STEREO TUNERS - BUYor BUll • • WURLITZER vs. BAROQUE ORe: HIGH COSTaf MUSICAL CREA'
May REVIE\N ONLY SOUNDCRAFT TAPES ARE MICROPOLISHED SMOOTH! There's more to tape surface than meets the eye. Any coating because SOUNDCRAFT TAPES ARE MICROPOLISHEDI MICROPOLISH process can make the surface of unpolished tape look smooth. ING is SOUNDCRAFT'S exclusive way of physically polishing the However, unpoljshed tape surfaces contain microscopic irreg· tape to insure a mirror-smooth and irregularity-free tape ularities that prevent the tape from making intimate contact surface. Your recorder heads make immediate and intjmate with the recorder heads. ' '''ith ordinary tapes, it takes about contact with the tape surface, guaranteeing uniform high 10 plays, a "breaking in" period, before these irregularities frequency response right from the very first play. Remember, are smoothed out and proper contact is made. only SOUNDCRAFT TAPES are MICROPOLISHED for your protec During this critical period you lose important high frequen tion. Buy them-use them, your recorder doesn't deserve less cies and force your recorder heads to do the job of physically than the best. Write for SOUNDCRAFT'S free catalog RS58-IOR. polishing the tape surface. This can result in excessive wear EXCLUSIVE BONUS RECORDING - "Sweet Moods of J~zz ing of your recorder heads and in gradual head deterioration. in Stereo" recorded on one of two 7" reels of tape in With SOUNDCRAFT TAPES there is no "breaking in" period SOUNDCRAFf'S NEW PREMIUM PACK. You pay for the no excessive head wear-no loss of high frequency response ... tape plus only $1.00. Ask your dealer today!
,,, .. e,,,",, .~ . ~o."" "00 • w." " .. ~~~V£S SO UN FTcORP N. La Brea, Los Angeles 36 DCCal,', C RA • , .• anada· 700 W t . es on Road, Toronto 9 Ont C d ' ., ana a R·S9 TCHAIKOWSKY TOHAIKOWSKY ffjfJ THE NEW SYMPHONY1IT BALLET smTES (PATH IITIQUE) in B Minor.Opns 74 AUDIO FIDELITY c()lukctd ~ ~erJ~!kjiJteilb st COMPONENT STEREO SERIES· STATEMENT OF PLEASE READ (AREfULLY Axiom: The first and most important COIl) RAVEL BOLERO ponent of a High Fidelity Stereophonic phonograph system is the phonograph BIZET CARMEN record. It is a little 'known fact that until now the ~~ SUITE dynamic range of phonograph records has been restricted by the inadequacies of cer· tain cartridges and pick·up arms. Since this new series was successfully recorded with tremendously increased dynamic range and since Audio Fidelity does not wish to compromise the full potential of 'this' recording project to accommodate inaClequate equipment we announce with great pleasure and infinite satisfaction the new Audio Fidelity First Component Series* . Since Audio Fidelity desires to raise still further the high quality standards of its product and to maintain the Highest Standard of High Fidelity in this industry, we decided to increase the dynamic and frequency range, and level of sound of the records in this new series - and state therefore that we can certify ' only the highest quality cartridges and arms to track the First Component Series. We do not recommend that you buy these records unless your euqipment is of the first rank. If you are in doubt, the Audio Fidelity First Component Stereo Test Rec· ord (FCS 50,000) provides a ready means of determining the tracking ability of your high fidelity stereo equipment. The following arms and cartridges -have been found by Aud.io Fidelity to be cap· able of tracking its First Component Series records: ARMS: AUdax·KT·16; Elac; P·100; Fairchild·282;· Garrard·TPA/ 12; G. E.-TM·2G; Grado; Gray 212; Pickering 196; Rek·Q·Kut S·120, S·160; Shure 'Oy netic., Weathers Stereoramic Pickup Sys· tern, arm and cartridge MC·I, Berlioz "DAMNAn ON OF FAUST"; Bizet -cAAMEN~ CARTRIDGES: Dynaco B & Q Stereodyne; Borodin "PRINCE IGOR": Glinka "WIZAROS MARCtr, Meyerbeer "THE PROPHET"; Mourt "FIGARO""; [Iectrovoice Magneramic 21·M; General R~Korsako""COQ D' Of!";Verdi "A1D.\"; Electric GC·5, GC·7, CL·7; Grado; Picker· WDcner "MEISTERSINGER"; W.grtet "TANNHAUSER" ing 371; Scott· London 1000 match,ed arm c()lukctd ~ &duTi1Jilofm fREE: WRITE FOR CLASSICAL BROCHURE & TECHNICAL DATA AUDIO fIDELITY, INC. 770 Eleventh Avenue, New York 19, New York. SUGGESTED RETAIL PRICE $6.95 each 12 In STEREODISC· MAy 1959 3 ON' COM.. ··Ir1I ..·I ...illfl ITH UALT • • The advantages areal I vr h e It's It's U's It's Quiet .: "Clean'" Correct Gentle The G arrard is Garra rd's Ga rra rd insures · With the Ga u ard affords Despite its many actuall y a superb exclusive pro fessional lone exclusive, 'a ll the featbres of advant.ages. tile turntable. No aluminum lone arm perfo rmance. foolp roof pusher a 111anual coS t of a Garrard matter how arm makes it I t is precision platforni. the . t uf ri (able, with Changer isstill preci sely you non-resonant, engineered to Ga rrard,actliall y the tremendo us less Ihan a · check wow, and distortion track all . handles record$ . added advantage t urnta ble with Hutter, and free. T hat is why cartridges at more carefully of auto matic separa te a rm. rumble contcnt it is s uperio r to li ght est pr.oper lhan your own . play when Backed b y you will fin d most sepa ra te weight, thus hand-qefi nilely wanted! . Garrard 's Garra rd tra nscription insuring more carefully Pre-wired for 36-yea r record Changers , a.rms . mininl unl friction than any other s tereo- can'be o f perfect, comparable to the a nd reco rd wear. record changer installed in trouble-free best professional or turnta ble. mirrutes. perfo rmance. t.urntables. There's a Garrard fa, every high fidelity system. Fully wired for Ste,eo and Monaural records, New COlftPCII,afo, G"Id. Canard Sales Corporatioa, Dept; OR I Port WashiDgtou, N_ Yodc. Please seftd your DeW c:ompas-. auJdt' which compares aU Garrazd playen Del their advan I 1IC121/D ",,,,12 lOI eM' Itrfe'tnl, $t,," trJltw!ptlOft tratlSCtlptloA Nrune'______tN"IU tOM Ana T.mtlb't_.00 "'nUlI P1.,.., tu.50 119.50 '''.50 GARRARD SALES CORPORATION, PORT WASHINGTON, N. Y. Address.s ------Canadian Jnquirles to Chas. W. Pointon. Ltd., 6 Alcino Ave .• Toronto 1.,,190,1., olh., than U.S.A. and Canado to Garrard Engineering & Mfo. Co .• ltd .• Swindon. VVith ... England City State ___ FEATURE ARTICLES HiFiREVIEW The High Cost of Creativity 31 Abraham Skulsky May, 1959 Why is there so little monetary budgeting for the American composer? Vol. 2 No.5 Stereo via Sonic Environment Publisher 37 Warren DeMotte Oliver Read James B. lansing's Paragon and Metregon offer something new in stereo speakers Editor Oliver". Ferrell The Primal Eloquence of Pablo Casals 39 David Hall Music Editor New insight on li the greatest musician ,DClvid Hall that ever drew a bow" Art Edito~ Saul D. Weiner Letters of Mark 40 Warren DeMotte Letting the cat out of the bag on how to create a keyboard virtuoso-on records only ' Associate Editors Hans H. Fantel Warren DeMotte Have Pipe Organ-Can't Move 42 Robert Hazelleaf Assistant Editor Presenting the genius of the modern R.odney H. William. "Mighty Wurlitzerll-conc!uding a 2-port article Cbntdbuting Editors Madln Bookspan Reilph J. Gleason Mail-Call for Stereo 45 Hans H. Fantel Stanley Green Hat Hentoff Three house-brand stereo tuners with George Je/line" va stly different functional design concepts DavId Randolph John Thornton Advertising Director ' John A. Ronan, Jr. REVIEWS Advertising Man'a ger Herb O/sow Stereo HiFi Concert 53 Martin Bookspan, George Jellinek, David Randolph, John Thornton ZIFF·DAVIS PUBLISHING co., One Park Ave., New Yor,k 16, N. Y. Wi,IIiam B. Ziff, M H·F- C rt Martin Bookspan, George Jellinek, C hairman of the Bo'ard '(1946·1953);William ono 11 once 67 Ziff, President; W. Bradford Bri g,i;;Is Execu- ' David Randolph, John Thornton tive Vice President; Michael M Ichaerson, Vice President and.' Circulation Director; He rs hel B. Sarbin, Secretary; Howard Stoughton, Jr., Treasurer; Albert Gruen, Art Stereo Entertainment 75 Ralph J. Gleason, Stanley Green, Director. Nat Hentoff BRANCH' OFFICES; Midwestern Office, 434 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago 5, III ., Tom Berry, Midwest Ad vertising Ma nager; Mono Entertal·nment W~stern O ffice, Room 412, 215 West 7th 79 Ralph J. Gleason, Stanley Green, . St." Los Angeles /1. Calif" James R. Pi"rce, Nat Henloff w,estern AdvertiSing Manager; Foreign Ad vertising Representatives; D. A. Goodall Ltd., Lon don; ,Al beof Mjlh.d6 & Co., Ltd., Antwerp a,nf! Dusseldorf. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE COLUMNS AND MISCELlANEOUS Forms 3579 a nd . 11 subscriptio,n corre spondence shou ld be addressed to Cir culation Department, 434 South Wabash Ave nue, Chicago 5, Illinois. Pl e'ase allow .t least four weeks for change of address. HiFi Soundings 6 HiFi-ndings 49 In clude you r old address as well as new Realistic "Solo" Speaker System; JFD -enclosing if possible an address label fro m a recent issue', ; . . . Musical Oddentities 12 "Mardi Gra s" Speaker System Model A LC-2 , CONTRIBUTORS Contributors ar", advised to retain a copy The Basic Repertoire 14 of their manu,cript and illustrations. Con Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony Advertisers Index 89 tributions should be mailed to the New York Editoria l office and must be accom· panied by return p"stage. C ont ributions 18 The Flip Side 90 are handled, with reasonable care, but this Just Looking magazine assumes no responsibility for their safety. Any acceptable ma nuscript is sub ied to wha tever adaptqtions and revisions are necessary to meet re By DAVID HALL Charles E. Ives on What to Listen For' in 'New Music The decade since World War II has witnessed a fantastic pre-occupation with sound style and technique on the part of contemporary' cQmposers. all over the world. Its most virulent manifestation has centered around post-Webernian 12-tone fury fashions and the various forms of "electronic tape" music. The mass commer vvithout cialization of hi-fi and "sound for sound's sake" has added further to an atmos in 3 easy steps phere in which the composer is tempted to indulge in all manner of sonic and intellectual gimmickry. Here',s a co~pact, do-It-yourself speaker system that de livers realistic, transparent reproduction without the fury of bass or treble exaggerations. Perfe ctly match ed Electro static mid/high range speakers and a dynamic woofer give How is the listening and record-buying public-other than the cognoscenti of measurably flat response over the entire audio spectrum_ arty esoterica- to judge what is worthwhile ~nd what is "gimmicky" in the What's more, you need not be an expert cabinet maker_ You create high fidelity at a sensible, do-it-yoursel f cost. great mass of contemporary music findin g its way to the LP and stereo catalogs, whether from specialty labels like Louisville's First Edition series or Composers Recordings Inc., or from major labels working under Koussevitzky or Fromm o Foundation auspices? Nearly forty years ago, Charles Edward Ives (1874-1954) - still the most modern and truly creative of all Am erican composers-published privately and at his own ELECTROSTATIC MID/HIGH RANGE SPEAKER expense a 124-page volume Essays Befor e a Sonata, the "sonata" being his Sec Model 65, Illustrated, uses two Jan sZen electrostatic ond for piano (Concord, Mass., 1840-60). The book was, in a sense, a justification elements with a built-In power supply and high-pass filter. Each element contains 176 perfectly balanced, sheathed of his life and work as a mu sician and a deeply probing statement of what he conductors to give absolutely clean response from 700 