb. of means, the voice is a very special one and BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 6. Stein. LONDON CS 6880, Feb. the statements both disarming and grand. CARTER: Double Concerto for Harpsichord and Piano; Duo for Violin and Piano. Richter's account of the C major Moment Jacobs, Weisberg, Zukofsky, Kalish. NONESUCH H 71314, Mar. musical has a certain virile astringency that DuFAY/ DUNSTABLE:Motets. Pro Cantione Antigua, Turner. ARCHIV 2533 291,Mar. reminds me of Schnabel's way with the Dv0114x:Slavonic Dances, Opp. 46 and 72; My Home Overture; Scherzo capric- piece. Itis a beautiful and touching per- cioso. Kubelik. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 2530 466/2530593, Mar. formance. all the more so for its seeming DisoilAK: Slavonic Dances, Opp. 46 and 72; Carnival Overture. SzeII. ODYSSEY Y2 simplicity. The famous "Air russe" F minor 33524 (2), Mar. piece is. for my taste, a mite overpedaled. I would have preferred a crisper staccato GUILIANO:La Dafne. Musica Pacifica. COMMAND COMS 9004-2 (2), Feb. and a saving of the pedal until the unex- listizE: Kammermusik 1-XII; InMemoriam: Die weisse Rose. Henze. OISEAU-LYRE pected final maggiore ending. Still. I doubt DSLO 5, Mar. that any other player has achieved such a HERRMANN: Symphony. Herrmann. UNICORN RHS 331, Feb. seamless legato flow on those awkward RosSiNI: Overtures. Marriner. PHILIPS 6500 878, Feb. double sixths in the middle part. (Who says SCHOENBERG:Brettl-Lieder; Early Songs. Nixon, Stein. RCA RED SEALARL 1- this piece is easy? Its nastiness is all the 1231, Mar. greater since it demands the utmost finesse SCHOENBERG:Das Buch der hangenden Garten. SCHUBERT: Songs. DeGaetani, in execution.)No. 6is radiantly rendered (I Kalish. NONESUCH H 71320, Mar. personally prefer the variant at bar 32. four SCHUBERT: Quintet in C. Guarneri Quartet, Rose. RCA RED SEAL ARL 1-1154, Feb. measures after the change of key to E ma- TIPPETT:AChild of Our Time. Davis. PHILIPS 6500 985, Feb. jor, that has big= id= rather than g/e/b WEBER: Euryanthe. Janowski. ANGEL SDL 3764 (4). Feb. on the second beat in the right hand at least thefirsttime around.) The A flatIm- WORK: Songs of the Civil War Era. Morris, Jackson, Bolcom. NONESUCHH 71317, promptu is played with full appreciation of Feb. its Allegretto marking. What a pleasure to hear an interpretation that resists the temp -

98 CIRCLE 52 ON READER -SERVICE CARD -ie. and you'll drop all the others.

There is a new cassette on the market. The FUJI FX, a Pure Ferrix cassette that soon will be the standard of FUJI FILM excellence for top quality, truly high fidelity reproduction. It already is in many parts of the world. Pure-Ferrix Excellent Mtx-ic Performarce FUJI FX gives you the music you want, the way you want your music. Clear, crisp sound over the entire audio frequency range without perceptible distortion. A signal- to-noise ratio of better than 58 db. No hiss. Virtually failure -proof. The finest music at your fingertips without the need for any special bias. Drop in at your FUJI dealer today; then drop in a FUJI and hear music as you have never heard it before. FUJI FX cassettes come in lengths of 46, 60 and 90. Also available, a full line of FUJI FL Low Noise cassettes in lengths of 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes. FUJI Photo Film U.S.A., Inc. The Empire State Building, New York, New York 10001. THE TAPE THAT'S HEARD AROUND THE WORLD From the virtuoso family of Romero guitarists

Sviatoslav Richter-evolving a style close to the masters tation of turning the piece into a por- film)*; Music for Movies*; John Henry'; Let- tentous, sentimental hymn. ter from Home.; Down a Country Lane'. Richter's way with Chopin has not New Philharmonia Orchestra* and London changed drastically: He has evidently al- Symphony Orchestra', Aaron Copland, ways deemed it permissible to be more sub- cond. [Paul Myers, prod.] COLUMBIA M jective in this less classical music (although 33586, $6.98. Chopin was obviously a musician very much in the Mozartean mold). His perform- Hollywood has rarely made use of the best ance of the F major Ballade is very native "serious" composers, preferring to stretched at the beginning, with the max- employ a crop of musicians cultivated for imum of color and expression extracted the specialized demands of film. Yet one from every note of the opening melody and major home-grown, non -cinema -oriented every tenuto full of pregnant suspense. The composer has been able to produce a suc- dramatic middle section, on the other hand, cession of outstanding film scores: Aaron is simply torrential in its onrushing but Copland. cleanly controlled power. The unexpected In his film endeavors, this most Ameri- pauses and harmonic changes are miracu- can -sounding of composers has been asso- lously timed, and the coda leaves one limp. ciated with some of this country's greatest This is, quite plainly, the greatest perform- authors, including John Steinbeck, Thorn- ance of an elusive piece thatI have ever ton Wilder, and Henry James. And it is with heard. a Steinbeck work that the most extensive The C sharp minor Polonaise, in Richter's film -score excerpts here-the Red Pony reading, is an amalgam of stinging accents, suite, from the 1948 Lewis Milestone adroitly balanced voices, and an occasional movie-are connected. This buoyant, hint of massive forcefulness. The E major poignantly atmospheric music, with its ex- Etude is supplely shaped and perhaps a citingly happy prelude, its offbeat but an- little uncomfortably agitated in its middle tistereotype dream music, and its frequent section. The E minor Etude, however, is very Coplandesque tonal expanses, re- rock -steady and wonderfully clear in its ceives a warm, mellow interpretation from S-36093 Total authority and interpretative skill. rhythmic spacing and separation of filigree. the composer, who concentrates more on Romero's expert musical instincts are Richter does some strange things vis-a- sonority and individual detail than Andre presented at their fullest and most beau- vis sectional repeats. I take violent excep- Previn does in his more incisively dramatic tiful. His command of this repertoire tion to his repetition of the first part of the version (Odyssey Y 31016), which I rather It, yes nothing unsaid. 10 selections. sixth Moment Musical's trio. Schubert prefer. But Copland has the New Philhar- omitted the repeat sign there for a very monia playing to perfection, and the full, good reason: The ostensibly slighted repeat deep recorded sound adds an appropriate is, in fact, written out an octave higher, and richness. Richter betrays a positively defective sense The five pieces from three films that of form by presenting the material in ques- make up Music for Movies have a different tion four times. His practice in the Chopin flavor altogether, tending to remain sus- Polonaise is, admittedly, harder to prose- pended in nonresolving harmonies and cute. There is an alarming amount of con- motivic repetitions-both very much asso- fusing evidence there. On the one hand, the ciated with "classic"film -scoring tech- French editions omit the da capo altogether niques. The wistful, hymnlike "Grovers and give fine at the end of the trio section. Corners" movement (from Sam Wood's This is plainly implausible, since the piece 1940 version of Wilder's Our Town) has an is clearly in ternary (three-part. ABA) for- almost hypnotic effect. Of the three other mat. The usually reliable Polish /Pade- short works on this disc. John Henry (heard rewski text, on the other hand, properly in- here in a 1952 revision of the 1940 Railroad dicates the da capo but confuses the issue Ballad for Small Orchestra) is a kind of hu- by writing out in full the opening twelve man, folksongy Pacific 231 with some un- S-36094 bars of the piece that ought properly to usually harsh dissonances for Copland, Dazzling musicality and technical flair. have been indicated by a repeat sign. Rich- while the 1944 Letter from Home and the Romero's intensive study in the distin- 1962 Down a Country Lane are slow, sus- guished company of his father and two ter. then, is technically correct in making brothers is wonderfully evident. His dis- the twelve -bar repeat a second time in the tained mood pieces whose simplicity radi- ciplined, incisive rhythms are spellbind- da capo, but structurally and sym- ates nostalgic charm. ing. 15 selections. metrically it sounds wrong. This is the first appearance on disc of Quibbles aside, thisisa wonderful ;ohn Henry and Down a Country Lane. Nfie 1 Available record. H. G. And, except for The Red Pony, none of the LP, Cartridge and Cassette other works on this film -oriented install- ment of "Copland Conducts Copland" has COPLAND: The Red Pony (suite from the ever been so well recorded. R.S.B. CIRCLE 1 ON READEF:-SERVICE CARD

HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE noteveryone could build a stereokit...

untilnow. Dyna takes the worry out of building kits. output, a massive power supply to handle peaks per- It you've been scared away from stereo gear inkit fectly, and the biggest heat sinks per watt. form, let the new Stereo 150 amplifier change your mind. Typically extraordinary Dynaco sound value... easy

It s the superb new power amplifier from Dynaco-hi-fi as A B C C. . .Any Body Can! kit specialists for 20 years. 'Into 3 ohms. 20-20kHz, at less than 0.25% total harmonic distortion. The Stereo 150 s preassembled circuit board pretests For detailed specs on all Dynakits, and Dynaco speak- 90% of the audio circuitry so you know it'll work right ers, write, before you open the kit. Plus saving $120 in two even- ings with screwdriver, pliers and soldering iron. You'll dyntaco have the best sounding power amp going...DC P 0. Box 88 coupled, full complementary symmetry 75 watt/channel' dyni akitBlackwood, N.J. 08012 U.S.A. zzi

4 ; , : tr. z - : - DURUFLE: Requiem, Op. 9*; Prelude et "" fugue sur le nom d'Alain, Op. 7. Robert King, boy soprano*; St. John's College ///0; % : " Choir, Cambridge, George Guest, cond.*: Stephen Cleobury, organ. [Chris Hazell, prod.] ARGO ZRG 787, $6.98. 177/7/7 INN\ The Durufle Requiem, writtenentirely around Gregorian themes for the Mass for the dead, could have been produced only in a country where the rituals of the Catholic Church are an integral part of childhood. For, like the Faure Requiem, with which it is often compared, Durufle's 1947 setting of the liturgical texts has a tender, poignant, and somehow very sad simplicity that causes the listener to feel the music with a warmth and awe that belong most deeply to the domain of youth. By eliminating the static Therefore, the use of a boys' chorus sing- charges that attract and hold ing the upper -register parts in this record- dust to the records' grooves! ing is altogether appropriate, all the more so because of the excellence of the younger Only Staticmaster, with its exclusive Polonium 210 ele- contingent of the choir of St. John's College, ment, completely eliminates static and whisks away dust Cambridge. And the marvelous boy -so- in one quick and easy operation. It works in seconds to pro- prano solo by Robert King deserves special tect your investment, prolonging record and stylus life. mention. Nonetheless, this organ -only ver- Suggested retail price $14.95. To find out more about Static - sion cannot replace the one with full or- master's unique Polonium 210 element, see your audio dealer or chestra and mixed chorus conducted by the write to us. composer on Musical Heritage (MHS 1509, September 1973), although I suspect I will want to listen to both versions in future playings. This new Argo disc, with the inclusion of Nuclear Products Company, P.O. Box 5178, El Monte, CA 91734 the Prelude et fugue sur le nom d'Alain, The leader in static elimination for over 25 years. contains one -sixth of the entire output of this most unprolific organ composer. Writ- CIRCLE 29 ON READER -SERVICE CARD ten in 1943 in memory of a young com- poser/organist killed in the war, the Prel- ude and Fugue is a mellow, subdued work, much of whose detail is obscured by the Realistic? distantlyrecordedchurch -reverberation sound. Even so, both the music and the per- formance are capable of transporting the Pioneer? listener almost immediately to one of those huge, dusky cathedrals that mean this type of music. Excellent liner notes are provided by Marantz? Felix Aprahamian. R.S.B.

GERSHWIN: Rhapsody in Blue*; An Ameri- can in Paris; Cuban Overture. Ivan Davis, pi- ano*: Cleveland Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, cond. [Michael Woolcock, prod.] LONDON CS 6946, $6.98. Tape: 04 E 46946, $8.95; IVO 0 56946, $7.95; 0 86946, $7.95. ' ) )) Realistic STA-22,, Unfortunatelythere'sfarbetter sound Stereo Receiver About $4i0 here-surely the most vividly kaleidoscopic and auditorium -authentic these works have had-than Gershwinian sense. Ivan Who's #1 in audio equipment? Davis plays the Rhapsody in virtuoso fash- Three famous national component brands, each with fine equip- ion without revealing the slightest feeling ment at all the traditional price points, each with fine magazine ratings of any personal involvement, let alone any and lots of customers. Naturally we at Radio Shack like to think idiomatic grasp. Lorin Maazel, on the other Realistic* is top dog. Our reasoning goes like this: hand, tries much too hard, pressing un- Realistic has over 4000 stores-the entire worldwide Radio Shack mercifully, exacerbating the music's system - and 21 years of manufacturing experience. Realistic blatancy -susceptibilities, and almost never has exclusive Glide -Path* and Auto -Magic* controls. An audio con- allowing the nervous tension to relax into sultant named Arthur Fiedler. Service like no tomorrow. And prices the essential Gershwinian insouciance. like yesterday. I remain content with my first -choice Maybe a better question is who's #22 Wild/Fiedler versions, even though they GAreTaatndsoyuCnodmspinacney date all the way back to 1960. R.D.D.

Radio ihaek HENZE: Compases para preguntas ensimis- Over 4600 Stores- Dealers - USA. Canada. England. Australia. Belgium. Germany. Holland. France. Japan Registered Trademark madas*; Violin Concerto No. 2'. Hirofumi CIRCLE 35 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

102 CIRCLE 40 ON READER -SERVICE CARD-* The new Sherwood S9910. Everything you hear is true.

It has all the power you need [at the capacitors, dual -gate MOS FET's 4 -channel adaptor circuit, which lowest achievable level of distor- provide superior image rejection makes it easy to convert to the real tion]: 100 watts per channel, mini- and spurious response rejection, thing. mum RMS [both channels driven at with minimal cross modulation. The It has plug-in driver boards [to facili- 8 ohms, 20-20,000 Hz), with Total digital detector introduces tate servicing], which feature an Harmonic Distortion no more than absolutely no distortion to the sig- I.C. differential amplifer input for 0.1%. The componentry used to nal, and never requires alignment. staple operation regardless of tem- achieve this rating features excep- The Ceramic FM IF Filters are perature fluctuations. tional stability characteristics: a matched for optimal phase linearity. paralleled OCL direct -coupled out- The Phase Lock Loop integrated It has relay speaker protection cir- put configuration .. twin 15,000µf circuitry in the multiplex decoder cuitry, which automatically disen- filter capacitors... and a zener regu- improves separation and SCA re- gages your speakers. if a potential- lated secondary power supply. ject.on, while limiting distortion. ly damaging situation arises. It has all the controls you need for It has all the features ycu need for It has everything we've mentioned. fully flexible centralized operation: the purest sound: Loudness It has some features we haven't 5 -position Mode switch, 6 -position Compensation and Hi -Filter mentioned. Selector switch, 8 -position Speaker switches; separate detented Bass, It has a price of less than $700.* switch. Two Tape Monitor circuits Midrange and Treble controls [each Ycur Sherwood Dealer will have [with a two-way, inter -deck dubbing with exceptional variance char- it on his shelf soon. [Or if you're im- capability]. Front -panel Mic Input acteristics]; and a master Tone patient, get all the facts sooner, by and Mixing, with a frequency re- Defeat switch, for instant reference writing to us at the address below.] sponse suitable for use with a pro- to fiat response. Switchable FM fessional caliber microphone. And Stereo Only and FM Muting. Dual Either way, it's worth waiting for. a Main-In/Pre-Out switch, which al- tuning meters. And a Posituneln- Sherwood Electronic lows independent usage of the dicator LED, which visually signals Laboratories main amplifier section. You can op- perfect tuning. 4300 North California Avenue erate two speaker groupings, two It has switchable FM qe-emphasis Chicago. Illinois 60618 turntables, three tape decks and [25 /Ise°. and 75 Asec.], to ac- any auxiliary equipment-with no commodate an outboard noise re- SHERWOOD discernible white noise. duction unit. A built-ir Ambience Everything you hear is true. It has State -of -the -Art tuner specs: Retrieval System, which adds much The value shown is for informational purposes only The actual resale price will be set by the individual an IHF FM Sensitivity rating of 9.9 of the extra coloration you get with Sherwood Dealer at his option The cabinet shown is constructed of select plywood with a walnut dBf 11.7pVJ. Four -ganged tuning true 4 -channel sound. And a veneer covering Fukai, viola'; Brenton Langbein, violin and were Henze's first since, on the eve of the tions, make music of the asking and those voice'; Alan Evans, Robert Bateman, voices'; premiere of his Second Piano Concerto, he that, in picturesque, poetic, and often cele- London Sinfonietta, Hans Werner Henze, publicly proclaimed his commitment to So- bratory fashion, deal with matter more def- cond. [James Mallinson, prod.] HEADLINE cialism and declared that Art mattered less inite. El Cimarron, the exhilarating Sixth HEAD 5, $6.98 (distributed by London Rec- than the Revolution. Symphony, and the tone poem Helioga- ords). Nearly all of his compositions are balus Imperator are outstanding in the sec- "about" something; his subject matter is ond group. The two concertos are perhaps Hans Werner Henze's concertos for viola generally a theme that determines not to be counted among the first. (1969-70) and violin (1971) were both writ- merely the tone and incidental details, but The viola concerto is actually entitled ten for, and first performed by, that Mae- also the actual musical procedures of the Composes paw preguntas ensimismadas, cenas of modern music, Paul Sacher, and piece in question. When he dedicated him- which might be rendered as "guidelines for his Basel Chamber Orchestra. The soloists, self and his art to the Revolution. Henze tricky questions." (The precise translation as on this record, were the brilliant, tren- continued to embody his themes in the very is in itself a tricky question and probably chant young Japanese violist Hirofumi structure of his compositions. Equally, he involves a play on composes as "measures" Fukai, who leads the violas of the Hamburg continued to write his spiritual and emo- in the ordinary musical sense and as Philharmonic, and the assured Australian tional autobiography. We can divide his re- "scope.") At the start, the soloist softly violinist Brenton Langbein. The concertos cent pieces into those that, asking ques- plucks the four open strings in turn; muses in a series of double stops that slide and shift, one note at a time, by quarter -tone steps; and then breaks into a long, medi- tative,far-ranging, dreamy melody, not quite getting anywhere, but "resolving," ir- PORGYa Id BESS resolutely, on three different notes, each tried out in turn as a possible resting place- America's musical masterpiece, and then relinquished, since none proves compatible with the open -string sequence by America's favoritecomposer, that steals back gently beneath each of them. George Gershwin. Henze has said that his piece "represents those questions that are posed to oneself, the solitary ideas, the letters that could not A thrilling performance by Lorin Maazel, be written because their content could be imparted only through sound." The mood The Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and a of tranquil melancholy established by the brilliant cast, including Willard White, viola's first utterance is at first continued by the orchestra-an unusual orchestra of six Leona Mitchell, McHenry Boatwright and violins, four cellos, and double bass; wind sextetincluding recorder; harp, harpsi- Florence Quivar. chord, and piano; and two percussionists with a battery of the less noisy instru- ments-but gradually the pace quickens to a pattering scherzo. cieRsgidi 8eSS Throughout the piece-through changes 11:0269:s,,,,,,c. of tempo, through pauses that mark the start of a new strophe or suggest a page I .0,,,,,,,.do, 1/ \ A. turned in that "notebook of transient I moods" to which Henze has likened his I . e ,1 score-the thread of the soloist's discourse is seldom lost, and there only a few bars, in a work of twenty-five minutes, where he does not play. Listening to Composes is rather like leafing through a single artist's

1 . , responses to a variety of different scenes, the viola being the artist, while the other players continually provide fresh material to stimulate his delicate pen. I hope that fancy simile suggests a work at once . t% graphic, gentle, and complicated. Com- poses represents a return to the composer's s. Nr..., lyrical, personal, intimate vein. Gaston Sal- vatore, the librettist of Henze's Essay on Pigs, chided his friend in that work for ask- ing sensitive, intelligent questions instead of acting. Happily for us, Henze isstill Alb, given to reflection. His Second Violin Concerto (the First is II, an early piece, dating from 1947, that skill- illb. fully combines serial and neoclassical tech- niques) is at once a setting and a musical Now...completefor the first time on 'transcription" of Hans Magnus Enzens- berger's poem Hommage 8 Godel. That Henze should have been attracted to En- /42D 0 T /Err:2 ', zensberger-one of the best poets of our day-is not surprising. (They collaborated NumberOne In The Nation (Billboard) on El Cimarr6n and on the NET "vaude- Impeccable PressingsImported from England ville" Rachel, La Cubana.) The two share the same dilemmas-as Marxist artists who CIRCLE 24 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

1114 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE STEREOTECH "uYoo hearmre'll from us!"

1270 1 a 1101.11

11.111111011

IMEN MINI 4 Make sure you get your moneys worth when you buy a A 6 6 I ra I i 6 stereo. Modern technology, solid state electronics and contemporary engineering permits most equip- ment available today to have comparable perform- "MIMI. ance.If performance is the only measurement you make you will be in danger of not getting the most for your money. 1230 Stereotech performance has been designed to be "State of the Art" and high value. Not only must each Stereotech perform but each Stereotech product must deliver long trouble -freelife.Careful engineering combined with time consuming life and stress test- ing of each component part that goes into a Stereotech have assured the performance of Stereotech. Handcrafted construction and unit by unit testing assures you that the Stereotech you get will perform to your expectations. P 7 To prove the value of long life, Stereotech will give you a 5 Year Stereo Technology Division Factory Service Policy when you invest in a Stereotech. Not only 1010 Conklin Rd is long life promised without additional cost but is assured by this RD 1 Box 413A Stereotech offer --- Full details are at carefully selected dealers. Conklin, New York 13748 That's right, Stereotech isn't everywhere; only at those specialists that think enough of you to invest in facilities that can care for your needs properly. NAME Or, send us the coupon. We will rush data to help you select the right ADDRESS stereo dealer plus fullinformation on Stereotech and the right CITY STATE ZIP stereo for you. tt you are in a hurry for your information please send the couoon to Stereo Technology Division. CIRCLE 46 ON READER -SERVICE CARD APRIL 1976 105 Three great pianists. repudiate the orthodoxy of Communist art; as thoroughly "German" artistsre- Four magnificent albums. pelled by the New Germany (Enzensberg- er's poem man spricht deutsch could be the text for Henze's moral rejection of his cul- CRL5-1415 ARL 1_1324 tural heritage); as artists who would work N for "the people" but most readily express BEETHOVEConceoos TheFive Piano themselves ina vein that needs an elite to appreciate it; and as creators who RUBINSTEN/BARENCOMOrchestrc LondonPhilharmonic have often made these dilemmas the sub- ject matter of their art. One of Enzensberger's devices is collage. Henze uses it in the violin concerto, which quotes Dowland (the Lachrimae Antiquae and My Lady Hunsdon's Puffe), Schumann (the accompaniment figure in the PrOlu- dium of Bunte [Witter), and a Valse Lente that sounds very familiar but eludes me at the moment. In a concert performance, the soloist hurries onto the platform after the music has begun. Wearing a plumed tri- come and a red opera -cloak, he plays the role of Baron Miinchhausen, who when sinking in a mire rescued himself by the happy expedient of pulling himself up by his own hair or who, in the musical version, when "entangled in a dialectic imbroglio, keeps on playing his fiddle with a display of infinite optimism." Opposed to,yet amusingly entangled with, the Mtinchhausen method of escape ppui..1.1.73 ARL1 1176 from a quagmire or quandary is a theorem of Kurt aide!, the Czech, and later Prince- ton, mathematician/philosopher. This the- RCA RED SEAL orum was formulated in an essay in the Mo- Where artists become legends. natshefte fur Mathematik and Physik, Vol. 38 (1931). During the concerto, the violinist CIRCLE 37 ON READER -SERVICE CARD himself and later a "gentleman in the au- dience" cite it in this form: Ineverysufficientlyrichsystemof axioms, propositions exist that have a meaning which, within the system itself, SHALL WE TELL YOU cannot be proved nor refuted-unless, of MORE ABOUT: course, the system is inherently inconsist- B C ent. 1) Model R, Series II, our new "Take that proposition in your hand and technologymonitoringloud- pull it," Enzensberger's poem ends! Musical DISCOU TS systems rich in possibilities, musical sys- speaker, which improves upon tems that admit, or don't admit, inconsist- our legendary STUDIO . . at a STEREO COMPONENTS encies, are things that a composer can read- lower price? ily devise. In the concerto, Henze plays Largest selection of top name with "closed forms, aleatory techniques. 2) Model Q, our new technology brands try us and see vocal scenas, concertante music, and dra- compact, which improves upon matic actions" in a way "so conceived as at first sight and hearing to give pleasure... . our famous Super Compact .. . at a lower price? The listener, however, should not stop It's worth a call there." 3) Model H, the "multi unit" Even if he does stop there, he can take home loudspeaker; and other (301)488-9600 pleasure in the fertile, fluent inventions that tumble out, in the sound medleys, in the "state of the art" loudspeakers juxtapositions and superimpositions. (The introduced in Newsletter 11? brass quintet from Natascha Ungeheuer reappears, used in much the same brassy,

We can tell you more, when )7II hnl Mahlerian way: the Dowland Pavane is you visit one of our franchised played by the harp, the Puffe-simulta- neously, but in a different key-by mando- dealers; or when you write us lin and guitar.) The concerto is a lively and directly. fascinating work, packed with ideas. The recording was made around the time of a London Sinfonietta concert, in June 6330 Frankford Ave 1973, at which both concertos had their Baltimore, Md 21206 British premieres, and hence the Enzens- I.M.FRIED berger poem is recited in English trans- All mail answered within 24 hours ProductsCO. lation. The performances seem to me as Phone Daily 9 AM to 9 PM good as can be. Brilliant soloists; beautiful 7616 City Line Ave. Saturday 9 AM to 4 PM and accurate playing from everyone con- Philadelphia, Pa. 19151 USA Phone (301) 488-9600 cerned; and beyond that, in the composer's own leadership of his works and in the dis- CIRCLE 16 ON. READER -SERVICE CARD CIRCLE 18 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

106 CIRCLE 48 ON READER -SERVICE CARD OnlyTechnics givesyouthe world's most precise drive system, any way you wantit. Direct -drive precision. Now you can have it any way you want it. Because Technics uses direct drive in more kinds of turntables than anyone else. You can get it for under $200 in the SL -1500. One of four manuals. Or for about $500 you can have our profess Dnal turntable, the SP -10. There's a fully automatic single play SL1100A model, the SL -1300. And the world's first direct -drive changer, the SL -1350. And all these turntables share the Technics direct -drive system. A system w. so superior that FM stations have been using our direct -drive turntables for years. Here's wlv. In our direct -drive system, the platter is an extension of the motor shaft There are no belts or idlers to produce variations in speed. So all our turntables have less than 0.03c/ wow and flutter (WRMS) (0.047 SL 1200 for the SL -1350). You won't hear any rumble either. Because we use an electronically controlled DC motor that spins at exactly 33 or 45 rpm. And, unlike rumble -producing high- speed motors, our motor introduces so little vibration into the system that any rumble remains inaudible Direct Drive (-70dB DIN B). System And every Technics direct -drive turntable has variable pitch epritmls. A built-in stroboscope. And CD -4 phono cables. And for those that include a tone arm you also get viscous damped cueing. Anti -skating. Feedback insulated legs. Even a dust cover and an integral base. But we don't have to tell you how good these turntables SL1500 are. Read some of the reviews*. And see for yourself. The concept is simple.The execution is precise.The performance is outstanding.The name is Technics. *SP -10 -Audio, 8/71; Stereo Review, 9/71; Audio, 10/73, 3/74. SL-1100A-Stereo Review, 7/73; High Fidelity, 9/73. SL -1200- Radio Electronics, 7/74; Audio, 7/74; Stereo, Fall 74. SL -1300 - FM Guide, 9/74; Stereo Review, 2/75. FOR YOUR TECHNICS PEALER, CALL TOLL FREE 800447-4700 IN ILLINOIS. 8(X1322-4100 Technics 51.1300 by Panasonic

SL -1350 power phones 9 9 spkrs-2 tape mon-2 lo -cut mono * 99 9

The attitude is consistent.

High fidelity engineering, to quality of transcendent realism patented system which measures justify its name, has one goal: to which these specifications alone not strength, but signal-to-noise reproduce music in the listening cannot explain. ratio. As a result, it can be tuned to room with unqualified accuracy. To predict musical accuracy, the precise point where the signal Undistorted. Undiminished. we have found it necessary to co is purest for listening or recording. At Harman Kardon, we explorebeyond conventional specifica- Equally important, the twin - new technical directions not solelytions. We test, rigidly, for square powered 730 has all the basic de- for their inherent challenge, but aswave response. We monitor, sign elements that identify it as a methods of predicting and improv-strictly, slew rate and rise time. Harman Kardon instrument: wide ing music quality. These tests account for the sound bandwidth, phase linearity, ease Specifications are supposed toquality of the 730-not in place of operation and a wide range of serve the function of predicting of conventional specifications, input and output elections. performance. Yet two competitivebut beyond them. All of this suggests further dis- instruments with exactly the same The 730 goes beyond the cussion. If you are interested in set of conventional specificationsconventional in other ways. It is such an exploration, please write often sound vastly different. Ob- driven by two complete, discrete-us (directly, since we imagine viot.sly, the reasons for this differ- ly separate power supplies, one you are impatient with coupons ence lie elsewhere. Conventional for each channel. Even when and "reader service" cards, and specifications are necessary. music is extraordinarily dynamic, so are we). We'll certainly write Necessary, but not sufficient. the energy drawn by one chancelback, enclosing a brochure also Our 730 receiver meets speci- will in no way affect the other. The unconventional in its detail. fications equalling or surpassing music surges full. Unconstrained.Just address: The 730 People, those of the finest individual com- Any fine tuner measures signal Harman Kardon, 55 Ames Court, ponent units. Yet it achieves a strength. The 730 incorporates a Plainview, New York 11803. volume function aux-2 aux-1 fm phono-2 am phono-1

The expression is new.

SPECIFICATIONS Preamp Output impedance 600 ohms Power Output 40 Watts Min RMS per Phono Overload +.95 mV channel toih channels driven into 8 Ohms RIAA Equalization t 1 0 dB trom 20Hz to 20kHz THD Tone Control Action 50Hz + 12 013 Power Bandwidth b iOkHz t2 dB Contour Effect (50Hz) + 10 dB High Cut Filter (10kHz) - 10 cler Frequency Response Low Cut Filter (50Hz) -608 System Rise Time FM Sensitivity a IHF 19µY System Square Wave Tilt b 50 dB (mono) 35u. c 50 dB (stereo) Total Hermonic Distortion 17-1, Ultimate S N 70

Capture Ratio 2 1E1

image Rejection + Intermoduration Distortion (40 wens-SMPTE) Spurious Response Rejection Interrnodulation Distortion IF Rejection. (1 watt -SIAPTE) AM Rejection System Hum and Noise Alternate Channel Selectivity Damping Factor (1kHz a 1 watt) Multiplex Separation i 1kHz) Power Amplifier input Sensitivity FM Harmonic Distortion (1 kHz) Mono Power Amplifier input impedance b Stereo Power Amplifier S N (40 watts) Pilot Suppression lif De -Emphasis Square PIrtiirvre A RisempPlmieer Mute Level Preamp Input Sensitivity a. Aux Mule Suppression Li b Tape Mon c Mono Stereo Indicator Threshold 3% Preamp input Impedance -on' Aux b Tape Mon Audio Output 0 5V c ?hone AM Sensitivity .250PV Preen -1p input S N Aux AM Signal for 1 watt Output < 150µV rn b Tape Mon c Phono AM Selectivity 35 08 Preemp Harmonic Distortion Alternate Channel Selectivity 55 dB Crosstalk Image Rejection - 75 dB Aux IF Rejection -6008 b Two MOP harman/kardon c Phono Hum 40 dB They're only 33/4 inches thin. They range from only $129 to $499. And they're the only true 360° omnidirectional speakers you can buy; you hear the same wide -response, distortion -free stereo soundwherever you sit. That means anywhere. Horizontally, vertically or diagonally. In back, in front, to the sides, above or below them. Furthermore, these are speakers without enclosures, without baffles, without cones. And without equal. It appears that Prof. Jose Bertagni's 22 new U.S. and foreign patents have created a rather dramatic new technology. Like everyone else, you probably won't believe it when you see them. So hear them. The New B.E.S.GeostatieSpeakers Hear them. The excitement is growing.

