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Creative Technology!

Creative Technology!

and Jacob Avshalomov leads his young play- mille ; others. Ambrosian Chorus; New bombast and all artificiality, characters that ers in vigorous performances that come off PhilharmoniaOrchestra,GeorgesPretre are recognizably human and real, and a pas- better in the sharper and more refined Trom- cond.COLUMBIAM3 34207threediscs sionate tribute to -at least the. Paris of bone Symphony than in the massive sonori- $20.94. 1900-and its irresistible magic. ties and intricate polyphony demanded in the Columbia's new recording, the opera's first suite. The sound is good, considering what Performance:A -minus Recording:Good in stereo, supersedes the classic but incom- seems to have been a somewhat limited plete and sonically dated version by Ninon acoustic ambiance. D.H. Charpentier's , something of a shocker Vallin and and a long -deleted in 1900 with its exultant praise of "free love" good mono set under Jean Foumet (Epic in the face of bourgeois values, is hardly more 6018). Both older sets were Paris -made prod- RECORDING OF SPECIAL MERIT "modern" today than Puccini's La Boheme, ucts,imperfect but thoroughly idiomatic. CHARPENTIER:Louise. Ileana Cotrubas (so- which depicts the same Paris milieu without Those challenges are only partly met by Co- prano), Louise; Placido Domingo (tenor), Ju- any crusading undertones. And yet there is lumbia's otherwise fine and thoughtful effort. lien; Jane Berbie (mezzo-soprano), the Moth- something about the conflict of generations I certainly have no objection whatever to er; (bass -), the Fa- that lends Louise a certain timeliness. It is an the Louise of Ileana Cotrubas, who is a sensi- ther; Michel Senechal (tenor), Noctambulist opera that lacks the musical magic of La tive and musicianly artist, whose singing is and King of the Fools; Lyliane Guitton (so- Boheme, but it yields riches of its own kind: a pure in tone and affecting throughout, and prano), Irma; Eliane Manchet (soprano), Ca- of considerable literary merit, free of whose command of French ought to please all but the most chauvinistically inclined. Placido Domingo brings his characteristic ardor to the role of , but his rich tenor sound is Ital- ian, not French, despite a satisfactory way with the language. A leaner, more pointed, more Gallic timbre would have been a better Creative Technology! match with Miss Cotrubas' tones-but then are cast with at least one eye firmly The MXR Compander and Stereo Graphic Equalizer provide you with the ultimate fixed on sales potential. The Gallic ingredi- in creative sounds. ents, however, are abundant in the richly characterized Mother of Jane Berbie, who is The MXR Compander is a noise reduction device capable of doubling the dy- just about perfect, and in Gabriel Bacquier's namic range of most open reel and cassette tape decks, allowing professional moving portrayal of the Father. Equally con- results in home recording. In operation the Compander compresses the dynamic vincing in anger and tenderness, Bacquier range of the signal going onto the tape and expands the dynamic range upon hereaccomplishesa triumphantsinging - playback. With the MXR Compander noise is reduced enabling the softest sounds acting feat, a few effortful notes in the top to be heard, while musical peaks can be reproduced without distortion. register notwithstanding. Michel Senechal excels in his double role. The MXR Stereo Graphic Equalizer, a natural companion, is a two channel fre- The numerous supporting characters repre- quency equalizer that offers ten bands of discrete adjustment on each channel. senting the fanciful Charpentier creations of The primary function of the MXR Equalizer is to provide precise compensation Parisian night life are done with varying de- for aural tone quality discrepancies that may be caused by room acoustics, speaker grees of competence by what I presume to be inadequacies, or program sound quality. With a touch of the slide control the members of the Ambrosian Chorus, but the MXR Equalizer will tailor your playback to suit any number of variables and seasoned hand of Georges Pretre assures a smoothly flowing performance. The recorded develop the mood you want to hear. sound is good and atmospheric, though the The MXR Compander is attractively priced at $129.95 and its companion the MXR guitar accompaniment in Julien's Serenade is Stereo Graphic Equalizer at $199.95. virtually inaudible. G.J.

For more information on MXR products, see your nearest MXR dealer or direct DANIEL-LESUR: Andrea del Sarto (excerpts). inquiries to MXR Innovations Inc., 277 N. Goodman Street, Rochester, New Gabriel Bacquier (baritone), Andrea; Andree York 14607 (716) 442-5320. Esposito (soprano), Lucrece; Daniele Perriers (mezzo-soprano), Spinette; (ten- Consumer or), Cordiani; others. Ensemble des Choeurs Products Group de l'O.R.T.F.; Orchestre National, cond.INgDITSORTF 995 037 $7.98 (from HNH Distributors Ltd., P.O. Box 222, Evanston, Ill. 60204). Performance:Impressive Recording:Excellent Daniel-Lesur-the hyphenated form is cor- rect, and the composer never uses his actual given names, Jean Yves-is almost unknown in this country. Born in Paris in 1908, he was with Messiaen and Jolivet in the group called Jeune France. Like so many of his confreres he is (or was) an organist. He has also been associated with French radio and television for many years. These credentials might suggest some sort of modernism, possibly ultra. Nothing of the sort. Andrea del Sarto is an operatic version of a highly fictionalized account of the life of the Italian painter by the French Romantic playwright Alfred de Musset, and it is-in both words and music-heart-on-sleeve thud - and -blunder Romanticism of the most una- bashed sort. The tragic intensity is a little overbearing but otherwise effective in this ex- cellent performance and recording from the archives of French radio. No texts. E.S. CIRCLE NO. 31 ON READER SERVICE CARD 116 STEREO REVIEW

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