to felt to be the place of the creative artist among his fellow humans. beyond 30,000 cycles. Furnished complete in cabinet at $86-$91.50, depending on finish. Slightly higher In West. Better yet ••• Model 130-considered as THE mid/high Together with his 1912 pamphlet on life insurance- The Amount to Carry range speaker-.contalns four elements for a broad, 120· sound source. $161-$188, depending on finish. Slightly Measuring the Prospect, printed by his own firm, Ives & Myrick, Essays Be/ore higher in West. a Sonata has become something of a legendary classic in its field. In 1956 a new edition of the EpiLogue to the "Essays" was issued by Paul Boatwright of New Haven as edited hy the distinguished musician and Ives scholar, Howard o Boatwright. From this Epilogue we have distilled those passages which seem to us to have particular bearing on the present situation in contemporary music composition- especially as experienced by the enterprising concertgoer and audiophile. We feel that there is much in Ives' words that can help relieve the DYNAMIC WOOFER DRIVER . present confusion of values in the modern music field-if not on tbe part of the Specifically designed to complement the delicate clarity composers, then at least on the part of their audience. of JansZen Electrostatic Mid/ High Range Speakers, the Model 350 DynamiC Woofer offers clea n, honest bass, devoid of coloration, false resonances, hangover or boom. "Many sounds that we are used to do not bother us, and for that reason It Is the only separately available Vloofer to give such clean response In so small an enclosure-only 2.2 cu. ft. we are inclined to call them beautiful. Frequently- possibly almost Response Is uncanni Iy flat from 40 to 2000 cycles with excellent output to 30 cy cles. Only $44.50. Slightly invariably-analyti cal and impersonal tests wiJl show, we believe, that higher in West. when a new or unfamiliar work is accepted as beautiful on its first hearing, its fundamental quality is one that tends to put the mind to sleep." "That which the composer intends to represent as "high vitality" sounds like something quite different to different listeners ... How far can the composer be held accountable?" DO-IT-YOURSELF WOOFER ENCLOSURE Working with the plans Vie furnish with each Vloofer, * * * * * * * c . you'll be able to build your own enclos ure with basic tools. The enclosure is a sturdy, yet simple, totally enclosed cabinet. There are no tricky baffle arrangements "It may be that wh en a poet .(01' a whistler) becomes conscious that he or adjustments . Size wi thout legs : 19" high x 25" Vlide x is in the easy path of any particular idiom- that he is helplessly preju 13" deep. Cost of all materials should run about $12 to $IB. diced in favor of any particular means of expression- that his manner can Discover JansZen clarity for yourself. Write for literature on JansZen's comp lete speaker systems and be catalogued as modern or classic- that he favors a contrapuntal groove, the name of your nearest dealer. a sound-coloring on e, ' a sensuous one, a ·successful one (whatever that means)-that hi interests lie in the French school or the German school, or the school of SatUl;n- that he is involved in this particular "that" or "'including des igns bV ATthuT A. J'anszen and made only by that particular "this," or in any particular brand of emotional complexes; ~ESHAMINY ElECTRONIC CORP. Neshaminy, Pa. in a word, when he becomes conscious that his style is "his personal own," EX-POTt D iD .: 25 Warren St., New York 7, N, Y. I Cable: Simon trice, N. Y. (Continued on page 8) 6 HIFI REVffiW An exciting new offer from the ICOLUMBIA ~ RECORD CWB] to help you acquire, quickly and inexpensiv~ly, a fine STEREOPHONIC RECORD LIBRARY " 5, 16 favorites - 6, One of Broad· 7, Three brilliant 8. What 'll I Do, . Sweet Violets, etc . way's biggest hits hl·fl showpieces Warm , 10 more ANY SIX OF THESE 32 SUPERB COLUMBIA AND EPIC 10. Be My Love, WhereorWhen , etc . STEREOPHONIC RECORDS FOR ONLY 98 RETAIL VALUE $ ~;::;. ' $3588 , ' 11. Berlioz' most 12. Nomad, Marble popuJar work 5 Arch, 4 more if you join the Club now .. .' and agree to purchase only 5 s d 'SEND NO MONEY - Mall coupon to receive 6 records for $5.98 i= COLUMBIA Name .• . •. •• . ••••. '0' ••• • • • ••••••• • • • ••• •• •••••••••••• • ••• • •• 8 24 (Please Print) 9 25 Address • •••••.• • •• ••• •••••• • •• •• • ••• • ••• • •• • ••• •• •• •••••••••• 10 26 City •• •• •• •••••••• ••• •• •• •• •• •• . • . ZONE • ••• State • •••••• ••• •• ••• 11 27 FOR CANADIA N MEMB ERSHIP: 12 28 1 It you wish a~~r~~~~ t~f. sg;;~~ ~~~~~p Tg:e(:rU~i~o . an estab- 13 29 lished Columbia or Epic record dealer. authorized to accept Stereophonic records must be played subscriptions, fill In below: 14 30 NOTE: only on a stereophonic record player 15 31 Dealer's ~ame . ••• •• •. •• . •.•• '• • •••• ••• ••• •• • ••• • . • •••••• • •• ••• 16 32 COLUMBIA @ RECORD CLUB Dealer', Address . • .• .•.••. •• •• • •••.•...• • • ••• •.• • •• • ••. • .• . 244 F·58 , Terre Haute, Ind. <& "Columbla ," MAy 1959 7 (Continlled from page 6 ) that it has mondpolized a geographical part of the world's sensibilities then it may he that the value of his substance is not growing, that it even may have started on its way backwards- it may be tha t he is trading ff • inspiration for a bad habit. ..." "The intensity to·day with which techniques and media are organized and used tends to throw the mind away from a 'common sense' and towards • manner." "Manner breeds a cussed cleverness only to be clever-a satellite of superindustrialization-and perhaps to be witty in the bargain- " "We are going to be arbitrary enough to claim . .. that substance can be expressed in music, and that it is the only valuable thing in it, and, more· over, that in two separate pieces of music in which the notes are almost identical, one can be of substance with little manner, and the other can be of manner with little substance. Substance has something to do with character; manner has nothing to do with it. The substance of a tune comes from somewhere near the soul, and the manner comes from-God knows where. . . . Substance leans toward optimism and manne.r [towards] pessimism." -"The lack of interest to preserve or ability to perceive the fundamental divisions of this qnality accounts to a large extent, we believe, for some -or many various phenomena ( pleasant or unpleasant according to the personal attitnde) of modern art, and all art. It is evidenced in many ways _ .. over-interest in the multiplicity of techniques, in the idiomatic, in the effect as shown by the appreciation of an andience rather than in the effect on the ideals of the inner conscience of the artist or the composer." I "Manner breeds partialists. Is America a musical nation? - If the man who is ever asking this question would sit down and think something over, he might find less interest in asking it; he might possibly remember that all nations are more mnsical than any nation-especially the nation that pays the most, and pays the most eagerly, for anything after it has been professionally rubber-stamped." "We bear that Mr. Smith or Mr. Morgan etc., et at., design to establish a 'conrse at Rome' to raise the standard of Alnerican music (or the standard of American composers- which is it?) ; but possibly the more OUT co mposer accepts from his patrons 'et al.,' the less he will accept from himself. It may be possible that a day in a Kansas wheat fi eld will do more fo~- him than thl-ee years in Rome. It may be that many men perhaps so me of genius (if you won't admit that all are geniuses) - have been started on the downward path of subsidy by trying to write a thousand dollar prize poem or ten thousand dollar prize opera.... A cocktail will make a -man eat more, but will not give him a health y, nor· mal appetite . . .. Such stimulants, it stdkes ns, tend to industrialize art rather than develop a ·spiritual sturdiness ... . And for the most of us, we believe this sturdiness would be encouraged by anything tha t will keep or hel p us keep a normal balance between the spil-itual life and the ordinary life. If for every thousand dollar prize a potato fi eld can be substituted so that these candidates of 'Clio' can dig a little in real life, perhaps dig up a natul'al inspiration, art's air might be a little clearer. .. . Perhaps the birth of art will take place at the moment in which the last man who is willing to making a living out of art is gone, and gone forever." "The humblest composer will not find true humility in aiming low-he must never be timid Ol" afraid of trying to express that which he feels is far above his power to express . . . . He should never fear of being called a high-brow ... John L. Sullivan was a 'high-brow' in his art. A high· brow can always whip a low-brow . . . _ If he 'truly seeks,' he 'will surely find' many things to sustain him . .. . He can believe it is better to go to the plate and s trike out than to hold the bench down, for by facing the pitcher he may then know the umpire better, and possibly see a new parabola." -David Hall I 8 We are indebted to William Henry Fox Talbot for the invention of the photographic negative and discovery of the latent image. His work greatly advanced the art-science of photography. More than a hundred years later the laboratories of James B. lansing Sound, Inc., developed the principle of radial refraction, a break-through which may prove to be equally significant in the field of stereophonic music reproduction. First applied to the magnificent JBl Ranger-Paragon, an instrument originally designed for use as a monitor in perfecting stereo recording techniques, radial refraction has now been used in a more compact, home-sized stereophonic loudspeaker system called the JBl Ranger-Metregon. The curved refracting panel on the front of the dual acoustical enclosure integrates two precision loudspeaker systems. A wide-angle !!: stereo field is radiated throughout the listening area. Radial refraction obviates the hole in the middle, ping-pong effects, and split soloists which plague expedient stereo arrangements. No less than seven different speaker systems, including one with ~ new high frequency drivers, exponential horns, and dividing networks may ,be installed in the Metregon. You may very well be able to use some of your present JBlloudspeakers. Write for a complete description of the JBl Ranger-MetregEln and the name and address of the Authorized JBl Signature Audio Specialist in your community. JAMES B. LANSING SOUND. INC., 3249 Casitas Ave., Los Angeles.39. Calif. Everything you need - on o E compact chassis! '------..... • STEREO FM·AM TUNER • STEREO MASTER AUDIO CONTROL "• STEREO 40·WATT AMPLIFIER 7 Slightly Higher in the Far West 2 THE'FISHER 'BEST STEREO RECEIVER -MA'DE! ,1 Forty watts of power from dual twenty-watt ampli inaudibility, 1.1 Dual bass and treble tone controls. fiers (seventy watts peak power,) 2 Casco de RF stage 12 Five-position input selector. 13 Five-position on FM for extreme' sensitivity, 3 Bridge-type, low stereu-monophonic switch. 14 Dual balance control. noise triode mixer on FM. 4 Input and output jacks 15 Master volume control. 16 Tape monitor switch. for MULTIPLEX reception. 5 Two MICRORAY tuning. 17 High and low frequency filters. 18 Loudness con indicators to help you tune in the weakest signal as tour switch. 19 Five input level adjustments (rear.) . , easily as the strongest. 