Bertagni Electroacoustic Systems 345 Fischer Street, Costa Mesa, California 92626 01975 by Bettegno EJetmoscombc Systems. Inc position and balance of the recording, the ner, cond. DACAPO- 1C 053 01458M, $6.98 clarity of tricky texture and clear definition (mono) [from European COLUMBIA originals, The first two hits of form that often prove elusive in Henze recorded in 1938] (distributed by Peters In- performances. The violin concerto lasts ternational, 619 W. 54th St., New York, N.Y of the year are on about thirty-four minutes but has been ac- 10019). commodated on one side with no loss of Comparison: sound quality. A.P. Richter, Kondrashin Phi. 835 474

Three very distinct strains of Liszt inter- Aruh, In pretation are represented here. The aged HOLIT:The Planets, Op. 32. Ronald Sauer/Weingartner versions, whatever Arnatt Chorale and Missouri Singers; their performance merits, will always be of St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Walter Suss - immense historical interest since both were kind, cond. [Marc J. Aubort and Joanna Nick- pupils of the Abbe himself. Emil von Sauer renz,prod.] TURNABOUT ON -S 34598, was born on October 8, 1862, in Hamburg $3.98 (OS -encoded disc). and died in Vienna on April 28. 1942. The Comparisons: Haitink /London Phil. Phi. 6500 072 Dalmatian -born Weingartner was an al- Boult/New Philharmonia Ang. S 36420 most exact contemporary. Weingartner, of Hoist/London Sym. EMI HLM 2014 Bernstein/N.Y. Phil. (quad) Col. MO 31125 course, deserted the piano to become one of. Previn /London Sym. (quad) Ang. S 36991 the century's most influential conductors (he was the first to record all of the Beetho- Though Czech -born and mainly German - ven and Brahms symphonies, an integral trained, Walter Susskind at least has the reissue of which is overdue) and also re- advantage, for this quintessentially English garded himself as a composer of note. music, of longtime British residence and Sauer, on the other hand, remained true to concert activity. If his feeling for this music the keyboard and lived to become one of seems to be more studiously acquired than Europe's -most respected Romantic stylists. 2530 677 I13300677 spontaneously natural,itis never really A quiet, fastidious sort of virtuoso, Sauer alien. Where Susskind is most impressive, left a lasting impact on the music of his time though, is in his strengthening (undoubt- and ours. His superb pupil Stefan Askenase edly through long and rigorous training) the upholds his patrician way, and my own St. Louis Symphony to cope surprisingly erstwhile teacher, Robert Goldsand-who well with the inordinate demands of studied with another Liszt pupil. Moriz Hoist's complex score. Rosenthal -once told me that Sauer's To be sure, even these merits aren't poetry and craftsmanship had influenced enough to compete successfully with the him. supremely lucid and illuminating Haitink If anything of Liszt's teaching may be performance of1971,to say nothing of the gleaned from the recordings left by his pu- genial long -favorite 1967 Boult version or pils, it is that apparently Liszt was more in- the composer's own controversially fast spirational than doctrinaire. When one but incomparably virile reading of1926. considers the immense gulf between Sauer, 2707 083 2-L P Set Where the present edition does challenge Friedheim, Da Motta, Rosenthal, Lamond. the masterly Philips engineering is in its and De Greef, all onetime pupils of the great more vividly realistic, closer-miked, yet not man, it is obvious that this mentor was no and the next two as sharply focused, thrillingly auditorium - martinet. authentic recorded sonics-which must The Sauer/Weingartner readings will not rankamongthefinesttriumphsyet appeal to alltastes -they don't,partic- will be too! achieved by Elite Recordings' engineer/ ularly, to mine. One problem is that they producer team of Aubort and Nickrenz. were made late. (Sauer was seventy-seven Four -channel playback may not be es- years old at the time of recording, not sixty- sential to an appreciation of the splendid six as the annotation says.) For all the fine engineering, but it does enhance the evoca- tonal shading and glistening detail, and for tive magic of the quieter, more impres- all the interesting and structurally sound sionistic passages as well as the breadth tempo relationships, the interpretations are and impact of the big climactic ones. Cer- a bit cautious and staid in pulse. We will tainly this is the preferred choice over the probably never know how these men two quadriphonic rivals -by a wide margin played these concertos in their youth. But if over the far coarser Bernstein/Columbia you can accept this music of Liszt's extrav- version of 1973-74, by a narrowr margin agant days as filtered through the minds over the sonically brilliant but not quite and hands of men who studied with him ideal Previn/Angel version (a "hidden" long after he took his vows (and had long SQ-encoded disc, as I've discovered since taken vows of their own -musically. 2530 700 11 3300 703 recently, long after writing my February thatis),the Da Capo coupling is un- 1975 review). R.D.D. commonly valuable. The technical work is superb: The resulting sonics are a bit un- brilliant and studio -bound, but otherwise Liszr Concertos for Piano and Orchestra: better than listenable. No. 1, in E flat; No. 2, in A. Gyorgy Cziffra, The. Ohlsson/Atzmon coupling provides piano; Orchestre de Paris, Gyorgy Cziffra Jr., a sharp contrast. The Dewar's Profile pian- cond. CONNOISSEUR SOCIETY CS 2087, $6.98. ist provides heady, sparkling perform- Lien: Concertos for Piano and Orchestra: ances. with fizzy glissandos and all the con- No. 1, in E flat; No. 2, in A. Garrick Ohlsson, ventionalbravurainplace -more piano; New Philharmonia Orchestra, Moshe champagne than Scotch, you might say. Atzmon, cond. [David Mottley, prod.] ANGEL Ohlsson never misuses his prestidigitation S 37145, $6.98 (K) -encoded disc). here, and though his performances hardly Lis= Concertos for Piano and Or- plumb the coloristic depths of the wonder- (-) 2709 061 3LP Set Hchestra: No. 1, in E flat; No. 2, in A. fully sublime Richter/Kondrashin versions Emil von Sauer, piano; Paris Con- (still my favorites, and probably even bet- 6erketed in the USA by Polidor I rccrporated servatory Orchestra, Felix Weingart- ter -sounding in the new imported Philips 910 Seventh Avenue, New York, ri.-.1(x)19 CIRCLE 9 ON READER -SERVICE CARD 4-CIRCLE 2 ON READER -SERVICE CARD pressing, which I have not heard). I liked his rewritten cadenza there. and-I suspect - when one realizes that the elder Cziffra. unaffected, enthusiastic, and earnest inter- Horowitz -likeredistributionsbetween with his idiosyncratic rubato, must be an pretations immensely. Atzmon's accom- hands of problematical passagework). His extremely hard soloist to accompany. paniments are solid and considerate though new readings. however. are considerably I make one reservation: Cziffra's pianism not scintillant and imaginative like Kondra- subtler and slimmed down. They have bet- may perhaps be more planned and experi- shin's. This is one of the best Angel quadri- ter line and altogether more refinement and enced than Ohlsson's, but whereas Ohls- phonic discs I have heard. In two -channel continuity. For this, much of the credit. I son's rubatos sound openhearted and natu- playback. the woodwind solos come forth think. should go to the younger Cziffra. a ral.Cziffra'simpressonewiththeir with succulent roundness and the strings conductor with a sharp ear for balance and contrivance. Of course, this is a purely per- with sufficient incisiveness. The basically absorbing detail (note the fragments of sonal reaction, and so too, is my impression close, forward miking helps. thematic motifs he excavates from the of Cziffra's tone, which, for all its shading Cziffra's way with the Liszt concertos is winds and brass in the finale of the E flat seems to me rather brittle and restricted in already familiar to record collectors from Concerto). Moreover, all of the conductor's color. his earlier Angel versions with Dervaux niceties are accomplished in a completely The Pattie -derived recording is certainly and Vandernoot. As before, the Hungarian unobtrusive manner and within a severe. clean and beautifully balanced, and I am emigre opts for an all-out, studied kind of punctilious beat. Pizzicatos and other sup- happy to report that Connoisseur Society flamboyance. He takes sundry liberties porting pillars are neat and together. This seems to have solved its pressing problem. with the text (e.g.. extra bass octaves here. a exactitude becomes all the more impressive This disc-a standard production copy- was admirably smooth. H. G.

LISZT:Piano Works. Wilhelm Kempff,piano. Anatomy of a 1/4" tape recorder DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON2530 560, $7.98. Annees de pelerinage. Italy: No. 1. Sposalizio: No. 2,II pensieroso. No. 3, Canzonetta del Salvator Rosa: No. 4. Hysteresis Sonetto del Petrarca No. 47: No 5, Sonetto del Petrarca Electro-magnetic No 104: No. 6. Sonetto del Petrarca No. 123. No. 8, Gon- Automatic three -motor braking prevents doliera Deux Legendes. shut-off drive tape spillage These are for the most part masterful per- formances. In one or two places the octoge- Rugged narian Kempff doesn't execute a florid run 10" NAB with quite the untrammeled suavity of Neoprene reels some of the youngsters most often heard in (or 5" or 7" this kind of repertory. I hasten to point out head mount that, in most likelihood, such glibness prob- for good standard) ably never appealed to this artist. In fact his alignment Only seven older recordings of Liszt (originally made for London/Decca but licensed to Vox sev- moving eral years ago for reissue) provide much the Heavy, parts 3/16" plate same sort of playing that one encounters on this brand-new collection. for good One-piece, Certain listeners may be surprised-and alignment 41/2 pound perhaps even put off-by the prevailing flywheel - metrical regularity. They would, however. Pressure and -capstan be making a mistake by dismissing the per- brush formances as square -cut and unidiomatic. Computer reduces Actually. Kempff's treatment of line and logic wear, rhythm is quite enchantingly supple. More- permits over. he is a magician when it comes to the improves pedal. He keeps a certain stiff upper lip contact any command and a certain starched -collar correctness in sequence his rhythmic approach, but the rigor is of- Plug-in ten relaxed just sufficiently to produce an electronics Remote record Remotable incredibly poetic impression. There is also for no -thump recording (e.g.. in the Canzonetta del Salvator Rosa. played rather briskly and pointedly) a vein of levity that provides welcome contrast to Two channel record/playback capability. (Other models with the prevailing seriousness and structural four, two or one channels; 1/4,1/2 or full track; playback only. integrity of the playing as a whole. Sauer Extra performance options available.) had much the same type of soft playing- the warm, elegant touch, the caressing sup- Compare all the features of the Crown CX-824 with any other pleness-but Kempff provides a more posi- reel-to-reel recorder you may be considering. And then compare tive forte, a cohesiveness and altogether the price. Crown represents the real value. firmer rhythmic backbone. In fact. I would be most curious to see what Kempff would do with the two concertos and (dare I say it?) the B minor Sonata. DC's close, impactive. but very mellow Fast playback coupon Send directly to Crown for reproduction of Kempff's piano tone re- specifications on Crown tape recorders. minds me of the sound given him on his ear- lier mono Beethoven series (immensely Name When listening becomes an art, preferable to the thin, "toppy," distant Address pickup on many of his later stereo record- ings). Altogether, a remarkable disc. H.G. City crown State __Zip Box 1000, Elkhart IN 46514 H F MAHLER: Das Lied von der Ude; Wickert- Lieder (5). Christa Ludwig, mezzo-soprano: CIRCLE 7 ON READER -SERVICE CARD II: HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Our newest Scotch' brand coating to keep the sound quality cassette has two things going for consistent through hundreds of it. One is the sound it delivers. replays or re -recordings. There's a Clear, crisp highs and superb fidelity plastic cassette shell that can across the full frequency range. withstand 150°F heat. And now The other thing the Master"' there's even a pushbutton. cassette has going for it is the stackable storage box available long and healthy life you'll get from to protect your cassettes all all Scotch cassettes. There's a the more. Posi-Trak"' backing to help prevent "rhe new Master cassette. You jamming. There's a tough magnetic should live so long. Long live the Scotch Mastei Cassette.

APRIL 1976 Rene Kollo, tenor'', Berlin Philharmonic Or- vertical clarity, for I was often aware of ical, and not all that different from each chestra. Herbert von Karajan, cond. [Hans new light shed on a hitherto unnoticed glis- other, as I argued in my May 1975 review of Hirsch and Hans Weber. prod.] DEUTSCHE sando, an inner part for mandolin, or a full- the latter. Not so his third effort. In the GRAMMOPHON 2707 082. $15.96 (two discs. throated trombone rasp. Nor is this the first opening tenor song. "Dos Trinklied yam manual sequence). such Dos Lied von der Erde on records. for Januner der Erde,- a troublesome wobble is in their own quite different ways Solt i. Rei- heard. In the third song, "Von der jugend." Karajan evidently Omits Mahler's great ner. Jochum. and Ormandy have espousml either his own druthers or Karajan's easy song -symphony as firmly rooted in Ger- an objectivist view in which less play is pacing allows more refined text projection many's nineteenth-century lyricaltradi- given to the work's tormented shifts of ac- and a sense of hushed intimacy. Yet I can't tion. The tempos are comfortably broad cent and chiaroscuro, to its angularity and escape the suspicion that he is resting his (some may find the third and fourth songs bleakness. Perfectly valid. but for my own voice, and some broken phrases that uncomfortably so). Attacks are accurate tasteI want to listen to a conductor who weren't in the earlier recordings confirm but easygoing, and the harmonic/instru- possesses the music in the deepest layers of this. In "Der Trunkene im Frahling." Kollo mental texture is plush and sweet. Thus. his psyche. who senses how twentieth-cen- gasps and fights his way up to the notes one is rarely jolted by a sudden chromatic tury music was almost born here. (e.g.. the first statement of-appropriately shift. a startlingly fresh dab of color. or an Rene KoIlit's earlier recorded perform- enough-"und wenn ich nicht mehr singen intense and driving rhythmic outpouring. ances(SoIti's andthe.Bernstein/Israel) kann"). Certainly the approach doesn't eschew were securpIN and straightforwardly lyr- Though Istill have reservations about Christi'Ludwig's insufficientlyinflected reading. she was certainly in her technical prime when she initially recorded Dos Lied For 14 Years under Klemperer. Her second try (like Kollo's. with Bernstein and the Israel Phil- We've Filled Mail Orders harmonic) revealed some wear in the vocal equipment. That's not mended here. Intl The Way Customers Like I)G's studio miking at least allows us to Ordering records, tapes, cassettes, blank tapes by mail can be a great convenience, hear more of her gorgeous well -supported and can save you loads of money. Of course, you have to deal with a company like lower range than did the Tel Aviv concert NATIONAL RECORD PLAN that's established, successful, and that believes pleasing conditions. Then. too. she needn't cope here the customer is the only way to keep the customer. That's the way we do business. with Bernstein's supercharged tempo for We are not a club-we are the leading independent record and tape mail order firm in the U.S. We send fresh, perfect records or tapes, packed so that damage seldom the middle section of "Von der Schanheit." occurs. We double-check to prevent errors. We send CASH refund if (on rare occa- In these days of tight money. the three - sions) we can't deliver. So order up, all you want, at these really fantastic discounts. sided format of Karajan's Lied is a serious Al E ENDS APRIL 30. 1916 disadvantage. For the same price. one can buy allthree Vienna Philharmonic ver- ALL LABELS, sions. which happen to be my favorites (RECORDS ALL ARTISTS among current listings: Bernstein's earlier UP 0 OFF HIGH FIDELITY'S andfar superior one offeringFischer- TO 0 LIST! Dieskau in the baritone option for the even - '100 BEST RELEASES" numbered songs (London 26005). and the For list prices, see Schwann catalog. We have them all. (See this issue.) LIST, PER LP SALE PRICE two prestereo Walters (Seraphim (0191 and SAVE GAS, SAVE TIME, SAVE MONEY. It's Richmond R 23182. December 1973). The $3.49-3.98 $2.19 hard to beat these prices in any store, any- 4.98 2.49 where! NEED CATALOG? Send $1for ideal modern version with mezzo may be just around the corner. as Philips has Janet 5.98 Schwann (records) or Harrison (tapes). or 2.99 $1 50 for BOTHIf you order catalog. we Baker (and James King) and the Concertge- 6.98 3.84 extend Sale ending date so you can order horny under Ha it ink on tape. 7.98 4.39For all other list prices, your discount is 45%. Given the drawbacks of Karajan's Lied and his Fifth Symphony (DC 2707(181, Janu- ary 1976),I hope that DC will give buyers 8 -TRACK or CASSETTE the option of a single -disc recoupling of the TAPES (Prerecorded) latter set's Kindertoterffieder and the for- AMPEX BLANK 7" $7.951,, $4.99 each mer release's final side: after all. no current disc collects all these ten settings Mahler All other catalog prices, take off 33% REEL-TO-REEL RIOT! discount. NEED CATALOG? See cata- made of Friedrich Rtickert's poetry. For rea- Excellent SHAMROCK 1800 ft. log offer above. sons that escape me, such artists as Ferrier Incredible 1 to 24 25 -f - ALL LABELS, NO LIMIT and Fischer-Dieskau couldn't bring Ihem- All perfect $1 25 $1 11 seles to record the entire miscellaneous set Request our CURRENT TAPE BARGAINS SHEET. Our bargains may strike you as in- of five Rackert-Lieder that Ludwig per- 20/20 + 1800 ft. 1 to 9 0 credible, but everything is guaranteed top forms here. Obviously. they are not meant 5373 15 54 19 53 99 quality, splicetree. fresh No limit on quantity to be a "cycle" like the Kindertotenlieder -we serve many studios - 364-C90 CASSETTE RIOT! - (the various integral recordings don't even Buy 3, get 1 FREE, plus FREE STACKETTE 4 agree on order of presentation). butI find Cassettes(reg. $2.39 ea.) plus holder ALL NATIONAL RECORD them of a piece in their mood of rarefied \...FOR 56.99. PLAN (not a club) and inward self-examination and quies- OUR GUARANTEE cence. Cash refund it we can't deliver. Record or Dept. H2, 44 West 18th St., The only serious competition fur Lud- tape replaced at no charge, after one play. New York, N.Y. 10011 wig/Karajan in the Linder comes from For- .1 defective. rester/Fricsay-which. as a mono ten -inch friliDER NOW. SALE ENDS APR.30,1976. List items wantedon any sheet of paper. Giv-"e DC never issued in this country. has never ARTIST, TITLE (LABEL and NUMBER. if known), PRICE received the acclaimitdeserves-and State whether LP, 8 -TRACK or CASSETTE Baker/Barbirolli. The latter version glows Type or print YOUR NAME, ADDRESS, ZIP CODE with the soloist's poignant vocal magic. but (It not sure of price, send enough to cover-we will immediately refund any overpayment.) Sir John's tentative conducting doesn't be- HANDLING CHARGE-Ours is low 85C for FIRST LP or tape 15C for EACH additional LP or tape Add applicable local SALES TAX Please send check or money order for total gin to do her justice. (If you want that ver- (sorry. no COD). AMERICAN EXPRESS. BANKAMERICARD or MASTER CHARGE ac- sion. best go for Angel S 36796, coupled ceptedgive name on card number expiration date and sign order Minimum credit I and wrior S10 with Elgar's Sea Pictures, rather than SB \--NATIONAL RECORD PLAN, Dept H2. 44 West 18th St., New York, N.Y. 10011 376(1. where itis the filler to Flarbirolli's somnolent Mahler Fifth.) Ludwig is a bit CIRCLE 28 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE POWER

Lafayette ,1114k0 gfCC.Vt. ,R 3500

111111111111

11 N Q I II 11:4

is r IN DRESS ATTIRE. There's plenty of power packec in this beautiful receiver. Muscle your receiver needs for mo-e than just sound iolume. Power produces clear distortion -free sound. And it gives it to you even at low k.olu me The Lafayette LR-3500 has a well -developed 47 watts per channel minimum RMS. Both channels driven at 8 ohms from 20-20,000 Az with no more than 0.5% total harmonic distortion. The top of the Lafayette line, the LR-3500 AM/FM stereo FM receiver has all the features you've come to expert as the trappings of power. It has state -or -the -art electronics, com- plete power controls to personalize the sound. Arid many convenience features like dual tape monitors, and FM mute. Power is yours with the Lafayette LR-3500. It's $399.95 at your Lafayette dealers. There are dealers coast to coast. Or shop from our free catalog. The Lafayette LR-3500 can make your dreams for power come true.

Electronically Speaking, LafayetteWho Knows Better Than Radio Electronics & Shopping Centers

Lafayette Radio Electronics Corporation 1976 -11 Jericho Turnpike, Syosset, N.Y.11791

CIRCLE 23 ON READER -SERVICE CARD APRIL 1976 often changes the character of the music. fortunately, the National Philharmonic (a sic conducting and playing. Of course, I do One of my favorite moments in the second London recording orchestra composed of object to some of the more oily solo playing movement is the tense and expectant figure experienced players from other orchestras from the Philadelphians and the rather ag- passed between first and second violins, and free-lance musicians) was unused to gressively loud recording. But, with no initially at No. 38. Stokowski suddenly working together under this conductor, and great compensatory enthusiasm for the speeds up here and obtains very slurred ar- I would suspect that Desmar, a brave and Svetlanov and Kletzki editions, let the Or- ticulation. enterprising young label, had more ambi- mandy stand for now as a recommendation I have no idea if this performance dupli- tion and originality in its repertory plan- for current stereo versions, at least until cates his views of the work when it was ning than money to underwrite lengthy re- Previn's Angel remake materializes. A.G. fresh from the printer, but presumably hearsal and patient retakes. The highly Rachmaninoffwouldn'thaveminded reverberant sonics only add to the confu- much. The Russian composer/pianist, after sion and murk. There are long stretches MOZART:Divertimentos (17). For an essay all, was a notoriously flexible interpreter of (cues 57 through 63 in the middle move- review, see page91 other people's music, even if his docu- ment, and the bulk of the finale) where the mented conducting of this symphony was chaos is too much to believe. quite straightforward. But such inter- Put on the Ormandy coupling of the NIELSEN:Quintet for Winds, Op. 43; An- pretive freedom demands extraordinary Third and Vocalise (Columbia MS 7081) dante lamentoso-At the Bier of a Young discipline to put across with authority. Un- and you hear a model of firm, clear, virtuo- Artist; Three Pieces from "The Mother"; Serenata in vano. West Jutland Chamber Ensemble. [Knud Ketting and lb Hammelboe, prod.]DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON2530 515, $7.98. This is the sort of program-a group of oddly scored works by an untrendy com- poser, played by an unheard-of ensemble from the Danish provinces-that the major companies rarely undertake. Economics of big companies being what they are, this record will be quietly ignored and soon dis- appear-though programs like it manage to survive on smaller labels (i.e., the decade - old recording on both Lyrichord 7155 and Musical Heritage MHS 1004, where the Canto Serioso for horn and Fantasias for oboe take the place of Andante lamentoso). The West Jutland Chamber Ensemble is a group of crackerjack musicians, and it is re- corded in an intimate and vivid acoustic. So too are the Lark Woodwind Quintet (on that Lyrichord/MHS disc) and a host of other technically proficient groups that have essayed the Op. 43 Wind Quintet, a highly phonogenic work indeed. But the new performance of the quintet is the first in my experience to eschew refinement for its own sake and present a fresh look at the music in all its blunt, wry, and frequently macabre and troubled expression. Like good performers of Slavic vocal music, these instrumentalists seem naturally to phrase in idiomatic speech rhythms, and that goes a long way toward the feeling of absolute authenticity in the reading. This must be the style of playing that Nielsen en- visioned when he dedicated the score to his A complete home stereo system built The new Phase Linear 200 power around a Phase Linear amplifier is now amplifier is a handcrafted, reliable five wind -player friends. I never heard the within the reach of every serious lis- amplifier with outstanding sonic per- shellac HMVs with four -fifthsof that tener. The development of the new formance in the tradition of the famous group, butI have heard the contempo- Phase Linear 200 power amplifier '700B and 400 models. Power output is raneous Serenata in vano with three of makes it possible. In combination with 105 watts per channel, minimum R.M.S. them and am happy to report that DG's ver- the advanced 2000 preamplifier, the at 8 ohms from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with no sion is even better-more carefully molded, 200 provides the nucleus of a fine, more than .25% total harmonic distor- yet with all the impish spirit the oddball medium -powered stereo system with tion. Light emitting diode displays give little piece requires. lower distortion, wider dynamic raige, instantaneous display of power for faster transient response and greater each channel. Hum and noise 100 dB The three excerpts from incidental music flexibility than a comparable receiver - below rated power. to Helge Rode's The Mother-"The Fog Is based system - at a surprisingly The Phase Linear 2000 preamplifier is Lifting" (for flute and harp), "The Children reasonable cost. With a pair of quality one of the quietest preamps ever made. Are Playing" (for solo flute), and "Faith and bookshelf speakers and a good turnta- Signal to noise ratio of 74 dB below Hope Are Playing" (for flute and viola)-are ble, a Phase Linear 200 system can be 10 mV and total harmonic distortion ephemeral and haunting miniatures, and assembled by your dealer for around of 0 1% Variable ambience injection the ensemble captures them with even $1,000 -a fraction of the investment of circuitrecovers music lost with more artless wonderment than the Lark many veteran audiophiles with sophis- most preamps. ticated systems amplified by Phase readings. The Andante lamentoso (not in- Linear. You might as well start near cluded in the Lyrichord/MHS collection) has elsewhere been recorded by the strings the top. IXa erctiee The Powerful Difference of the Danish State Radio Orchestra, under Grondahl on 78s and under Blomstadt in the recent EMI Nielsen anthology. It works Manufactured in the U S A Distributed in Canada by H Roy Gray. LTD. nicely in the quintet format heard here. CIRCLE 31 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

118 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE If all loudspeakersweretested witha square wave, onlyone weknow of wouldpass.

OUTS. Ournew Phase -Link"' loud- ing signal cured the amplitude "suck speakers would pass this demanding test out' and the variable phase shift. It because they do not exhibit the phase made the audible output of the loud- distortion present in most conventional speaker virtually identical to the loudspeakers. Phase distortion is one of input-the square wave, for example. the reasons you do not see a square wave Another Refinement. Phase -Links' being used to test speakers; cartridges loudspeakers have their drivers and amplifiers, yes, but not loudspeakers. mounted on a common acoustic axis Phase Distortion Explained. Phase Diagram B A high qual ty conventional loudspeaker so that the sound from each driver distortion is heard as a blurred sound (left) and our new Phase -Link loudspeaker (right) will reach your ears simultaneously. That picture and prevents accurate localiza- reproducing a square wave. What happens to the is the reason for our slightly canted grill. tion of instruments. It is most noticeable square wave is what happens to music.

in the low frequency range at higher vol- + PHASE -UN K umes. It occurs in most conventional, hours of critical listening tests confirmed this.) 3. That it could be effectively elim- multi -way loudspeakers at the crossover LO CLill [1131MID inated through sophisticated technology. point, when the same note is being re- IMO,. produced by two drivers. Because today's Our Product. The experimental high quality loudspeakers have virtually speaker developed by Madsen and LIN.,01 AMPLITUDE solved the problems of frequency re- LO Hansen was far too expensive to consider SL, sponse as well as harmonic and inter - for distribution to the audio consumer. ' Imm. I modulation distortion, the study and cor- A practical solution had to be found. Amy rection of phase distortion is all the more i. important if you are to literally recreate At this point Bang & Olufsen engineer, the original performance. E. Baekgaard began his work with mathematical computer simulation. He Diagram C. Our new Phase -Link filler driver discovered that the fixed phase shift, rovides a compensating signal to eliminate present inmastconventional speakers "-.uck out" and variable phase shift. 0 MID (drivers alternated 180° out -of -phase) could be "cured" by placing all drivers Your Listening Experience. The in -phase. However, when this was done, importance of our new Phase -Links" an audible amplitude "suck out" was technology and square wave tests is of 116/01LIESOCIt OLIT' created (See diagram A.). It was to solve course determined by the fidelity of the this problem that an additional narrow music recreated by our speakers. It is your sensitivity to the accurate reproduc- to band filler driver-the PhaseLinkTM Driver- was developed. Its compensat- tion of music that will give them their severest test. It is our technology which will insure they pass, for rarely has technology served music so well.

Diagram A. When drivers are placed in -phase, a problem of audible "suck out" is created. Because the ear is sensitive to phase distortion mainly in the lower frequencies, Our Research. At the 1973 AES con- Phase -Link is used between the low - vention in Rotterdam, two frequency driver and the mid -range Bang & Oulfsen engineers, unit in the high power, 3 -way systems (M-70. S-60) but not between the Madsen and Hansen, pre- mid -range and tweeter. In medium - sented a paper on audible power, 2 -way systems, one Phase -Link phase distortion. This paper driver is used in 12dB/oct. filter represented three years of combinations (S-45, P-45). Low -power, 2 -way systems (S-30, P-30) do not concentrated research within utilize a Phase -Link driver but instead which they developed an eliminate phase distortion through a electronic crossover, tri-am- sophisticated 6dB/oct. filter technique. plified loudspeaker that Bang & Olufsen speakers include the allowed them to demonstrate three M-70, shown on trumpet stand important facts: 1. Phase distortion (supplied), three bookshelf models, the S-60, S-45, and S-30, and two wall did indeed exist in loudspeakers. 2. panel speakers, the P45 and P-30. That it was audible. (Hundreds of

Bang &Olufsen

Bang & Olufsen of America, Inc.. 515 Busse Road, Elk Grove Village, Illinok 60007

APRIL 1976 119 PHILIPS I hope someday to hear the West Jutlan- ders turned loose on the Schubert octet! Meanwhile, if you find yourself without a copy of this disc after it is deleted, don't say lot"Praia I didn't warn you! A.C.

RACHMANINOFF: Symphony No. 3;Vocal- DORATI- mem ise-SeeMahler: Symphony No. 2.

RAVEL:Piano Works, Vol. 3. Pascal Roge, piano.[Michael Woolcock, prod.]LONDON CS 6936,$6.98. Miroirs; Jew( d'eau; Ma Mere l'Oye (with Denise Rog& pi- HAYDN- ano). In Volume 3 of his recording of the Ravel pi- ano music, Pascal Roe reaches the height of his form so far. His limpid, crystalline pianism is put to especially good use in the rippling, rushing passagework of Miroirs THE and Jeux d'eau, with some beautiful phras- ing of the music's supple rising and falling. And while consistently avoiding over- statement, Roge does not fail to capture the crackling dynamism of the marvelous "AI- borada del gracioso" in Miroirs. The two - OPERAS piano Mother Goose Suite, which he per- HAYDN: LA FEDELTA PREMIATA forms with his mother, has an appropriate Cotrubas, Von Stade, Titus, Alva, Valentini, ingenuousness, although I find the inter- Landy, Mazzieri , Lovaas ; pretation a bit heavy and lacking in mys- Suisse Romande Radio Chorus; Lausanne tery at certain moments, such as the "Petit IIIV Chamber Orchestra/Antal Dorati Poucet" section. R.S.B. 6707.028 4 LPs Philips Imports. Salaam: Piano Works-SeeChopin: Pi- Because excellence is priceless. A Product of Phonogram, Inc. ano Works. CIRCLE 32 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

TCHAIKOVSKY: TheQueen of Spades, Op. Everything you need to know 68. Reg.,12b Lisa Tamara Milashkina (s) Prilepa Makvala Kasrashvili (s) Masha Nelia Lebedova (a) about CB is in this new book The Countess Valentina Levko (ms) Pauline; Milovzor Galina Borisova (ms) Governess Nina Grigorieva (ms) 25 Ghermann Vladimir Atlantov (t) R\R(00,1Iif by Radio Shack! WITH THIS AD* Chekalinsky Andrei Sokolov (t) RADIO Chaplitsky Vitaly Vlasov (t) CB TWO-WAY Master of Ceremonies Konstantin Baskov (t) Yeletsky Andrei Fedoseyev (b) Tomsky; Zlatogor Vladimir Valaitis (b) Special Introductory Offer! Surin Valery Yaroslavtsev (bs) Narumov Yuri Dementiev (bs) Our just -published 116 -page CB Bolshoi Theater Chorusand Orchestra, Mark pocket-size book is available now Ermler, cond. [Georgi Braginsky, prod.] Co- LUMBIA/MELODIYAM3 33828,$20.98 (three at Radio Shack stores at a discs, manual sequence). "give-away" price of just 25C, prior Comparisons: to its listing in our catalog at $1.25. Milashkina, Andzhaparidzye, Mazurok, Khaikin iBolshoi Mei /Ang. SKIL 4104 If you're into CB 2 -way radio or Smolenskaya, Nelepp, Lisitsian, Mellk- getting in (as who isn't!) you'll want Pashayey/ Bolshoi Mel. 13 0515843 this book to avoid costly errors. Though this opera will probably never be a saw.. Edited by the folks who started our repertory cornerstone in the West (as it is in p rya0.1000.101Moserlsom... the Soviet Union), it has become rather famous Realistic" CB line in 1959, .0001101.1.11.1.1.1.11.."1..11.1181111. more familiar to American operagoers and it's authoritative and very easy to record collectors over the past decade. My Contents Include read. 9 chapters. Over 100 pictures. personal experience has been that this fa- miliarity has bred increased respect and af- Types of radios Antenna facts Written for laymen. None sent by mail. *Get your copy for 25C by fection for the work. It seems to me a true Methods of installing equipment masterpiece, though one so dependent on bringing this ad to any nearby special dramatic and musical qualities that How it works Distance Rules participating Radio Shack store or we may never experience its full power. FCC offices CB slang Glossary dealer TODAY! Lisa and, especially, Ghermann are won- "10" Signals More! derful opportunities for the rare great dra- matic singing actor but terribly hard to real- LCEBA NN ET1H9E5 9W AY IN ize, and the music won't quite sweep all before it as it will for the competent singers Radio Ihaek SI of some other challenging roles. The same is A TANDY CORPORATION COMPANY 700 true of the conductorial and directorial re - CIRCLE 36 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

120 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE GO FOUR AND MULTIPLY DOKORDER 8140 Four channel recording with overdub, sound -on -sound, electronic echo...everything you need to help translate what you feel into what others will feel.