6 Connections for four, eight, 20 Phase-reversif)g switch to ,compensate for any im and sixteen-ohm speakers (rear.) 7 Rotatable, ferrite properly phased tape recordings or speakers (rear.) loop antenna, for maximum signal power and mini ~ 1 Tape recorder output jacks (rear.) 22 Special input mum interference (rear.) 8 Two-position bandwidth jack arrangement to permit using an e,xternal FM on AM (a must for stereo.) 9 Ten kilocycle whistle tuner with the TA-600 for the reception of FM-FM filter to eliminate interference from adjacent stations. stereo broadcasts (rear:) 23 Auxiliary AC outlets for 10 DC filament supply to reduce hum to complete plugging in associated equipment (rear.) Frequency response, 25 to 20,000 cps, ± I ,db WRITE TODAY FOR COMPLETE SPECIFICATIONS fISHER RADIO CORPORATION • 21·37 44th DRIVE. LONG ISLAND CITY', N. Y. Export: Morhan Exporting Corp., 458 Broadway, New York 13, N, Y. MAY 1959 • 11 - ~ - --4V&usical Oddentlties- .. Is musical greatness inversely proportional to the neatness of manuscript? It should appear so from a comparison of the musical manuscripts of Beethoven and of Luigi Cherubini. Beethoven's untidiness, both in personal habits and in writing music, was notorious. Luigi Cherubini, who was a composer of great distinction but lacked genius, was, on the contrary, a paragon of tidiness. When ink spread by accident RENATA TEBALDI on music paper, be would cut out the spotted section and replace it by a piece of manuscript paper fitted so precisely that the patch was barely noticeable_ Cherubini tapes~ own was a man of stern character, and during his directorship of the Paris Conservatory recordi son demanded perfection from his students. He was sarcastic in his criticism but reticent in his praise_ After a pal·ticularly successful rehearsal of the Paris Con servatory Orchestra, he was asked his opinion. "I said nothing," he replied, "consequently it was satisfactory." His pupil Halevy invited Cherubini to the premiere of his first opera_ CherulJini listened attentively, bnt remained silent dluing the first two acts_ "Maitre," exclaimed Halevy, unnerved by his silence, "please say something about my music!" "For two acts your music is saying nothing to me," observed the master, "so what can I say to you?" That alone is not the reason why In his memoirs Bedioz presents a very disagreeable and perhaps unfair picture of Cherubini as a pedantic and querulous old man_ In turn, Cherubini was naturally ~should use antagonistic to the type of music that Bedioz was producing_ Once he passed by the entrance of a concert hall where the Symphonie Fantastique was to be per formed. One of Iri s friends asked him whether he intended to hear it. "I have no desire to lea rn how music should not be composed," was Cherubini's gruff reply. The nalne cello is the result of a cw-ious pl-ocess of ll-uncation, , similat- in del"ivation to the word bus (which is the last syllable of Here's why omnibus, which in turn is the dative plural of omnis, the Latin you should use wOI-d fot- all). The full name of cello is violoncello, which really should be violonecello, violone being a large viol, and cello being the suffix expt-essing minuteness. So violoncello is a big little fiddle, something as incongt-uous as bullfiddlekins. The roles of you ng lovers in opera are often performed by females_ The situation becomes doubly inverted when a supposed male is disguised as a female, thus It's the best-engineered tape in the world reverting tbe singer to the original sex. In Der Rosenkavalier, Octavian, a mezzo ___ gives you better highs ___ better lows __ _ so prano, pwfesses ardent love to the PI'incess von Werden berg, but fl ees when better sound all around! Saves your tape Baron Ochs von Lerchenau arrives on the scene. Octavian reappears in th e disguise recorder, too - because the irish FERRO of a chambermaid, to whom the libidinous Baron promptly makes advances. But SHEEN process results in smoother tape ___ tape that can't sand down your mag since th e person who sings the role of Octavian is actually a girl, the Baron's netic heads or shed oxide powder into your natural instin cts are amply vindicated_ machine_ Price? Same as ordinary tape! The famous K. of the Mozart catalog-ot- Schwann LP catalog listings-was not a musician at all. Ludwig von Kochel was a leat-ned mineralogist and botanist; several plants that he discov et-ed ,and described bear his name. He lived most of his life in Vienna, but traveled throughout Em-ope in pursuit of his scien tific studies. It was at the Mozat-t centennial in 1856, that his gt-eat intet'est in Mozart became, to use a minet-alogical term, crys tallized. He classified Mozat-t's works as he would minerals and l)lants, and made the letter K. immortal as a symbol. Kochel died in 1877, at the age of 77. His span of life was more than twice that of Mozat't. In his Meiningen orchestra, Hans von Bulow had two horn players, Miller and Available wherever quality tape is sold_ Schmid, whom he disliked violently, but could not di-smiss before the term of their ORRadio Industries, Inc_, Opelika, Alabama contract. One morning, before the rehearsal, the supel"intendent of the orchestra Mdropolitan Opera Star Renata Tebaldi i8 managed j announced: "I have sad news for you, Herr VOIl Bulow, Miller is dead!" "Is he /)11 Columbia Artists Managem.ent fnc_ really?" said Yon Bulow_ "And Schmid?" -Nicolas SJonimsky 12 IF YOU INSIST ON PURITY FEATURES: SEVEN SEPARATE INPUTS: Enjoy all sources of music, present and future you'll want a new AL TEG 355A TAPE RECORDER OUTPUT: Preserve your favorite 'broadcasts forever FOUR POSITION LOUDNESS CONTROL: Maintains proper acoustic balance . at all listening levels THREE POSITION SCRATCH FILTER: Enjoy new pleasures f(om old and worn reco'rds THREE POSITION RUMBLE FILTER: Sharp filter to eliminate turntable noise DYNAMICALLY BALANCED OUTPUT: Enjoy freedom from tube selection and balancing FOUR SEPARATE VOLUME CONTROLS: Individual control of each program source 20-WATT AMPLIFIER AND PREAMPLIFIER SEPARATE POWER SWITCH: Positive action without disturbing volume settings SEPARATE BASS AND TREBLE CONTROLS: Complete control to match For purity in music, there has never been personal taste an equal to Bach. For purity of tone over the EYELETTED PRINTED CIRCUIT: Professional construction not normally found in home amplifiers entire audio range, nothing can match FOUR POSITION RECORD COMPENSATION: Each record' played as it was the beauty of ALTEC'S new 355A. From recorded FULLY SHIELDED INPUT SECTION: Freedom from hum and noise photo-etched printed circuit to elegant COMPACT CONSTRUCTION: Full power in a small package enclosure styling, this superb amplifier has EASE OF INSTALLATION: Enjoy your music without extensive carpentry been meticulously engineered to provide STEREO ADAPTABILITY: Specially designed for stereophonic use with the S40 master stereo control. you with maximum flexibility, ease of operation, faithful reproduction. Price: $111 (Walnut, blonde or mahoga ny ca bin e~; $19.50) Write for free catalogue ALTEC LANSING CORPORATION, Dept . .5MR-A 1515 S. Manchester Avenue, Anaheim, Calif. ... 12-50 161 Sixth Avenue, New York 13, N. Y. 13 Martin Bookspan RATES THE- BASIC- REPERTOIRE Item 7 ot the UFirst Fitty" Schubert's' "Unfinished" Symphony Pick and choose from two dozen monos-a good stereo has yet -to be released I . J ~ . ""'_ .. .. '-" _ • ~\11f!Q/ ... SCHUII.E RT _ THE CLE\n~>\NL) GEORGE SZELUlEt!.'Yc , UN'I NISHEO",_ .$\,N~Ht)NY _ 0 RCJ;I ESTRA'hlP, c,,~ [)l( 1'<)1, ...:~!~, BE£THOVEN . PHONY. NO. .S r':, \II,(OR '.W 07 FERENC 'FRICSA Y'S . reading brings beauti GEORGE SZELL'S ,interpretation is clos,est to fully molded phrasing, calm flow . Toscanini's .among modern versions. N APRIL 10, 1823, the name of Franz Schubert WI),S pro part of any deal to pry the Schubert Symphony loose from Oposed for honorary membership in the Styrian l\'1usic the Hiittenbrenners would involve a commitment for the Society at Graz in Austria. His qualifications w ~re presented simultaneous performance of one of Anselm's dreary over as follows in the nom,ination' papers: "A,lthough still yOlIng, tures. Finally, in 1865., Herbeck had ·- occasion to stop at he has already proved by his compositions that he will some Graz. He sought out the aging and eccentric Anselm and is 'day rank high as a composer." · supposed to have said to him: "I am here to ask your per When the governing body of the Society voted to elect mission to produce one of your works in Vienna." According Schubert to membership, the 26-year-old composer gratefully to the account of Herbeck's son, Ludwig, Anselm's response accepted the honor and wrote: "May it be the reward for my was instantaneous and uninhibited: he threw his arms around devotion to the art of music that I shall one day be fully Herbeck in an embrace and then proceeded to parade before worthy of this signal. honor. In order that I may also express the weary conductor manuscript af~er worthless manuscript in musical terms my lively sense of gratitude, ' I shall take of his own music. Finally, Herbeck decided upon one of the tlie liberty, at the earliest opportunity, of presenting your overtures and informed Hiittenbrenner that he intended to h090rable Society with one of my symphonies in full score." give a concert of music by three contemporaries, Schubert, The late Alfred Einstein, in his masterful book, Schubert, Hiittenbrenner and Lachner. "It would naturally be very A Musical Portrait (Oxford University Press, New York, appropriate to represent Schubert by a new work." "Oh, I 1951), surmises that soon thereafter Schubert presented the have still a lot of things by Schubert," came Hiittenbrenner's score and parts of a two-movement symphony he had recently reply, and he pulled a pile of manuscript paper ;ut of an old completed to the director of the Society, Anselm Hiitten chest. On the cover of one of the manuscripts Herbeck saw brenner. Hiittenbrenner appanliltly stuck the symphony away the words "Sin/onie in H Moll" in Schubert's own hand in a drawer and promptly forgot about it-and so, too, did writing. Casually, ' he evidenced interest in the score and Schubert! It was not until 1865, thirty-seven years after the Hiittejlbrenner promptly obliged by giving it ~o him for composer's death, that the Symphony finally came to per performance. On December 17, 1865 the music was finally formance. And thereby hangs a tale. heard for the first time. Since then Schubert's "Sin/onie in In 1860 Hiittenbrenne~'s brother, Joseph, had written to H Moll" (B Minor) has become one of the most beloved the conductor of the Gesellscha/t der "Musik/reunde concerts classics of the entire literature. . in Vienna, Johanll-Herbeck, ihat Anselm had in his posses Before we get to the recordings of the' score, let us touch sion a ·"treasure in Schubert's B Minor Symphony." For five upon the_ "Unfinished" aspects of the symphony. The lack j - years Herbeck ignored this information, fearing perhaps that (Continued on page 16) 14 . HIFI REVIEW .. Once again Harman-Kardon has made the creative leap which distinguishes engineering leadership. The new Stereo Festival represents the successful crystallization of all stereo know-how in a single superb instrument. Picture a complete stereophonic electronic center: dual pr,eamplifiers with input facillty and control for every stereo function including the awaited FM multiplex service. Separate sensitive AM and FM tuners for simulcast reception. A great new thirty watt power amplifier (60 watts peak). This is the new Stereo Festival. The many fine new Stereo Festival features include: new H-K Friction-Clutch tone controls to adjust bass and treble separately for each channel. Once used to conect system imbalance, they may be operated as conventionally ganged controls. Silicon power supply provides excellent regulation for improved transient response and stable tuner performance. D.C. heated preamplifier filaments insure freedom from hum. Speaker phasing switch corrects for improperly recorded program material. Four new 7408 output tubes deliver distortion-free power from two highly conservative power amplifier circuits. Additional Features: Separate electronic tuning bars for AM and FM; new swivel high Q ferrite loopstick for increased AM sensitivity; Automatic Frequency Control, Contour Selector, Rumble Filter, Scratch Filter, Mode Switch, Record-Tape Equalization Switch, two high gain magnetic inputs for each channel and dramatic new copper escutcheon. Ideal for limited space (only 151%6" wide, 6W' high, 12%" deep-excluding enclosure) the T A230 is simplicity itself to operate. Five minutes with its ex.ceptionally complete instruction booklet, and you will use the Festival to its full per formance potential. The Stereo Festival, Model TA230, price is $259.95. Copper and black metal enclosure (Model AC30) price is $12.95. Handsome hardwood - walnut or fruitwood - enclosure, (Models WW30 and FW30) price is $39.95. For free atITactive b,ochure on the complete H·K line. "'ite to ...... - Ha~n~Karoo~. Inc:. Dept.MRS. We,tbury. New Y",k. i h i ~ kardon I (PrICes sl.ghtly h.gher m the West) .... ~, ...... MAY 1959 15 (Continued jr01n page 14) generally ply a neat middle ground between the two extreme of a scherzo and finale has given posterity a handy title by approaches, Cantelli and Szell closer in spirit to Toscanini; which to identify the score. If one insists upon the four Beecham and Munch (surprisingly!) to Fricsay. Cantelli's movement format of the classical symphony as an unalter reading is superbly disciplined and very smoothly recorded. able model, then Schubert's B Minor Symphony may be said He makes much of the drama in the score with especially to be unfinished. On .purely aesthetic grounds, however, the keen dynamic contrasts. Szell is fu ssier and sometimes work is a unified whole, a thing of beauty and .completeness forced, at times sacrificing spontaneity to calculation. He is in itself, no more unfinished as an artistic masterpiece than the only conductor, though, who observes the repeat of the the Venus de Milo, missing arms and all. Schubert must first movement exposition and his orchestra is recorded mar have felt this instinctively when-having penned nine bars velously well. Beecham, for his part, hasn't conveyed quite of scherzo-he put the work aside with only two movements as successfully the gentle and tender side of the music as he completed. did ill a memorable pre-war set of 78 rpm discs, but his is There are presently more than two dozen monophonic re nevertheless a deeply felt, strongly-focused interpretation, cordings of the score. Strangely, there has been no new sen timent-full without becoming sentimental. The Munch, as intimated above, is a surprise. I have heard him drive this music unmercifully in the concert hall, but at the time he prepared this recorded performance he was content to take a more leisurely approach. What emerges is a beautifully shaded, if slightly heavy-handed, treatment. The recorded sound tends to become a little boomy, but this remains one of Munch's most successful standard repertoire efforts on disc. Conspicuous by its absence in all this discussion is the name of the conductor who, perhaps more so than anyone else in our time, has made of this symphony a very precious and major recording of the "Unfinished" since Decca's release personal specialty: Bruno Walter. Walter has thus far re (DL-9975) more than a year ago of a splendid performance corded the symphony twice during his long career: with the by Fricsay and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra. And Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra during the 1930's in a per stranger still is the curious fact that there is currently avail formance which had a brief currency in this country in the able only three stereo disc versions of the score, and only that Black Label Series of RCA Victor, and a performance of the by the late Artur Rodzinski (Westminster 14052) merits any mid-1940's with The Philadelphia Orchestra (still listed in consideration. Sooner than later, undoubtedly, the Hoodtides the current catalog in a transfer to Columbia LP disc of stereophony will engulf the "Unfinished" Symphony and ML-4880) whose glories were but dimly perceived through every major label in the business will have its own new very distant recorded sound. It is to be fervently hoped that stereo recording of the score. But as of the time of this Walter will be given an opportunity to re-record the "Un writing, there exists a curious void vis-a-vis Schubert's B finished" with the West Coast musicians with whom he has Minor Symphony and its availability on stereo in truly out now re-made all the Beethoven Symphonies for Columbia. standing interpretation. - Martin Bookspan Six among the mono recordings of the score seem to me to have special distinction; these are the performances con ducted by Beecham (Columbia ML-4474) , Cantelli (Angel 35524), the aforementioned Fricsay, Munch (RCA Victor Basic Repertoire Choice T o Date LM-1923) , Szell (Epic LC-3195 ), and Toscanini (RCA Vic I. Tchaikovsky's First Pi ano Cliburn; Kond rash in with Orch. tor LM-9022). In general the conductors take either of two Concerto RCA Vi ctor LM 2252 (m ono) alternative approaches to the music: there is the Toscanini Nov. '58, p. 48 Cliburn; Kondrashin with O rch. approach-a kind of demonic attack upon the score which RCA Victor LSC 2252 (stereo ) harp contrasts of dynamics and mood and makes of elicits s 2. Beethoven's Fifth Sym- Toscanini-NBC Symphony the symphony a herculean, defiant thing. Then there is what phony RCA Victor LM 1757 (mono) Dec. '58, p. 41 may be called the Viennese approach-a spontaneous and Ansermet-Suisse Ro mande casual warmth and mellowness, in which the listener is left Orch. London CS 6037 (stereo) spellbound by the inevitability of Schubert's lyrical outpour 3. Beethoven's "Moonlight" Petri ing. The Toscanini recording is, of course, the very proto Sonata Westminster XWN 18255 type of the forceful and dynamic approach. Recorded in J an. '59, p. 37 (m ono ) NBC's old Studio S-H in 1950, the so und matches the per 4. Dvorak's " New World" Toscanini-NBC Symphony Symphony RCA Victor LM 1778 (mono ) formance: it is hard, dry, and unresonant. Yet there is no Feb. '59, p. 54 denying its power ; but of grace and charm and easy How Rei ner-Chicago Symphony there is precious little. RCA Victor LSC 221 4 (stereo) The Fricsay is the very antithesis of Toscanini's : Where 5. Beethoven's " Eroica" Klemperer-Philha rmonia Symp hony Angel 35328 (m ono) the great Italian is often breathless in his unceasing mo March '59, p. 49 mentum, Fricsay brings calm How and relaxed care. Phrases Szell-C leveland O rchestra Ep ic BC 1001 (stereo ) are beautifully moulded, dynamic markings scrupulously ob served, and the orchestral playing is luxurious, yet elegant. 6. Bach's C ha conne for Heifetz Solo Violi n RCA Victor LM 6 105 (mono ) The whole is surrounded with an acoustical environment of April '59, p. 16 Segovia (g uitar) warm mellowness. Fricsay's tempi are generally slow but Decca DL 975 1 (mono) never lethargic. The remaining four recordings in the "Top 6" category 16 HIFI REVIEW A Conquest of" Space The Harmony Trio Speakers Here isa complete three channel steteo speaker. system - better than you have ever heard at any price - which gives the full stereo effect in every part of·any room. And yet it consists of oruy two booksize speakers and a hideawax bass that is completely concealed from view. Sound impossible? Well it was; until Weathers developed the Harmony Speakers utilizing the principle of Variable Mass-the first major breakthrough in speaker design in twenty years. Now space need no longer be a barrier to speaker performance. .. Stop in at your dealer and see why. System Features: Three channels. A full range speaker for each of the stereo channels and a non-directional bass. The smallest and most efficient stereo speaker system available. Fits any size room. Blends with any decor. Component Features: Harmony Speaker. Size: 11" x 9%" X 3%". Response: 70 to 15,000 cycles. Finish: Black leatherette. Golden grille. Hideaway Bass. Size: 16Y2" x 16'l2" X 5'l2". Response: 30 to 100 cycles. Made in U .S.A. Finish: Ebony. Patent Applied For Harmony Trio $119.50 Harmony Speaker $29.75 Hideaway Bass $69.50 OI V I SIO N OF' AD VA NCE JNDUSTRII!:S. INC. 66 E. Gloucester Pike, Barrington, N. J. Export: Joseph Plasencia, Inc., 401 Broadway, New York 13, N. Y. MAY 1959 17 j • American Electronics has desig nated its ~ ew stereo tape recorder and play back system as the Mark VII Concertone. Mounted in an attractive magnesium carry ing case finished in black vinyl, the entire system weighs slightly less than 40 pounds. A companion 17·watt power amplifier and speaker (two are required) are erase and playback. All controls are of the push·button type and there is a . provision for remote controlling of all functions. Price $795.00. (American ElectJ:onics, Inc., 9449 W. Jefferson Blvd., Cuh:er City; Calif.) • Channel Master has entered the On patio ... lawn . .• hi·fi component field after a long and sue· terrace •.. pool • •• thrill cessful career of manufacturing TV anten· to outstanding nas. Emphasizing a practical approach to high fidelity sound ' high fiEi elity, 'one of its many new items is the integrated stereo amplifier Model 6600. with University's · When used stereophonically, it provides weatherproof 16 watts (32 watt peaks) on each channel. 4LC' speaker systems MODEL MLC MODEL BLC The frequency response is reported by the manufacturer to be from 20 to 30,000 cy· Each model is a true coaxial speaker, with separately driven cles (at a l·watt level) at ±LO db. The woofer and tweeter, and built-in network. Simply connect to your amplifier, inputs may be either a ceramic or a mag· phonograph, radio, or TV : .. the exceptionally efficient 'LC' speakers netic stereo cartridge, or a tape head. Equal ization is provided through the ganged tone provide high volume sound of fine tonal quality. controls. Other features are: rumble filter, Cover any area you desire ... wid~ or narrow,. shallow or deep, •• master volume control, stereo balance con· according to model chosen and placement angle. . trol, '''loudness'' compensation, and facili· Leave in place rain or shine, season after season ... ties for stereo channel reversing. Price confident of the rugged dependapility built-in by University. $119.95 plus $19.95 for a walnut cabinet, Got stereo equipment indoors? Now enjoy that life-like or $6.99 for a lacquered metal cabinet. sound outdoors by hooking up a pair of matching 'LC' speakers. (Cha ~m el Master Corp., Ellenville, N. Y.) MODEL MlC One-piece fiberglas reinforced now supplies a new fl ex·edge polyester horn. Response: 150-15,000 cps. Imped • Cletron ance: 8 ohms. Power capacity: 15 watts. 