5430 Rosec-ans Avenue Lawndale, California 90260

CIRCLE 11 ON READER -SERVICE CARD APRIL 1976 121 sponsibilities, for almost every scene can help characterize a great Italian tenore di sink beneath the generalized handling and forza (e.g. Corelli or Del Monaco), though stereotyping of most operatic production. his upper range has not quite the extension The new recording preserves a solid of such singers, tending to narrow and lose enough repertory performance. But it is dis- its free vibrato at B flat and B. Like Del SAVE appointing in the wake of the Bolshoi's 1975 Monaco and so many other latter-day Ital- New York presentation with substantially ians, Atlantov has his voice in a slightly TOP QUALITY GEAR the same cast, which had aroused anticipa- overheavy balance, necessitating a some- LOWEST PRICES tion of some special excitement. The indi- what clumsy and stiff "cover" at the break, PROMPT DELIVERY vidual performers seem less on their mettle and thus robbing the voice of some of the here, and the conducting of Mark Ermler malleability and mobility it should have. SAVE ON FREIGHT carries little of the profound dramatic His Ghermann here is less impressive vo- SELECTION weight conveyed by the superb Yuri Simo- cally than it was in the theater, partly be- nov at the Met. Ermler produces what could cause large, metallic voices always record GARRARD BSR fairly be termed a well -ordered reading: disadvantageously and partly because his KEN WOOD DYNACO good orchestral playing, sensible tempos, vocal condition is not as loose and released steadiness and balance within individual as it was for the New York performances. B.I.C. SANSUI sections. But he fudges many of the transi- Still, his singing is secure and ringing, and DUAL PIONEER tions, the points that set up the character of in some of the more relaxed moments quite and more than 50 others a scene or passage. warm and lovely. Expressively, Atlantov Three examples come to mind, all from tends toward the monotonously stento- Act I: the beginning of Tomsky's recitative rian-there are times when he finds some of PLEASE REQUEST PRICE QUO. just before his ballad; the loping entrance of the insinuation or specific animation that TATIONS ON YOUR CHOICE the strings and then the choral voices at the underlies a movement or line, but not OF QUALITY STEREO GEAR opening of the marvelous little chorus of enough to constitute a consistent dramatic the gathering storm near the close of the picture. He does not have the musical vari- first scene; and the subdued but eerily ur- ety of Nelepp or the dramatic intensity of gent change to allegro agitato ma non tanto Khanayev (two predecessors on record- Component as Ghermann begins pressing Lisa in Scene ings), though his vocal material is superior. 2-"To postoi, ne ukhodi!" In all these in- Tamara Milashkina, the Lisa, shows stances, and in too many others, the artists signs of vocal wear. She still commands a Discounters simply play or sing through the moments round, mournful tone when singing lyr- that constitute the essence of the opera's in- ically and a strong lower range (important DEPT. 4HF dividuality. Many of the passages that need to this role), but things sound rather slip- 24020 ONEIDA extra lift (in the choral passages of the pery in the upper -middle area and the top OAK PARK, MICH. 48237 masque and gambling scenes, particularly) notes sometimes lose real tonal center and 313-559-1270 just don't get it. exactness of intonation. The singing has Insensitive engineering contributes to the less flow and spontaneity than it formerly CIRCLE 6 ON READER -SERVICE CARD impression: The recording swoops in for did, and she and Ermler conspire to bring pointless highlighting of vocal and instru- her great final aria to a virtual standstill, its mental solos, then drops back as if sud- line a sequence of creeping fragments. A DIFFERENT KIND denly abashed for the broader perspectives, Andrei Fedoseyev, the Yeletsky, is a most OF RECORD CLUB thus reversing the composer's calculations expressive and intelligent lyric baritone ME and disappointing the listener at moments who pays close attention to word values TREMENDOUS SAVINGS when the orchestral and choral sound and phrase shapes, so that one can almost on every record and tape in print - noagree to -purchase- obligations of any kind. should really open out. There is an espe- (but not quite) overlook the fact that he DISCOUNTS OF 43% TO 73% cially unfortunate botch in the barracks cannot roll out centered, brilliant baritone off mfg. suggested list special catalog scene, with Ghermann's speaking voice sound in a well -knit line or assume the features hundreds of titles and artists reading the letter amid studio reverb that dominant role that Yeletsky must, in his AU. LABELS AVAILABLE including most imports through special custom recalls old radio melodramas, then shifting brief appearances, establish. The Tomsky ordering service -guarantees satisfaction acoustic abruptly at the first sung note. of Vladimir Valaitis is reliable and a bit UNWANN CATALOG There is nothing wrong with the basic gritty, about on a level with the run of the lists thousands of titles. sound of the recording, but such decisions role. Valentina Levko is a competent, unre- classical. pop. lau. country. etc continue the mediocre technical direction markable Countess. Except for an above - DISCOUNT DIVIDEND CERTIFICATES Dividend Gifts -certificates of most of the recordings in the Soviet average Prilepa by Makvala Kasrashvili redeemable immediately for extra discounts stereo opera series. and the aforementioned Governess of NEWSLETTERS This workaday setting is,I am afraid, Grigorieva, the supporting parts are indif- informational news and happenings in the complemented by the individual perform- ferently taken. world of musicspecial super sale listings ances, which are in no case downright poor, For most purposes, the performance this DISCOUNT ACCESSORY GUIDE Diamond needle& cloths. tape cleaners. etc but which fail to transcend the over-all rou- one is presumably designed to supersede, QUICK SERVICE tine. The one outstanding piece of work Melodiya /Angel SRDL 4104, remains the same day shipping on many orders comes from Galina Borisova, the Paulina: preference. It has substantially better con- rarely later than the next several days She phrases both her song and the duet ducting by Boris Khaikin, a younger and 100% IRON -CLAD GUARANTEES with Lisa most beautifully, and her me- fresher Milashkina, and fine contributions on all products and services -your total dium -weight mezzo is round and firm. Both by Yuri Mazurok (Yeletsky) and Irina satisfaction is unconclittoRally guaranteed she and Nina Grigorieva, the excellent Gov- Discount Music Club is a noobligation membership club Arkhipova (Paulina), though the awk- that guarantees tremendous discounts anallstereo erness, display the assured command of the wardly vocalized Ghermann of Zurab records and tapes and lets you buy what you wa nt ...when tricky lower -middle range that is a special Andzhaparidzye, honest as it is in expres- you want...or not at allif you choose. 'technical strength of all the better Soviet sive intent, cannot be preferred to Atlan- These are lust a few of the moneysaving reasons to write tov's. The early -'50s Bolshoi recording, for free details. You can't lose so why not fill out and female singers. mail the coupon below for immediate information. From the point of view of basic vocal Melodiya D 05158/83, despite its restricted suitability, Vladimir Atlantov is the most mono sound (now available in decent DISCOUNT MUSIC CLUB. INC DEPT 8-46 satisfactory Ghermann on discs to date. His pressings through import sources), is a per- 650 Main Street, New Rochelle. N Y10801 voice-as his New York performances con- formance of approximately equal over-all Name firmed-is a major dramatic tenor, one of vocal strength under a better conductor Address the rare sounds capable of stirring a large (Melik-Pashayev) and with more character- City__ enclosure and everything in itinto a tin- ful supporting work, marked by the unfor- gling vibration. Its lower and middle ranges gettable Yeletsky of Pavel Lisitsian. There lip s State have the solidity and expansiveness that isalso a wartime Bolshoi performance: CIRCLE 10 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

122 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Flexible

alternative.&OPP pm. v< FM. -to O 'SAE CANY01(f- 211/÷

0 Q

0

01111III. A 3000 1.100 2600 3 MI 3000 7000 WOOD 1101110 200011 SO 4* 11111 SO 11110 100 - - - - -+

0.111101,1111.

SAE 27008 Professional Dual -Channel Half Octave Equalizer At last, a Dual -Channel Half -Octave Equalizer. The result of The SAE 2700B Dual -Channel Half Octave Equalizer delivers years of SAE experience in home and professional equalization. +23dBm for recording applications, offers complete control, Here are some of the outstanding features of the 2700B: extremely low noise, accurate equalization, and the usual Half Octave Control. Professional slide potentiometers providesuperb SAE quality. for individual adjustment of 20 frequencies per channel on a Technical Specifications: half octave basis. In combination with a switchable ±8dB or FrequencyResponse- ±0.25 dB, 20H-20kHz ±16cIB gain range, these half octave controls allow for extreme Total Harmonic Distortion levels of flexibility-up to 32dB of adjustment per frequency. at rated output from 20Hz to 20kHz <0.02% This control design offers peaked response when used in ex- Distortion at rated output with any 2 mixed frequencies between 20Hz tremeposition,thus overcoming individual resonance and 20kHz, 4/1 voltage ratios <0.02% problems without compromising other frequency regions. This Noise: 100dB high level of frequency control allows for proper equalization Insertion Loss: Less than 1dB with controls centered. of program material as well as correction of poor room Output at Clipping: >11 Volts into 600 ohms Input Impedance: 100k ohms acoustics and speaker deficiencies, especiallyat crossover Shipping Weight: 23 pounds points. Dimensions: 19" rack mounted front panel Pink Noise Generator. A built-in pink noise generator assures 83/4"H an accurate reference for proper equalization of wide band Chassis: 7"D speaker response, speaker phasing, channel power balancing and frequency equalization. The professional alternative. Amplifier Stage. The SAE 2700B Professional Equalizer output amplifiers incorporate afull complementary output stage, overcoming limitations of the more commonly used single end- ed output amplifiers. This output amplifier circuitry offers full voltage swing even into low Z loads, full symmetry clipping and at high output levels, there is no slew limiting. The 2700B also delivers 11 volts RMS into a 600 ohm load assuring ade- Scientitic Audio Electroni:s, Inc. HF476 quate drive voltage under any condition. P.O. Box 60271 Low Distortion. Fully complementary output drive circuits Terminal Annex Los Angeles, California 90060 provide total harmonic and intermodulation distortion levels of Please send me the reasons why (including available literature) the SAE 2700B less than 0.02%. Professional Dual -Channel Half Octave Equalizer is the "Flexible Alternative." Low Noise. High Q Toroid inductors in combination with low loss capacitors and low noise professional slide potentiometers Name result in circuitry offering greater than 100dB signal-to-noise ratio and accurate equalization curves. IC Power Supply. Individual IC control for positive and Addres negative power supplies further assures low noise circuitry and stability with changing line conditions. City State lip APRIL 1976 123 though hard to track down (it was available managed to turn out some of the best music on Ultraphone 141/3) and a trial in sonic written for the genre." terms, it contains some superb individual Incidentally. can any knowledgeable performances: the Ghermann of Khanayev, reader identify for me the "Spanish Hymn" the Tomsky of Baturin, and the Countess of that ends the Carlos ballet? I've looked Zlatoragova. Richmond SRS 63516, a through nineteenth-century collections of budget price contender, is not competitive national tunes in vain. Or is it Verdi's own BMUS. artistically. C.L.O. invention? A.P. HIGH DEFINITION PHONO CARTRIDGES VERDI:Ballet Music from Les %/Ores si- WAGNER:Die Meistersingervon Nurnberg. ciliennes, Don Carlos, and Otello. Cleve- E. .r HannelOreBode (s) land Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, cond. [Michael Magdalena Anna Reynolds (ms) Woolcock, prod.]LONDON CS 6945, $6.98. Walther von Stolzing Jean Con (t) FOR THOSE David Frieder Stricken (t) Vogelgesang Herbert Steinbach (t) "The Great Verdi Ballets," this is titled- Zorn Robert Licha (t) DEDICATED TO Eisslinger Wolf Appel (t) and Macbeth not here, when its ballet is, Moser Norbert Orth if one's going to fling "great" around, Hans Sachs Karl Ridderbusch (bs) ACHIEVI\G THE second only to Otello's. The %/Ores and Veit Pogner Hans Sotin (bs) Nachtgall Jozsel Dene (bs) Carlos dances are extended divertisse- Sixtus Beckmesser Klaus Hirte (bs) VOST ACCURATE ments, like those of Jerusalem and II Fritz Kothner Gerd Nienstedt (bs) Oriel Heinz Feldhott (bs) Trovatore. Macbeth is short and surprising. Schwarz Hartmut Bauer (bs) SO,\D with action drawn from Shakespeare's play Foltz Nikolaus Hildebrand (bs) (strictly speaking, from a presumed Middle- Nightwatchman Bernd Weild (bs) REPROD,CTIO\ ton addition toit). The Otello dances, Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra, Sil- Verdi's last music for the theater, are also vio Varviso, cond. [Volker Straus, prod.)PHIL- POSSI3LE short-just long enough to make an effect. IPS 6747 167, $34.90 (five discs, manual se- not so long as to wreck completely the dra- quence) [recorded live at the 1974 Bayreuth matic progress. Verdi wrote them, for Paris, Festival]. ' under pressure: "a concession, a lachete, that composers commit, wrongly, at the In succession to recordings by K nap- Opera. hut artistically speaking a mon- pertsbusch, Karajan (twice), Kempe (twice), strosity. Fancy interrupting the action at its and Keilberth, Silvio Varviso at last breaks height for a ballet!" up the monopoly held by conductors whose Maazel's performances make pleasant names begin with K on complete recordings background listening, hardly more than of Die Meistersinger. Even this is a distinc- that, for his handling lacks elegance, grace. tion he will retain for only a short time, as 414 charm, those little individual turns of editions led by Solti (for London) and Jo - fancy-a sudden, exquisite inflection, a cap- chum (for DG). with Norman Bailey and tivating rhythmic trickiness-that can focus Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as the respective THE NEW SONUS delighted attention on the music. Antonio Hans Sachses, are in the works. And with de Almeida. in the two -record set of all those promising prospects on the horizon. SILVER LABEL cartridges Verdi's ballet music except that in Aida only a brave man would invest in a full - were designed for the audiophile who, (Philips 6747 093), gives a more lilting per- price recording of this marvelous opera while demanding an extremely high formance on the whole, though his players right now, even were it rather better than standard of sound reproduction, is not for Wares and Carlos, the Monte Carlo Op- this one turns out to he. prepared to sacrifice the convenience of era Orchestra, are not on the Cleveland This is a routine performance. In its favor his automatic turntable, or who finds it level. Far and away the best performance of is a certain spontaneity that I found lacking impracticable to invest the time and money in associated equipment which the Vepres ballet is given by James Levine, in Karcijan's second version (Angel SEL may be necessary to achieve the as Side 5 of the complete opera (RCA ARL 3776. December 1971), but its price is the maximum benefits from the SONUS 4-0370). The richest, most alluring account loss of the older conductor's steadiness and Blue, Red or Green Label cartridges. of the Carlos ballet is in the Bolshoi com- orchestral craftsmanship. Varviso's tem- We believe these latter units have set a plete recording (Russian Melodiya D pos, though often faster, are not pur- new standard of sonic definition and ac- 104469/76). slightly cut,itistrue. but posefully so; they tend to meander rather curacy. They are highly compliant, scrumptiously played. with a full-blooded than progress. And his orchestra isn't really lightly damped devices that take a great violin soloist and a great sense for rhythms good enough to be matched against the deal of time and enormous care to build; consequently, they are expensive. impetuous and rhythms seductive. Maazel Dresden ensemble. In the Act III prelude We think the Silver Label cartridges is too metronomic. not dancey enough: the there is no magic, no brooding mystery .ire a very attractive compromise. While andante mosso of the Carlos sequence does when the tempo is hasty, the brass sloppy. retaining nearly all of the sonic qualities not trip daintily; the solo clarinet plays his and the flute tone crude. The sad truth of our other cartridges, they offer a much waltz in strict time. (When I played the de- seems to he that Bayreuth is no longer at- greater degree of compatibility with lectable Levine version of the Vepres music tracting the best players in Germany (or the other components and at a considerable to Kenneth MacMillan. he began seeing conductors to discipline them into a supe- reduction in cost to boot. Indeed, at steps to it at once: the Royal Ballet's Four $70.00 for the Silver Label "P" model rior ensemble), although the chorus is still with a Pathemax stylus for both stereo Seasons is the result.) Maazel is most suc- impressive. and CD -4 recordings and at $60.00 for cessful in the Otello piece and makes much There is some good material in this cast. the Silver Label "E' model with a con- of the remarkable, exotic scoring. Verdi if no single performance that stands near ventional elliptical stylus, we think timed this item at exactly 5 minutes. 59 sec- the highest level of past recordings-in part. they're quite a bargain! onds, and by my stopwatch Maazel is accu- Ithink, because hardly anybody is really rate to within a second. consistently heard at his best. Karl Rid- Blur Label - 5123 The album cover is a rather horrid con- derbusch makes a great success of the dia- 12,1 I abel Sla4 (0,, I JI, I coction of Maazel and Verdi portraits with logue with Walther in Act 111, but else- a sylphid drifting between them, all in a where sounds rough andisaudibly Write for further information pastel -blue swirl. The liner note by Gerald prompted at the end of the immediately Fitzgerald is packed with information and 'preceding dialogue with David and SONIC RESEARCH INC. is just in its assessments: "How did Verdi Wahnmonolog. By the opera's end, his high accept the concession? The only way he register shows distinct signs of fatigue. 27 SugarHollow Hd Danbury. Ct. 06810 knew: grumbling, but with total commit- Hans Sotin, certainly the right sound for ment. And once he accepted the premise, he Pcigner,isdisappointing by comparison

I-2.1 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE The BOZAK Concert Grand

In 24 years there has never been a finer speaker

And now there are electronics superbly ma-ched to t -le Concert Grand

The Bozok Model 919 The Dczok Model 929 Audio Signal Processing Center Audio Power Amplifier

Box 1166, Dor e- Connecticut 06820 A- selected Bozok Dealers giesolki(2C3) 838-6521 AM Comes with his singinghere a few seasons ago, Besides that prompting heard at one strained and awkward of emission. Under point, there's a good deal of other extra- studio conditions. I would expect more of neous noise-far more than in any previous Alive both of them. Bayreuth recording. In the booklet, the pro- Hannelore Bode, though not without ducer speaks of using microphone place- charm, suffers by comparison with other re- ments new to Bayreuth. As far as I can tell, corded Evas, for she is weak at the lower he has managed primarily to capture more end of the range and unfocused at the top: stage noise than ever before in a Fest- The McKay Dymek DA 5 shielded again, her flatness at the beginning of the spielhaus recording; the clumping of feet is ferrite loop AM antenna has a solid quintet could doubtless have been avoided a positive distraction at numerous points. state preamp with tun.ng and in a studio recording. Jean Cox may have Bayreuth audiences aren't what they used sensitivity controls. the potential of a Wagnerian tenor, but un- to be. either. This one breaks in with ap- der pressure the upper notes flap in the Overcomes the two most common plause before the final chord of Act II, -breeze, pitch sometimes goes awry, and spoiling one of Wagner's most magical mo- AM reception problems: strong local his sometimes sensitive ideas about phras- ments. stations "hiding" weaker distant ing are compromised by the tendency to From such a performance, one might con- stations close on the cial, and interfer- lunge at climaxes, distorting the shape of ceivably derive a modicum of pleasure on a ence from TV and electrical sources. things. The below -stairs couple is better-in pleasant summer day in Bayreuth (although Improves inherent Iorg range fact, Anna Reynolds gives us a strongly you would probably be paying more for capabilities of AM -programs sung. characterful Magdalena. with an evi- your ticket than the price of this recording!). listenable from hundreds of miles. dent sense of humor, and Frieder Stricker, However, I can't imagine really wanting to Increases signal strength 4 to 8 though not mellifluous, is a fairly skillful hear it more than once without the visual times-really sharpens up AM David. (He gets flustered once in the singing presentation that necessarily gives theatri- performance in typical hi-fi receivers lesson to Walther, alas.) cal performances a dimension above and and tuners. Pretty high marks to Klaus Hirte's accu- beyond even the best recordings. Factory direct - $175.00 (US), ten day rate, ungrotesque Beckmesser; lower ones The libretto booklet includes the same money back guarantee. Lease plan, to Gerd Nienstedt's well -articulated, uncer- translation by Peter Branscombe that was tainly pitched Kothner; and a failing grade used in Angel's Karajan set. D.H. BankAmericard and Master Charge to the Philips editor for undercutting Bernd welcome. For more information or to Weikl's excellent Nightwatchman by spoil- place your order, call toll free: ing his joke: The G -flat horn call following WAGNER: The Rhinegold; Siegfried(sungin Nationwide 800/854-7769 his F -major song is delayed while we English). For an essay review see page 93. California800/472-1783 change the record.(I wonder why they McKay Dymek Co. didn't leave it in, fade out, and then repeat I 675 North Park Ave. the note at the start of the new side.) The re- Pomona, CA 91766 maining Masters are a competent, routine price subject to change without notice lot. CIRCLE 26 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

EUGENE FoDoR: Violin Recital. Eugene Fo- dor,violin;Judith Olson, piano"; Joseph The Avid103. Payne, organ'. [John Pfeiffer, prod.]. RCA RED SEAL ARL 1-1172. $6.98. BURIN!: La Ronde des lutins. Op 25 Mat BailShern Few people would expect No 2. Nigun. PAOANINI: Sonata appassionata con vari- allow. Op 38 SARASATE: Romanza andaluza. Op 22. No 1, Zapateado, Op 23. No 2 - SCRIAIIIN: Etude tr, D flat. more in a loudspeaker. Op 8, No 10 (arr Szigeti) VITALI: Chaconne G minor (arr Charlier) '

For most people, the Avid Model Eugene Fodor got the critics' danderup 103 really is the ultimate speaker. when he gave a New York debut recital Not that you can't pay more for a made up largely of virtuoso pieces, but he speaker. You can. A lot more. has the stuff to handle them and capitalizes But, for most audio enthusiasts on that ability here. The biggest bag of any difference between the Avid 103 and tricks is provided by Paganini, who demol- more expensive speakers just isn't going ishes Paisiello's aria "Nel cor p10 non mi to justify the added cost. As it is, the 103 sento" with a setofvariations in which the clearly outperforms speakers costing up violinist does everything but ride a bicycle. to twice their price. Itis not a very musical piece, but Fodor The Avid 103. does as much as can be done with it and You owe it to yourself to find out never falls down on the left-hand pizzi- why it is rapidly becoming the popular catos, trilled pizzicatos, harmonics, etc. (It new reference standard for 3 -way is a very etcetera kind of work.) systems. For your nearest Avid dealer, He voyages through the more solid ad- please write: ventures of the Vitali Chaconne with sweet tone and good taste, though to my ear the choice of an organ as the continuo instru- ment poses problems: The organ is made to CORPORATION imitate the tones of other instruments, and 10 Tripps Lane. East Prov . R 02914 when it moves onto the same pitch level as the violin here it tends to swallow up the soloist. Still, the catalogue is not over- Sound products for Avid listeners. burdened with versions of this work (which my source books say is not by Vitali at all, CIRCLE 54 ON READER -SERVICE CARD l2( HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE but anonymous), and Fodor deserves a magoric new chapters he would have writ- meant the two instructions to be syn- hearing. ten in music history. onymous. Solow and Vallecillo follow ev- Fodor is versatile and moves easily into Until now. I knew of only one perform- ery tempo marking in that opening move- the dark -toned, questing mood of Bloch's ance fully faithful to this score-done by ment. In the central Serenade, the RCA per- melismatic "Nigun." Scriabin's Etude is a Leonard Rose and Leon Fleisher in 1962 at formance maintains a tough rhythm, like study in thirds, and the violinist keeps them New York's Grace Rainey Rogers Audito- Marechal and Casadesus, whereas the Des - well in hand. The Spanish lilt of Sarasate, rium and, unfortunately, not commercially mar team allows itself a bit more lilt with- too, is adeptly captured. In short, a trimly recorded. The first disc edition, by Maurice out losing the incredible sense of seamless turned out, if not very personal. recital. S.F. Marechal and Robert Casadesus (now in unity between the cello's low pizzicatos Seraphim's "Age of the Great Instrumental- and the piano's left-hand chords. Harrell ists" reissue box, IC 6044), offers magnifi- and Levine are especially acute inthis LYNN HARRELL:Cello Recital. LynnHarrell, cent playing, but some of the rubatos and movement at realizing hairpin dynamics, cello; James Levine, piano. [Peter Dell- glissandos just aren't there or. in keeping and the textural clarity is phenomenal. In heim, prod.] RCAREDSEAL ARL1-1262, with "old-fashioned" stylistic habits, are the finale, Solow and Vallecillo anticipate $6.98. put where Debussy didn't specify them. by a few bars the rubato marked after cue 7 DEBUSSY: Sonata No. 1, in D minor. PROKOINEY: Sonata in Of the available stereo editions, don't but handle the tempo shifts at the very end- C, Op. 119. WEBERN: Drei kleine Stricke, Op. 11. bother hunting up the inept Frezin and ing splendidly. Harrell produces wonderful JEFFREY SOLOW:Cello Recital.Jeffrey So - Courtland (Protone 131). The Boston Sym- contrasts of tone between such places as low. cello; Irma Vallecillo, piano. [Anne Ep- phony Chamber Players version by Jules the espressif in the seventh bar, the sur Ie person, prod.] DESMARDSM 1006, $6.98. Eskin and Michael Tilson Thomas (DG 2530 chevalet six bars past cue 8, and the lento DEBUSSY: Sonata No. 1, in D minor; Intermezzo. HONEG- GER: Sonatine. SAINT-SAINS: Sonata No. 1, in C minor. 049), conveniently coupled with Debussy's con morbidezza at cue 9. Op. 32. other sonatas, lacks a coherent game plan In sum, each of these young artists and for tempos, dynamics, and balances, and their distinguished partners have produced The work common to these two releases. the cellist's position changes and articu- closetodefinitivestatementsofthis like Debussy's companion sonata for violin lation are occasionally awkward. Rostro- fiendishly demanding piece, with marginal and piano, is one of music's great sphinxes. povich and Britten (London CS 6237) are re- differentiations between the relative strong Crafted with astonishing terseness, eph- vered by many for this sonata, but not. I and weak points of the two. Solow and Val- emeral and daring in its structure, carefully dare say, by anyone who has bothered to lecillo may home in closer to the structural marked by constant gradations of motion study or think much about what Debussy layout of the work, and Harrell and Levine and expression, exploring nearly every so- wrote down or meant in this music. may surpass them on points of specific in- nority within the compass of the two in- Harrell and Levine announce the bold- strumentaleffects.RCA'sisthe more struments, this is not music for amateurs. ness of their conception from the start. This brilliant recording, Desmar's more mellow cavalier exhibitionists. or those who can't is truly a molto resoluto! I am sorry they re- but also with sharper stereo separation of be bothered to scrutinize minutiae of the frain from speeding up for the poco ani- the twosome. It's good to be a reviewer and printed page. Had Debussy lived even five. mando at the eighth bar but do so for the au not have to choose! instead of three, years beyond completion mouvement at rehearsal cue 1 (Durand edi- Desmar may corner many purchasing de- of his cello sonata, imagine the phantas- tion).It materializes (cue 3) that Debussy cisions by offering the world premiere

riECRETSFROM THEAUDIO FILE

Sock that sibilant singer

ADVICE FROM: JohnWilson, recording engineer, CapitolRecords, Inc. PROBLEM: Distortion and background wind. You re stalled by a sibilant singer. Or a performer whopops his p's. Oryou're losing the wails of a howling wolf under the whistle of a howling wind. RECORDING TIP: You can improvise a windscreen by fastening an old woolen sock overthe mike.It shieldsthe mike diaphragm from those suddenblasts of wind. You'll lose some high frequency, but you'll lessen the pops, whistles and rumbles. This makeshift filter works best with the worst mikes and well worr socks. Experiment with it. Sure, it's unscientific, but it's a good tip to have up your sleeve. Or, in your sock. TAPE'TIP: Accurate, distortion-'ree recording starts with the best tape and equipment you can af'ord. If you record music, the most demanding of sounds, there's no better tape to buy than The Music Tape by Capitol.

When you reccrd music, record on

CAPITOL MAGNETIC PRODUCTS the music tape..> cassette cortridge open reel IL.909 LOS ANGE GaCuPrMOffM BY CAPITOL

CIRCLE 5 ON READER -SERVICE CARD APRIL. 1976 12- recording of Debussy's early Intermezzo, a Half of the Desmar program is devoted to along dully in some hands or not hang to- work the composer (and for a time his Saint-Saens's C minor Sonata, an elegantly gether if big, blazing Russian tone is all the widow) suppressed. It turns out to be an agitated morceau that Solow and Vallecillo cellist has to offer. In fact, Harrell is careful opulent, broadly melancholy piece in ABA realize with consummate control, refine- and probing, and the delicate Levine pian- form that, though not recognizably "im- ment, and freshness. Its only rival record- ism sustains the work most impressively. pressionist," is recognizably French and by ing, by Kessler and Carmen (Orion ORS A.C. a composer of uncommon gifts and force of 73124), is quite lackluster in comparison. personality. We welcome it to the phono- RCA's Debussy sonata shares a rather MADY MESPLE AND NICOLAI GEDDA: Duets short graph, with due gratitude to Solow and (131/2 -minute) side with the well - from French Opera. Mady Mesple, soprano; Desmar. named Webern Op. 11 Three Small Pieces. Clearly, it takes real pros who can shape Nicolai Gedda, tenor; Paris Opera Orchestra, On the same side is the Honegger Sono - Pierre Dervaux, cond. [Rene Challan, prod.] tine, an agreeable and well -played opus in music within a narrow range to make these three sections. But it seems better suited to pithy epigrams comprehensible, and in ANGEL S 37143,$6.98 (SO-encOded disc). llieer. Les Pacheurs de pedes: Leila! Leila! Dieu puissant, the alternate scoring for clarinet and piano, such an endeavor Harrell and Levine suc- le voila. GLUCK: Orphee et Eurydice: Viens, viens, Eury- in which format itis superbly done by ceed admirably. dice, suis-moi. Gousoo: Mireille: Vincinette a votre age. Romeo et Juliette: Ange adorable. LALO: Le Roi d'Ys: Drucker and Hambro (Odyssey Y 30492, Prokofiev's cello sonataisactually a Cher Mylio. MAPPier: Manon J'ai marque rtieure du de- with music of Bernstein, Debussy, Milhaud, rather moody and inward work, for all the part. Minimum: Les Huguenots: Beaute divine, en- and Bax). biting diablerie of its scherzo. It can lumber chanteresse. Though itis always heartening to come across a new recital of French operatic mu- sic, especially when most of the works drawn upon are relatively unfamiliar, the present disc turns out to be something of a disappointment. The reason, simply, is that the inclusion of so many mild-mannered pieces-the duets from Roi d'Ys, Rehears de perles, Romeo et Juliette, and Mireille are all conceived in the same vein of rather genteel lyricism-leads to enervation, an ef- fect only aggravated by the slow, under - vitalized conducting of Pierre Dervaux. A much -needed change of mood is, it's true, provided by the excerpt from Orphee, yet the music here is not really interesting enough to make the contrast effective: For Orpheus' attempt to lead the increasingly recalcitrant Eurydice back to earth, Gluck has provided a long stretch of accompanied recitative and a brief concluding duet, all in his most proficient, generalized, and unin- volving manner. However, Angel's enterprise in releasing this material should not go unmentioned. In any case, the Huguenots duet is very good to have. This is not the famous Act IV fare- well of Raoul and Valentine, but the en- counter in Act II of Raoul and the Queen, with whom he has (temporarily, as it turns out) fallen in love and to whom he pours forth his ardor in a flowing cantilena while she, disclaiming any emotional interest in Next time you plan a trip him, responds in lighthearted, coquettish fashion. to Europe, make sure you But as is so often the case, the most com- pelling music here is the most familiar: the visit the unique country. final scene of Act I of Manon, in which Des Grieux and Manon meet, fall in love, and depart impetuously for Paris. The variety Where can you find: Europe's blondest blondes? of mood, the marriage of music and lan- Europe's highest geysers? guage, and the sense of creative animation earn one's gratitude all over again. Europe's greatest glaciers? Nicolai Gedda and-Mady Mesple perform this, as they do all the other pieces, with un- Europe's largest waterfalls? common intelligence. Gedda, moreover, And where can you find moonlike craters where the astronauts trained? sounds vocally fresh and pliant. Only in the More volcanos than anywhere else on earth? Historic landmarks of the head tone he uses for the big tune in Reh- world's oldest continuous parliament? Celebrations marking Europe's ears de perles does he sound uneasy. youngest republic? Mesple phrases beautifully throughout. But The answer to all of these questions is-ICELAND. Next time you plan her voice-bright, edgy, volatile-sounds a trip to Europe. make sure you visit Iceland. too closely miked and takes on an unpleas- The only thing it may cost you is time well spent. Because you'll save enough money on Icelandic's lowest jet fares to Luxembourg to pay for your ing quaver. stopover in Iceland. Or, you can hop over from New York or Chicago for longer Texts-in the case of the Orphee, not tours. See an erupting volcano. Take a cross-country pony trek. consonant with what is actually sung-and Next time you plan a trip to Europe, ask your travel agent about translations. D.S.H. Icelandic Airlines. Or phone Icelandic Airlines, for folders about Iceland and lowest jet fares to Europe. In New York State, phone (212) 757-8585. Elsewhere in U.S., phone (800) 555-1212 for local toll free number. JEFFREYSOLOW:Cello Recital. See Lynn Harrell. Cello Recital. CIRCLE 14 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

128 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE reviewed by MORGAN AMES ROYAL S. BROWN HENRY EDWARDS MIKE IAHN IOHN S. WILSON

QUEEN: A Night at the Opera. Freddie Mercury, vocals and piano; Brian May, vocals and guitars; John Deacon, vocals and bass; Roger Taylor, vocals and drums. Death on Two Legs; Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon; I'm in Love with My Car; nine more. [Ray Thomas Baker and Queen, prod.] ELEKTRA 7E 1053, $6.98. Tape: 1 TC5 1053, $7.97; ET8 1053, $7.97.