12 7~,n x 12.in ~ h woofer featuring a full l·inch ex· 9'h" x 10%" d. Shpg. wt., 10 Ibs. UseTn.t: $34.50. cursion of the cone at' 16 cycles with only MODEL BlC All metal cons truction. Response: 4 walts input. Using a ceramic Indox mag· 70-15,01).0 cPS. impedance: 8 ohms. Diam eteT: 22*-". Depth: 9%". Power capacity: 25 watts. net (two pounds weigllt, but over 1,000,000 Shpg. 1Qt., 21 lbs. UseT n et: $53.70 • Maxwells), the flat design reduces the . For complete details of the 'Le' s peakers, write usual speaker depth by approximately 20 0/0 . I for brochure. Desk 0-5, University Loudspeakers, Inc., 80 So. Kensico Ave., White Plains, N. Y. Usable up to around 3500 cycles, the new 18 HIFI REvmw I ',BUDGET for t959 TQO 'expensive to eonl::iider Plenty' if ydu' can a1'f,ord it EDUCATION, of PUBLIC Who careS what they think?, RECO'RDING, COM" AN~ES aetter 'than ,expected l . CONCERT PRODUCERS , Sp~nd as little as possible The igh Cost of Creativity ' The Plight 0'" American Composers discussion / ABRAHAM SKULSKY AMERICAN music, from its beginnings, has depended al- do so in accordance with long recognized procedures and most totally on European sources and techniques. Al criteria; and under these circumstances, there is little danger though we may refer to the jazz element and the skillful use of confusing local celebrities with figures of genuine uni of folklore idiom, our composers have followed and still fol versal consequence. low Western European techniques and schools of thought On our vast continent, however, there exists no such ac when it comes to large scale concert works. Whether it cepted "natural selection." Creative musical activity is fo suits our inclinations or not, it is that yardstick of European cused for the most part around two or three great metro music which we must use as the basis for judging our own politan centers, with New York, for economic reasons, as development. At the same time we must take into considera , the principal one. One consequence of this is a certain tion the very different conditions of musical life as they have confusion when it comes to singling out composers and their existed on opposite sides of the Atlantic. In every country work on the basis of quality. True, New York can boast of ' an,d ev~ry city of Europe there are active composers, and they the greatest ama·lgamation of composers within its confines play an unquestioned role in their community and national wherein important creative figures work in a highly com milieu, though they may not attain major world stature. petitive situation against second-rate and even mediocre ones Those few who achieve fame beyond their national frontiers who are apt to be given performance priority_ ' MAY 1959 31 One avenue of approach to a study of the currellt situation Symphony by Sessions nOLable in their structural strength of American music for the concert hall is through the per and powerfully dissonant language. Though Ruggles and formance statistics of native works by our major symphony Riegger developed along different lines, both dealt in the orchestras. In order to be fruitful, such an approach must tonal chromaticism first explored by Schoenberg in the fir st be based 011 the certainty that what is being played is truly decade of the century. French-born Varese and Brooklyn the best that exists-with no stylisti c trend being kept from born Copland created immensely exciting abstract pieces our concert audiences. If such a certainty were indeed the which could be called distinctively American, for all their case today, the situation would be rather disheartening, for lack of any specifically folkloristic element. Such obvious it would then appear that for a decade or so no major Americanism as is found in Copland's music of the 1920's American composer has appeared on the horizon to gain rec stems from Ius highly original " spatial" harmonic idiom, ognition comparable to that accorded such well-known cre his Stravinsky-like sharp sonorities, occasional use of jazz ative figures of the 1930's and 40's as Aaron Copland, Samuel flavoring (Music for the Theatre ; Piano Concerto) , and the Barber, Roy Harris, Walter Piston, and William Schuman. general zestfulness of his musical language. In this music However, if we look beyond the statistics of performances Copland could be said to evoke the serious aspect of city and discover what is actlLally being composed, it becomes folklore in contrast to the lighter-veined expression of Gersh evident, so far as concert hall performance is concerned, that win. Varese, on the other hand, through his prophetic works of importance by a whole younger generation of explorations in the realms of sheer sonority and rhythm American composers are being systematically ignored by our could well be said to represent the audible eXllression of our symphonic organizations. Thanks to the yeoman work of technological era and of the architectural grandeur of New various Foundations and allied groups, the situation is not York. In truth, Varese's music could have been conceived quite as bad in terms of recording. in no other city. To round out these various aspects of But the fact remains that there exists at this very moment musical creativity, Cowell and Thomson must be mentioned, a unique crisis which, while not reflecting on the creative though their music is of considerably lighter substance than act itself, can become extremely dangerous for the composer. that of their confreres. .one can scarcely equate Cowell's Willy-nilly, he is being slowly but surely separated from his piano tone clusters against the huge tonal structures en audience by an ever-widening gap that is by no means wholly compassed by Varese! of his making. This in turn creates an impression among So it is that for the first time in our history we find knowledgeable listeners that our composers are ignoring and American music keeping pace ,vith the European scene and falling behind many of the most stimulating present Eu on both continents the 1920's manifest themselves in the mu- ropean trends ill creative music. To gain a clearer view of ical arts as a decade of dazzling new ideas and works of this picture and its significance, let us set forth some basic truly seminal importance for the years to come. Interesting truths regarding the actual relationship between our music ly enough, the modern composers of the Twenties, both in and that of Europe, and in so doing give a brief summary America and in Europe, had ample chance to hear their of our development in terms of musical composition. own works. Organizations like the International Compos ers' Guild and the League of Composers were operating at ntil the end of World War One, American music may be peak power, with magnetic conducting personalities like U considered as having a strictly local character. The sole Stokowski in Philadelphia and Koussevitzky in Boston back exception seems to have been Charles Ives (1874-1954) , who ing their efforts to the hilt. wa s pioneering in a sort of ivory tower and who was not With the 1930's we come to an era of reaction against "di scovered" until almost twenty years after he had com the vol canic eruption of new tonal languages and forms posed his finest works. His case, too well known to be dis of expression that characterized the preceding decade. The cussed in detail here, does highlight in its own wa y a char . trend was worldwide in scope and in the totalitarian societies acteristic of our own time which can be summed up in the of Germany and Russia it assumed an official character, form of a question: How would Ives have developed had the silencing in drastic fashion all tendencies toward "modernist" opportunity of being a full time composer and hearing his experimentation. Elsewhere the manifestations of this reac own works competently performed presented itself during tion were more varied and confusing. While Stravinsky, the years when he was at his creative peak (1910-20)? Schoenberg, and Bartok continued along their uncompro It was in the 1920's that American music suddenly began nlisingly individualistic paths, composers like Milhaud, to achieve stature worthy of international consideration. Honegger, and Hindenlith attempted to simplify their Chief among the composers who, by their individual quali musical idiom whilst preserving their essential originality. ties of creative invention and by their awareness of the most During this same period, we find new composers coming vital new trends in Europe, contributed to this country's on the scene who, almost as a form of protest against attainment of status as a major musical nation were Roger Stravinsky's classicism, sought to create newer means of Sessions (1896- .... ) , Edgar Varese (1885- . . . . ) , Carl Rug- expression without going back to traditional formulas. The gles (1876- . . .. ) , Wallingford Riegger (1885-.. .. ) , Aaron young Igor Markevitch, Luigi Dallapiccola, Olivier Messiaen, Copland (1900-. . .. ) , Henry Cowell (1897- .... ), and Virgil and Andre Jolivet were the chief heralds of new things to Thomson (1896- ... . ). Not the least interesting aspect of come. In the field of contemporary music performance, the these gad fl y-creators is the wide disparity of their child radio studio now began to replace the concert hall through hood homes: Sessions (Boston); Varese (Paris- came to out much of Europe. the U. S. in 1916); Ruggles (Massachusetts); Riegger The manifestation of this general trend in the U. S. A. took (Georgia); Copland (Brooklyn); Cowell (California); on a yet different form. The genuinely original composers Thomson (Kansas City) . . of the 1920's found themselves for the most part being As for the works produced by these men during their first forgotten, if one can say that their importance had ever fine Bush of creation, we find The Black Maskers and First been fully realized except by a discerning few like critic 32 HIFI REVIEW .. Roger Sessions Edgar Varese Carl Ruggles Wallingford Riegger Henry Cowell Paul Rosenfeld. Varese and Ruggles disa ppeared into a kind posers came under their powerful influence. From 1945 of limbo; Sessions and Riegger were little heard. Onl y on, it became clear that two main currents of compositional Aaron Copland seemed to develop his style in accordance style were taking shape among these young composers-a with the prevailing trend so that he emerged as the most neo-classic manner deriving from Stravinsky, Hindemith, and consistently important of our composers durin.g this second Copland; and a 12-tone style reflecting the teaching of stage of musical growth in America. While adding a strong Schoenberg in California and certain of his disciples. folkloristic color to his creative palette and simplifying Though Bartok did no direct teaching of composition either certain other aspects of his musical expression, Copland still here or in his native Hungary, there were more than a few retained in his work a characteristic harmonic and sonic American composers of the middle 1940's who became in J originality which made it impossible to confuse his scores flu enced by his music as it became more and more widely with those of any other composer of the day. performed. With the ascendance of Copland, there emerged during In Europe, the combination of wartime isolation, lack of • the middle of the decade a number of new American com· contemporary music performances, and the absence of these posers who at present seem to constitute, from the standpoint all-powerful creative masters seemed to llave brought about of symphonic repertoire, the backbone of our concert music something like a destruction of the neo-classic " tradition" up to the present day. A distinctive new folkloristic aspect, established during the 1920-40 era. True, Dallapiccola in reflecting the. vast ex panses of the West was introduced by Italy, now in his middle fifti es, has developed a distinctive the music of Oklahoma-born Roy Harris (1898- ), whose and mature 12-tone style; and Messiaen and J olivet in work has also suffered at times from lack of structural France have gone tlleir special ways in working out rhythmic co hesion. A further development of this trend appears in and harmonic innovations. But the youngest generatiOll of the music of New Yorker, William Schuman (1910- ), composers found themselves at the end of the War in a but he succeeded in giving a more sharply defined form plus complete stylistic ~' a cuum. For those who turned twenty-one a strong dramatic force entirely his own. From New England at the time of the liberation, tbe music of the "mainstream" arose Walter Piston (1894- ) who carried on a tradition masters of the cent.ury had comparatively little significance. of refined French symphonism, but powerfully organized The first really modern music to be experienced by this nonetheless. Then there was Samuel Barbel· (1910- ) , youngest generation was that of Schoenberg, Berg, and almost none of whose music has shown any distinctively Webern-Viennese 12-tone wizards all. In a mat.ter of a American traits; and whil~ he has leaned strongly toward few years, 12-tone serialism became the order of the day for traditionalism complete with varied influences, he has also growing composers throughout th e length and breadt.h of proved to be one of Oill" truly superb musical craftsmen. Europe. These are the composers whose music provided us at the It was in 1948 that I came to this country to live, and beginning of the 1940's with a full self-awareness of our not. long after it became obvious that what we had heard in status as a sovereign musical nation. Europe as new American music was actually that of an older This process was facilitated by the frequent performances generation. This music of Harris, B.arber, Pist.on, Schuman, given the works of these composers by Koussevitzky and Creston, and even Copland sounded on the whole much too others and by the beginning of substantial recording activity. conservative for contemporary-music-oriented European ears It was during the latter part of this era, on the eve of World in 1948. What I did find in this CO lmtry after several War II, that the names of David Diamond (1915- ), Paul mont.hs of intensive exploration was something quite different Creston (1906- ), and Leonard Bernstein (1918- ) from what I had experienced in Europe. There were indeed began to assume an aura of significance in the contemporary younger composers working in terms of the most advanced American concert repertoire. musical techniques and compositional materials. However, But now we must turn to consideration of certain crucial it was not the policy among the cultural powers that be to aspects of the musical situation as it developed during and display our avant garde works abroad. Serge Koussevitzky, just after the Second World War. The War years resulted though, was still active as conductor of his great Boston in almost total cultural isolation between the European Symphony Orchestra and as founder of the Koussevitzky continent and America. The acknowledged European mas Music Foundation. He could still indulge in programs of ters, Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Bartok, Milhaud, and Hinde American works in which the younger neo-classicists began mith, all took up residence on these shores and in the to take their place alongside of the accepted masters whom subsequent course of their teaching and of performances Koussevitzky had introduced to the public in the 1930's. accorded their work, a whole younger generation of com Then there was Dimitri Mit.ropoulos who in Minneapolis MAY 1959 33 .. ~I I Walter Piston Roy Harris Samuel Barber Aaron Copland William Schuman and during his early years with the N. Y. Philharmonic took hand at combining 12-tone serialism and · jazz-Milton up the battle on behalf of a broader public understanding Babbitt has also turned his hand to this. of 12·tone composers from Schoenberg and Berg to the A special word is in order at this point on behalf of Stefan younger men working in that idiom. During the years just Wolpe (1902- . ) who, since his arrival in this counfry after the War, the League of Composers and the I.S.C.M. from Germany twenty years ago, has become a singularly (International Society for Contemporary Music) were still powerful teacher-composer. His own compositions cover a strong progressive forces. By 1952 it was apparent that we wide variety of forms and trace his development from a use did have among us some few composers who, in terms of of , orthodox 12-tone technique ' in the 1930's ' to a highly technical brilliance combined with creative power, could indiVIdualized counterpoint as applied t~ . ev'ery possible' stand up against the best of their European contemporaries. musical element. The trademarks of his style arise out of the Pride of place, in my opinion, belongs to Elliott Carter expressive strength of his musical ideas, together with a who, though born in 1908, ' wa's late in gaining substantial structural design flexible enough to allow for soft and recognition. While the works he wrote during the late angular contours by turn. As a teacher he has strongly Thirties and early Forties show some influences of Stravinsky influenced some of the most gifted composers of the youngest and neo·classicism, his Cell~ Sonata (1947) and his Minotaur generation. Two whose naines have begun to come into ballet (1948) represent a wholly individual and immensely prominence are Ralph Shapey and Keith R4)binson. powerful musical speech. . Here we find the beginnings of The neo·classic side of the current American musical fence Carter's subsequent development of 'subtle polyrhythmic has also brought forward some very valuable new work~. patterns and a highly ·flexible use of variable metres; but Typical- among the most skillful composers in this vein is such intellectual refinements enhance rather than vitiate the Alexei HaiefI (1914- ) whose Piano Concerto, Ballet in E, dramatic urgency of his music. A distinctive use of serial and Second Symphony can be counted among the best works tec!:mique becomes manifest in the String Quartet of 1952 of their kind to be written in recent years. Lukas Fo ~s and the Variations for Orchestra (1955), commissioned by (1922- ) and Harold Shapero (1920- ) are two other the ~oui sville Orchestra. Both are striking works of the most Americans of ne.o-classic persuasion who have made potable impressive individuality and expressive power; and they may contributions to the riches represented by today's Amefican well mark him ' as one of the most important composers music. Arthur Berger (1912- ), until recently a dyed-in." anywhere in the world today. Indeed there is good reason the-wool neo-classicist, most lately has followed the to believe that certain novel technical elements in Carter's 'Stravinskian weather vane in a Webernian direction. Quartet may have provided stimulus for some of the develop· Above the hustle and b~ s tle of these two main "schools" ments carried forward most recently- by Pierre Boulez in of present-day American composition still loom the giant France and Karlheinz Stockhausen in Cologne, Germany. figures of the 20's and 30's. As a matter of fact, the renewed Leon Kirchner (1919· ) is another major creative post-War interest in avant-garde musical techniques has talent among the American composers who have come into brought with it a demand for rehearings and revaluation of their own during the last decade. Combining the strong the music of those men who created such a stir i~ the 1920's expressive qualities of Bartok's music with the linear pat -Varese, Ruggles, Sessions, Riegger, and the early Copland. terning of Berg and Schoenberg, together with metrical de· Meanwhile, Copland today in his Piano Fantasy has adopted vices of his own, Kirchner has arrived at an individual and certain aspects of serial technique and .has turned his back strongly urgent style of his own. The Piano Concerto, on the more obvious elements of his folkloristic style of the Toccata for Orchestra, String Trio, and Quartet No. 2 are 1930's. Sessions has completed a Third and Fourth sym among the most notable of his l:ecent works. phony, as well as the beautifully expressive and inventive Other composers among the post-War generation who Idyll of Theocritus for soprano and orchestra (a Louisville - must be taken account of are Ben Weber (1916. ), whose commission). Riegger's new Fourth Symphony is only the 12-tone work follows more traditional lines ; Milton Babbitt latest in a remarkable series of scores to come from his (1916- ) whose works take the innovations of Webern as pen within the last half-dozen years; while Edgar Varese a point of departure; George Rochberg (1918- ), an after years of ' silence has come into his own both in Europe orthodox 12-toner with unmistakable expressive gifts; and and America, creating in his Deserts and Poeme Electronique .. finally Gunther Schuller (1925- ) who, apart from having music of the most boldly advanced character, using both I produced some very original concert works, has tried his conventional and electronic means of tone production with 34 HIFI REVIEW I the most exciting results yet achieved in this field. , audiences cut off from new music-however interesting and I have avoided until now discussing the field of American meritorious! If a reason can be found why New York has opera because here ,the American composer is still far behind never heard the, remarkable Holidays Symphony of Charles his , European colleague. Except for' Gian-Carlo Menotti Ives in its entirety (though Minneapoiis did some five years ( 1911: ), still an Italian citizen and thus a "special case," ago), here, in the rehearsal limitations, lies part of the only two composers to my way of thinking have achieved total answer. mastery in the art of operatic composition. Hugo Weisgall Europe today presents a quite different situation for the (1912- ' ), of Czech origin, has composed four operas comp'oser working with the most advanced musical means, The Tenor, The Stronger, Six Characters in Search 0/ an thanks in large measure to state-subsidized broadcasting Author, and Purgatory. All except the full-length third of establishments. There are conductors like Harts Rosbaud, the series are one-acters. Weisgall's a"rt impresses by its Hermann Scherchen, and Bruno Madern/1- for whom the powerful synthesis of musical structure and dramatic urgency. most advanced music of Schoenberg or Dallapiccola is as The style is chromatically lyric with a very rich harmonic Beethoven and Tchaikovsky to our American podium gentry. texture, together with Stravinsky-like rhythmic ideas. Publishers and writers are fully up on what composers are Norman DelIo .Toio is rhe other American operatic com doing. When extra rehearsals are needed for a new difficult poser of distinction. Both in The Ruby and in The Trial at work scheduled for European broadcast performance, ways Rouen, lyricism and dramatic strength join forces 'to create and means are usually at hand to provide them. The gifted a powerful artwork. While his musical materials are based European composer need feel no limitation in terms of de in tonality, Dello Joio makes use of a tightly knit harmonic veloping new techniques of musical expression. Such is not and contrapuntal texture, rich in the extreme. the case