The English quartet Queen began as a run- of-the-mill hard rock band with the ability to write compelling lyrics. Now it stands as the major contender to become the new kings of the loud riveting music known as heavy-metal rock, despite a dazzling dis- play of musical eclecticism first evident in

its last LP, "Sheer Heart Attack." iss.1 This experiment in musical variety is compounded by "A Night at the Opera." All Queen-the new kings of heavy-metal rock? but two of the tracks have been written by Freddie Mercury and Brian May. Mercury keyboards; Bobby Watson, bass and vocals; this is still a very listenable contemporary and May have tackled hard rock ("Death on horns and strings accompaniment. Fool's album. M.A. Two Legs"), a Rudy Vallee-ish Thirties Paradise; Sweet Thing; Jive Talking; seven sound ("Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon"), a more. [Rufus, prod.] ABC ABCD 909, $6.98. Peter, Paul, and Mary coloration ("Old 39"). Tape: i4i0 H 5022-909, $7.95; et H 8022- SALSOUL OnalasTRA, Salsoul Hustlers, vo- and classical (Bohemian Rhapsody). Also 909, $7.95. cals. Salsoul Hustle; Get Happy; Chicago Bus contributing to this potpourri are bassist Stop (Ooh, I Love It); You're Just the Right John Deacon's bit of rhythmic pop ("You're For me. the important new ladies in pop Size; Tangerine; Tale of Three Cities; Salsoul My Best Friend") and drummer Roger Tay- music are Minnie Riperton, Natalie Cole, Rainbow; Love Letters. [Vincent Montana Jr., lor's tongue-in-cheek look at man and his and Chaka Khan. I could not help but won- prod.] SALsouL SZS 5501, $6.98. passionate attachment to his automobile der how long it would be till Chaka quit ("I'm in Love with My Car"). Rufus and shot her own shot. The more I More than forty performers participated in Still, Queen's sound remains one of listen to this album, the more I see that that the creation of this album, which nominally rock's most distinctive, and much of this in- is what she has done. The group may have contributes to the current "salsa" trend but dividuality is attributable to May's guitar suffered, but Chaka has brains. which in this case is more aptly described artistry. Producer Ray Thomas Baker, per Rufus has undergone the personnnel as Latin Muzak. The melodies usually are usual, has created the ideal shading for changes one expects in groups that bear the played by the string section or sung by its May's colors, textures, and thundering gui- pressures of sudden success. The new bass handful of breathless female singers, mak- tar. Hats off to Queen! H.E. player, Bobby Watson, is very good, but ing it all sound rather like Mantovani had former player Belfield was a killer. The sec- stopped off in Spanish Harlem on his way ond best thing Rufus has done for itself (the home. RUFUS FEATURING CHAKA KHAN. Chaka first being Chaka) is holding onto drummer The music here is fairly repetitious and Khan, vocals: Tony Maiden, guitar and vo- Andre Fischer. From what I understand, even low-key, especially when played at cals; Andre Fischer, drums; Kevin Murphy, Fischer is the group's guiding light. Light or moderate to low volume levels. To be sure, not, he's a great player. He is also the ne- there are a lot of drums and quite a few phew of distinguished pianist/orchestrator honks and bounces from the electric key- Explanation of symbols Clare Fischer, who has provided string ar- board section, and the vocalists, aptly rangements on all three of Rufus' albums, called the Salsoul Hustlers, disseminate L*1 exceptional recording and his work is a pleasure, musicianly, and sexual innuendoes and orgasmic grunts supportive. (Check out "Little Boy Blue.") freely. But they don't succeed in breaking Recorded tape: The songs in this disc sound too much the monotony. like what has gone before. If the Rufus mine Salsa, despite all the good press it has Open Reel has run dry for the moment, more outside been getting, is just another name for Latin S. 8 -Track Cartridge material should be let in-but not covers of music, which peaks in popularity once ev- ery decade no matter what it's called. Any Cassette other people's hits, such as the pointless rendition of "Jive Talking." Flaws and all, Latin music played at ear-splitting disco -

APRIL 1976 129 ADVERTISING INDEX Key No. Page No. ADS Analog & Digital Systems, Inc. 27 theque volume can be exciting-even th( Advent Corp 21 Salsoul Orchestra. Akai America Ltd. 115 The first and by far the best tune on this American Audioport, Inc. 74, 75, 76 disc is "Salsoul Hustle," which was a disco 1 Angel Records 100 Audio Technica U.S., Inc 20 hit last year. Still, the question about this 54 Avid Corp 126 and about all of salsa remains: How do you Bang & Olufsen of America, Inc 119 say "ho -hum" in Spanish? M.J. BASF Systems, Inc. 7 2 Bertagni Electroacoustic Systems (BES, Inc.) 110 THE BEST OF THE BRITISH INVASION. The Bose Corp. 13 Bozak, Inc 125 Searchers, the Kinks, Long John Baldry, and 3 British Industries Co 40 others (compiled by Arlene Reckson-Co- hen). Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Fla- 5 Capitol Magnetic Products 127 Classified Ads 144, 145 vor on the Bedpost Overnight?; Sweets for Columbia Records 96 My Sweet; Have / the Right; He's in Town; 6 Component Discounters.. 122 (There's) Always Something There to Remind 7 Crown International 112 Me; All Day and All of the Night; Girl Don't 8 DBX, Inc 11 Come; Tossing and Turning; Baby, Now That 9 Deutsche Grammophon 111 I've Found You; Let the Heartaches Begin, D Group 73, 76 10 Discount Music Club 122 Pictures of Matchstick Men; Build Me Up, Discwasher, Inc. 74.75, 76 Buttercup. PYE 506, $6.98. Dixie Hi.Fidelity 146 MUNGO JERRY. Paul King, banjo and jug; 11 Dokorder, Inc 121 17 Dual 8, 9 Mike Coles and John Godfrey, basses; Ray Dynaco. Inc 101 Dorset and Colin Earl, unidentified instru- 12 Electro-Voice. Inc. 84 ments. In the Summertime; Somebody Stole Elpa Marketing Industries. Inc 25 My Wife; You Better Leave That Whiskey 13 Empire Scientific Corp 10 Alone; nine more. [Barry Murray and Ray ESS, Inc. 133 Dorset, prod.] PYE504, $6.98. 52 Fuji Photo Film U.S.A. Inc. Maginic Tape Division 99 These two releases are the latest additions Harman-Kardon. Inc 108. 109 to the Pye History of British Pop Music. High Fidelity's Test Reports 137 Though some listeners may be slow to wax Kenny Starr 14 Icelandic Airlines 128 nostalgic about a decade not yet forgotten, Doing well by tradition 15 Illinois Audio 146 Pye persists in bringing out compilations of 16 I M Fried Products Co 106 18 International Hi-Fi Distributors 106 the work of British artists of greater and lesser import. unithighlighted by cerebral, provocative 19 Jennings Research, Inc 142 "The Best of the British Invasion" 20 JVC America, Inc 5 lyrics as well as inspired and accomplished presents twelve songs by ten groups and musicianship. 30 Kenwood Cover IV artists, recorded between 1959 and 1968. 21 Klipsch & Assoc.. Inc 30 That's why a Tull "Best or collection 22 Koss Corp. 139 Other than national origin, the only thing should have been spread over two discs. the performers have in common is the pep- 23 Lafayette Radio Electronics 117 The LPs "Stand Up," "This Was," and 24 London Records 104 pery mindlessness that characterized so "Benefit" preceded"Aqualung," the Lux Audio of America Ltd. 29 much British pop during the 1960s. From recording that launched the group inter- Marantz Co Cover III Lonnie Donegan's epic about chewing gum nationally. From these three early discs 25 McIntosh Laboratory 11 (1959) to the Foundation's "Build Me Up, have come a mere two tracks: "Teacher" 26 McKay Dymek Co 126 Buttercup," what is detailed here is bounce, and "My Sunday Feelings." As deserving as 27 Memorex Corp 15 not melodic or verbal excellence. Some of any for inclusion in a set like this one, nei- Music Listener's Book Service 141 the tunes,like Donegan's and the ther displays the unpolished energy that 28 National Record Plan 114 Searchers' "Sweets for My Sweet," were earned the band its initial support. Even the 29 Nuclear Products Co 102 popular in the U.S. Some others were not, more recent tracks featured here point up 31 Phase Linear Corp 118 making them odd selections. the fact that Jethro Tull deserves more than 32 Phonogram, Inc. 120 33 Pickering& Co., Inc 2 Another odd choice-for a whole LP's a random sampling. 34 Pioneer High Fidelity Cover II. 1 worth, yet-is Mungo Jerry, which had only This disc can't help but whet the appetite one hit record in this country, an entirely 35 Radio Shack 102 of already rabid Tull aficionados. It also re- 36 . Radio Shack 120 dreary goodtime song called "In the Sum- veals a few clues about the group's musical 37 RCA Records 106 mertime" that was popular during the sum- roots.It does not, however, in any way 56 Revox Corp 23 mer of 1970. Though its sound was pleasant demonstrate logically its progression from 51 RTR Industries 138 enough, the group played run-of-the-mill blues band to supergroup. In other words, it 53 SAE. Inc 123 jug band (called "skiffle" in England) music. leaves a great deal to be desired. H.E. 38 Sansui Electronics Corp 39 It tried to build a following in America but 55 Scott, H.H., Inc 136 39 Sennheiser Electronics Corp. 6 failed, and its later records were not re- 40 Sherwood Electronic Laboratories 103 leased here. Why does Mungo Jerry merit a KENNY STARR: The BlindMan inthe 41 Shure Brothers, Inc 12 reissue when the original LPs didn't sell? Sonic Research. Inc 124 Bleachers. Kenny Starr, vocals; in- 42 Sony Corp. 134 M.J. strumental accompaniment. The Blind Man in Sound Guard 95 the Bleachers; Where Love Begins; Texas 43 Sound Reproduction 146 44 Spectro Acoustics 14 JETHRO TULL: The Best of. Teacher; Aqua- Proud; I Can't See in the Dark; Tonight I'll Stax 74, 75, 76 lung; Thick as a Brick; eleven more. [Ian An- Face the Man Who Made It Happen; You, Me, 45 Stereo Corp. of America 146 derson and Terry Ellis,prod.] CHRYSALLIS and Her; Victims; The Upper Hand; Put An- 46 Stereotech 105 CHR 1078, $6.98. Tape: el M5C 1078, other Notch in Your Belt; The Calico Cat. 47 Stereo Warehouse 135 $7.97; :9:!-.M8C 1078, $7.97. [SnuffyMiller, prod.] MCA 2177, $6.98. TDK Electronics 116 Teac Corp. of America 16, 147 48 Technics by Panasonic 107 This group started out a few years back as a What with all the eager young men trying to Thorens 25 twelve -bar blues band whose only special reform Nashville, it's somewhat refreshing 3 M Company 113 attraction was a vocalist/flutist who habit- to discover one who just wants to be one of 49 Top Discount Audio 135 50 Toshiba America. Inc 88 ually played in a one -legged, cranelike the boys. Kenny Starr is a country singer stance. Now one of rockdom's most spec- who applies his boyish, sincere voice to the 17 United Audio Products 8, 9 tacular draws, Jethro Tull over the course cliches of commercial Nashville and does it Wyeth Press 143 of eight LPs has matured into a creative well. No Kris Kristofferson or Steve Good -

130 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE FestivalPablo Casals, Founder / Marta Casals Istomin, Musical DirectorCasals Announces Pablo Casals Centenary June 10 -July 5, 1976, San Juan, Puerto Rico

With world-famous conductors and performers, including: Conductors Soloists Olga Iglesias Rafael Kubelik Betty Allen Eugene Istomin Eduardo Mata Simon Estes Johanna Meier Sergije Rainis Guillermo Figueroa, Jr. Robert Nagy Mstislav Rostropovich Gary Graffman Jean -Bernard Pommier Alexander Schneider Horacio Gutierrez Jean-Pierre Rampal Stanislaw SkrowaczewskiMieczyslaw HorszowskiMstislav Rostropovich Victor Tevah Rudolf Serkin

Festival Casals Orchestra Festival Youth Strings (including outstanding young string players from the U.S. and Latin America) Puerto Rico Symphony Chorus of the Conservatory of Puerto Rico San Juan Children's Chorus.

There is no better time than now Saint-Saens, Sibelius, Telemann, to plan to attend this Centenary Tchaikovsky, Verdi and Wagner. tribute to Pablo Casals. Send the coupon below now Programs will include works for complete details on our by: Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Pablo Casals Centenary. Make Bruckner, Casals, Debussy, your plans to share in a most Dvorak, Falla, Ginastera, Haydn, rewarding musical experience. Mozart, Prokofiev, Ravel,

Ihmstration by Alih-m Glaser from a photograph by Tom Hotlymart

Festival Casals, 1290 Avenue of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10019 I would like to attend the Centenary tribute to Pablo Casals. Pease send me complete details on the Festival program for the '76 Festival Casals from June 10 through July 5,1976. El Also send me information on where to stay in Puerto Rico when I attend the Festival.

Name

Address City State 7.ip

1976 tonimonswakh of Puerto Rico April 1976 MA -21 Leontyne Price, Beverly Sills, Seth McCoy, and Kenneth Riegel. Schoenberg's Gurrelieder will open the festival. SUMMER FESTIVALS, PART I KANSAS

ANNUAL MESSIAH FESTIVAL. Lindsborg, CALIFORNIA tral City, July 10-31, David Effron, April 11-18. Elmer Copley, music di- artistic director. Members of the Met- rector. In addition to Handel's Mes- CALIFORNIA MUSIC CENTER. Belmont, ropolitan and N.Y. City operas will siah, the St. Matthew Passion will be June 28 -August 7. Irving Klein, mu- perform The Ballad of Baby Doe. Artists performed by the Bethany College sic director. This season's performers include Carol Rolandi, Adib Fazah, Oratorio Society with solosists Rob- include Margaret Ashe, Lambert Margaret Yauger, Muriel Green- ert Johnson, Ronald Corrado, and Orkis, Sharon Polk, Marc Gottlieb, spon, and Malcom Smith. Susan Von Reichenbach. and Marc Dodson. Chamber and or- chestra, works are performed on the CONNECTICUT MASSACHUSETTS Notre Dame campus. YALE CONCERTS IN NORFOLK. Norfolk, INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC FESTI- CARMEL BACH FESTIVAL. Carmel, July June 25 -July 30. Keith Wilson, mu- VAL. Stockbridge, September 4-19. 19 -August 1. Sandor Salgo, music di- sic director. Resident faculty will per- Edgar S. Feldman, artistic director. rector. The emphasis is Baroque, with form on the Friday evening series: the International ensembles will perform soloists,festivalorchestra,chorus, Tokyo Quartet, Donald Currier, three weekends of chamber music. and chorale performing in the Sunset Raphael Hillyer, Robert Nagel, Guests include the Saulesco String Theatre and the Carmel Mission Bas- Thomas Nyfenger, Joan Panetti, Quartet (Sweden), the Kreutzberger ilica. Schedule includes recitals, lec- John Swallow, and Arthur Weisberg. String Quartet (Germany), the Aulos tures, and Bach's Mass in B minor. Wind Quintet (U.S.), the Finlandia DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Quartet (Switzerland), the Orford FOREST MEADOWS CENTER OF THE ARTS. Quartet (Canada). San Rafael, July 25 -August 8. Ted FESTIVAL OF AMERICAN FOLKLIFE. Blair, artistic director. Guest artists Washington, June 16 -September 7. MICHIGAN include Stuart Canin, Myra Kesten- James Morris, producer; Ralph Rin- baum, Paul Olefsky, Michael Fox - zler, director. The festivalis spon- CRANBROOK FESTIVAL. Bloomfield man, and John Simms. James Dixon sored by the Smithsonian Institution Hills, May 6-9. Serge Fournier, mu- will conduct the student orchestra and the National Park Service, and is sic director. Five concerts at Christ and Robert Commanday the student free of charge. Formal concerts and Church/Cranbrook will be presented chorus, and there will be a dance improvisatory theater are presented by the Toledo Symphony Chamber company in residence. by 5,000 international and American Orchestra, the Wayne State Univer- artists in the National Mall, with dif- sity Chamber Choir, Gina Bachauer, MUSIC ACADEMY OF THE WEST. Santa ferent programs every week. the Romeros, and the Baldwin -Wall- Barbara, June 28 -August 21. Mau- ace Brass Quintet. rice Abravanel, music director. High- ILLINOIS lights include Carmen, staged by Mar- DETROIT CONCERT BAND. Grosse Pointe tial Singher, and concerts at the RAVINIA FESTIVAL. Highland Park, Woods, June 13 -August 8. Leonard Lobero Theatre and the Santa Bar- June 24 -September 12. James Le- B. Smith, music director. Soloists per- bara Bowl. Visiting artists are Jerome vine, music director. Highlights of forming with the Detroit Concert Lowenthal, Ronit Emir Lowenthal, the program include an American Band this summer will be William E. Zvi Zeitlin, Gabor Rejto, Oscar music series, a day -long Bach Fete, Lane, trombone; Imogene Bird, so- Chausow. Scheduled also are master the summer education program in as- prano; Elsie Inselman and Christina classes, recitals, and lectures. sociation with Northwestern Univer- Lypecky, mezzo sorpanos. sity School of Music, and perform- OJAI MUSIC FESTIVAL. Ojai, May ances by the Joffrey Ballet and The MINNESOTA 21-23. Aaron Copland, guest con- Acting Company. The Chicago Sym- ductor. The five -concert series will phony will be conducted by Andre CARLETON SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL. feature the Los Angeles Philhar- Previn, Franz Allers, Andrew Davis, Northfield, June17-20.William monic, the Los Angeles Ballet di- Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Arthur Wells, music director. The festival or- rected by John Clifford, and a jazz Fiedler, Lawrence Foster, and John chestra and chorale will perform concert by the Akiyoshi-Tabackin Green. Guest instrumentalists include works by Handel, Bach, Haydn, and Big Band. John Browning, Misha Dichter, Ru- DeFalla, in addition to emphasis on dolf Firkusny, Lorin Hollander, Copland, Barber, Earle Brown, COLORADO Andre Watts, Vladimir Spivakov, George Crumb, and Phillip Rhodes- Isaac Stern, Lynn Harrell; vocalists composer-in-residenceatCarleton CENTRAL CITY OPERA FESTIVAL. Cen- include Maria Ewing, Carol Neblett, College.

MA -22 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america NEW YORK

CHAUTAUQUA FESTIVAL. Chautauqua, June 26 -August 29. Oscar E. Rem- 27th ick, president. The schedule includes performances by the Chautauqua Annual Aspen Symphony, the Cleveland Play- house Summer Theatre and seven Music Festival operas in English by the Chautauqua June 25 to August 22. 1976 Opera. The Summer School offers a variety of arts courses, in addition to choral, instrumental, and teacher - )441olisiemobsabalblle training workshops.

SUMMER OF MUSIC ON THE HUDSON. Aspen Festival Orchestra Lyndhurst, June 26 -August 14, Ste- Aspen Choral Institute phen Simon, music director. The Sat- urday evening concert series includes Special Events Series performances by the County (West- Conference on Contemporary Music chester) Symphony with soloists Su- Aspen Opera Workshop san Starr, Erick Friedman, and Chamber Concert Series Rudolf Firkusny. Also scheduled is a Rodgers and Hammerstein eve- Aspen Chamber Symphony ning. Aspen Music School Gordon Hardy, Executive Vice -President and Dean NORTH CAROLINA Jorge Mester, Music Director Address all inquiries to: BREVARD MUSIC CENTER. Brevard, June 3 -August 15. Henry Janiec, ar- Aspen Music Festival tistic director. Chamber, symphonic, 01860 Broadway. New York. N.Y. 10023 212-5811-2196 band, choral, and operatic perform- ances are scheduled with guest artists Grant Johannesen, Bach Aria Group, Ruggiero Ricci, John Alexander, William Walker, Jerome Hines, and THE NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC the American Chamber Ballet. Announces a Vacancy for EASTERN MUSIC FESTIVAL. Greensboro, June 26 -August 7. Sheldon Morgen- CELLO Employment to begin Season 1976-77 stern, music director. Artists in resi- or at the earliest availability of the wirning candidate thereafter. dence at the festival/summer school include Alan Civil, Erick Friedman, Qualified applicants please write: the Guarneri String Quartet, Lynn JAMES CHAMBERS, Orchestra Personnel Manager Harrell, Leonard Pennario, and Wal- New Ycrk Philharmonic, Avery Fisher Hall ter Trampler. A series of chamber Broadway at 65th Street, New York, N.Y. 10023 and orchestral performances is Tel.: (212) 787-3700, Ext. 724 planned. AUDITIONS TO BE HELD IN MAY, 1976

OHIO BLOSSOM MUSIC CENTER. Cuyahoga DALC1ROZE Falls, June 15 -August 28. Lorin Maazel, music director. Featured INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MUSIC works this season include Beethoven's "Combining the best features of European and American Music Education" Fidelio with soloists Elinor Ross, Bar- RHYTHM SOLFEGE IMPROVISATION bara Hendricks, Marius Rintzler, DALCROZE TEACHERS CERTIFICATE COURSE Michael Langdon, and Donald CHILDREN & ADULTS - DAY & EVENING Gramm; Copland's A Lincoln Portrait, PROFESSIONAL TRAINING - ARTIST FACULTY narrated by Karl Haas, and Mahler's INTENSIVE SUMMER SESSION: July 5 -August 14 Eighth Symphony with the Blossom For information:DR. HILDA NI. SCHUSTER, Director Festival Chorus and the Scottish Na- 161 East 73rd St.. N. Y. C. 10021. TR 9-0316 tional Orchestra Chorus. First ap- The only authorizedDolcrozeTeacher's Training School in the Americas pearances at Blossom include those

April 1976 MA -23 THE men will feature Beverly Wolff and Harry Theyard; Dorothy Kirsten and John Alexander will sing the title ANN S roles in Tosca, to be conducted by An- COLLEGE OF MUSIC ton Guadagno; Showboat stars Su- 157 East 74th Street, New York, N.Y. 10021(212) 737.0700 sanne Marsee and Raymond Gibbs, and will be conducted by Richard RISE STEVENS, President Woitach; Max Rudolf will conduct Cos); Johanna Meier and Ermanno Bachelor of Science Degree Bachelor of Music Degree Mauro star in Aida; and Frances Diploma Post Graduate Diploma Bible and Julian Patrick will sing the Extension Division Opera Workshop leading roles of Baby Doe. The Mannes Preparatory School (ages 4-18) LAKESIDE FESTIVAL. Lakeside, Augtust Summer School 3-27. Robert L. Cronquist, music di- Full and partial scholarships available. rector. Chamber, symphonic solo re- Catalog upon request. cital, operetta, and ballet programs are represented at the festival. Artists include Carlos Montoya, violinist Howard Beebe, the Butler Ballet, and the festival orchestra.

MAY FESTIVAL. Cincinnati, May 14-29. James Levine, music director. Scheduled works include Brahms Schicksalslied;Beethoven's Ninth BAYREUTH Symphony (Sung-Sook Lee, Florence 26th INTERNATIONALYOUTH FESTIVAL Quivar, Jerold Norman, Paid 9th -29th Plishka);concert performances of August1976 Porgy and Bess (Simon Estes, Leona An opportunity for students of all interests(anyone aged 18-26, not just musicians) Mitchell) and Gluck's Orfio and Euri- to visit the Bayreuth Wagner Festival cheaply(Ring, Tristan, Parsifal) and enjoy dice (Maria Ewing, Carmen Balthrop, three weeks of intense musical and intellectualactivity. Courses for chorus, orches- Kathleen Battle); and the Berlioz Re- tra, chamber music for wind instruments, percussion,Indian classical dance; Wagner Seminar. Details from International YouthFestival, D-8580 Bayreuth 2, Post Box 2320. quiem with Kenneth Riegel. OREGON

POCKET COACH FOR SINGERS PETER BRITT GARDENS MUSIC FESTIVAL. STEREO CASSETTE TAPES OF ART SONGS AND OPERA Jacksonville, August 6-21, John Reference for voice teachers and study aid to students and vocal performers Trudeau, music director. A program Each song is presented in three steps: of thirty-four concerts will be per- 1. The poem is recited by native speakers, word by word translation included formed by the festival orchestra with 2. The poem is again spoken over the melody for proper syllabication and rhythm guest artists Christiane Edinger, Joan 3. The accompaniment is played with the melody, but can Benson, William Doppmann, Mary also be heard separately on stereo equipment Macdonald, Tomas Svoboda, and POCKET COACH frees the voice teacher to concentrate on vocal production and Jon Bunce. Bicentennial concerts are expression-no singing on tapes-ideal for lesson accompaniment and home study scheduled for the week of August 7. Each tape (1 to 5 songs) $6.50 For free catalog write to PENNSYLVANIA POCKET COACH 21981 Redwood Road, Castro Valley. California 94546 AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ANCIENT INSTRU- MENTS. Philadelphia, April 6-10, Maurice Ben Stad, music director. The forty-seventh annual festival will by conductors Erich Leinsdorf, Gen- repertoire, there will be pops, jazz, feature the works of J.S. Bach and nady Rozhdestvensky, Julius Rudel; and folk/rock concerts, as well as per- Marin Marais. Performers include instrumentalists Isaac Stern, Tamas formances by the Pennsylvania Bal- Florence Rosensweig, Evelyn Jacobs, Vasary, Viktoria Postnikova, and let. Edward Klein, and Julea Stad Chap - Leon Fleisher; vocalists Faye Robin- line. son, Beverly Sills, Mignon Dunn, CINCINNATI OPERA. Cincinnati, June John Alexander, Paul Pliska, Teresa 16 -July 24. James de Blasis, general BACH FESTIVAL OF BETHLEHEM. Beth- Zylis-Gara, Ezio Flagello, Eileen director. Carmen, Showboat, The Ballad lehem, May 14-22, Alfred Mann, Davis, and the Mendelssohn Choir of of Baby Doe, Tosca, Aida, and Cos) fan music director. The Mass in B minor Philadelphia. In addition to standard tutte are scheduled for the season. Car- is featured, with soloists Dilys Smith,

MA -24 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america Ellen Phillips, Charles Bressler, and workshops (Theodore Lapina and Douglas Lawrence. Brian Hanly); a piano workshop 01/QV (Paul Lyddon); a band director's ovi, 0al ROBIN HOOD DELL CONCERTS. Phila- workshop (Ralph Strouf); and the delphia, June 14 -July 29, Eugene annual summer music camp, directed Ormandy, music director. The Phila- by Ron Kuhn. Scheduled performers delphia Orchestra will be conducted include the Western Arts Trio, Pro by James Levine, Andre Kostelanetz, Arte Quartet, and the Wyoming Daniel Barenboim, and Mstislav Woodwind Quintet. $6,000 Rostropovich. Soloists will include Isaac Stern, Gregor Piatigorsky, CANADA Scholarship Andre Watts, Roberta Peters, Bev- erly Sills, and Franco Corelli. High- BANFF FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS. Banff, Awards lights include the Morman Taber- Alberta, August 3-21. Aaron Cop- nacle Choir in a special Bicentennial 1976 MUSICAL SHOWCASE land, conductor. Copland's Rodeo will (October, 1976) concert. be one of the five ballets performed; also scheduled is Kiss Me Kate, di- Open Competition in TEMPLE UNIVERSITY MUSIC FESTIVAL. rected by Douglas Campbell, and the PIANO VOICE STRINGS Ambler, June 25 -August 21. Sergiu operatic production of Cinderella, con- Comissiona, musical director. ducted by Bryan Balkwill. Cellist WIND & BRASS Soloists to appear with the in -resi- Janos Starker, the Canadian Brass, dence Pittsburgh Symphony include and the Canadian Chamber Orches- Anna Moffo, Marilyn Horne, and tra are among the guest artists. Gary Graffman. Dance and pop at- tractions include the Alvin Ailey FESTIVAL CANADA AT THE NATIONAL P°\°`\'*oc Dance Company, Judy Collins, ARTS CENTRE. Ottawa, Ontario, July V.P: Henry Mancini, and a festival of 1-31. Mario Bernardi, music direc- titP-V- Russian song and dance. tor. Scheduled works are The Marriage .9\01/4\4,V0.0.0\-PZO la33139 saoc,ssoo1/416$0.01 of Figaro with David Holloway, Be- 1,\NC,00k 401etr.CAA,Fk.dioc TENNESSEE nita Valente, Patricia Wells, and WpW Brent Ellis under the direction of SEWANEE SUMMER MUSIC CENTER. Se- Lotfi Mansouri; The Queen of Spades, wanee, June 18 -July 25. Martha directed by Vaclav Kaglik and de- FOURTH ANNUAL McCrory, music director. A student signed by Josef Svoboda, with Jon training program is augmented by Vickers, Teresa Kubiak, Allan Monk, chamber and orchestral concerts con- and Maureen Forrester; Le Comte WhItejviOuntainj ducted by Kenneth Moore, Richard D'Ory, directed by Carlo Maestrini, Burgin, and Wilfred Lehmann. Fac- with John Brecknock, Colette, Boky, 'Teitival of ilifArts ulty Artists include Marjorie Tyre, and Rosaline Elias. Also scheduled harp; William Bommelje, horn; Do- are concerts, recitals, chamber music, (w the grounds of Waumbek Village rothy Mauney, violin; David Harris, and children's shows. Jefferson, New Hampshire clarinet; Ernest Harrison, oboe; Aa- nix more than 31/2 hours drive from Boston ron Krosnick, violin, Mary Lou GUELPH STRING FESTIVAL. Guelph, or 7 hours from New York Krosnick, piano. Ontario, April 23 -May 9. Nicholas Goldschmidt, artistic director. Guest JULY2 -A LIG T 22, 1976 WYOMING artists include the Orford String Internationally known artists in a program Quartet, pianist Gina Bachauer,I GRAND TETON MUSIC FESTIVAL. Teton Musici, and Kryzsztof Penderecki of chamber works and concerts by the Village, July 22 -August 28. Ling conducting his own works. A produc- Festival Orchestra. Tung, music director. Cham-Ber tion of The Beggar's Opera is also Dennis Russell Davies,Music Director Huang will conduct a classical har- planned. Musical America's"Musician ofthe Month" monica seminar in conjunction with August 1975 other festival activities. The latter in- VICTORIA SUMMER FESTIVAL. Victoria, The Hartford Ballet Company clude chamber, symphonic, and con- B.C., July 24 -August 28. Laszlo Gati, in residence temporary music performances by artistic director. The festival will fea- guest and resident artists from major ture a production of Mozart's Abduc- Large outdoor Sculpture Exhibit U.S. orchestras, chamber groups, and tion from the Seraglio, six Gilbert and and Workshop university faculties. Sullivan operettas, and classical and Plus well-known jazz, folk and country artists contemporary concerts. Performing For information write: WESTERN ARTS MUSIC FESTIVAL. June will be the Four Seasons Musical White Mountains Center for the Arts 7 -July 9. David Tomatz and Werner Theatre Society, the festival orches- Post Office Box 145 Rose, co -directors. The schedule con- tra, and Ruggiero Ricci; there will sists of a composer's symposium (Ed- also be a youth music camp/opera Jefferson, New Hampshire 03583 gar Lewis, director); chamber music workshop. or call: (6o3) 586-4322

April 1976 MA -25 Ax, Fifer

Gaja, Mr. and Mrs. Wadsworth the musical whirl

Inrecognition ofhisservice toItalianmusic, Charles Wadsworth, artistic director of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, received the Order of Merit of the Italian Re- public from Ambassador Robert Gaja. Susan Wadsworth

looks on . . . Pianist Emanuel Ax and cellist Julian Fifer greet well-wishers backstage after a recent New York concert of the

Orpheus Chamber Ensemble . . . Mayor Wes C. Uhlman of Seattle and conductor Milton Katims of the Seattle Sym- phony celebrated Arthur Rubinstein Week last winter. Mayor Uhlman, Rubiistein, Katims

MA -26 HIGH FIDELITY / musical arrerica If you recognize these people, you will probably want to know where youcan study with them.

The Cleveland Quartet -Donald Weiler - The addition of the Cleveland Quartet to stein, Peter Salaff, Martha Strongin Katz, and Eastman's faculty strengthens the School's Paul Katz - will join the string faculty of the outstanding string and chamber music pro- University of Rochester's Eastman School of grams. Music in September. They have won inter- national acclaim as one of the greatest string quartets of our time. And they have acquired String Faculty a similarly distinguished reputation as skilled and dedicated teachers. Charles Castleman, violin(visiting 1975-76) The Cleveland Quartet was founded in John Celentano, chamber music 1969 at the Marlboro Music Festival. They Cleveland Quartet left the faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Donald Weilerstein, violin Music to succeed the Budapest String Quar- Peter Salaff, violin tet as artists -in -residence at the State Univer- sity of New York at Buffalo. As members cf Martha Strongin Ka:z, viola the Eastman artist faculty, members of :he Paul Katz, cello quartet will coach graduate and undergrad- Anastasis Jempel is, violin uatestringquartets andteachindividual Alan Harris, cello string students. Eileen Malone, harp A special competition will be held for Isidor Saslav, violin (visiting 1975-76) student string quartets later this spring. The Oliver Steiner, violin Eastman School has established special assist- Robert Sylvester, cello antships to be offered annually to a promising Millaro Taylor, violin graduate string quartet that will study with Francis Tursi, viola the Cleveland Quartet andassist them in Zvi Ze:tlin, violin their work at Eastman. Each member of the student quartet will receive a full tuition re- Oscar Zimmerman, double bass mission and a $2000. annual stipend. The competition,tobeheldatthe Eastman For further information and applications for School, is open to any string quartet whose the string quartet competition please write to: members qualify for graduate string study at Jon Engberg, Eastman in September. Assistant Director for Academic Affairs Furtherinformation concerning the quartet competition may be obtained from EASTMAN SCHOOL OF MUSIC Jon Engberg, assistant director for academic 26 Gibbs Street affairs. Rochester, New York 14604

April 1976 MA -27 tionin Warsaw, Poland last tariat of the Competition, Sha- November.... Violinist Yuval lom Tower, 5th Floor, P.O. Box Yaron, a student at Indiana 29404, Tel Aviv, Israel. University, has won the Si- belius Competition held in Hel- For information concerning sinki in December. the Singfest and Solo Competi- tion at the Fifth International Vivian Perlis, a member of the Music Festival "Youth and Mu- here & there sic in Vienna," write to the In- faculty at Yaie University's School of Music, has won the ternationalAssociationfor American Musicological So- CulturalExchange, A-1010 ciety's Otto Kinkeldey Award Wien, Schwedenplatz 2 /VII / for her book Charles Ives Re- 65, Austria.. . . Completed ap- General News more Opera.... N.Y. Philhar- membered-An Oral History, plications for the Martha Baird monic concertmasterEliot published in 1974 by the Yale Rockefeller Fund for Music's Salem College and the North Chapo will leave his post in University Press.... Vice Pres- west coast auditions are due Carolina School of the Arts co- September to become concert- ident Nelson Rockefeller has byApril19.Professional sponsored a composers sym- master of the Dallas Sym- won the 1975 American Com- soloists (instrumental and vo- posium in January, funded by phony. posers Alliance Laurel Leaf cal) between the ages of a $2500 grant from the Z. Award for his service to Ameri- twenty and thirty-five in need Smith Reynolds Foundation. Gina Bachauer is the chair- can music, specifically through of financial assistance are eli- The program was designed to person of the judges for the his inauguration of the N.Y. gible. Write to the Fund at 1 "put the community in touch American Music Scholarship State Council on the Arts. Rockefeller Plaza, Room 3315, with the contemporary musi- Association's annual piano New York, N.Y. 10020. cal scene." ... The University competition, taking place in ofCincinnatiCollege -Con- April and May.... Composer/ The Prix Francis Salabert has Scores for submission to the servatory of Music's Congress pianist Jack Reilly has joined been won by American com- New Music for Young En- ofStrings(international the faculty of the Mannes Col- poser Frank W. Becker for his sembles' Composers' Compe- study/performance program) lege of Music. orchestral work. Pheliapadeia. tition for Intermediate Music has received a $30,000 grant His prize is $4,500 and publi- are due by April 30. For infor- from the Dorothy Richard Star- Robert Bailey is the new man- cation by Editions Salabert. mation, writeClaireRosen- ling Foundation.... The Mobil ager of Western Opera The- ... The American Music Cen- garten, NMFYE, 490 West Foundation awarded a grant of ater. He was formerly director ter awarded their Letter of Dis- End Avenue, New York, N.Y. $5,000 to the Michigan Opera of cultural programing for Na- tinction Award to Aaron Cop- 10024.... For information re-

Theatre for the company's pro- tional Public Radio. . .. Tony land and Otto Luening for their garding the Henryk Wie- duction of Lucia di Lammer- H. Dechario, acting manager contributions to American mu- niawski International Compos- moor. of the Rochester Philharmonic sic.... Charles Wadsworth, ar- ers Competition, held June since June, has been named tistic director of The Chamber through November, write Ed- The American Symphony Or- general manager of the or- Music Society of Lincoln Cen- mund Grabkowski,61-781 chestra League will hold its an- chestra. He was formerly per- ter, has received the title of Poznari-Poland, ul.Wodna 27. "Cavaliere Ufficiale" in the Or- nual conference in Boston, sonnel manager. . ..The International Piano June 7-12. The subject to be der of Merit of the Italian Re- Competition for Contemporary discussedis "Symphony Or- Abraham Chavez has been ap- public for his service to Italian Musicis open to pianists chestras-the Next 200 pointed music director of the music and musicians. thirty-three and under as of

Years." . . . James Drew's El Paso Symphony. Mr. Chavez July 5, 1976. Deadline for en- Saint Mark Concerto, commis- was head of the string depart- Competitions try is May 31. For information sioned by Brazilian cellist Aldo ment at the University of Colo- write to La Recherche Artis-

Parisot and the Polish Govern- rado's College of Music. . . . Instrumentalists twenty-eight tique, 104, rue de la Tour, ment, received its premiere on Dominique -Rene de Lerma, and under and singers thirty 75016 Paris. March 5 by the Warsaw Phil- founder of Black music re- and under are eligible for the harmonic in Warsaw. search projects at Indiana Uni- RossannaM.Enlow Young Obituaries versity and chief consultant to Artists Awards Competition. The first Elounda Beach Festi- Columbia Record's Black Com- For information, address the David M. Keiser, one-time N.Y. val will take place July 8-17 on posers Series, has been ap- competition c/oEvansville Philharmonic Symphony So- the island of Crete. The festi- pointed professor of music at Philharmonic Orchestra, P.O. ciety president and board val's music director is Adrian Morgan State University. . . . Box 84,Evansville,Indiana chairmanoftheJuilliard Sunshine, and the schedule in- Former mayor of New York 47701. Deadline is April 12. School, died on November 26. cludes opera, concert,jazz, City, John V. Lindsay, has He was sixty-nine. ... Justine and folk performances. . been named chairman of the The University of Maryland In- Bayard Cutting Ward, who This year's Bayreuth Wagner board of directors of the Rich- ternationalPianoFestival created the Ward method of Festival, to take place in Au- ard Tucker Music Foundation. Competition is open to pianists teaching music, died at age gust, will include courses for between the ages of sixteen ninety-six on November 27. young musicians in Wagnerian Awards and thirty. Tapes are due by Composer Bernard Herrmann opera, orchestra, and dance. May 1. For information, write died on December 24 at the

Norwalk (Connecticut) Sym- to Dr. Stewart L. Gordon, Mu- age of sixty-four. . . . Clari- Appointments phony music director Gilbert sic Department, University of netist Robert E. McGinnis died Levine is the first American to Maryland, College Park, Mary- on January 1. He was sixty- General director of the Santa win a top award in the Inter- land 20742. ... The Second five.... Pianist/vocal coach Fe Opera, John Crosby, has national Karajan Competition, ArthurRubinsteinInter- Otto Herz died at the age of been elected president of Op- held in Berlin last October.. .. national Piano Master Compe- eighty-one on January 5. .. . era America, the association of Twenty -three -year -old Dean tition will be held in April of Lorraine Franks, a founding di- professional North American Kramer of Cherry Hill, New Jer- 1977. Applications must be rector of the Boston Opera opera companies. He succeeds sey, won a Bronze Medal at the filed by December 1, 1976. For Guild died on January 6. She Robert Collinge of the Balti- International Chopin Competi- information, write the Secre- was fifty-eight.

MA -28 HIGH FIDELITY /musical america For 104years we'vebeen serious about people who make music.

Roger Voisin conducts members of the wind ensemble.

In 1872 Boston University established the first professional music program within an American university to train creative and talented students for careers in music. 104 years later the Boston University School of Music is still doing what it does best. Our distinguished artist faculty perform, teach, and inspire students to produce their musical best. The broad -based curriculum of a superior university offers a complete educational experience. If you plan to spend your life in music - join us. Performance Music Education History and Literature Theory and Composition strings percussion theory and composition Walter Eisenberg, violin 'Thomas Gauger David Camey Gerald Gelbloom, violin 'Charles Smith David Del Tredici Bernard Kadinoff, viola harp John Goodman Endel Kalam, chamber music Lucile Lawrence Ethan Haimo Robert Karol, viola Alan MacMillan Alfred Krips, violin piano Joyce Mekeel Eugene Lehner, chamber music Maria Clodes Malloy Miller Leslie Martin, string bass Anthony di Bonaventura Gardner Read George Neikrug, cello Lenore Engdahl Allen Schindler Mischa Nieland, cello Bela Biiszormenyi-Nagy Tison Street Leslie Pamas, cello Phillip Oliver, staff accompanist Henry Portnoi, string bass Leonard Shure music education Jerome Rosen, violin Edith Stearns Lee Chrisman Fredrik Wanger Gary Hedrick Kenneth Sarch, violin Allen Lannom Alfred Schneider, violin organ Jack 0. Lemons Roger Shermont, violin George Faxon Mary Ann Norton Joseph Silverstein, violin jack Fisher Roman Totenberg, violin Max Miller musical organizations Walter Trampler, viola Adelaide Bishop, opera Max Winder, violin harpsichord Warren Wilson, opera Lawrence Wolfe, string bass Joseph Payne Joseph Huszti, chorus woodwinds voice Joseph Silverstein, orchestra Edward Avedisian, clarinet Eunice Alberts, contralto Jerome Rosen, repertoire orchestra Pasquale Cardillo, clarinet Germaine Arosa, diction ' Roger Voisin, wind ensemble Gino Cioffi, clarinet Mary Davenport, contralto boston symphony orchestra Doriot Anthony Dwyer, flute Terry Decima, vocal coaching woodwind quintet in residence Roderick Ferland, saxophone Ellalou Dimmock, soprano Donor Anthony Dwyer, flute Ralph Gomberg, oboe Maeda Freeman, mezzo 'Ralph Gomberg, oboe John Holmes, oboe Robert Gartside, tenor 'Harold Wright, clarinet Phillip Kaplan, flute Mac Morgan, baritone Sherman Walt, bassoon Chloe Owen, soprano 'Charles Kavaloski, French horn James Pappoutsakis, flute Allen Rogers, vocal coaching Richard Plaster, bassoon empire brass quintet Matthew Ruggiero, bassoon Barbara Stevenson, soprano Wilma Thompson, mezzo in residence Felix Viscuglia, clarinet Charles A. Lewis, Jr., trumpet 'Sherman Walt, bassoon music history and literature 'Rolf Smedvig, trumpet 'Harold Wright, clarinet Karol Berger 'David Ohanian, French horn brass Murray Lefkowitz Norman Bolter, trombone Ronald Barron, trombone Stephanie Schaffhausen Samuel Pilafian, tuba Joel Sheveloff Peter Chapman, trumpet Member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra John Coffey, trombone ituba Armando Ghitalla, trumpet Paul Gay, trombone 'Gordon Hallberg, trombone/tuba Boston University Charles Kavaloski, French horn Charles A. Lewis, Jr. trumpet 'David Ohanian, French horn School of MusicWilbur D. Fullbright, Director Samuel Pilafian, tuba offering degrees at the bachelor. master. and doctoral levels. Rolf Smedvig, trumpet Harry Shapiro, French horn School for the Arts: Music, Theatre, Visual Arts Roger Voisin, trumpet Norman Dello loio, Dean Charles Yancich, French horn 855 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02215

April 1976 MA -29 Gwyneth Jones, John Mauceri, and the crack ensemble David Stivender has somehow created from personnel who look but certainly do not sound like the tatterdemalion stragglers of the old Metropolitan Opera Chorus. Never have I heard the last scene sung so well, with so crisp an attack or so clarified an intertwining of the vo- cal lines-always the sign that every- body is really singing on pitch. The last scene, especially if one stretched it back to include the Leon- ora No. 3 played during the scene change, also brought the best work of the evening from Mauceri. Like most of the performance, it was conducted as though from one of those old Longmans, Green scores that printed little arrows to tell the unpracticed reader what to look for next; but here, as in the beautifully realized first -act canon, the simplified ap- Cornell MacNeil as Gianni Schicchi proach heightened the emotional content. It is no criticism of the very young conductor to say that he does not yet possess the musical culture THE METROPOLITAN OPERA that can place into their historical and literary context "Komm, Hoff- nung," or the Prisoners' Chorus or II Trittico Even more damaging was the uni- "Gott, welch dunkel hier!" In all three, diomatic conducting of Sixten Ehr- moreover, he had to wrestle against The addition of II Tabarro and Suor ling, who showed little affinity for fierce opposition-sour playing Angelica to the Met's already existing Puccini's full-blooded style and al- through the first act by the wind sec- production of Gianni Schicchi gives most refined it out of existence. Un- tion of the orchestra (especially the New Yorkers the rare opportunity of fortunately, none of the casting was insufferably nasal oboes and a per- hearing a completeTrittico,three brilliant enough to overcome these functory flutist); the unfortunate set works which, though utterly different drawbacks. In Tabarro Cornell Mac- and the busy staging of the emerging in character, make an uncommonly Neil (Michele), though he enun- prisoners; and Jess Thomas' inabil- satisfying evening of musical theater. ciated the text intelligently, cut a ity to make a forceful sound of any The oppressive melodrama of Tabarro rather stolid figure. As Giorgetta, Te- sort as Florestan. serves as an apt prologue to the spiri- resa Kubiak lacked temperament. It would be untrue to say that one tual exaltation of Suor Angelica, and Harry Theyard sang Luigi. In the did not miss Leonard Bernstein, who that in turn provides an effective foil title role of Suor Angelica Gilda Cruz- backed out on this production for forthe invigorating earthiness of Romo acted fervently, but was un- reasons that have not been given (the Gianni Schicchi. dermined, especially in her final, ec- official explanations are unworthy of More's the pity, then, that the static scene, by an unevenly produced report). The hysterical excitement Met's new productions-like Gianni top register. Lili Chookasian's Princi- Bernstein brought to "0 namenlose Schicchi, directed by Fabrizio Melano pessa (like her Frugola in Tabarro) was Freude" in his Vienna performance of and designed by David Reppa-do roughly sung. five years ago was something Mauc- not do better justice to Puccini's vivid In Gianni Schicchi the title role was eri could not even approach, and sense of drama. Il Tabaroo is so eco- taken for the first time at the Met by there were in Vienna felicities of nomical that unless the leading char- Cornell MacNeil, who again handled phrasinginthe Mozart -likefirst acters are established swiftly and the text effectively but did not evince numbers and the Rocco-Leonore graphically they remain, as they did much gift for comedy. Evelyn Man- duet that Bernstein alone has on this occasion, cyphers. And Suor dac, in her Met debut, was a sweet, achieved in my hearing. Still, every- Angelica needs a sense of conviction slender -voiced Lauretta. DALE HARRIS thing at the Met was crisp, orderly hardly to be found at the Met, where and rhythmically alive-and Mauc- the Principessa, for example, did little Fidelio eri's was one of the few performances more than hold her nose in the air I have heard (Bernstein's was an- and look mean. Moreover, the elimi- An uneven but rewarding perform- other) that justified the "tradition" of nation of Angelica's redemptive vi- ance of Beethoven's unique theater the inserted Leonora No. 3. (This cus- sion violated Puccini's intentions and piece provided the occasion (on Janu- tom apparently dates back to the robbed the opera of its true climax. ary 7) for considerable triumphs by Continued on page MA -32

MA -30 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america SUMMER MUSIC UNIVERSITY OF SCHOOL OF MUSIC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 1976

WORKSHOPS SIX WEEK COURSES JUNE 14 - JULY 23

Master Class of Phyllis Curtin and Choral Literature Ryan EdwardsJune 14 - June 25 Choral Development Church Music Administration Robert Shaw WorkshopJuly 26 - August 10 Choral and Instrumental Conducting Performances of Berlioz and Verdi Requiem Fundamentals of Music Masses in Hollywood Bowl with the Teaching Music to General College Students Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra Music Education Foundations Marcel Couraud Choral Conductors Teaching Basic Music Classes in College WorkshopJune 28 - July 9 Study and Performance of Music Printed in Avant -Garde Choral Music in Europe the United States Prior to the Civil War Since 1968 Music of the Middle Ages String Quartets of Mozart Performance of the Piano Music of Music of Mahler SchoenbergLeonard Stein, Instructor Seminar in Musicology July 12 - July 23 Beginning Guitar Guitar Education WorkshopDuke Miller, Electronic Synthesizer Techniques InstructorJune 14 - June 25 Recording Arts Workshop Theory Review Elementary Music Education of Our Time Analytical Techniques and Counter- Kodaly Approach to Music Education point Review Katinka Scipiades Daniel, Instructor Orchestration June 21 - July 2 Vocal and Instrumental Private Instruction Creative Approach to Child Development through Music, Language and Movement Faculty: Peter Bergren, William Biersach, Grace Nash, Instructor.July 5 - July 16 Marius Flothuis, James Hanshumaker, Morten Lauridsen, Duke Miller, Orff-SchulwerkJos Wuytack, Instructor William Schaefer, William Triplett, July 19 - July 30 James Vail, Anthony Vazzana, Glenn Wilcox, Richard Wingell Comprehensive Musicianship through Instrumental Ensemble RehearsalsJay Zcrn, InstructorAugust 2 - August 13 For information on workshops and course offerings write: Instrument Repair Workshops Howard R. Rarig, Director Woodwinds & StringsAugust 2 - August 6 School of Music BrassAugust 9 - August 13 University of Southern California Los Angeles, California 90007

UNIVERSITY OF SCHOOL OF MUSIC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

April 1976 M.\ puts her in a class with Callas. She from the two newcomers, both can also stand still on stage to greater equipped with Wagner -scaled dra- effect than anyone since Callas. Some matic soprano voices. In the title role of the roles Miss Jones has attempted Miss Schroeder-Feinen applied craft in my hearing she cannot sing at all and great intelligence to the wealth of (the Verdi heroines, which demand vehement, almost brutal music that delicate work in the mezza voce at the Richard Strauss has given her. The top of the staff, are the worst prob- voice is remarkably even for a dra- lems); but Leonore she can sing, miss- matic soprano of this type, free of the ing no more than a note here and register -breaks so often generated by there, and her personal and vocal the demands made by a hochdramma- beauty, with the power of her projec- lathe career. The top notes are thrill- tion, make her incomparably effec- ing, and accurate too. tive as the lady of Beethoven's as well This was Roberta Knie's house de- as Florestan's dreams. but, a notable event because this Except for Donald McIntyre as young lady from Cordell, Oklahoma Pizzaro, who barked and was for is destined for important things in the some reason made up to look scruffy next few seasons. She has been chosen rather than dandified, the rest of the to sing all three Brunnhildes in the cast was no less than excellent. Judith centenary Ring at Bayreuth this sum- Blegen was an impeccable Marzelline mer. As Chrysothemis, the weaker (and she acts supremely well in Otto "conforming" sister of the Mycenae Schenk's conceptions); but Mauceri household, she might have chosen to failed to realize how much of her emphasize the more lyric, legato, as- voice can be swallowed by horns and pects of the score; instead she poured clarinets if the conductor is not care- out her lines at great volume in what ful. Kenneth Riegel and James Mor- seemed like an attempt to match the riswere luxuriously overqualified thrust of Miss Schroeder-Feinen. This both vocally and dramatically for led to needless strain. Jacquino and Don Fernando; and Unhappily, both sopranos are John Macurdy got all there is out of deficient in the acting department, a the rather confused character of shortcoming more readily concealed Rocco while forming a secure foun- in the role of Elektra-who can get by dation for the vocal ensembles. with some crouching and sprawling- The audience, which had been than in the characterization of the decorously attentive but not much gentler sister. Miss Knie's attempts to more through the first three-quarters convey femininity take the form of of the evening, came to life for Mauc- constant wriggling and a series of eri's rousing rendition of Leonora No. fussy little hand gestures of the la-di- 3, which also marked a turning point da variety. This was merely distract- in orchestral execution, then gave the ing, when it was not irritating; and it finale a rousing send-off and Miss will not be permitted at Bayreuth, Jones in her curtain calls a heroine's where singers are taught to stand rock ovation. They may have come to still unless there is a compelling dra- strike a blow for civilization, but they matic reason to move. One simple re- seemed to care about music, too. sult of this policy is that every bit of MARTIN MAYER motion on stage takes on a clear sig- nificance. Another is that thespian Ursula Schroeder-Feinen Elektra deficiences are effectively concealed. Astrid Varnay doesn't sing very Three powerful ladies shared well these days but her work on stage turn of the century, when Roller de- domination of the Metropolitan Op- remains a lesson in the craft: her por- signed a set that took a long time to era stage at the matinee Elektra of trayal of the nightmare -ridden change, and Mahler found a way to January 10, when Ursula Schroeder- mother is consummate. There are ad- fill the time.) Feinen and Roberta Knie were cast equate performances from William Gwyneth Jones was Bernstein's as the sisters, joining Astrid Varnay's Dooley (Orestes) and Robert Nagy Leonore in Vienna, and was cast for Klytemnestra. This is a formidable (Aegisthus). The sum of these virtues the role in New York at his insistence; team of singers, a fact that occurred and failings does not make for a uni- and bless him for it. She is an artist of to Lorin Maazel two years ago when fied,committedpresentationof great-and to me very moving-in- he offered the same trio of leads in a Elektra, though that is what the work tensity, with a large voice that gets notable Cleveland Orchestra concert needs. Conductor Heinrich Hollreiser more effective as it gets louder. She is performance of the Strauss shocker at conducts skillfully, cannily, but does a great gambler, and when she loses, a Carnegie Hall. not convey a clearcut personal con- tone-deaf listener can hear it; that There was a wealth of big singing ception of the opera.cEoRcE MOVSHON

MA -32 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america Reviewing in this issue: MARK BLECHNER ROBERT LAWRENCE RONALD J. RANALLO ARTHUR SATZ BRUCE SAYLOR HEUWELL TIRCUIT debuts & reappearances

The third section brilliantly juxta- and durable musical structure, not a NEW YORK poses scurrying, somewhat hysterical string of effects. Air Music left its mark figures in the highest registers of the on the memory of this listener. B.S. Cincinnati Sym.: Rorem premiere woodwinds, upper strings, and piano with a low, slow melody in the bass. Contamporary Chamber Ensemble Ned Rorem's Air Music is a big, This melody reaches a midpoint, bold set of ten etudes for orchestra then doubles back on itself in retro- Perhaps the greatest perplexity of which shows not only the imagina- grade. modern music lies in the sheer diver- tion and skill of this established com- In the last section, the big, sweep- sity of styles vying for our attention. poser, but also demonstrates effec- ing melody heard earlier goes A number of those styles were repre- tively and intelligently a way to through almost programmatic vi- sented on the November 30 Tully integrate the musical languages of cissitudes, climbing into the high vio- Hall program performed by the Con- the 1960s and '70s into one's own mu- lins. It then plunges back into the temporary Chamber Ensemble, and sical style. bass and dies away. While some the ordering of works was such as to Air Music, written in1974, was avant gardists might make similar suggest new dimensions being added commissioned by Thomas Schippers sonic gestures into worn-out, aleato- with each succeeding piece. George for the Cincinnati Symphony, which ric tricks, Rorem molds every detail Rochberg's lightly -textured Serenata gave the twenty -five-minute work its of pitch and rhythm into a coherent D'Estate (1955), a piece involving no New York premiere in Carnegie Hall on December 11. This splendid en- semble, assisted by four fine soloists and the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus, also offered a virtuoso per- formance of Rossini's Stabat Mater. Schippers opened the program with UNIVERSITY of MARYLAND Smetana's "Sarka" from Ma Vlast. Rorem's score was the highlight of INTERNATIONAL PIANO FESTIVAL the evening. Each of its ten discrete parts employs some particular or- and COMPETITION chestral gesture which focuses on various instrumental groupings. The August 5-12, 1976 first section, for full orchestra, intro- duces a series of dense chords which Aldo Ciccolini Adele Marcus seem to provide the harmonic back- Walter Klein Ruth Slenczynska ground for the rest of the piece. The Tamas Vasary Jeanne -Marie Darre second section expands the chords horizontally by assigning the notes to concerts-masterclasses-lectures variousinstrumentsin off -beat rhythms. Each similar gesture high- Information: Dr. Stewart Gordon lights a central pitch, then winds Dept. of Music; U. of Md. down quickly like a top. This alter- College Park, Md. 20742 (301) 454-2501 nates with sustained string music with the solo violin making a melody out of the highlighted pitches.

April 1976 MA -33 percussion, was followed by Chou ers-International Society of Contem- ideas. Wen Chung's Yiin (1968), a piece porary Music Concerts opened its The program featured works by whose extensive percussion writing 1975-76 series at Carnegie Recital two "old masters" as well: Webern's demands the services of two players. Hall on December 18 by introducing Quartet for Violin, Clarinet, Tenor A vocal dimension was introduced in two impressive new vocal works by Saxophone, and Piano, Op. 22 (1930), Harrison Birtwistle's Nenia: The Death the young composers James Dashow and Wolpe's Quartet for Trumpet, of Orpheus; and the wholly oth- and Eleanor Cory. The program, led Tenor Saxophone, Piano, and Per- erworldly dimension that electronic by Daniel Shulman conducting his cussion (1950-54). Both were given tape can suggest was heard in the fol- Light Fantastic Players, also included stunning performances by conductor lowing piece, Allan Schindler's Cirrus, works by Judith Shatin, Anton We- Daniel Shulman and the distin- and Beyond. Only in the evening's final bern, and Stefan Wolpe. guished group of young twentieth- selection, Salvatore Martirano's Oc- The ISCM has a long and vener- century music specialists.League- tet, was there a reversion to the rela- able history. It was founded in 1921 ISCM is to be commended for tive modesty of the program's in Europe and under its auspices pre- presenting new music by young com- opener; there was a sense, too, of ev- miered major works by Schoenberg, posers against a background of mas- erything's coming full circle, inas- Berg, Webern,Stravinsky, terworks from their own century.s.s. much as Martirano's piece, like and Bartok, as well as hundreds of Rochberg's, is a serial work that has other composers. The American Sacred Music Society of America: achieved something of repertory branch seems to have had its ups and Massenet's "Marie-Magdeleine" status. downs. But in 1954 it merged with Jan DeGaetani, darling of the the old League of Composers and in The early works of composers who modern music mandarins, was the recent years has broadened its activi- have gone on to lasting distinction in soloist in Nenia, which is actually a ties to include such ambitious proj- other styles have a certain claim to re- portion of Birtwistle's work -in -prog- ects as hosting the ISCM festival in hearing, if only for the purpose of tak- ress, an opera involving the Orpheus Boston in October of 1976, and hold- ing historical stock. Massenet's ora- theme. In its current state, the piece is ing annual composition competi- torio, Marie-Magdeleine, which a declamatory lament, accompanied tions. marked his first burst of popularity, is by three bass clarinets, piano, and James Dashow's Some Dream Songs that kind of score. Preceding all but percussion, and involves the (by now) (1974-75) for soprano, violin, and pi- two of his operas, it had its premiere customary spectrum lying between ano is an original, convincing, half at the Odeon, in Paris, on Good Fri- speaking and singing. "A study in funny -half sad work set to poetry by day 1873, and contains very little of inarticulacy/articulacy" is how the the late John Berryman. This is a dra- what we should call today the Masse- program notes describeitsintent; matic rather than lyrical setting. The net idiom. Even so, a work of this type and that is evidenced in Nenia's most text is sung, half -sung, or spoken in commends itself to reexamination striking vocal device-singing a sus- speech rhythms which, in themselves, about once every half -century, and tained wordless tone, then, without a often seem to suggest musical ideas. the revival of Marie-Magdeleine by the break, barking out the words. One The violin and piano parts balance newly established Sacred Music has heard, in Luciano Berio, music of the rapidly declaimed vocal line in Society of America on January 7 at a similar nature; yet Birtwistle gives pointillistic and intervallicallyre- Avery Fisher Hall served a useful it his own unique, intriguing slant. lated gestures. That Dashow's piece purpose. Miss DeGaetani, as always, handled made such a strong impression must To all who have traced the devel- her assignment most persuasively. in large measure be due to the superb opment of this composer, it should be Yiin is its composer's attempt at a performance by soprano Joan Logue. clear that he courted two manners, piece capable of performance by a She is a rare singer who can act and not with the same skill or intensity: group of nonprofessional standing- ennunciate effectively with her voice. the grandiose (of which Hirodiade, Le hence the winds and brass are given Eleanor Cory's Waking (1974) also Cid, and Esclarmonde are the best considerable sustainedtextures; received a convincing performance known examples), and the lyric maybe that very simplicity helps by soprano Janet Steele and the ten (crowned by Manon, along with the evoke the work's sense of rapt mystic- instrumentalists. Cory's twenty -min- more intimate Werther, Thais, Le Jong- ism. If Schindler's piece, coming late ute setting of Muriel Rukeyser's leur de Notre Dame, Thirise, Don Qui- in the evening, failed wholly to in- "This Morning" is a gutsy, violent chotte).I should add to the latter volve, perhaps it was more the fault piece which emphasizes dense sono- group those two taut but haunting of conductor Arthur Weisberg in rities and constantly changing "veristic" operas: La Navarraise and making such continual heavy de- moods. The slow unfolding of the Sapho. Marie-Magdeleine, with its big mands on the listener's attention. opening harmony and its reoccur- apparatus (the Crucifixion, no less), Somehow, if contemporary chamber rence toward the end were among the belongs to the first, more ambitious music programs are to be a viable au- work's most impressive moments. style. dience -attracting proposition, some Judith Shatin's Quatrain (1975) for Many of us who labor in the Mas- element of the light -spirited must be two strings and two clarinets is con- senet vineyard cling to a preference allowed to leaven the proceedings.j.H. ceivedharmonically, arefreshing for the composer as lyricist. When he trend among young composers today. strove for the monumental, he was in- League-ISCM Concerts While pitch material was clearly and clined to stretch his slender (in the lyrically defined, the piece was per- most affecting and fragile sense) re- TheLeagueofCompos- haps too long to justify its linear sources. Occasionally, epic ideas MA-34 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america would come forcefully. But on the having to compete with an unbidden thems. A didactic evening coming up, whole it was in his elegant treatment thickness of texture in the orchestral or so it seemed. of tender relationships, their foibles accompaniment, Sheila Nadler as In reality, an evening full of unex- and pathos, that Massenet-like the Martha and Joseph Rouleau as pected pleasures. The music bursting great genre painters-ranked as mas- Judas were driven at times to force with energy and vigor, sounding just ter. their naturally attractive voices. different enough from its European Marie-Magdeleine, sometimes poetic, Louis Roney, the Jesus, sang ably. counterparts to suggest the eigh- more often ponderous and, in the fi- One of the features of the evening teenth century presence of an inde- nal section of the Crucifixion, too was an excellently prepared chorus. pendent artistic spirit to parallel the heavily scored (the future dean of The orchestra, not well fused, im- political spirit which culminated in transparent instrumentation would pressed less favorably. And there was revolution. And performances by never again fall into such exagger- the organist, Daniel Roth, on hand to Gregg Smith's twenty -voice ensemble ated conics), does not represent the make swirling sounds in the finale. which expressed the strength and composer in a sustained or ultimately Anthony Morss' conducting was conviction of composers who wrote of convincing mood. And yet this work given to despatch and severity. R.L. faith in God, patriotic fervor, and the did prove worth reviving, if only for bonds of friendship. Indeed, a better the privilege afforded New York mu- trained, more responsive vocal group sic lovers of hearing Regine Crespin Gregg Smith: "America Sings" than Mr. Smith's would be hard to in the pages originally sung by Paul- find. Whether singing in unison or in ine Viardot. It is hard to imagine that On paper, it looked musicological. parts, as an ensemble or in carefully that famous diva, at the premiere, Five concerts, collectively called paired solo voices, they never once fell could have brought more insight "America Sings." The first, on Janu- into the many traps which the music than did Mme. Crespin on January 7. ary 7 at Hunter College Playhouse, laid for them-over-heartiness, over - Singing bravely over a serious indis- was to be devoted to "The Founding sentimentality, over -emphasis on the position,Mme.Crespinoffered Years (1620-1800)," beginning with charming naivete of the harmonies sounds that were ravishing. And this psalms from the Ainsworth and Bay and the word painting. performer has never looked more Psalters, and concluding with patri- It was, in fact, the kind of perform- beautiful. She is a great star, mov- otic songs of the American Revolu- ance which made one sit up in admi- ingly at the disposal of her art. tion. Hymns by William Billings and ration at the audacity of these colo- The rest of the cast never fell below Justin Morgan; songs by Francis nial composers and their skill in a capable standard-although, in Hopkinson; fuguing tunes and an- reworking Renaissance and classical JONES FRUIT INC. P. 0. BOX 731 ALAMO. TX 78516 512-787-0498 DAY OR NITE

DOES MONEY GROW ON TREES? Of Course Not, but let me show you the next best thing to a Money Tree! A TEXAS CITRUS FUND RAISING PROGRAM

CALL COLLECT, DAY OR NITE FOR DETAILS

April 1976 SYRACUSE

Syracuse Sym.: Rochberg prem.