in' this country for a composer who wants to be Oddly enough, Weisgall and DelIo J oio have been almost widely performed. He had better be careful to see that his totally neglected by our professional opera institutions. new work can meet the two-rehearsal limit for adequate Broadcasting and the "workshops" have been the chief performance-or else! sources for production of their stage works. A situation of this kind can only be regarded' with fear Despite the good, work of the recording companies-with and wonderment; for with such limitations tacitly imposed the help of support from the Koussevitzky, and Fromm on today's young American composers, we inay find them Foundations, the American Composers Alliance; and other resorting to three, possible courses of action: 1) resignation groups; despite the fact that Leonard Bernstein 'as conductor to a limited standard of quality and daring when it comes of the N. Y. Philharmonic has embarked on a systematic to large-scale orchestral composition ~ 2) composing directly concert revival of the controversial works of the 1920's; the , onto tape by electronic means, thus doing away with the need fact still remains that one is hard put to find a single con for performers and rehearsals altogether; 3) resignation to ductor of a. major American orchestra who has assimilated the Ivesian ivory tower, composing ,idealized tonal concepts the best of what our composers have created since the War. for the future with neither thought nor hope of hearing There se'ems to be no willingness on the part of these the music in live performance. gentlemen of the baton to educate their audiences to what It is up to the persons and organizations responsible, for is new in music by bringing the best of these new American the channels of communication-concerts, broadcasting, works into the repertoire, not just f~r a "first-~nd-last" p' ~r recording, publishing-between the composer and' the listen formance, but for the kind of repeated hearings that makes ing public to make "sure that such a ' triple-threat does not possible a stable evaluation based on reasonable familiarity. become an actual and dismal reality. Then there is that nagging question of the amount of rehearsal time allowed new works scheduled for concert .. Abraham Skulsky came to these shores from his native Ant premieres here in the U. S. A. Two r e he~rsals constitute werp ,in 1948 and has been in the swim of contemporary music par for the course with a new score; three amount to a minor activity ever since as critic, program annotator, and feature writer miracle. An orchestra of virtuoso geniuses cannot hope to --Musical America, ACA Bulletin, and others. He has been active master a complex work like Elliott Carter's Orchestral Varia both as composer and violinist and is presently at work on a book tions in this amount of rehearsal time. Thus are concert dealing lVith contemporary opera. Leon Kirchner Gunther Schuller Elliott Carter Hugo Weisgall ,: "MAY 1:959 35 AMERICAN MUSIC PANORAMA HAIEFF: Ball et in E; NABOKOV: Symboli Chrestiani. Louisvi ll e A Basic Library of 49 Records O rchestra & Willia m Pickett (baritone), Robert Whitney cond o First Edition 58-1 $6.95 BABBITT: All Set; SHAPERO: On Green Mountain (Chaconne after Monteverdi) ; SCHULLER: Transformation; MINGUS: Revela HARRIS: Symphony No. 3; HANSON: Symphony No.4. Eastman· tions; GIUFFRE: Suspensions; RUSSELL: All about Rosie. Brandeis Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Howard Hanson cond o Mercury Fest ival Jazz Ensemble, G unther Sch uller, G eorge Ru ssell condo Co MG 50077 $3 .98 lumbia Wl 127 $4.98 HARRISON: Canticle No. 3; BARTLETT: 4 Holidays; COlGRASS: BARBER: Symphony No. I ; HANSON: Symphony No. 5; Cherubic 3 Brothers ; VAREiSE: Ionisation. Ame rican Percussion Societ y, Paul Hymn. Eastman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra & Chorus. Howard Price condo Urania UX 106 $4.98 Hanson condo Mercury MG 50087 $3.98 HARRISON: Suite for Violin , Piano, and Small Orchestral; COW· BLlTZSTEIN: Regina (complete opera) . Bre nda l ewis, Elisabeth ELL: Persian Set. Maro & Anah id Aj e mian with Leopold Stokowski Caron, C arol Brice, J oshua Hecht & others with N.Y.C. O pera Orchestra. Composers Recordings 114 $5.95 Chorus & Orchestra, Samuel Krachmalnik condo Columbia 03l 260 3 12" $14.92 (also available on stereo disc) IMBRIE: Quartet No.2. Walde n Quartet. Contemporary C 6063 $4.98 (also available on Stereo disc) BRANT: Signs and Alarms; Galaxy 2; ANTHEIL: Ballet Mechanique. N. Y. Percussion & Brass Ens., Henry Brant, C arlos Surinach condo IVES: Symphony No.3; 3 Places in New England. Ea stman-Rochest er Columbia Ml 4956 $3.98 Symphony Orchestra, Howa rd Hanson condo Mercury MG 50149 $3.98 CARTER: Variations for Orchestra; HELM: Piano Concerto No. 2. Louisville Orchestra & Benjamin O wen, Robert Whitney condo First KIRCHNER: Piano Concerto; SCHUMAN: Credendum. Leon Edition 58-3 $6.95 Kirch ner with t he N.Y. Phi lha rmonic, Dimitri Mitropoulos cond.; Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy condo Columbia ML 5 I 85 CHADWICK: Symphonic Sketches. Eastman-Rochester Symphony $3.98 Orchestra, Howard Hanson condo Mercury MG 50104 $3 .98 (also available, stereo disc & tape). MacDOWELL: Suite No. 2, Op. 48 ("Indian"). Eastman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Howard Hanson condo Mercury MG 50082 COPLAND: Billy the Kid-Ballet Suite; SCHUMAN: Undertow $3 .98 Choreographic Episodes. B-a llet Theatre O rchestra, Joseph Levine condo Capitol P 8238 $4.98 McPHEE: Tabuh-Tabuhan; CARTER: The Minotaur-Ballet Suite. Ea stman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Howard Hanson condo Mer COPLAND: Piano Variations; Passacaglia; Piano Sonata. Webster cury MG 50103 $3 .98 Aitken. Walden 101 $4.95 MENNIN: Symphony No.3; RIEGGER: Symphony No. 3. N.Y. COWELL: Symphony No. 4 ; HOVHANESS: Concerto No. I ("Are Philharmonic, Dimitri Mitropoulos co nd.; Ea stman -Rochester Sym vakal" RIEGGER: NeY' Dance. Eastman -R ochester Symphony O r I; phony Orchestra, Howard Hanson condo Columbia Ml 4902 $3.98 chestra, Howard Hanson condo Mercury MG 50078 $3.98 MENOTTI: The Unicorn, the Gorgon, and the Manticore. NYC Invocation and Dance; COWELL: Symphony No. I I. CR~S!ON: Ballet Soloists and C hamber En semble, Thomas Schippers cond o :. LOUIsville Orchestra, Robert Whitney condo Columbia ML 5039 $3.98 Angel 35437L $5 .98 CRESTON: 2 Choric Dances; DIAMOND: Rounds for String O r MOORE: The Devil a nd Daniel Webster (complete opera) . Soloists, chestra; BARBER: Adagio for Strings; COPLAND: Quiet City. Festival C horus and Orchestra. Armando Aliberti condo Westminster Concert Arts Orchestra, Vladimir G olschmann condo Capitol P 8245 I 1032 $4.98 $4.98 DELLO JOIO: Variations, Chaconne and Finale ; VINCENT: Sym PERSICHETTI : Psa lm; MENNIN: C a nlona ; THOMSON: A Solemn phony in D. Philadelphia Orchestra, Eu gene Ormandy condo Co Music; HANSON: Chorale and Alleluia; REED: La Fiesta Mexicana. lumbia ML 5263 $3 .98 Eastman Symphonic Wind En semble, Frede rick Fennell condo Mer cury MG 50084 $3 .98 FINNEY: Quartet No.6 in E; WEISS: Trio for Clarinet, Viola, and C ello. Stanley Quartet; Bloch-Weiss-R eher Tri o. Composers Re PISTON: Symphony No.4; SCHUMAN: Symphony No.6. Phi la cordings 116 $5.95 delphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy condo Columbia ML 4992 $3 .98 FOSS: A Parable of Death. Narrator, Tenor Soloist, Pomona Col PORTER: Quartet No.8; CARTER: 8 Etudes and a Fantasy. Stan lege G lee Cl ubs & Chamber Orchestra Lu kas Foss cond Educo ley Q uartet; N.Y. Woodwind Quartet. Composers Recordings 118 4002 $5.95 ,. $5.95 FOSTER: Villa g e Festival ; Old Folks Quadrilles. American Record R.UGGL.ES : Evocat ions; Lilacs; Port als; COWELL: Toccanta. John Ing Society Orchestra. American Recording Society 15 $4.98 Kirkpatrick (piano), Juillia rd String Orchestra, Helen Boatwright (soprano), Frederick Prausnitz condo Columbia ML 4986 $3.98 GERSHWIN: Porgy and Bess (complete opera). Camilla W illiams, La wrence Wln t~rs & others with Cho ru s and Orchestra, Lehman Eng e l SESSIONS: Th e Bla c k Maskers-Suite; HOVHANESS: Prelude a nd condo Columbia OSL 162 3 12" $14.92 Quadruple Fugue ; LO PRESTI: Th e Masks. Eastman-Rochester Sym phony Orchestra, Howa rd Hanson cond o Mercury MG 50 I 06 $3.98 GERSHWIN: Rhapsody in Blue; An American in Paris; Piano Con (S essions available in stereo tape) c e~ to ; 3 Preludes. Morton G ould Orchestra wi th Morton G ould (plano & cond.) . RCA Victor LM 6033 2 12" $9.96 SESSIONS : Quartet No.2. New Music Quartet. Columbia ML 5105 $3 .98 GOEB: Symphony No.3;. WEBER: Symphony on Poems of William Blake. Leopold Stokowski Orchest ra with Warren G al jour (ba ritone ) Composers Recordings 120 $5.95 . SHAPERO: Symphony for C lassical Orchestra. C o lumbia Symphony Orchest ra, Leonard Bernstein condo Columbia Ml 4889 $3.98 GO!TSCHALK: . The Banjo; March of the Gibaros & other piano mUSIC. Eug ene Li st. Vanguard 485 $4.98 THOMPSON: Th e Peaceable Kingdom. St. J ose a C appella C hoir. Music Library 7065 $5 GOULD:I t B II t FallTh River legend-Ballet,.· BERNSTEIN- F acs "1lml e -B a I- $~:98 a e eatre Orchestra, J oseph Levine condo Capitol P 8320 THOMSON: Variat ions on Sunday School Tunes; SESSIONS: Chorale-Pre ludes. Marilyn Mason (organ) . Esoteric 522 $4.98 GOULD: ~pirituals for String Choir a nd Orchestra; GERSHWIN. USSACHEVSKY: Pi ece for Tape Recorder; LUENING·USSACHEV· BENNETT. Porgy and Bess-Symphonic Picture. Minneapolis Sym SKY: Poem in Cycles and Bells; King Lear-Suite; BERGSMA: Th e phony Orchestra, Antal Dorati condo Mercury MG 50016 $3.98 Fortunate Islands. Danish State Rad io Orchestra Members & Tape R.ecorder, Otto Luening, Vladimir Ussachevsky cond.: Rome St. C eo GRIFFES: Piano Sonata ; RUDHYAR: Granit es' WEBER' Episodes, CIlia Orchestra, Alfredo Antonin i condo Composers Recordings 112 ~~ . 26a. William Ma sselos. MGM E 3556 $4.98 • $5.95 l lIFI REVIEW STEREO via SONIC E VIRO NT A home-use report on the new JBL.Rallger METREGON stereo speaker system, equipment/WARR EN DeMOTTE OT every stereo enthusiast wants to Le an "experimenter" with a carefully calculated amount of reflected sound, they Nin the field of speaker placement. The problem of fix have achieved a means of producing optimum stereo sound in g the relationship between stereo speakers is not solved from speakers in a fix ed relationship-with excellent stereo merely by deciding upon the di stance one should be from the spread, depth, and directionality. other. In the normal use of two separate speaker system s, the In the very natlUe of the matter, such speaker systems trial and error method must be ernployed to obtain satisfa c· mu st be large. The PARAGON measures no less than 106 lory results. inches in length and 24% inches in depth. Its new little For some situations, stereo speakers have been designed brother, the METREGON, is 30 inches tall, which is ordinary that offer the maximum in fl exibility'-x, Other systems pro· table height, extends only 22V2 inches in depth and is just pose possible alternatives *.::. which are more effective in other under 74· in ches in length. These are impressive figures, but situations and work out very well in certain livin g rooms. in view of the fun ctions the unit performs, they are an ass ur· But regardless of the extra fl ex ibility. the end result could ance that every square and cubic inch of the METREGON never be predicted. has its purpose. The James B. Lansin g designers of th e PARAGO 1 and The graceful, curved panel between the two louvered METREGON have so ught to overcome all of the diffi culties grilles on the METREGON acts as a sound wave reflector. Its usually encountered in the selection and placement of stereo purpose is to diffuse and integrate the sound waves radiated speakers by creating a stereo speaker system with a built·in by the two speaker systems mounted behind the grilles. Be· "sonic environment." By combining direct speaker radiation hind the curved panel is a huge padded cavity, divided by a rigid separator, which contains the two speaker systems. Each of these twin enclosures, with its ducted port, enables its own • See "Stereo-With a Speaker and a Half," November 1958, p . 