Phaedra, a monodrama in seven scenes for mezzo-soprano and orches- tra, received its world premiere by the Syracuse Symphony on January 9 at Lincoln Auditorium. The work was commissioned of George Rochberg by the New Music Ensemble of Syr- acuse with the assistance of the New York State Council on the Arts. Soloist for this performance was Neva Pilgrim, and the orchestra was under the musical direction of assistant con- ductor David Loebel. Today's Rochberg is a far different man from the young composer who The Gregg Smith Singers-unexpected pleasures achieved his reputation and musical successes as a serialist. Gradually, forms in their own direct, unselfcon- marked by its diversity. The sweet- since the middle Sixties, Rochberg scious manner. At this printing, there ness of modal hymnody and simple has been embracing tonalism. In so are four more concerts coming up- textures of the three slow movements doing, he has attained a new and they certainly deserve a large audi- (one, three, and five) are matched by fresh level of craftsmanship, produc- ence. A. S. the nearly serial scherzo and a furious ing works of stature and elegance that outburst in the fourth movement that are truly contemporary yet unde- comes close to the heroic stances of niably Rochberg. Phaedra is strong OAKLAND the late Carl Ruggles. Very dissonant and forceful. The composer has relied textures coexist beside movements as heavily upon a simple and straight- mild as butter. Yet the subtlety of forward formal organization, thereby Oakland Sym. Youth Orchestra: Harrison's craft is such that one never creating an uncluttered work that is Harrison's "Elegiac Symphony" feels jarred by these contrasts. As a both appealing and accessible to a personal tribute to Serge Kous- wide and diverse audience. (It was en- Lou Harrison has taken a major sevitsky, who was a double bass vir- thusiastically received on this occa- step in his new Elegiac Symphony, pre- tuoso in his youth, Harrison uses two sion.) The text was provided by Gene miered by the Oakland Symphony solo basses in his third movement. Rochberg, wife of the composer. Youth Orchestra under Denis de They play distant echo effects be- Skillfully wrought, it is a free adap- Coteau on December 7. Commis- tween orchestral phrases, all in har- tation of Racine's translation of the sioned by the Koussevitsky Founda- monics. A wonderfully touching ef- classical myth. tion, the thirty -five-minute piece fect suggesting fanfares heard from a The vocal demands are manifold, has all the hallmarks of a potential great distance. There are also bits of and soloist Neva Pilgrim is to be com- repertory item. Indeed, the premiere orientalia along the way, gathered mended for an admirable perform- drew applause after four of its five from Harrison's terse textures and ance. It is remarkable that Rochberg movements and the finale had to be from the inclusion of a small gamelan was able to sustain a secure lyricism repeated as an encore. For a new sym- group: piano, tack piano, two harps, while maintaining a wide-ranging, phony, that constitutes a kind of hole small organ, bells, and celesta. Prima- angular melodic structure. The lis- in one. With such a reception, itis rily, however, the scoring is for the ex- tener does, however, become a bit surprising to note that the work dis- pected triple -wind orchestration. inured to the drama of the device in regards Germanic symphonic tradi- The Oakland Symphony Youth the third scene, when there is little or- tions. If anything, the structural free- Orchestra, comprised largely of high chestral diversion. Also, on occasion, dom of movements and textural schoolstudents, performedsplen- when the mezzo is treacherously low variety hints at the multiple -move- didly. Yet no professional ensemble in her range, Rochberg chooses to ment works of Olivier Messiaen. So need relax its standards when ap- employ a full and rich orchestration, do the titles. Movements one and proaching this work. Elegiac Symphony covering the vocal line. Greater sensi- three, both slow, are called "Tears of came across as a serious, eloquent tivity to dynamics in those instances the Angel Israfel." The second move- piece of grave but never morose dig- by Loebel might have helped. ment, a contrapuntal scherzo, is nity. On the strength of its immediate The Syracuse Symphony played merely marked by tempo (Allegro, success here, the San Jose Symphony well in this work, and in Lukas Foss's poco presto), the fourth "Praises for will present it again this season, as BaroqueVariations. The ensemble Michael the Archangel," and the part of that orchestra's Bicentennial should soon be occupying a well -de- finale "The Sweetness of Epicuruc." observance. It is a work worthy of served niche on the national and in- Stylistically, Elegiac Symphony is such exposure. H.T. ternational music scene. R.J.R. MA -36 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america ARTIST LIFE October 21." A pause, then he went Continued from page MA5 on. "It will be staged by Tom AstonMagna O'Horgan." He relished our surprise. Foundation For MUSiC it! They are destroying, polluting ev- He felt what we were thinking ... All:ert Fuller, Artistic Director tr, erything, cutting down all the forests. Hair, Lenny, Jesus Christ Superstar. He Soon they will use up all the oxygen said: "Yes,Jesus Christ Superstar! I saw Presents in the world." it. That decided me. And thenI "If I were not a conductor I would found O'Horgan a most knowl- FIVE WEEKEND CONCERTS OF probably write for the theater," he edgeable person musically." He 17th and 18th CENTURY MUSIC said. He once wrote a one -act play. smiled a wide, wise smile. He was ob- "It was never produced. It was in- viously looking forward to that open- June 26-27 spired by Shaw's Don Juan in Hell, sort ing night when the American avant- July 3-4 (Special Bicentennial Concert) of a parody of it.It took place in garde, in the Trojan wooden horse, July 10-11 1991. Famous people-political, the- would invade the walled tradition of July 17-18 atrical, religious-meet in limbo and the Vienna Opera. July 24-25 discuss ideas and match their wits." in He talked about opera. He would And this is what they said Great Barrington, Massachusetts like the educational system revamped to encompass the opera experience. At the Met dress rehearsal of Puc- Artists: Arico, Bogard, Bressler, Cor- rado,Fuller, Hendricks, Hsu, He would like to see a school for op- cini's Trittico, Gilda Cruz-Romo was Krainis, Ritchie,Schroeder, era administration and a school in ev- sitting in front of us. She was watch- Solum and others. ing 11 Tabarro, which preceded the ery opera house to train young sing- For ticket information, write: ers, conductors, stage directors. He convent -set Suor Angelica in which she thinks opera, ideally, should pay for sang the title role. Robert Merrill itself: make its own recordings, have came down the aisle, stopped to greet AstonMagna its own TV station, produce and pub- the Mexican soprano. Cruz-Romo, Foundation For Music lish income -making pop works as well giving him a welcoming embrace, Box M, 27 West 67 Street as serious music. said: "You know, Bob, we need very New York, NY 10023 He was a hard task -master, we had much a boy in the convent!" heard. He said: "Artists like to work Frederica (known as Flicka) von under competent people. I never have Stade talked with Rise Stevens at a had discussions with major artists." Met "Preview" at List Hall before the SEWANEE He emphasized the word major. new production of Nozze di Figaro SUMMER MUSIC CENTER A visitor arrived. It was manager in which she sings an enchanting JUNE 18 - JULY 25 Sandor Gorlinsky from London, Cherubino, a role she has also done at Chamber Music bringing a precious gift, a box of fifty the Paris Opera, Glyndebourne, and Orchestras of Lorin Maazel's favorite cigars. The San Francisco. She discussed working Private Study interview was obviously over but we underdifferentdirectors-Strehler Artist Faculty Weekend Concerts asked one last question. What do you had wanted Cherubino lively and FESTIVAL like to do best? He answered, and lusty, Ponnelle more introspective. Contact: Flicka said: "In Paris I read an article Martha McCrory, director quite seriously: "Talk about how to Sewanee Summer Music Center run the world." called `Cherubino at 21.' By then he Sewanee, Tennessee 37375 was pictured as an old young man, Wien, Wien, nur du allein cynical and bored, all passion spent." She laughed the natural laugh of a MARROWSTONE MUSIC FESTIVAL Egon Seefehlner will leave Berlin pretty girlstill holding on to her Formerly the Pacific Northwest Music Camp A chance to study orchestral and to return to his native city where, twenties. "Flicka is Swedish for little. chamber music in a wilderness north- September 1, he will assume the most I won't be able to use that name west setting. Vilem Sokol, Director much more!" difficult, and perhaps also the most AUGUST 8 through 29, 1976 coveted, post in the opera world. He When Luciano Pavarotti wasin has been named general manager of Tokyo with the Metropolitan Opera Fort Flagler State Park, Washington 35th Season ... ages 13.21 ... coed the Vienna State Opera, which was he "waved the American flag." Har- ... audition by tape ... for brochure where his opera career began in 1954 old Schonberg reported in the Times and information write to when he put aside a law career to be- that the Italian tenor told the Japa- MarrowstoneMusic Festival, come assistant to Karajan who, it has nese press: "This time I am duecento per 416 Sixth and Pine Building, been announced, is also returning to cento americano, come Cristoforo Colombo." Box B, Seattle, Washington 98101. Deadline May 15 the scene of so many of his musical And he was singing in Bohime, not triumphs, and crises. Butterfly. What will be your first step, we Pierre Boulez says he is learning to CARMEL BACH FESTIVAL asked Dr. Seefehlner. "Fire eleven use the computer as a new musical in- 39th Season conductors," he answered, then strument and composing device. "It is July 19 -August 1, 1976 added: "And engage three young like learning to speak a new lan- Sandor Salgo, Music Director & Conductor new conductors." And the first opera guage, such as Japanese. Not easy, P.O. Box 575, Carmel, Ca. 93921 of his new regime? "The Trojans on Continued on page MA -40

April 1976 MA -37 PATRICK 1. SMITH Washington

THE BERLIN OPERA West Berlin's company makes first U.S. visit

THE KENNEDY CENTERhas em- form by the Met in its first year in tion was new are now lost, as they barked on an auspicious pro- Lincoln Center. Wieland Wagner's were lost at the Met (Wieland having gram to bring the world's Lohengrin was always one of his died before he could stage that pro- leading opera companies to Wash- weaker efforts, but I feel that the time duction). ington. For two weeks beginning No- has come to retire all his conceptions. The cast, moreover, was not up to vember 14, the Deutsche Oper (West This is not because they have become the composer's demands. Rene Kollo Berlin) was in residence, as a Bicen- travesties of the original-the Berlin was singing through a cold, but even tennial gift from the West German Lohengrin has obviously been staged granting his indisposition the essen- Government, and this year La Scala with reverent fidelity to Wieland's tially lyric (and topless) voice cannot is slated to arrive. The German com- conception-but because the results, sustain the weight of Lohengrin, even pany brought three varied operas- even when perfectly reproduced, now in a house the size of the Kennedy Lohengrin, Tosca, and Cos) fan tulle-al- form a fossilized shell devoid of the Center Opera House. Pilar Lorengar though it remains unclear why they inner life and urgency that Wieland sounded lovely in some of the lyric chose to present an Italian opera in- was able to add in rehearsal, and portions of Elsa, but she too was stead of a work by Richard Strauss which form a cardinal aspect of all his forced to push her light voice, with in- (they currently have a fine Arabella in productions.Also, Wieland's very evitable results as to loss of pitch and the repertory) or Weber, or some Ger- precise color sense in his stagings- tone. Ruth Hesse, as Ortrud, com- man rarity like Pfitzner's Palestrina. which in this Lohengrin involve an op- pensated for a basic lack of voice in Even in subsidized houses, it seems, position of blue (good) to green outsized gestures and raucousness. box office still has clout. (bad)-loses its visual impact if not Hans Gunter Nocker made a solid if The three evenings formed a rising done with his keen perception of color undistinguished Telramund; the best curve of success. The company, judg- gradation. It lost such impact, for the singing of the night came from Bengt ing from these performances, is a most part, in this production. Rundgren's sonorous King Henry. solid one, with strong secondary cast- Those who know the soon -to -be -re- Lorin Maazel conducted fast (for the ing, an adequate orchestra and tired Met production know the con- most part) and loud (all the time). chorus, and the usual reliance on in- ception: the hieratic treatment of the The truism that this kind of conduct- ternational singers up front (although it opera, with the chorus immobilized ing is quickly more enervating and fi- should be stated that the singers who on risers surrounding a playing area; nally more boring than slow conduct- appeared are all regulars with the the deliberate obliteration of the sep- ing was never made more clearly company). Lorin Maazel, their ex - aration of the forces of Brabant and evident. music director and current perma- Saxony (so important to Wagner) nent guest conductor, conducted the and of the warlike tone of the opera in "Tosca" first two operas, and Karl Boehm the favor of a mythologizing of the last. whole. Wieland probably did this to The Tosca was played for absolute get away from the martial aspects in- wallop. It was melodrama all the "Lohengrin" herent in Lohengrin, and he changed way, from the beetling sets of Filippo key aspects of the staging in order to Sanjust to the sleazily evil approach Lohengrin was given in the Wieland emphasize the separation of Elsa and favored by director Boleslaw Barlog, Wagner production, first seen in Bay- Lohengrin. Yet most of the purposes to the termagent prima donna of reuth in 1958 and given in its final probably evident when the produc- Leonie Rysanek and the loathsome MA -38 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america satyr Scarpia of Ingvar Wixell. Maa- zel likewise pulled the score about, ex- aggerating the in-built melodrama with huge ritards, snarling brass and occasional super -slow tempos. Yet Tosca can take this kind of approach, which it must be said generates a great amount of febrile vitality. Rysanek's voice must now be care- fully handled: at its best its peculiar "dying fall" lusciousness surged through the theater, and she has come up with a number of interesting bits of stage business and vocal novel- ties (e.g., the murder of Scarpia and the delivery of "E avvanti a lui" as an incredulous question). I felt that her conception had not quite jelled, al- though it was a few cuts above the normal runthrough of the role. Veri- ano Luchetti sang cleanly as Cav- aradossi-no mean achievement in this den of iniquity. "Cosi" The Cosi had Karl Boehm in the pit, and that says it: for the first time we had playing of the highest order- a lot softer and more twilit than Boehm has done the opera in the past, but conducting of backbone combined with elegance. When Mo- Barry McDaniel-a first-rate Guglielmo zart's music is so presented it sounds not only beautiful but supremely easy, which of course is the hardest an awakened sexuality perfectly at- thing to achieve. The lavish sets of tuned to the text. Gerd Feldhoffs Al- Jurgen Rose placed the opera fonso was properly dominating and squarely in Naples instead of the cynical,if a touch heavy-handed; usual cut-rate never-never land, al- only Erika Koth's faded voice and though their very lavishness meant inexcusable up -staging mannerisms that scene changes took a great deal marred the whole. of time. Otto Schenk's direction took its The cast, too, was well matched in lead from the Neapolitan settings (or ensemble and in acting ability.If maybe it was the other way around) Luigi Alva can no longer sing "Un' to emphasize the Latin high finks of aura amorosa" (his second aria was the piece. At times it was the buffo cut), he was elsewhere effective. Barry tradition seen through German eyes, McDaniel was a first-rate Guglielmo, but I confess to not minding a meas- singing and acting with ease and as- ure (a measure!) of broad comedy surance. The sisters were the jewels. which serves to spotlight the am- Pilar Lorengar's Fiordiligi grew in biguity of Cosi. Da Ponte, after all, character throughout the perform- put it in and, to an extent, so did Mo- ance, and her "Per pieta," so perfectly zart. To run to Arcadian stylization partnered by Boehm, illuminated the emasculates the opera in favor of "the evening even more than the exquisite divine Mozart" rendition, which is all parting trio of the first act. Agnes too often a lavender -sachet approach. Baltsa, a rangy European mezzo, was What I was aware of throughout was the discovery of the three operas. She these characters as people rather than has a finely trained voice of expres- as puppets or disembodied voices, siveness and surprising dramatic and that enriches Cosi-even ifit power, and her Dorabella was ex- forces one to realize that the opera is tremely moving. Indeed, her duet not as "perfect" a specimen as the Erika Koth-too much upstaging with McDaniel in Act II glowed with music beguiles us into believing. A

April 1976 MA -39 ARTIST LIFE dinner, he met an old friend who had ARTS SURVIVAL Continued from page MA -37 also had heart trouble. His friend Continued from page MA -11 greeted him cheerily, vodka glass in but one could do it, no?" hand. Corena, assuming the mock -se- vided will be related functionally to Paris correspondent Janet Flanner rious expression of a doctor, warned the broader educational program of of The New Yorker, reminiscing about him. "One drink is good, starts circu- the school system, and will be appro- the early days of The Little Review, re- lation. More than one drink-a traffic priate to the interests and needs of all called the time publisher Margaret jam!" children, not just the talented. Anderson asked Eric Satie to write an The Philharmonia of London cele- At present the concept of compre- article about Les Six. "How long?" brates this year its thirtieth anniver- hensive programs for the arts in gen- Satie asked. "As long as you like," she sary and the London Times asked its eral education appears to be assum- answered. "Ah, non," said Satie. "Ce founder, Walter Legge, to describe its ing the dimensions of a national sonl les limites que j'adore." beginnings and triumphs before the movement. Such programs are under Fernando Corena has been his orchestra and he went their separate way in a number of school districts usual active self at the Met-Don Al- ways. It is a fascinating document, in- ranging in size from small suburban fonso in Cosi, Dr. Bartolo in Barber, cluding stories of the great conduc- districts to the largest of them all, Sacristan in Tosca-despite the mild tors involved in the early years of the New York City. In addition, the JDR heart attack he suffered last spring. Philharmonia, from Toscanini and 3rd Fund is coordinating the activi- Recently, at the Opera Club annual Karajan to Giulini and Klemperer. ties of an Ad Hoc Coalition of States This is Walter Legge's typical sum- for the Arts in Education comprised ming-up. "Looking through the pro- of representatives of ten state depart- grammes of those years I am proud ments of education that are develop- musical amcrica that I gave London a golden age of ing or implementing comprehensive, musical performance that may never state-wide programs. Monthly be surpassed. I ran the Philharmonia as a benevolent dictatorship. Democ- Equality for the arts Directory racy has no place in the arts; the word democracy, as it is presently misused, One of the most important charac- is a euphemism for deterioration." teristics of these arts in education pro- DALCROZE Postscript: having been involved grams is that the arts are equal in SCHOOL OF MUSIC with the Philharmonia recordings on status to programs in other subjects "Combining the best features of European and American Education." Angel during most of the Fifties we such as science, social studies, lan- Complete Music Curriculum-Arlist Faculty can testify that the teamwork of our DALCROZE TEACHER'S CERTIFICATE COURSE guage arts and mathematics. Outside 161 East 73rd St.. N.Y.. N.Y. 10021TR 9-0316 troika-Walter, Dario, and I-was Dr. Hilda M. Schuster. Dir. - The only authorized grant funds often are needed for Dalcroze Teachers Training School in the Americas. smooth -running and leaderless; each planning and developing programs, MYRTLE GORDON ROBERTS of us having the final word. and to help meet the costs of services Teacher to the schools by artists and arts or- Piano, Organ What Kirsten told Merrill ganizations. However, once pro- Harmony, Composition grams are designed and ready for Chamber Music Instruction This season three American singers Carnegie Hall, Studio 112 implementation, their ongoing oper- 154 West 57th Street, N.Y., N.Y. 10019 reached the thirtieth anniversaries of ating costs are supported by the real- (212) CI 5-7278 their careers at the Metropolitan Op- location of funds within school dis- era: Jerome Hines, Dorothy Kirsten, trict and state department budgets. SIGMA ALPHA IOTA and Robert Merrill. In a long discus- These programs, whether at the lo- International Music Fraternity sion with editors of The New York cal or state level, deserve positive, ac- Ruth Gould (Mrs. Paul J.), President Times they reminisced freely and tive support from all of us who have 841 Oleander Drive. S.E. frankly. This bit of dialogue occurred: strong commitments to the arts. For Winter Haven, Florida 33880 MERRILL:"Dorothy, you don't all our children in the schools, they know how refreshing you were when offer the opportunity to learn that the JUNE BURGESS VOICE you came in and did Tosca last sea- arts are a useful and enjoyable part of Allphases of Vocal Instruction Fac. American Academyof Dramatic Arts son. How refreshing it was after some life. Graduates from school systems in Ansonia Hotel NYSTA-NATS SU 7-3300 others. When you have a Tosca say- 73rd & Broadway (Apt. 10-112) which the arts are integral to the total ing: 'Bob, don't put me on a couch, educational program may have atti- MARIENKA MICHNA PIANO because I can't get up' it bothers me a tudes toward the arts in public life ConcertPianist-Teacher Opera Coach - Accompanist little. I'm supposed to try to rape this very different from those held by Hotel Ansonia. Bway. & 73 St.. N.Y.C. gorgeous woman, and she says 'don't most of our population today. This,

HOWARD SHAW Member NYSTA put me on the couch or I'll never get in turn, may have profound implica- TEACHER OF SINGING up.' " Technique and Interpretation tions for the future good health of art- Extensive teaching and performance experience KIRSTEN:"That's marvelous. Did ists and arts organizations. Would it Manhattan Studio Call (212) 295-5255 you tell them what I said?" be too optimistic to predict that com- LAMBERT ORKIS ACCOMPANIST MERRILL:"You tell them what you prehensive artsin education pro- Vast repertoire for voice and instruments; coaching said." for voice; maaterclaases. World wide availability. grams can help to assure that the arts 119 N. 19th St,Philadelphia. Pa.19103 KIRSTEN:" 'Put me on the floor, not only will survive, but will flour- or call 215-569-4500 baby, let's go.' " A ish, in the schools and in society? A

MA -40 HIGH FIDELITY / musical america YOU DON'T NEED TO BE A PHYSICIST TO APPRECIATE THE DIFFERENCE The difference between the amt -la bookshelf speaker system and all the others. Take off the grille. You can see the difference. Listen to it. You can hear the difference. The difference is the Heil Air -Motion Transformer. All other speakers merely push air. The Heil Air -Motion Transformer actually accelerates air by squeezng it: effecting the most efficient transfer of an electrical signal to air motion of any device known. Result: superior sound reproduction. When you look for speakers, trust your ears as well as your eyes. Compare our new Heil Air -Motion Transformer system to any conventional speaker. YOUR EARS WILL APPRECIATE THE DIFFERENCE.

Call toll free for the ESS dealer nearest you (800) 447-4700 In Illinois call (800) 322-4400 iimloNSoundas clear as light. P.O. Box 26266 Sacramento, California 95827 Ten after therevoyearslution.

1966

In 1966, Sony brought you the world's first commercially available turntable with a DC servo motor. This effectively 1975 slowed motor speeds from 1800 to 300 RPM, producing the lowest rumble figures measured till then.consists of a sensitive magnetic about the resonance caused by The servo system also drastically head (with eight gaps instead of warp in the record itself. Those reduced wow and flutter, thus the normal one) which monitors round doohickies on the platter giving you a chance to hear what platter speed by picking up a are rubber suction cups that 33-1/3 records sound like at magnetic coating on the outersideactually provide greater contact 33-1/3. Quite a revolution. of the platter. This speed data goessurface, reducing the longitudinal But we haven't been sitting through a small computer con- vibration caused by warp. The end on our laurels since then. nected to the motor, instantly result is a cleaner sound. Introducing the PS -4750. compensating for variations. So, all in all, our engineers Overlooking the fact that the The PS -4750 is also ultra think the PS -4750 is pretty nifty. PS -4750 is so pretty we could sell insensitive to outside vibrations But don't take our word for it. Just it through interior decorators, (which causes intermodulation stop into your Sony dealer and here are its technical innovations.distortion and acoustic feedback).show your independence by It has a direct drive servo Sensitivity to outside vibration listenirg for yourself. motor that gives you incredibly shows as "Q!' And the PS -4750 has low rumble, wow and flutter levels.a platter and case made of SBMC, Plus total immunity from linea Sony developed compound SONY voltage and frequency variations.which has one third the "Q" of That's because the PS -4750 has a aluminum or zinc. 01975 Sony Ccrp of America. Sony, 9 W 57 St.. N.Y., N.Y.10019. unique system that, in essence, We've even done something SONY Is a trademark of Sony Corp. TOP RATED Cr AUDIO COMPONENTS AT "LOWEST OF THE LOW" PRICES 'Top Rated' by aleading The best pop records reviewed in recent months consumer magazine. AMERICA: History. WARNER BROS. BS 2894 Feb. EPI 100, Speakers THE BAND: Northern Lights-Southern Cross. CAPITOL ST 11440. Mar. B.I.C. 960, Base, Cover. BILL BLACK'S COMBO FEATURING BOBTUCKER: The World's Greatest Shure M91ED Cartridge. Honky-Tonk Band. HI/LONDON SHL 32093. Jan. NOW ONLY! '250 BLOSSOM DEARIE 1975. DAFFODIL BMD 102. Jan. STEPHANE GRAPPELLI. PYE 12115. Jan. KEITH JARRETT: The Kdln Concert. ECM /POLYDOR 1064/65. Mar. COMPLETE YOUR SYSTEM WITHONE STEVE KuHN: Trance. ECM 1052. Feb. OF THESE GREAT RECEIVERS... BARRY MANILOW: Tryin' to Get the Feeling. ARISTA AL 4060.Feb. SHERWOOD S7110 $154 FREDAPAYNE:Out of Payne Comes Love. ABC ABCD 901. Feb. SHERWOOD 57010 $129 SONY STR6046A $179 PSYCHO. Original filmscore.UNICORN RHS 336.Mar. SONYSTR7015 $150 MIKLOSR6ZSA CONDUCTS HIS GREAT FILM MUSIC. POLYDOR SUPER2383 SONY STR 7055 5289 327. Jan. PIONEER SX-434 $159 PIONEER SX-535 $199 FATS WAILER: The Complete Fats Waller:Vol. 1, 1934-35.RCA BLUEBIRD SANS U/ 221 $122 AXM 2-5511Feb SANS1.11 331 $1 32 vf ARANTZ 2230 $245 1 ECHNICS SA5150 $165 SCOTT R31S $149 man, he sticks to traditional themes and days with supergroup Humble Pie. Con- Above may be bought seperately at prices shown. modes of expression. servative, tasteful playing is now his hall- The title song of "The Blind Man in the mark, and his solos on "Do You Feel Like I K'RITE OR CALL! ''i , ,arpeiBankamericard For lowest of the ' Bleachers" it about a second-rate football Do" and "Do Be Wah," while miles apart 1111321M1..... ,ow quote JIM A player who wins the big game, spurred on stylistically, are models of restraint. (212)153.8888 a by the ghost of his late, blind father. "Texas Frampton is aided by the competence, 9-5 Mon thru Sat Accepted By Phone

Proud" is an up -tempo, beery tribute to the clarity, and unobtrusiveness of his backup 1/111/1414 FM HIGH 014C1 OUT Of WI -II joys of living in the Lone Star State. players. The live atmosphere has also 2122 UTICA AVE., "Tonight I'll Face the Man Who Made It allowed him more freedom of expression STEREO Happen" is a nice piece of self-deprecation during his vocals. Hence, some of his softer WARE.-11410U.SE liKLYN. N.Y. 11234 about a man who blames himself for a electric moments-"BabyILove Your woman's suicide and is planning his own Way" is the best example-when played CIRCLE 47 ON READER -SERVICE CARD demise. out of the sterile confines of the studio, be- The best songs grace the second side. come more believable and are more enter- "Victims" describes the torment of two taining in the process. Although Framp- married people having an affair. "The Up- ton's sound is marred by a remix that has per Hand" is about a divorce, perhaps that not screened out enough of the noisiness of one of the principals from "The Vic- that is part of the ambience of the concert tims," with a nice twist to it. Mac Davis' hall, his performances are for the most part Totr7...%AUDIO "Put Another Notch in Your Belt" is an up - letter perfect. H.E. tempo tune about a "California cutie" who takes a "country clown" for all he's worth. Starr's album ends with a fine reading of a GRETAKELLER:In Concert. Greta Keller, vo- NATIONAL traditional -style weeper: "The Calico Cat" cals; Walter Grimm. piano. I'll Catch the Sun; tells how a doll helped pull a child through Manhattan, I Think of You; Losing My Mind; A/MVI HEADQUARTERS scarlet fever. These Foolish Things; Never Again; Walter In all, "The Blind Man in the Bleachers" Jurmann Medley; Cole Porter Medley; For Famous Brand is a country recording that Starr can be Thanks for the Memory; seven more. [Rod Electronics By Mail proud of. M.J. McKuen and Wade Alexander, prod.] STAN- .333 N. Michigan Ave. Suite 2025 YAN SR 10041, $6.98. Chicago. IL 60601 (312) 293-1825 All Orders Shipped In PETER FRAMPTON:FramptonComes If there is such a thing as Aryan soul, Greta Factory -Sealed Cartons Alive. Peter Frampton, guitars, vocals, Keller has it. With great finesse, she sings Write Or Call For and talk box; John Sromos, drums; Bob classic cabaret songs, imparting to them The lowest Prices Mayo, keyboards and guitar; Stanley Shel- both dignity and sexiness. This recording, Anywhere! don, bass. Something's Happening; Do Be of a 1972 New York performance, contains Wah; Show Me the Way; eleven more. A&M fine readings of "Manhattan," "These Fool- SP 3703, $6.98. Tape: I* CS 3703, $7.98; ish Things," and several Cole Porter songs, MILLION SSS INVENTORY Of: 8T 3703, $7.98. including "Never Again," "It's All Right LOWEST PRICES ON with Me," and "Allez-vous-en." M.J. RECEIVERS TURNTABLES TUNERS When one watches a performer as attrac- SPEAKERS CHANGERS CARTRIDGES tive as guitarist Peter Frampton, it is often TAPE DECKS AMPLIFIERS HEADPHONES CALCULATORS COMPACTS CAR AUDIO difficult to assess how much of his success CHICAGO:Chicago's Greatest Hits.Peter can be attributed to his music alone and Cetera, James Pankon, Walter Parazaider, Top Discount Audio 133e",",,'`,"X"carno, 13121293 ,825 how much to the personality he projects. Terry Kath, Robert Lamm, Lee Loughname, HF-4 Date This double set culled from concerts in both Danny Seraphine, and Laud!' de Oliveira, in- P.ase send me a quote on New York and San Francisco demonstrates strumentals. 25 or 6 to4;Does Anybody that much of the music Frampton makes is Really Know What Time It Is?; Colour My MR capable of standing alone. World; Just You 'n' Me; Saturday in the Park; Ms At this point in his career, he is most con- Feelin' Stronger Every Day; Make Me Smile; cerned that he present more than the musi- Wishing You Were Here; Call on Me; I've cal flash that was part and parcel of his Been Searchin' So Long; Beginnings. [James CIRCLE 49 ON READER -SERVICE CARD

CIRCLE 42 ON READER -SERVICE CARD William Guercio, prod ] COLUMBIA PC 33900, teristic themes, including the evocative, tre- $6.98. Tape:411111 PCT 33900, $7.98, 8. PCA molo "Pedro and Catana" motive (heard more many times here) and the famous "Con- than 33900, $7.98. quest" march, both of which are available It's about time. If ever there was a pop in excellent sound on the RCA "Captain group whose history demanded the is- from Castile" recording (ARL 1-0184) de- one suance of a greatest -hits record, it's Chi- voted to Newman's music. But Newman's cago. That jazz rock ensemble has, at times, energetic, exciting pacing and his ability to released albums that consisted of as many elicit an amazingly sonorous orchestral as four discs-maybe it was six. The point is depth-apparent even in this medium -fidel- revolution that Chicago has produced so much gar- ity (but quite acceptable) recording-make bage it should give away hip boots instead the disc much more than a curiosity. of posters. I am surprised that an authority as This, the group's ninth album, contains a knowledgeable as Tony Thomas saw fit to fine selection of its finest moments. My fa- present the music in a bandless format with startedin vorite is "25 or 6 to 4," though tunes like absolutely no indication as to the ori- "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It entation of the various sequences vis-a-vis Is" and "Saturday in the Park," are worthy the film's. And couldn't we have had some of praise. Still, there are moments of medi- information about the exact source of the ocrity. One would imagine that, after all of recording? its multidisc albums, the band could find With the generous, gems -of -the -series "greatest hits" that were better. M.J. excerpts of Erich Korngold's Adventures of Robin Hood score on the RCA "Sea Hawk" MASS- (LSC 3330) and "Captain Blood" (ARL 1-0912) albums, there is much less need for the suite with narration offered here by Delos (taken from a 1938 radio broadcast), even though there is new music to be heard. And the need is diminished even further since, unlike the "Captain" album, the AIM! Robin Hood suite has been dubbed directly from scratchy 78s with fairly poor results, including some built-in wow. Of course, Basil Rathbone's distinctive voice, accent, CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE. Original film and often staccato delivery are always a joy score by Alfred Newman. Alfred to hear. Unfortunately, the running narra- Newman, cond [Tony Thomas. prod.] DELOS tion he was given to speak is a masterpiece SET DEL F 25411, $6.98 (mono) of florid triviality. I would have been hap- THE ADVENTURES OF ROSIN HOOD. Original pier with a series of excerpts taken directly and one of them is film score by Erich Korngold.* REQUIEM from the film soundtrack. still going on here FOR A CAVALIER (a Sound Picture of Errol Indeed, Tony Thomas' "Requiem for a Flynn).* Basil Rathbone, narrator;*Er.ch Cavalier," extracted from a CBC montage where we started Korngold, cond. ° Tony Thomas, narrator.' interview done with great taste and com- [Tony Thomas, prod.] DELos DEL/F 25409, passion, concludes with the final sequence the hi -f i revolution $6.98 (mono). from Robin Hood. With the buildup of the preceding material, the finale will almost in 1947. Of the many ways of reviving important certainly give you one enormous chill. The film scores on disc, one of the least ex- "Requiem" also includes short excerpts ploited, at least by legitimate concerns, has from other movies, plus Flynn singing a \ olution contributed been the return to the original music tracks song -and -dance number from Lilacs in the I'he Scott (often used, on the other hand, for original Spring. Flynn himself is interviewed, and enough firsts to fill this page. including soundtrack recordings). This, however, is some people who were close to him as well: the first successful stereo FM tuner, apparently what was done for this new David Niven and Nora Eddington (Flynn's the first all -solid-state components. the "Captain from Castile" release, which in al- second wife), with Thomas' sensitive narra- first digital tuner. the first four -channel most no way resembles the excerpts, also tion supplying the continuity. This is nos- conducted by Newman, once available on talgia in one of its least hokey forms, and components. and many more. one side of a Mercury recording. But even you may find the experience well worth the Start a little revolution of your with the availability of the original music price, even if the record is never played own by upgrading your music system tracks, this forty -minute -plus album does more than twice. R.S.B. with a new Scott tuner, amplifier. not contain the complete score, and some will complain that certain of the best parts receiver or speakers from the were omitted in favor of a fair amount of ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. Origi- revolutionaries at Maynard. where subdued, fairly characterless ambience mu- nal film soundtrack recording. Composed innovation has been a tradition for sic that may have been chosen because of and arranged by Jack Nitzche. [Jack over a quarter of a century. To fire the its relative recordability. Nitzche, prod.] FANTASY F 9500, $6.98. first shot. circle reader service number Nonetheless, Newman's Captain from Castile, composed in 1947 (right around the Jack Nitzche has provided a brilliant amal- or contact us for complete product middle of his career) for the Henry King gam of musical styles to accompany Jack information and list of dealers where film, is one of those vintage efforts that jos- Nicholson's antics as the convict who gets you may see and hear Scott stereo tles the emotions with the essence of a himself committed to a mental hospital as a components demonstrated. whole style of film -making. And although it way of absenting himself from the state has been ages since I've seen the picture, work farm, then proceeds to foul up hospi- listening to this album brought back a sort tal procedure. of generalized feeling for the genre (if not The recording, which is quite enjoyable the movie itself). There are some partic- even to those who have not seen the film, 3 sccrr rr ularly gorgeous string effects, along with opens and closes with a disjointed, eerie C tvhery innovation is a tradition nice minor -key moodscapes. And, of theme that by the end has evolved into a

i !I .,ttInc.. III Powdermill Road. Maynard, Mass. 01754 course, there are some good, highly charac- cohesive, stately piece of music with nearly CIRCLE 55 ON READER -SERVICE CARD HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Brand New! 1976 Edition High Fidelity's Test Reports

HIGH FIOELITY S TEST REPO R,15.,

How you get the most for your money ... Experts help you choose receivers. amplifiers, tuners. speakers. headphones. turntables. pickups. tape equipment, and system accessories.

The new 1976 edition of High Fidelity's Test Reports is packed with more than 200 test reports of currently available stereo and four -channel equipment and accessories, HURRY! QUANTITIES LIMITED including: Receivers Headphones Amplifiers Tape Equipment Turntables & Pickups Speakers Tuners...and more! This year's edition is better than Nigh Fidelity's Tes: Reports ever! Almost 300 pages of in-depth 1976 Edition 1 Sound Avenue, Marion, Ohio 43302 analyses with charts, tables, pictures Please send me copies of the and prices, plus a guide to technical 1976 High Fidelity's Test Reports at $2.95 each audio terms. (postage and handling Included). Name Order now. Indicate the number of Address copies you want and return this form City State Zip with your check or money order. Ladd tax where applicable., DD6FJ

APRIL 1976 137 the stature of a march. The disc proceeds arr.; Roger Daltrey, vocals; vocal and instru- with "Medication Valse," a long and lan- mental accompaniment. [David Putnam and guid promenade by a string ensemble. "Bus Roy Baird, prod.] A&M SP4546, $6.98. Tape: Ride to Paradise," which opens with a bot- NV CS 4546, $7.98; IP8T4546, $7.98. tleneck guitar riff, is a fine piece of instru- mental country and western, entirely Just as one needn't be Jewish to enjoy evocative of riding in a long-distance bus. Levy's rye bread, you needn't be a classical "Trolling," "Cruising," and "Aloha Los Pes- music expert to be offended by this taste- cadores" are bits of whimsy that cause one less and pointless soundtrack from the Ken Writ to wonder if Herb Alpert's band hadn't col- Russell film. The heavy-handed treatment lided with Arthur Godfrey's. Side 2 opens accorded the music of Liszt and Wagner by with the lush, romantic "Charmaine" and Wakeman, Daltrey, & Co. is not excusable ignites then lapses into an orgy of surprisingly en- on any grounds I can think of. dearing Muzak that ends in "Act of Love." a The recurring tendency of the motion - free -form piece involving flutes, bells, and picture industry to cannibalize history for your lots of echo. story ideas is insufficient justification for One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest has doing the same to music. If a film or record receiver achieved the remarkable feat of taking or- producer wished to make a point using the dinary styles of music and making them ex- life and music of Franz Liszt, he could do so traordinary. Every piece of music is of a without butchering both. An examination quite familiar sort but put together in a styl- of a person need not be an autopsy, yet that ish, almost grand manner. I never thought is what one finds in this loud and lurid that going mad could be so easy on the ear. recording. M.J. Wakeman'ssci-fi,synthesizer -in -high gear treatment of classical music is well known. In this case, it is hardly well loved. PAPER TRIER.Originalfilm sound- M.J. with the HPR-12 Magnum track recording. Composedby Roy music system Budd; Ray ConniffSingers; National Philhar- Fiery reproduction monic Orchestra, Roy Budd, piano and cond. capabilities are buried [Jack Fishman, prod.] CAPITOLSW 11475, within many contemporary $6.98. lower -powered amps and For a picture about which so little has been receivers. Only mating heard (Has the film even surfaced in this with ordinary speakers country yet?) Ken Annakin's The Paper Ti- 41 DICKHYMAN:Charleston.Ruby Braff, keeps them from delivering ger certainly has a splashy score. Played cornet, Vic Dickenson, trombone; Bob blazing performance. with great Korngoldesque panache by Lon- Wilber, soprano saxophone; Dick Hyman, pi- Now RTR ignites average don's National Philharmonic, which is be- ano; Everett Barksdale, guitar; Bob Haggart, components with the HPR-12 coming the film -music orchestra, the title bass; Bob Rosengarden, drums; et al. Snowy theme alone creates the impression of an Magnum. From the Helmholz Morning Blues; Carolina Balmoral; Jingles; oriental Gone with the Wind to be pro- ten more. COLUMBIA M 33706, $6.98. driven passive radiator to the jected across at least a 180 -degree screen. 12" woofer and piezo-electric Yet for all its bigness, the score, rather than As with his earlier exploration of the works tweeter, this speaker looking back at Max Steiner, has more of a of Jelly Roll Morton, Dick Hyman has used complements components mod, big -orchestra feeling to it, evoking re- a variety of settings in this kaleidoscopic to deliver 100 watts of cent composers such as Henry Mancini and review of James P. Johnson's compositions. pure, powerful music. Jerry Goldsmith. He uses a small jazz band, a dance band, As lush (and attractive) as the title theme and a theater orchestra, mixing in cornet/ Plug into a pair at your RTR is, though, Roy Budd has not been carried piano and cornet/organ duets with Ruby franchised dealer. Listen away with it, and the album features a wide Braff and-possibly to keep his stride -piano to the fireworks! variety of skillfully composed music, some franchise-one piano solo. of itlittle more than wispy, Far -Eastern Hyman's arrangements for the ten -piece mood, some of it characteristic of nervous dance band and the eighteen -piece theater action. There are also two cuts of relaxing orchestra are in the style of the Twenties, cocktail -lounge music with the composer at most notably in his saxophone voicings for the piano. The one thing I didn't especially the dance band and its use of breaks. His like was the rather namby-pamby song arrangement of "Charleston," for example, "Who Knows the Answers?" with what sounds as thoughitmight have come seem to me very uninspired lyrics by directly from the California Ramblers ver- Sammy Cahn. For that matter, I am not en- sion. The three dance -band selections- amored of Cahn's lyrics for the end title, "Charleston," "Jingles," and "You've Got to and the Ray Conniff Singers' soupy per- Be Modernistic"-are all bright ("snappy" formance doesn't help matters much. would probably be the Twenties term) and The disc is a tribute to Budd's talents as a full of shifting colors, with most of the solo conductor, for the National Philharmonic space given to Hyman's striding, sometimes plays at the top of its form, backed by some rumbling piano. very good engineering. Those interested in The jazz band, with Ruby Braff, Vic Dick- following up on the efforts of Roy Budd-a enson, and Bob Wilber as a front line, is relatively new name to film composing- high-spirited, generating an exuberantly should investigate a Project 3 album (5085) strong ensemble attack. And there are dart- containing, among other things, his score ing, soaring solos by Braff and Wilber as for Michael Winner's The Stone Killer. well as Hyman. The period style of the the- R.S.B. ater orchestra, on the other hand, goes from one extreme to another-from an utterly For dealer list and specifications,write charming treatment of a waltz, "Eccentric- RTR, Dept. HF, 8116 Deering Ave., LISZTOMANIA.Orignialfilmsoundtrack Canoga Park, CA 91304. ity," which has much of the quality of Scott recording. Rick Wakeman. keyboards and Continued on 142 CIRCLE 51 ON READER -SERVICE CARD 138 CIRCLE 22 ON READER -SERVICE CARD--* "Bring it back alive:

-Professionally, people see me nothing can match the on the walls of your living live demonstration, or write pla virg concerts or leading the excitement of a live room, you'll hear two more for a free full -color catalog, Torignt Show orchestra. But performance as well os Koss octaves than you've ever c/o Virginia Lamm. Either way, when I relax to the purest sound Stereophones. And nothing can heard before in a you'll 'bring it back alive'. - of my favorite music, nothing match the incredible sound of dynamic stereophone. Koss PRO.4AA Stereophone brings it back alive like the tie PRO-4AA. Becaus.s. the Koss -Take a tip from old 'Doc' inc edible Sound of Koss. FRO-4AA features the orly and hear it like you've neier From the deepest, toe - driver element designed heard it before...on Koss curling bass notes of a pipe specifically for stereaphones. Stereophones. From $15.55 to orpan, to the crisp, brilliant So when it comes to mixi ig the $175, they're the greatest. Just hip hs of the brass section, sound in your head irste3d of ask yoLr Audio Specialist for a

E:Koss Corporation

KOSS stereophones from the people whc invented Stereophones.

Port Washingtor Ave., Milwaukee, Wisconi n 53212 Koss S.r.I , eAilan, Italy Koss Limited, Ontario Noone comes to the fore again in the Armstrong -Hines set. This covers Arm- strong's recordings from June to December 1928, when he moved from Chicago to New York, along with four of Hines's piano solos in December 1928. A 1927 recording by Satchmo's Hot Seven was included, ac- cording to J. R. Taylor's album notes, "as an example of [Armstrong's] everyday activ- ity" with Carroll Dickerson's band, al- though there also are two 1928 titles by Dickerson and most of the Armstrong small -group selections in the set are played by musicians drawn from that band. Noone is part of a quartet (with Arm- King Oliver's Jazz Band in 1923- strong, Hines, and guitartist Mancy Cara) Louis Armstrong seated at center: Oliver standing at left. that backs Lillie Delk Christian, an inex- pressive garden-variety singer, on half a dozen pop songs. There is an inherent ex- From the Smithsonian: citementin hearing these musicians champing at the bit while the vocalist la- Perspective on King Oliver, Hines, and Satchmo bors through her chorus and then leaping forward when they are given their freedom by John S. Wilson for an instrumental chorus. On "Too Busy," Armstrong, apparently unable to hold back, In 1973, when the Smithsonian Institution nett and three for Paramount are already bursts into some exhilarating scat singing issued a six -disc "Collection of Classic available on the Herwin and Milestone la- that continues right through Christian's re- Jazz" drawn from the catalogues of sev- bels (both of which tend to keep active prise. enteen record companies, it was a break- catalogues), the Smithsonian has concen- On the small -group cuts, neither the clar- through for jazz fans. Other legitimate trated on the band's Okeh and Columbia re- inetist, Jimmy Strong, nor the trombonist, attempts to put together definitive antho- leases, a total of nineteen pieces. This al- Fred Robinson, would rate even a footnote logies had been frustrated by the unwilling- lows inclusion of Oliver's other recording in jazz history if it were not for this associ- ness of record companies to cooperate in work in 1923-accompanying four blues ation with Armstrong. But they don't really such ventures. And no one company con- singers and playing in two Clarence Wil- deserve the constant heckling they are sub- trolledallthe recordings that might go into liams groups. jected to in Taylor's notes. Possibly recog- a comprehensive exposition of any particu- The result is an unusually well-rounded nizing his overkill, he admits at the end of lar phase of jazz or even, with rare excep- picture of Oliver, putting his well-known his essay that "I have been at pains to indi- tions, of any particular artist. But Martin work in a jazz -band setting alongside his cate [the] limitations and weaknesses [of Williams, director of the Smithsonian's less -familiar performances as an accom- the records], but these hardly affect the jazz program, managed to assemble that su- panist. The band sides-particularly such power of the whole, let alone its most im- perb recorded history of jazz, comple- pieces as "Snake Rag," "Dippermouth posing parts." mented by a scholarly and readable book- Blues," "Chattanooga Stomp," and "I Ain't The notes for both sets are extensive, let. Gonna Tell Nobody"-have the most last- highly knowledgeable, technical, and criti- At the time, it seemed like a brilliant one- ing importance. But to anyone who is al- cal often to the point of nit-picking. Law- shot deal-after all, what can you do for an ready familiar with these recordings, his rence Gushee, in addition to analyzing the encore when you've already skimmed off work with the vocalists may prove to be the individual Oliver discs, puts them in per- the cream of five decades of recorded jazz? most interesting aspect of the collection. spective with a valuable summary of early Instead, the collection opened the door to a Two of the singers, Susie Edwards (of jazz recording. He points up the importance full-scale program of releases, both of Butterbeans and Susie) and Sippie Wallace, of the Creole Jazz Band recordings as evi- reissues and of what the Smithsonian's are excellent: Elizabeth Johnson and Hazel dence of a working jazz band's style in the flyer refers to as "authentic new renditions Smith are quite pedestrian. Edwards has a early Twenties and particularly as exam- of historically valuable American music." warm voice and a vibrato, intonation, and ples of the ensemble style of jazz that The first two reissues, "King Oliver's Jazz throwaway style that immediately suggest would, ironically, soon be superseded, Band/1923" and "Louis Armstrong and Earl Pearl Bailey. Oliver's muted accom- largely because of the style of one of the Hines/1928," contain not only familiar paniment for her is gentle and unobtru- band's members-Louis Armstrong. classics, but also little-known recordings sive. Backing Wallace, a strong, expressive The transfers are, in general, as clean and that might be too recondite for any other re- singer with a vibrant lift in her voice, he be- full as one could expect of records of this leasing auspices. They focus on three of the comes more intimately involved in the per- period, although two of Sippie Wallace's major jazz figures of the Twenties and offer formance. There is little he can do to rescue selections have been taken-lacking better perspective and continuity through the Johnson from the shadow of Bessie Smith sources-from worn and scratchy copies. presence of Armstrong as a central per- as she plods through "Empty Bed Blues," former on both sets. but his performance with Hazel Smith on KING OLIvER's JA32 BAND/1923. High The Oliver discs may well provide a "West End Blues" is lovely. Society Rag; Sobbin' Blues; Riverside Blues; model for the Smithsonian's approach to its The four Columbia tracks by the Creole twenty-six more. SMITHSONIAN COLLECTIONR program. From the point of view of com- Jazz Band are of particular interest, be- 001, twodiscs, $9.00 ($8.00 to Smithsonian pactness and completeness, the choice of cause they are the only selections by the Associates). the recordings of the classic version of Oli- band on which the clarinetistis Jimmie Loins ARMSTRONG AND EARL Hums/1928. ver's Creole Jazz Band, with Armstrong on Noone instead of Johnny Dodds. Noone Fireworks; West End Blues; Weather Bird; second cornet, was ideal. The band's provides the high points, lifting the en- twenty-nine more. SMITHSONIAN COLLECTION ecording career spanned less than a year, sembles with his soaring, bubbling lines R002,two discs, $9.00 ($8.00 to Smithso- with thirty-seven selections cut between and playing an exquisite solo on "Camp nian Associates). March 31 and December 24, 1923. This is Meeting Blues." One can only regret that he (Available by mail from the Smithsonian Col- just a bit too much to get onto two LPs. But was not the regular clarinetist rather than lection, P.O. Box 5734, Terre Haute, Ind. because the fifteen tracks recorded for Gen - the forceful but more limited Dodds. 47802.)

14o HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE This Business of Music Anyone involved in the music/recording/tape industry (or even just interested in it) needs this unique and indispensable reference work. No other single vol- ume contains comparable information on the complex legal, practicaland procedural problems of the world of music. Simply circle No. 287 on the cou- pon below. "This Business of Music" is only one of the wide selection of carefully cho- sen books made available to HIGH FIDELITY readers through Music Listener's Book Service. (Many of the selections are not readily available in bookstores.) Choose your books today from the list below, circle the numbers on the coupon, and enclose your check or money order. That's all there is to it.

ples selected from contemporary song subdivided by categories of music. In politan Opera since Bing's departure, literature. Paperbound. $6.95 addition, there is a special section on based on interviews with stars and No. 287. THIS BUSINESS OF Music. recitals and miscellany, as well as a management. $9.95 Revised & Enlarged Edition. Sid- No. 594. CATHERINE & IGOR STRA- complete index of all performers re- ney Shemel & M.William VINSKY. A Family Album. Theodore viewed during the year. $14.95 No. 512. SEASON WITH SOLT!. William Krasilovsky. Edited by Paul Acker- Stravinsky. Barry Furlong. man. A beautifully designed, moving pho- A sustained close-up view of Georg The 544 pages of this latest tographic memoir by Stravinsky's Solti and his Chicago Symphony. Hu- eldest son, with introductory recollec. No. 571. JUST MAHALIA, BABY. man and readable. $12.50 edition include 180 pages of ap- Laurraine Goreau. Illustrated with pendices containing applicable tions in English. French, and German. $30.00 photographs. No. 595. BENJAMIN BRITTEN. His Life federal and international laws, as The story of Mahalia's rise and Operas. Eric Walter White. well as sample contracts, applica- No. 582. REVERBERATIONS: INTERVIEWS from a New Orleans ghetto in the An updated edition of a comprehen- tions, agreements, etc. $15.00 WITH THE WORLD'S LEADING MUSICIANS. early 20th century to a position of sive and illuminating biography. Robert Jacobson. unique stature and popularity. Si- $16.00 A collection of interviews by the edi- multaneously, the author looks at No. 341. THE GLORY OF THE VIOLIN. Jo- tor of Opera News, most of which ap- No. 598. OFFICIAL GUIDE TO HIGH FIDE- seph Wechsberg. Illustrated. peared in the Lincoln Center program jazz when it was still "jass" and examines the surprising sociolog- LITY. Compiled by the Institute of High A fiddle fancier's delight from the booklet at the time the artists ap- Fidelity. pen of a famed New Yorker author peared there. $8.95 icalsignificances of the whole An informative introduction to the who delves into all aspects of the vio gospel movement. $12.95 various components that make up a lin, including the fascinating business modern high fidelity system, covering of buying, selling . . . and cheating. No. 592. THE GREAT MASTERS everything from phono cartridges to $8.95 SERIES. Various authors. No. 413. THE GERSHWINS. Robert Km- quad systems. Paperbound. $2.00 No. 562. GLENN MILLER AND HIS OR- The firstsix volumes in this ball and Alfred E. Simon. 599. COLLECTORS GUIDE TO SHEET MU- CHESTRA. George T. Simon. series, each of about 50 pages, A lavishly illustrated and beautifully A portrait of a complex musician, cover in clear and concise prose produced book honoring the 75th an- SIC. L -W Promotions. based on interviews with friends and the lives and works cf Bach, niversary of George Gershwin's birth, Up-to-date listings of the collectors' with an introduction by Richard value of a wide range of American colleagues who discuss Miller's faults Beethoven, Handel, Haydn, Mo- as well as his strengths. $10.00 Rodgers. $25.00 sheet music, dating from the early zart and Purcell, respectively. The 19th Century. Contents are subdi- No. 452. MARTHA GRAHAM: A BIOGRA- seventh volume deals with Euro- No. 511. THE NEW MET IN PROIILE. vided as to types of music and songs PHY. Don McDonagh. pean music. These stt.dies,in- Stephen E. Rubin. Photos. are arranged alphabetically within cat- The first full-length biography of a tended for school use. encom- A stimulating critique of the Metro egories. Paperbound. $5.95 dominant figure in American dance pass much information in limited Check or money order must accompany your order. whose influence in her own field has space,withoutcondescension. been equated with that of Picasso and Soft cloth covers. Specify vol- No cash or C.O.D.'s, please. Stravinsky in theirs. $10.95 umes. Each $2.00 Allow 60 Days for Delivery. No. 581. THE TENORS. Edited by Her- r ...... HIGH FIDELITY Music Listener's Book Service bert H. Breslin. I I Acollectionofessaysbyfive No. 596. HOW TO READ A SCORE. Gor- Dept. HW writers, dealing with Pavarotti, Vick- don Jacob. I 2160 Patterson Street, Cincinnati. Ohio 45214 I ers, Tucker, Corelli, and Domingo. An enormously handy little booklet that sets the reader on his way toward $8.95 IHere's my check for $ . Please send me, postpaid, the I playing orchestral scores at the key- books I've circled below. No. 591. THE SELECTED WRITINGS OF board. Paperbound. $2.50 I I ZOLTAN KODALY. 571 287 592 Volume(s) The first English translation of the No. 597. RECORDS IN REVIEW. 20th An- 341 562 452 581 582 413 511 nual Edition. Compiled and edited by Hungarian composer and educator's 512 591 593 594 595 596 597 essays on four subjects: folk music; Edith Carter. I 599 his predecessors and contemporaries A 553 -page compilation of allre- 598 (Bartok, Debussy, et al.); music edu- views of classical and semiclassical I I cation; and himself and his works. records appearing in HIGH FIDELITY Name I $9.50 magazine during the preceding year. A I bible for record collectors everywhere. IAddress I No. 593. To SING IN ENGUSH. A Guide The reviews are organized alphabet- to Improved Diction. Dorothy Uris. ically by composer for quick, easy ref- I Guidance in pronunciation for sing- erence -and, in the case of compos- ICity State &Zip ers and teachers, with practice exam- ers frequently recorded, further 16.

APRIL 1976 141 Joplin's waltzes, to a medley from "Runnin' George Mraz, bass; Grady Tate, drums. Lady Wild" that, in its stiff, staid interpretation Be Good; I Got Rhythm; Embraceable You; of Johnson's music, is too close to the rou- seven more. PAK° 2310 744, $7.98. Tape: A tribute to tine pit -band style for comfort. 10744, $8.98. Despite the fun and the charm of the jazz - appreciation. band and dance -band selections, the real Zoot Sims himself probably has no idea meat of this collection lies in the relaxed, how many times he has played these Gersh- Appreciation fo Excellence in-um gracious, and delightfully inventive Braff/ win tunes. They are, with the exception of performance. A fulfillment that Hyman duets. Braff is sheer brilliance in "If "Isn't It a Pity," the kinds of ballads and up - ones from the experieice, not I Could Be with You," rising from a low, tempo pieces that are trotted out over and from the parameters by wh:ch resonant mutter at the end of the verse to over again in the loosely organized settings lift the final chorus on the wings of joy. in which Sims usually works. Yet, charac- it was created. Curs is only to Because of the piano orientation of most teristically, he brings a sense of discovery, enpy. To appreciate. To savor. of Johnson's work, Hyman was not faced of freshness to these performances. The Something orby our ears and eyes with the problem of skirting familiar or- rest of the group may be bone-weary of can savor for themselves. chestral arrangements, as he was in his "The Man I Love," but he comes on full of The Contrara Group of Morton collection. In general, he has man- vigor, finding new slants, new directions, loudspeakers provices that aged to catch the feeling of Johnson's musi- new turns of phrase that dispel all vestiges cal world without being buried by it (except appreciation. of that old ennui. in the "Runnin' Wild" medley) while ex- Zoot is, of course, a definitively swinging If you enjoy you' MUSIC panding it with his own creativity and that saxophonist. And yet he is most impressive and quality crattsmansh p, of Braff and Wilber. J.S.W. here in his warm, sensitive handling of slow you'd enjoy the Cont-ara Group; tunes-"How Long Has This Been Going it's a tribute to your sensitivi-y. On," "I've Got a Crush on You," and "Isn't Write us for additional WINGY MANONE-SIDNEY BECHET: To- It a Pity" (a lovely tune and a good choice of information and we'll senc you a gether. Wingy Manone andMax a Gershwin song that has not been done to Kaminsky, trumpets;Vernon Brown, Jimmy death). Joe Pass adds a few pleasant guitar booklet on appreciation. Archey, and Wilbur de Paris, trombones; Sid- solos, and, although Oscar Peterson is as ney Bechet, soprano saxophone; Edmond relentlessly empty as ever as he scurries Hall,clarinet; Bud Freeman and Peanuts through his solos, he settles into a graceful Jennings Research Inc. Hucko, tenor saxophones; Art Hodes and accompanying groove as part of the en- 4 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena, Calf 91103 Bob Feugeeze, pianos; Pops Foster and semble. J.S.W. clan Distnou'ors THE AUDIO GROUP INC Onteno Charlie Traeger, basses; George Wettling For lane of tt-e nearest deader, and Arthur Trappier, drums. St. Louis Blues; call toll -Pee (800j 447-4730 Isle of Capri; Tin Roof Blues; seven more. DAVE BRUSECK-PAUL DESMOND: 1975-The In tainchs, call 0001322-4450 JAZZ ARCHIVES 29, $5.50 (mono; Jazz Ar- Duets. Dave Brubeck, piano; Paul Desmond, chives, Box 194, Plainview, N.Y., 11803). alto saxophone. Alice in Wonderland; These Foolish Things; Blue Dove; five more. A&M It's such along time between Bechets these 703, $5.98. days that it is a particular pleasure to come across this report of two concerts, one held Playing duets was apparently something in Philadelphia in 1950, the other in New that had never occurred to Paul Desmond York in 1947. or Dave Brubeck until they found them- Bechet plays on only two selections in selves in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean the 1947 concert, but he is on full display at on the SS Rotterdam with a rhythm section the second concert, which takes up one side that did not know some of the material they of the disc. From the moment his soprano had planned. So they took a chance on a saxophone comes soaring out of "1 Found a few duets, and they came off so well they New Baby," a whole bygone world of jazz cut this album-studio-made except for a comes alive again. His energetic presence tape of one of the shipboard duets for illus- seems to have inspired both Max Kaminsky tration of the beginnings. and Wilbur de Paris, for Kaminsky is un- Desmond, who wrote the liner notes, characteristically bright and hard -driving, speaks of a "feeling of freedom" that he and and De Paris, a rather ponderous trombon- Brubeck found in working in this fashion. ist, is surprisingly rambunctious and gutty. This is most noticeable in the case of Bru- The 1947 performance featured Wingy beck, who in the past has normally been a Manone, so Bechet's appearances (not as much more interesting pianist in his solo well recorded as the 1950 concert) are sur- recordings than with his quartet or other rounded by Manone's husky shouting and groups. Here, all the heaviness that over- somewhat uncertain trumpet. Manone as a loads his ensemble playing is washed vocalist requires a rather special taste, but away. He is warm and probing. And, partic- when his trumpet is on the beam he can de- ularly on "Blue Dove," his arrangement of velop an attack that sometimes has the in- "La Paloma," he is extremely comfortable- tensity and drive of Muggsy Spanier. We communicatively comfortable-as he de- also get a glimpse of Bud Freeman and, on velops lines that are cleanly edited down to four tunes without Bechet, the presence of the essentials. the incredibly consistent Edmond Hall on Brubeck, in fact, seems more at ease all clarinet and the artfully dancing punches of through the set than Desmond, whose play- Jimmy Archey's trombone. One point of in- ing normally has a nervous edginess that in terest is the appearance of Peanuts Hucko, some of these performances appears to be now a long-established clarinet specialist, falling into uncertainty. He is in complete as a mellow -toned tenor saxophonist with control, however, on an exquisite version a style that mingles suggestions of Freeman of "Star Dust" (which, like the rest of the and Eddie Miller. J.S.W. pieces, offers relatively little reference to the basic melody), on which Brubeck be- comes an integral part of Desmond's solo ZOOT SIMS: And the Gershwin Broth- before picking it up and handling it fondly. ers. Zoot Sims, tenor saxophone; Os- J.S.W. car Peterson,piano; Joe Pass,guitar; Continued on 146 CIRCLE 19 CN READER -SERVICE 'CARD 142 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE Now Available RECORDS IN REVIEW

The Twentieth annual collection of record reviews from High Fidelity

COMPREHENSIVE-Includes a compilation of rec- Music, etc. Moreover, there's a special section ord reviews of classical and semiclassical music on Recitals and Miscellany and a complete from the pages of High Fidelity. The sturdy, Artists' Index of all performers whose record- hard -cover book reviews all types of music- ings were reviewed during the year, as well as vocal, orchestral, chamber and solo-from all those mentioned only in the text. periods-medieval to contemporary-and in- cludes all formats-discs, open -reel tape, car- With so many records being issued each year, tridges, and cassettes in both stereo and quad- you need a reliable source of information. What riphonic editions. better source than reviews from this book, which has been called "a bible for record col- AUTHORITATIVE-High Fidelity's reviewing staff lectors!" Order your copy now by filling in and includes today's most knowledgeable and returning the coupon below. noted critics: Royal S. Brown, Abram Chipman, R. D. Darrell, Peter G. Davis, Shirley Fleming, (Also Available at Bookstores) Alfred Frankenstein, Kenneth Furie, Clifford F. Gilmore, Harris Goldsmith, David Hamilton, Dale S. Harris, Philip Hart, Paul Henry Lang, Wyeth Press, State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230 Robert C. Marsh, Robert P. Morgan, Andrew Please send the following copies of Records in Review: Porter, Conrad L. Osborne, John Rockwell, and LI 20th Annual 0_,) $14.95 postpaid Susan T. Sommer. They discuss the composi- EJ Please enter my standing order for all future editions of Records tion, performance, and sonic quality of each in Review recording and compare it with earlier releases O I enclose payment (Cheat or Money Order only). Add sales tax where applicable. (Sorry-we cannot invoice!) and legendary performances.

Name _ CONVENIENT-Reviews are arranged alphabeti- cally by composer. In the case of frequently re- Address corded composers, reviews are further divided City_ into categories such as Chamber Music, Vocal State Zip

APRIL 1976 143 SAVE 50%. CONSTRUCT SPEAKERS AND SAVE CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE NOW READING ONE HIGH MONEY. SEND FOR FREE CATALOG AND INSTRUC- OF HIGH FIDELITY'S best read pages! Use it yourself TIONS. SPEAKERKIT, Box 12H, Menomonie, WI 54751. when you want to sell equipment. or a service, or want to let the avid music listener know about anything. High Fi- FIDELITY STEREO OWNERS HANDBOOK A STEREO CON- delity Classified, 130 East 59th St., N.Y 10022. SULTANT AND TECHNICAL ADVISOR. $4.50 or stamped envelope for details. ECE, P.O. Box 2074. Virginia Beach, PROTECT YOUR RECORDS POLY SLEEVES for jack- Virginia 23452. ets 86 Roundbottom record sleeves 66 Poly lined paper sleeves 156 White jackets 356 Postage $1.50. Record THE ABSOLUTE SOUND in its 8th issue will be exam- Supply House, Hillburn, New York 10931. CLASSIFIED ining in depth the Lux Audio tube equipment. Audio Re- search's 300 watt tube amp, the EMT cartridge, Peter SEARCHING? WRITE DiSContinued RECORDS. 216 130 East 59th St., New York, N.Y. 10022 Pritchard's new cartridges, the Sequerra loudspeaker. NORTH ROSE, BURBANK, California 91505. Phone: (212) 581-7777 the Infinity switching amp and FET pre amp. Bongiorno's CLASSIFIED RATES:1 -time $1.20 per pre amp (Thaedra). the Koss electrostatic, the Stay Class RECORDING STUDIO ENGINEER CAREER? Degree A amp, the Luxman turntable. the Win Labs cartridge In not needed. Information 25c. Attainment, Box 45333HF. word per issue, minimum $12. 6 consecu- other words, we are preparing a power house issue. And, Dallas, Texas 75235. tive issues -$1.10 per word per issue. 12 to put icing on the cake: the SAE 2500 basic amp: She consecutive issues -$1.00 per word per is- Dahlquist bookshelf speaker; the ADS 810 speaker. The sue. Words in caps -106 extra each. nation's foremost audiologist will also be on hand to tell Box Numbers: $1.00 additional per inser- you why very loud listening levels irreversibly destroy new equipment for sale your hearing (and it's about time someone said it). SLb- tion to cover cost of handling and forward- scriptions (four issues): $10 by third class mail; $12 by AUDIO COMPONENTS at guaranteed lowest prices. ing mail. Count 10 extra words for box first class mail: $13 foreign. THE ABSOLUTE SOUND', Specializing in PIONEER, MARANTZ, SANSUI, DUAL, number and address. P.O. Box 5, Northport, N.Y. 11768. and SONY. Write for catalog on over 60 brands, including DISPLAY CLASSIFIED AND DISCOUNTS: color televisions. DISCOUNT SOUND. 1616 Rockville SAVE ON SACRED COWS-BOSE. SAE, CAMBRIDGE, Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. 1 inch by 1 column -$230. 2 inch by 1 col- Sansui. Kenwood. Marantz, BIC, Dokorder, Sony, umn -$460. 3 inch by 1 column -$690. Thorens, Philips. Over 50 top brands. Write for quotes. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. Also 6 and 12 consecutive issue discount SOUTHBOUND SOUND, P.O. Box 52508. Atlanta, THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF TAMPA, 1531 SOUTH DALE rates. Deadline is two months prior to publi- Georgia 30305. MABRY, TAMPA, FLORIDA 33609. cation date. Full payment must accompany 100 -CARD BIBLE GAME ADULTS. CHILDREN. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. All copy for classified ads. $1.00, Anywhere. Biblegames, 5837 Stewart, Sylvania, THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF SARASOTA. 6564 GATE- Ohio 43560. WAY AVENUE. SARASOTA. FLORIDA 33581 PAIR BRONZE ELECTROSTATIC SPEAKERS EXCEL- DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. for sale LENT Condition $600.00 O.N.O. 1-203-423-5677. Con- THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF FT. WALTON BEACH, 652-D necticut. BEAL PARKWAY. N. W., FT. WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA 32548. "DEMAGNETIZING NOTES" Single Copy Free Pre- DRAMATIC IMPROVEMENT in SOUND -INSTANTLY. serve your valuable tapes. Actually measure magnetic re- Model 201-A Frequency Energizer. Immediately restores DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. siduals and REALLY demagnetize. See page 290 "HIGH lost frequencies due to speaker roll off and listening room THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF MOBILE. 1770 BELTLINE FIDELITY'S TEST REPORTS 1975 Edition" write- properties. Energizes ultra low frequencies. Re-estab- HIGHWAY, MOBILE, ALABAMA 36609 ANNISCO, 1109 N. Delaware. Indianapolis. Indiana lishes harmonic overtones. 66 combinations of high and 46202. Phone 317 637-9282. low frequency adjustments. $99.95. Dealer inquiries in- "BUY DIRECT FROM ENGLAND. Save Money! B & 0. vited.Free Brochure. Cambridge, Decca. Goldring, Gold Speakers, Jordan - RARE ROMANTIC PIANO SCORES-Moscheles. Hen- Patent=3883832. FOSGATE ELECTRONICS, 9118 Cave Creek Rd Watts. KEF, Leak, Lowther, Ortofon, Revox, Rogerts. selt, Herz. Litolff, Scharwenka, Scriabin. etc. Free cata- Phoenix. AZ 85020, Dept. MA -1. SME, Tandberg, Transcriptors. Wharfedale. Price and log. MUSIC TREASURE PUBLICATIONS. 620 Ft. Wash- shipping list free or send $3 bills to include literature air - ington Ave.. 1-F, New York, N.Y. 10040 post. Goodwins, 7 The Broadway, Wood Green. London, BUILD YOUR OWN SPEAKERS AND SAVE UP TO OWN SPEAKERS AND N.22. 0077. Visitors Welcome." 50%. You can assemble your own high quality, multi -ele- SAVE UP TO 50% ment stereo speakers in a few hours and save up to half 35% to 55% DISCOUNT ON PROFESSIONAL GUI- You can assemble you, own men gualoty. TARS, Amplifiers. P.A. Systems. Free Catalog. Carvin, Es- the cost of comparable speakers. Send for our free 32 - multi -element stereo speakersina two nours and says up to half the cost of condido, Calif. 92029. page catalog of speaker kits. raw speakers and acces- comparable weekers Call operator tire al 1.800-426-7736 (toll free) Sr our has sories.SPEAKERLAB, Dept.HF-2,5500 -35thN.E., 32 -page catalog of speaker Iola raw DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. Weaken and ecCeettorweOr wife Seattle. WA 98105. (1-800-426-7736). THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF PENSACOLA. 3731 NAVY SPEAKERLAB Dept 14F4. 5500-3516 N E BOULEVARD. PENSACOLA, FLORIDA 32507. ULTIMATE -"LIVE" -Operatic,Symphonic -Reel & Seattle. WA 96105 Cassette Bargains! BOX 1101, WOODHAVEN, N Y. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. THIEVES 11421 ANTI -SKATING FOR AR TURNTABLES! Proven coun- WAREHOUSE OF MONTGOMERY, 3386 NORMAN CANADIAN DISCOUNT CATALOG. NAME BRAND terweight design installsinminutes. $7.00 postpaid. BRIDGE ROAD, MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA 36105 STEREO EQUIPMENT, CALCULATORS, CB Gear, Parts, Audio Innovational Products, P.O. Box 1378. Ballardvale DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. Station. Andover, Mass. 01810. Surplus. Factory close-outs, and dumps. Rush $1 00 THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA,3164 ETCO-HF, 521 5th Ave., NYC 10017 PHASE LOCK LOOP CONVERTER UPGRADES MONO PEACHTREE ROAD. N.E., ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303. THOUSANDS OF LIKE NEW LP's and pre-recorded OR STEREO FM Tuners to Quality Stereo reception. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. $59.00 -Free Brochure. LORAIN LABS, Box 4095, Mor- tapes. Catalog $1.50. House of Records, Hillburn, New THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA. 4166 BUFORD York 10931. HIGHWAY, N.E ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30345 AUDIOPHILESWANTED!! Put your knowledge to use, - - STEREO CARTRIDGES AND STYLUS REPLACE- earn an excellent spare time income. We need campus DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. MENTS FOR: ADC, Audio Technics, B&O, Grado, Em- representatives to sell name brand stereo equipment at THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA, 1030-3 substantial discounts in your area. No investment neces- pire. Micro Acoustics, Pickering. Ortofon, Shure. Stan- CHEROKEE ROAD. SMYRNA, GEORGIA 30080. ton, Supex. Write for free catalog, NEEDLE IN A sary. For information and application please write: ABCO. HAYSTACK, Dept. MH, P.O. Box 17435. Washington. Dept. CR, 915 Grand Avenue, New Haven, Conn. 06511. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. D.C. 20041. THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF NORTH TAMPA. 1441 EAST CONTROL I -AUTOMATIC SIGNAL ACTIVATED SHUT FLETCHER AVENUE, TAMPA. FLORIDA 33612 FRESH SCOTCH LiN 10V2" 3600' METAL REEL 5 for OFF for Hi-Fi components, $49.95. Details, Electromedia $35.00.Soundd, POB 88338, Atlanta, Ga. 30338. Design, Inc.. Box 26, Livingston, NJ 07039. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. HIGH FIDELITY. COMPLETE UNBOUND SET, 278 IS- THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA. 2769 LAKE - WOOD AVENUE, S W , ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30315 SUES. short only 7, $200.00. R. BERTHOLD, 66 Reid Ave- nue. Port Washington, N.Y. 11050. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. rRAJDFoRDI BIGGER DISCOUNTS ON RECORDING TAPE. Write THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA. 4162 JONES- BORO ROAD. ZAYRE CENTER. FOREST PARK, M.A.D. REPROGRAPHICS INC., P.O. Box 532, South- GEORGIA 30050 Order Radford direct from England! field, MI. 48075. (313) 559-6913. Immediate despatch by air of HD250 DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. stereo amplifier, ZD22 zero distortion THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ST. PETERSBURG. 9151 preamp, Low Distortion Oscillator ser. miscellaneous PARK BOULEVARD, NORTH LARGO, FLORIDA. 3,Distortion Measuring Set ser.3, speakers and crossovers. Send for free DIAMOND NEEDLES and Stereo Cartridges at Dis- count prices for Shure. Pickering, Stanton, Empire, STEREO TV catalogues, speaker construction plans Grado and ADC. Send for free catalog. All merchandise etc. brand new and factory sealed. LYLE CARTRIDGES. T. TE 200 TELE DATTER EASILY CONNECTS TO ANY TV STEREO SYS, uto etsuplmo ncl rnfr.cocuit TLHARIA IA.. Ie. oulssul Item Dept. H, Box 69. Kensington Station. Brooklyn, New York islAros.on and 414Ars Iwo HIGH IMPEDANCE CHANNELS Of SIMULATED STEREO 11218. AoMAr. Ywww.c. /weans. ownlainml se roe can ewe ow Calla WILMSLOW AUDIO boom, lyss on TV IMO. some. syerronty sod rnstruct isSIS 95 optl GuArantme so InLP rem ry Popayabl Dept. Export H, Swan Works, Bank Square, TE 200 VHF 1.1Ni T.wn,an AP. F.Alit Aosho Toner Ape spire Am@ AAA row,. SLEEP -LEARNING -HYPNOTISM! Strangecatalog 5169 95 peel free. Autosuggestion, Box 24-F, Olympia, Washington SENO CHECK 0 MASTERCHRDE or DANKAPAFRICRD NO and Expitbon Wilmslow, Cheshire, England. TO RHOADES NATIONAL DEPT NO 51 BOX BIT HENDERSON,. L LE 95801. 7075

HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE IGNITIONS. HIGH ENERGY SYSTEMS BROCHURE. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. Labtronics. 3635H Hillside. Ypsilanti. MI 48197. THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF JACKSONVILLE, 6078 OLD CASSETTES ST. AUGUSTINE ROAD, JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA Plain white cassette labels. Norelco cassette clean- DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. 32217 ers, famous brand cassettes. Send for open reel and THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF PANAMA CITY, 5220 WEST cassette discount catalog. HIGHWAY 98, SUITED, PANAMA CITY. FLORIDA 32401. DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. 1-9 10-99100 100010M THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF MIAMI, 1756 S. W 8th Cassette ..abels .02.015 .01 005 DYNAKITS. DYNASPEAKERS-LOWEST PRICES. Norelco Cassette Cleaner .65 AO .55 50 .45 STREET. a 201 MIAMI. FLORIDA 33135 'Scotch Cassette SC9OHE 2.72 2.55 2.44 IAD. IMF -Displayed. Underground HiFi, 324b Broad - *Buy 2.S:90HE. getI hee water Road, Arnold. Md. 21012. (301) 647-0919. Plus Postage by Weight ano Zone Minimum Order $5.00 FORMULA 4 PROFESSIONAL LABORATORY TONE tapes & records OPEN REEL STEREO TAPE BUYERS! ARM only viscous silicone damping with low effective At last' M open reel catalog, including titles, songs, etc. of 95 long mass (4.50 gm.) can ensure natural sound without 'listen- OPERA TAPES -DISCS OPEN REEL AND CAS- play, 2-3 hour albums by American Airlines or Ampex 4 track stereo ing fatigue' enabling all cartridges to reach their 'Linear SETTES -historical performances of last 40 years -Un- tapes. Send 51.00 -and we will also mail you a 140 -page Harrison Region' of best performance. Jewelled Unipivot friction believable treasure and rarities -ALSO LP RECORDS. Ed stereo tape guide -so you'll get both for 51.00 -and this $1.00 is Rosen, 66-33 Saunders St.. Rego Park. N.Y. 11374. refundabe on your first $10.00 purchase of open reel below 0.005 gm Stylus/pivot 224 mm. Bias control. VTF stereo tapes at our 30% discount. 0-3 gm. Reduced record wear. Leaflet $1, deductible - - FILM -STAGE SOUNDTRACKS. Large free list. A. Lut- Wye of the "Swir The Pncw AM The Address Is Prow It from purchase price $89 including Airmail. Formula 4,15 sky, P.O.Box 557342. Miami, Fla 33155. Heather Walk, Edgware, Middlesex HA8 9TS England. Saxitone's Bicentennial Tape Shoppe - - 1776 Columbia Rd., N.W., Wash. D.C. 20009 DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. OLDER JAZZ SWING SOUNDTRACKS Lowest Prices, Lists. Box. 1138H. Whittier, Calif. 90609 THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF BIRMINGHAM, 123 ROE- JAZZ RECORDS EXCLUSIVELY -CURRENT. RARE, BUCK PLAZA DRIVE. BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA 35206. "SOUNDTRACKS. SHOWS & NOSTALGIA -free cata- out -of -print FREE LISTS -Dept HF4, PO Box 125. Ja- DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. log & auction list -A-1 Record Finders. P.O. Box 75071-H, maica, NY 11415. L.A., Calif. 90075." THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ORLANDO. 1915 EAST CO- LONIAL DRIVE. ORLANDO, FLORIDA 32803. FUJI. SCOTCH, MAXELL, BASF, TDK, AMPEX, MEMO- "HARD TO GET" RECORDS -all speeds. RECORD EX- REX -Lowest prices! Omega Audio, 25520 Graham, De- DON'T PAY THE HIGH MAIL ORDER PRICES. CHANGE, 842 Seventh Avenue. New York. N.Y. 10019. troit, MI. 48239. THIEVES WAREHOUSE OF ATLANTA st 6. BELVEDERE CUT-OUT RECORDS. HUGE STOCK. ALL NEW No FL;?is CHCIPPINfl CENTE9 '101 rOLI IMRIA DF,NE. OBSCURE PREVIOUSLY UNOBTAINABLE SYM- catalog. Cohn. 2205 Marylane, Broomall. Pa 19008 PHONIC MUSIC on tape: American, Russian. Scandina- DE TAPES. CLASSICAL SINGERS, CONDUCTORS, in- vian. Others. Send for free list Argus Enterprises. P 0 trumentalists in live performance. Emphasis on Superior Box 1601, Lake Mary. Florida 32746. THI. sound. Catalogues. Good Sound Associates. PO Box ST( T ACK STEREO TAPES $2.98 each. Free catalog. 89. Planetarium Station, New York, N.Y. 10024 Triangle Electronics. 56F Central Blvd., Merrick, N.Y D(, RARE OPERA. SYMPHONIC MUSIC ON TAPE. Historic WANcriuu. _ 39 mr .ON performances. EUROPEAN. DOMESTIC. Free Cata- ROAD & LONE STAR JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA 32211 KOZLOVSKY, SUPREME BOLSHO LYRIC TENOR. logue. Underhill Bellport, NY 11713. LP, eight assorted arias, two songs, 1932-1950. Special! AMPEX TAPE. Ampex Audio Studio Mastering tapes, TDK, BASF, Memorex, Maxell. cassettes, reels. 8 - $5.00 aostpaid. Zarzuelas (Caballe, Berganza). Instru- 631-641. 406-407, and "GRAND MASTER" in stock for tracks. Lowest prices, guaranteed, new. S&S Audio. P.O. mentals. Imports. Cutouts. Lists. Lightfoot Collection. Box 554, Greenport. N.Y 11944 immediate shipment. Factory fresh. Best prices. Tech- Box 56039. Harwood Heights, II. 60656. niarts, 8555 Fenton St., Silver Spring. MD 20910 301-585- 1118. SHOW ALBUMS -Rare. out -of -print LPs, 52 -page list 50C. Broadway /Hollywood Recordings, Georgetown, CT cabinets "DUBIE CD -5 RECORDING SYSTEM IS A MUST FOR 06829 the serious hobbyist" or anyone owning two or more QUALITY WOOD FURNITURE for your components in recorders. DUBIE CD -5 allows you to be more creative in SOUNDTRACKS. Lowest Prices. Catalog: 50 cents. a wide selection of styles. Finished, unfinished, and kits. multiple taping. mixing, dubbing. and editing. Available at Write- Hi Fi, Box 715, Florrisant. MO 63033. Sold n fine stores and direct. Send 50C for all new full Olsen and Team Electronics stores for only $59.95 or color brochure AUDIO ORIGINALS -546 S. Meridian write Dubuc Route 4, Box 98. Stigler, Oklahoma 74462 QUADRAPHONIC RECORDS AND TAPES -WORLD'S St. "H" Indianapolis, Indiana 46225. LARGEST SELECTION -ALL LABELS, OVER 1000 TITLES -at discount prices! For your free illustrated quad catalog, write: SOUND CONCEPTS. 8510 N. Mt. Hawley. services Dept. B-4. Peoria, Illinois 61614 HIGH FIDELITY DYNACO, A -R. TRANSISTORS, REPAIRS -BOARDS -8 Classified Advertising Dept. GOLDEN AGE RADIO -YOUR BEST SOURCE for radio units. speaker service. Send for prices & details: BEAR 130 East 59th St., New York, N.Y. 10022 tapes Box 25215-J, Portland, Oregon 97225 ELECTRONICS, 177-HF Hillcrest Road, Mt. Vernon, N.Y. 10552. Phone: 212-581-7777, Michael Llttleford FREE FILMJSIC SOUNDTRACK CLASSIC BULLE- Please run the following attached classi- TINS. Words & Music, 108 N Fourth, Las Vegas, Nevada CROWN INTERNATIONAL. COMPLETE REPAIR, 89101. Overhaul and Rebuilding Service for current and early fied ad in the next available issue. model CROWN tape recorders. Used machines bought DISCONTINUED RECORDS. CLASSICAL. POPULAR. and sold. Techniarts. 8555 Fenton St.. Silver Spring, MD Lists. Steinmetz. One Seaview. Massapequa, NY 11758. 209t0 301-585-1118. CURRENT 8 -TRACKS FROM $3.95! FREE CATALOG! AUDIO TECH. SPECIALIST. May repair by piece or in Music Wholesaler, 1611 Capitol, Des Moines, Iowa his lab. For Queens Dealers, Contact. ALFRED T.. P.O. 50316. Box 568, Jackson Heights, N.Y. 11372. CLASSICS FOR CONNOISSEURS. WE OFFER AN AR- RAY OF CLASSICAL IMPORTS FROM ALL OVER THE books & literary services WORLD. WE HAVE CONTACTS WHICH GIVE US AN EX- CLUSIVE TO BRING TO OUR CUSTOMERS RARE AND PIANO TEACHERS SAVE TEN HOURS WEEKLY 2500 HARD -TO -FIND CLASSICAL RECORDINGS -OUR SPE- graded teaching selections $15.00. AMSA Piano Syl- CIALTY. WE GUARANTEE THE BEST SERVICE POS- labus, 1826 Carew Tower, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. SIBLE ON ALL ORDERS. COPIES LAST THREE BULLE- TINS -$1 AUGUST ROJAS-CLASSICAL IMPORTS. communication equipment 353,5 NORTH LA BREA AVENUE. ,.OS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90036 CB-MARINE-SCANNERS-LINEARS Buy Below Whplesale, Save up to 50%. Buy Direct From Factory LIVE OPERA TAPES, CASSETTES. PERSONAL Atten- Warehouse! Catainn St nn WHITLOCK INTER- tion Tremendous Selection. Free Catalogue. C Han- NATIONAL " -- delman. 34-10 75th St.. Jackson HtsN Y C 11372.

FILM MUSIC. LARRY FORD, 8 ALLEGHENY CTR. Pitts- dip burgh, Pa 15212 Name D VINTAGE RADIO BROADCAST CASSETTES/REELS. DEE Address Catalog: $1.00 (refundable) BRC Quality Dubs. 17173 DOI Westbrook, Livonia. Michigan 48152 ECL COF City ___ OLD RADIO PROGRAMS. Catalog S1 00. (refundable) Airwaves, 925FL Eagle Heights. Madison, Wisconsin wa State._ Zip 53705. CLASSICAL LP RARITIES. MONTHLY LISTS (SAMPLE Cu Telephone free), search service. Parnassus, Box 281, Phoenicia. reel RATE: For Regular and Display, see schedule N.Y. 12464 1093 above. 'CASH MUST ACCOMPANY ORDER. RARE JAZZ AND POPULAR VOCAL LP'S SOLD BY Ml Closing two months prior to issue. Auction. Leon Leavitt, 8241/4 North Las Palmas. Los An- TRO: geles. Calif 90038. 1 742E

APRIL. 1976 CLARE FISCHER AND THE YAMAHA QUARTET: WRITE FOR T'D-a-a! Clare Fischer,electronic organ; Gary Foster, alto and soprano saxophones; E,444 Andy Simpkins, bass; Larry Bunker, drums. QUOTATION FSAV Soon; 'Round Midnight; Crystal Sunrise; two MONEY TIME FREIGHT more. REVELATION 23, $4.98. FACTORY SEALED CARTONS QUALITY STEREO EQUIPMENT FRANCHISED DISTRIBUTOR AT LOWEST PRICES Clare Fischer, in his notes, makes much of the fact that this 1972 disc was recorded in QUICK SHIPMENT YOUR REQUEST FOR QUOTA- an innovative fashion-by allgwing the mu- TION RETURNED SAME DAY sicians to play together instead of hiding jjkl. FACTORY SEALED CARTONS them behind panels. That may account for GUARANTEED AND INSURED the very live presence of the recording, and it is even more likely to have contributed to SAVE ON NAME BRANDS LIKE the splendid work of Gary Foster and Andy A.D.C. KLH Simpkins. On the other hand, the anony- WE GIVE A.R. SHURE mousness of Fischer's organ-sometimes DYNACO KOSS muffled, sometimes hovering between pi- FISHER SONY ano and organ qualities-may be a conse- DISCOUNTS PIONEER quence of the same recording technique. In any event, Foster on alto and soprano ON HI-FI AND MORE THAN 50 OTHERS saxophones and Simpkins on bass are the BUY THE MODERN WAY ones who bring the performances to life. BY MAIL-FROM Fos,ter hasalipht_ hui_driviro qtyln COMPONENTS at Ir- 30 ;SS all

his sing i _ any terms. Simp- SOUND kins produces a beautiful, positive tone on bass in solos that are agile and purposeful. REPRODUCTION Department 217H Despite Fischer's paeans for his Yamaha 12 E. Delaware Place organ, there is little to be heard in his per- INC. formances that seems to justify it. His best Chicago, Illinois 60611 460 CENTRAL AVENUE moments are in a soft stop -time passage on East Orange, New Jersey 07018 312-664-0020 "Blues in F," which is initially fascinating (201)673-0600 but is quickly dissipated in a routine bit of CIRCLE 15 ON READER -SERVICE CARD frenzy. I.S.W. CIRCLE 43 ON READER -SERVICE CARD PRICE WAR SAVE ON AMERICA s #1 VALUE LEADER Brand Name Audio STEREO CORPORATION OF AMERICA Components Mastercharge/Bankamencard REDD Foxx: You Gotta Wash Your Ass. AT- Phone For Immed ate Shipments Write Today for Our FREE SHURE LANTIC SD 18157, $6.98. Tape: iLIE CS Direct to Consumer Audio Catalog 18157, $7.97; CTP 18157, $7.97. DIXIE n one of the oldest and largest audio cunipo ammo= Recorded live at New York City's Apollo nent mad order houses in the country. Our prices on 140imi brand name components are actually LOWER than Theatre, this disc is Redd Foxx's first in a "Discounter " See our new catalog or call us for a MARANTZ PIONEER decade, and he is as foul-mouthed as he price quoteEverything shipped factory sealed with full manufacturer's wa ranty. ever was. Vulgar? Yes-and I loved every AUDIO DISCOUNTING STARTED IN moment of it! H.E. RAU NOSE NEW YORK & NOW WITH THE END OF 1411 FAIR-TRADE WE ARE SURE THAT NO SKYHOOKS: Ego Is Not a Dirty Word. MER- Master Chars'13,141,1rovrirsrl 1:111 ONE CAN BEAT OUR PRICES: honoredDn rn...1ordert CURY SRM 1-1066, $6.98. 11114111 CONNIE We Discount Over 70 Major Brands This Australian rock quintet makes quirky, PPP_ ;it 1111 Over 10 Years Of Reliable Service In interesting songs that should win an instant ?HOUTZ PIONEER The Mail Order Field cult following among American listeners. cr-s-i-esA Largest Inventory/Lowest Prices! H.E. We Get The Best Deals From The Manufac- turers. You Get The Best Deal From Us! BOHANNON: DAKAR DK 76917, $6.98. This discomusic by Hamilton Bohannon is WRITE OR CALL! SHOP BY PHONE! For A Lowest Of The suitable for dancing but totally uninterest- $1 00 Will Be Deducted H.E. Low Quote From Any ing in any other capacity. (212) 338-8555 Orders Over $100 9-5 Mon. thru Sat. LYNSEY DE PAUL: Love Bomb. MERCURY SRN 1-1055, $6.98. STEREO CORPORATION OF AMERICA Here's a composer/performer who, judging from the album jacket, is far more inter- Dept. H -F2122 Utica Avenue esting to look at than to listen to. Never- Brooklyn, N.Y. 11234 theless, this lightweight "Love Bomb" does Tel. (212) 338-8546 have an occasional moment that is musi- cally attractive. H.E. CIRCLE 45 ON READER -SERVICE CARD HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE At TEAC, our funda- mental mandate for any new product is performance and reliability. First and finally. Qualities that are measurable in terms of mechanical stability and inherent design integrity. These are essentials. Because our technological resources established the cassette deck as a true high fidelity component. So we demand that a new product possess that measure of TEAC quality. A-170 And that's what distinguishes the A-170. Compare it with other inexpensive cassette decks with Dolby, please. Just call (800) 447-4700* for the name of your nearest TEAC retailer. We think you'll agree it's a value you can rely on. *In Illinois, call (800) 322-4400. TEAC perFormance

and reliability

a how can you really afford anything less ? TEAC, Thlleader. Always has heeri l EA( 11 AI. a 1,1,gt TI a tradoasnar k aim,it,olit

4 April Americana I:First Destos. $23.94, including notes and texts) of Among its debut cassettes the con- Weber's opera Der Freischutz in noisseur label Desto features (bicen- young Carlos Kleiber's recorded debut tennially) four of its 1965 electronic - by R. D. Darrell (1974) with the Dresden State Orches- stereo revivals of 1952-53 American tra and a cast starring Gundula Jan- Recording Society originals. Despite owitz as Agathe. Not all the other their technical age and routine per- singers can match her vocal appeal, formances (by the Vienna Symphony but over-all this is a highly effective under Hendl and Schoenherr), these performance with exceptionally good pioneering representations of native pressionism, Schoenberg's Pierrot lu- choral and orchestral contributions composers remain valuable historical naire. Quite apart from their musical and outstandingly realistic recording. documents. Of course, later and better significance or the exceptional lucid- In any case, both earlier open -reel recorded versions have superseded ity of the accompaniments by the tapings (Angel's of 1970 and DG/Am- most of those in Desto X 46403 (Cop- Contemporary Chamber Ensemble pex's of 1965) are out of print nowa- land, Ives), X 46404 (Harris, Schuman, led by Arthur Weisberg, these tapings days. Sessions), and X 46424 (Creston, demand a place in every home collec- MUSICAL HERITAGE SOCIETY (1991 Griffes, Rogers), so today's nonspe- tion just for their ideal re -creations of Broadway, New York, New York cialist home listeners are likely to find the loveliest voice and most immacu- 10023): MHC 2117 (Dolby -B cassette, X 46417 more rewarding for its first late artistry commanded by any $6.95) goes way back to resurrect a tapings (indeed, only available American singer today: those of Jan 1960 Erato/Westminster motet pro- recordings) of the fine Victor Herbert DeGaetani. gram by Philippe Caillard's choruses Second Cello Concerto, jaunty Robert that still can enthrall us by its sonic McBride violin concerto, and lushly Musicassette smorgasbord. Any sam- grandiloquence (in ultrareverberant romantic Deems Taylor Portrait of a pling of recent and current releases is cathedral ambience) as well as its var- Lady. sure to uncover appetizers for the ied musical magnetisms. The late- Of two more recently recorded- most diverse tastes. The following are baroque Johann Christoph Bach Ich andcharacteristic-Destocassettes some of those I've particularly liked or lasse dich nicht is a fine unaccompa- (all list -priced at $7.95 each), I've been impressed by (alphabetically by nied piece, but the early -baroque heard so far only the X 47170 coupling label). works with organ, some plus brass, by of two Schoenberg tape firsts:the ANGEL: Among a considerable num- Praetorius, Schutz, and especially curious, freely tonal string quartet ber of new releases, available in both Scheidt (a heavenly Duo Seraphim and orchestral elaborations of cassette and eight -track cartridge edi- clamabant) are what completely en- Handel's Concerto Grosso, Op. 6, No. tions, the most provocative and per- chant the listener. 7, and the partially serial String Trio, haps controversial is Sviatoslav Rich- PHILIPS: Echoes of the American Si- Op. 45. They are played, respectively, ter's latest Schumann and first Grieg belius vogue first created by the Bos- by the Lenox Quartet with the London piano concertos (4XS/8XS 36899, ton Symphony under Koussevitzky Symphony under Farberman and by $7.98 each). Both works are ably ac- resound in the first release in a new three Lenox members. Unlike the old companied (by the Monte Carlo Op- series by the Bostonians now under ARS reissues, which of course long era Orchestra under Matatid), thrill- Colin Davis (7300 415, Dolby -B cas- antedated Dolby -A mastering, this ingly recorded, and magisterially sette, $7.95). In the popular Fifth and Schoenberg cassette has been proc- played. While Richter keeps within le- monolithic Seventh Symphonies, essed with Dolby -B noise reduction- gitimate bounds of ultraromanticism Davis makes no attempt to emulate more effectively in the trio than in the in the Schumann, his pontifical delib- the personality -charged Koussevitzky somewhat dull -toned concerto. eration and mannered emphases get approach, but his somberly dark and out of hand, to my taste, in the Grieg. ruggedly contoured readings are both ... II: Second Advents. Following last Yet even entirely bereft of its folkish impressive in themselves and over- month's Joplin/Rifkin Vols. 2 and 3 straightforwardness, it too is magnifi- whelmingly formidable in recorded with further explorations of Advent's cent in an uninhibitedly idiosyncratic performances exceptional even in new dozen -item release list, I'm more way. these days for their tremendous ,than ever convinced of the matchless CLASSICAL CASSETTE CLUB (118 weight, powerful impact, and vivid technical superiority of this truly de- Route 17, Upper Saddle River, New immediacy. luxe, chromium -dioxide -tape, slow - Jersey 07458): Tape's inexcusable ne- RCA RED SEAL: Also outstanding for speed -processed, Dolby -B musi- glect of Schubert's violin/piano sona- superb orchestral playing and almost cassette series. Outstanding perform- tinas and sonatas is finally corrected palpably solid (here more markedly ance and recording excellence also by a cornucopia double -play Dolby -B stereoistic) sonics is the latest Or- distinguish two sets of paired pro- cassette (CCC 29, $5.95) that includes mandy/Philadelphia version of the in- grams drawn from the exemplary all three of the ineffably delectable candescent Shostakovich Fifth Sym- Nonesuch Americana series (double - Op. 137 shorter works plus the great phony (ARK/ARS 1-1149, cassette/ play cassettes, $7.95 each, notes -and - Op. 162 Sonata and Op. 159 Fantasy. cartridge, $7.95 each). I still prefer the texts booklet on postcard request). The recordings probably are Monitor more passionate eloquence of the 1959 The incomparable DeGaetani/Guinn originals, c. 1971-appropriately light- Stokowski and 1960 Bernstein inter- Stephen Foster song collection now is weight for the engaging Kwalwasser/ pretations over Ormandy's sobriety coupled with Gerard Schwarz's bra- Wingreen sonatina performances, and gravity (he now paces the work vura "Cornet Favorites" of oldtime much bigger in the broadly dramatic slower than in his 1970 Columbia ver- Sunday band concerts (F 1040). And F but also more mannered playing of sion). But in no previous recording 1035 couples what is probably the fin- Tarack and Hancock in the two have the finale's 252 repetitions of an est example of contemporary musical "Grand Duos." ostinato high A lived up as spectac- Americana, George Crumb's haunting DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON: I only be- ularly to Slonimsky's description: evocations of Ancient Voices of Chil- latedly got around to the DG Prestige "cutting like an acetylene torch dren, with that landmark of eerie ex- Box 3371 008 (three Dolby -B cassettes, through the fanfare of the brasses."

148 HIGH FIDELITY MAGAZINE PROFESSIONALS TALK ABOUT THE NEW MARANTZ TUNER AND AMPS. "The Marantz 1070integrated amp is

close to optimumin performance and the low pricemakes it an even better value:' In December, 1974, sound engineers andaudiophiles were invited to examine and discuss the new Marantz Stereo ConsoleAmplifiers featuring models 1040 and 1070 and the new Marantz 112 AM/FM StereoTuner. The following comments were taken from that tapeddiscussion.

"The circuitryis now full -The 112 Tuner complementary direct coupled to the "It'sgot phase lock loop, a Dolby®* speaker terminals. As a result, thede -emphasis switch and a number of damping factor is much improved at lowother high-performance features. There're frequencies where it counts:' no gimmicks in it. Everyfeature is practical:' The 1070 Stereo Amp "The output circuitry now includes a "As far as good basic features arespeaker protection relay circuit and turn "A complete system including the concerned, it's comparable to units cost-on delay!' 112 tuner plus either the 1070 integrated ing twice as much!' amp or the 1040 integrated amp gives "There's improved thermal performance you couldn't get in most "It maintainsall the features of theThis buys long term reliability as wellreceivers and still costs less than $500:' Marantz 1060, plus it adds a number ofas improved performance:' features of its own. For instance, it now The Marantz 1070 Amp, 1040 Amp has graphic slide -type tone controls,The 1040 Stereo Amp and 112 Tuner are just part of the exciting two tape monitors and a versatile mode "The new 1040 integrated amp isnew Marantz component line starting selector switch!' rated at 20 watts minimum continuousas low as $199.95. Each of themreflects power per channel with no more thanthe kind of technical expertise and "With the 1070 you have a full range0.3% total harmonic distortion, 20 Hzengineering excellence that has made of tone controls like bass, mid range andto 20 kHz, both channels driven intoMarantz the choice of professionals treble slide controls plus preamp out andan 8 ohm load:' world-wide. Stop by your local dealer main in jacks!' and see the entire Marantz line. Or send "It also has the ambience circuitry for a free catalog. "I feel strongly about thepreampfor simulated 4 -channel. Most all of the Marantz. Ask an expert. out jacks. You can re -equalize tapefeatures of the 1070 are on the 1040:' recordings, insert equalizers or even add electronic cross-overs into the chain:' "It's an excellent performance component for a modest price:' "One major feature that I like in the 1070 is its ambience circuitry. Essentially it's a speaker matrix or pseudo 4 -channel. 1 This means you can get into simulated ',channel sound by just adding a second pair of speakers!' "In addition tothe step up in power to 35 watts minimum continuous power per channel with no more than 0.3% total harmonic distortion, 20 Hz to 20 kHz both channels driven into an 8 ohn ad, the circuitry is direct coupled!'

Inc.. a subsidiar), of Superscope, Inc., 8150 Vineland Ave.. SunValley, CA 91352. In Europe: Super- !by System under license from Dolby Laboratories, Inc. C 1975 Marantz Co.. Prices and models subject to change without ..ipe Europe, S.A., Brussels, Belgium. In Canada: SuperscopeCanada, Ltd., Ontario. In the Far East: Marantz Far East, Tokyo, Japan. dotice. Consult the Yellow Pages for your nearest Marantz dealer. KE11WOOD Cassettes ...when quality isyour priority

KENWOOD Cassettes are quality -engineered for superb rep .oduction, professional recording ,results smooth and easy operation, and exceptic nal dependability. The precision drive sys-ems keep wow and flutter at new lows (less than 0.09% for the KX-620). A one -micron head gap KX-620 - FrontLoad Stereo Cassette brings frequency response Deck with to new highs (30-1E k Hz for the KX-910 and KX-710). And a host of automatic features and well -designed controls make each unit virtually mistake -proof.' For cassette performance at its impressive best, you can depend on Kr_ENWOOD -the name synonymous with quality in stereo components throughout the world.

KX-710 - Stereo Cassette Deck with Dolby

KX-010 - Stereo Casette Deck with Dolby°

°Dolby Is the trademark of Dolby Laboratories, Inc. For complete information, visit your nearest KENWOOD Dealer, or write

15777 S. Brcadway, Gardena, 90248 72-02 Pity t rst Abe , Woodside, N.Y. 11377 In Canada: Magnasonic Canada, ltd. CIRCLE 30 ON READER.SERVICE CARD