39. • • ce " They Aim [or Stereo, " J anuary J 959, p. 39. speaker system to operate at maximum efficiency. TWO SPEAKER SYSTEMS are behilld the lou vered grilles-one right (visible), aile left (hiddell). The high frequencies makillg up the directional component are radially dispersed by the huge cllr ved lamin.ated panel. MAY 1959 37 CAVITY DI30A SPEAKER < 600 CYCLES REFLEX DUCTED-PORT TOP VIEW SHOWING HORN MOUNT ING PAD DING REMOVI NG BACK PANEL reveals one of the ducted-port bass reflex enclosures in the METREGON. A similar cavity and speaker system comprise the other half. New model 275 James B. Lansing driver feeds every thing PANEL HELD BY SCREWS above 600 cycles through a right-angle hom. Crossover network on back pallel also has switch to attenuate level . oj the 275 driver. Our particular METREGON employed the Model l30A exponential horn systems. Transient response is very good IS-inch bass drivers, working in conjunction with the new and the over-all bass reproduction is firm , with no sign of JBL Model 275 high frequency drivers and HS040 exponen- ' mushiness. Instruments are sharply delineated and speech tial horns. The crossover point between the bass drivers and is natural and free from sibilance. the high frequency drivers is established at 600 cycles. In their pursuit of the ideal in an integr ated stereo s p ~a ker While this is the optimum speaker system recommended for system, the JBL designers of the METREGON have achieved use with the METREGON, other James B. Lansing speakers considerable su-ccess. They had the option of striving for the and horns may be employed with very good results. In fact, maximum sound separation possible with a given physical the manufacturer indicates that the METREGON system can dist!lnce . between speakers. However, their decision was be built up, starting with two 0130 full-range speakers. rather in favor of a maximum sound spread coupled with Producing and distributing stereo sound through the "sonic center fill growing out of the original speakers in a natural environment" method-partly direct and partly reflected-is fusion, an acoustic principle the company terms "radial exceptionally effective in avoiding the " hole-in-the-middle" refraction. " shortcoming that plagues many stereo systems. The well There is an integrity in this concept that is refreshing to balanced diffusion of sound from the two speaker systems the serious audiophile who looks for quality before all else. blends the two stereo signals into a solid so und wall, while Here, quality has been maintained as well as conditions met. the direct-reflection principle maintains directionality without The METREGON is an easy stereo speaker system to live separating the points of sound-origin from the main hody of with and enjoy. And, given adequate wall space, its handsome, so und. This provides the type of listening you would cus beautifully crafted cabinetry is indeed a decorator's delight. tomarily expect to find in the concert hall, where 'primary - Warren DeMotte directionality is from the stage, with the sound enveloping the listener rather than engaging him in a species of musical ping-pong. While there is effective pinpointing of in st~' um epts within the METREGON'S deep wall of ~o und , such pinpointing does not become an end in itself. In our tests, we fouild that this balance between fusion and pinpointing permitted an easier, more relaxing relationship between the music and the lis tener, in effect making the listening area more spacious and less critical. ~ When driven by a monophonic signal, the METREGON deserves the appellation of "sensational." The sound seems to unfold and, oddly enough, take on much of the spatiality of stereo, frequently to a degree wherein it is hardly distin guishable from two-channel stereo. The METREGON is also an extremely effi cient .system. Only a very small fraction of the rated output of the average stereo amplifier is utilized in normal operation. Hence, the results are almost identical regardless of whether it is drive n by a 12 or SO-watt amplifier. The character of the sound produced by the METREGON IN HEIGHT and depth- Length speaks for itsel/ -stereo or mono-is bright, crisp and clear. Thert; is an the METREGON measures a little less than an aver absence of the "cavern effect" noted in some bass refl ex and age floor-standing system with identical speakers. 38 HIFI REVIEW THE PRIMAL ELOQUENCE OF PABLO CASALS feature review/DAVID HALL • BACH: 6 Suites for Unaccompanied Cello-No. I in G Maior; No.2 in D Minor; No.3 in C Major; No.4 in E-f1at; No.5 in C Minor; No.6 in D Malor. Pablo Casa ls. Angel COLH 16/18 $5.98 each • DVORAK: Cello Cohcerto in B Minor, Op. 104. Pablo Casals with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, George Szell condo Angel COlH 30 $5.98 Musical Interest : Dvorak-for everyone Bach-for Bachians & Casalsidolators Performance: Unique and irreplaceable Recording: Pre-LP best If the more than three dozen Columbia LPs issued from the festivals at Perpignan, Prades, and Puerto Rico can be called the artistic testament of Pablo Casals the complete musician, it IS these four remarkable Angel reissues which reveal the essence of Casals the supreme artist of the violoncello. ' PABLO CASAlS was just past 60 The great Catalan had just passed his 60th birthday when when he began the recordings newly he began this series of recordings by committing to disc in re-issued by Angel. London the Second and Third of the Bach Solo Suites. That was on November 23, 1936. Casals' native country was already individual movements scattered throughout the entire set. torn by civil war and Franco was besieging Madrid. April of My own personal preferences are for the grave No. 5 in C the following year found Casals in Prague recording the Minor and the exuberantly virtuosic No. 6,in D Major (this / Dvorak Concerto with George Szell and the Czech Philhar last was written in actuality for the higher:pitched viola pom monic. The remaining four Bach suites were recorded in Paris posa, so that anyone playing the music on the solo cello has -in June of 1938 and in June of 1939. By the time the last to spend a lot of time skating on thin ice in the upper regis ses~ions were done, Franco'~ German "technicians" and Ital ter) . Casals himself introduced these six suites into the active ian "volunteers" had staged their victory parade through the repertoire back in 1908, creating a sensation 'at the time; for ruins of Madrid. If one senses an almost demonic intensity of only he among the cellists of that day had developed an agile phrasing in these recorded performances there is ,ample enough bowing and fingering technique to make such un l'eason for it. accompanied music j)alatable to the ear. Unlike the Prades and Perpignan discs, some of which seem In general Starker tends toward faster tempi and a somewhat to have been recorded under makeshift conditions, the orig lighter tone. Where Starker is elegant, Casal's is earthy. It is inals of these Angel LPs were done in the Imost ideal record . the synthesis of weight, line, and tension that appears to be ing studio environment. They sounded that way when first the secret ofthe Catalan's unique artistry. Indeed, this type of issued in 78 rpm format. Thanks to the loving care with which artistry seems to have disappeared almost completely among Angel's Paris engineers have accomplished the transfer to LP, the younger artists of our own time. They are more pre they still sound that way. Despite the lack of overtones that occupied with agility and perfection for their own sake. characterize today's, hi-fi reproduction, it is astounding how Be this as it may, Casals' "weighting" of a phrase seems to much of the presence of the man and his instrument has been stem from an essentially organic conception-that the prin preserved. So much the better that Casals should have been ciple of inherent vitality in the psycho-biological sense shall at the peak of his artistic and technical powers. have priority over mere musicological considerations, and on The Casals version of Dvorak's lush Cello Concerto still occasions even over the letter of the score. How else explain remains unique in its dramatic intensity, its lyrical fervor, the daring freedom of Casals' phrasing? At the hands of any and in utter perfection of orchestral collaboration. This is not lesser master, it would sound downright eccentric. Harpsi only one of the greatest of all Casals recordings, it is very chordist Wanda Landowska (one year Casals' junior) is the possibly the finest work ever done on discs by the Czech Phil one other major artist of our time who successfully exhibits harmonic and by George Szell. Hearing the initial cello entry a similar daring. Others, like pianist Artur Rubinstein and on the Angel disc still carries with it the overwhelming im conductor Wilhelm Furtwiingler, have carried off the trick pact that it did back in 1938 when I heard the RCA Victor from time to time. It will be interesting to see whether the ' 78's for the first time. Of the more than half-dozen "modern" art of truly organic musical phrasing will come into its own recordings of the music, that by the extraordinary Janos again. What a welcome relief that would be from the merely Starker (available on Angel stereo and "mono") represents efficiently l'!lusicological or virtuosic! Cellist Janos Starker the most formidable solo competition; but there is no George together with pianists Glenn Gould and Van Cliburn ,are Szell and the Czech Philharmonic on hand to provide an some of the yo ung artists' to watch. orchestral backdrop of comparable excitement and color: , While these four Angel discs represent the very cream of It is young Starker who also provides (on Period 542 and the Casals recorded performances of the pre-microgroove era 583) the most interesting point of comparative reference to -particularly as , an ideal comQination of interpretation and Casals in the Bach solo suites. These works offer neither the ' sonics-we hope that there will be more re-issues forth weight nor the complexity of the Leipzig master's stupendous coming, in particular the Beethoven and Brahms sonatas. solo violin sonatas and partitas; but there are some lovely -David Hall MAY 1959 39 Letters of Mark fi ction/WARREN De MOTTE Em'ollte to Paris May 8,1958 Dear Mabel: Would you believe it- I'm on my way to Europe! Mr. Hemmlein's secretary eloped and he chose me to make the trip with him. He's our new A & R man at Syncratic Records. His full name is Otto Royce Hemmlein. A & R stands for Artists and Repertory. They decide what music the company should record and the artists who will perform them. In some companies, the A & R man doesn't do all the deciding; for sometimes the boss's wife butts in and then the A & R man has trouble and maybe finds himself out of a job. At Syncratic, Mr. Hemmlein does the deciding. He's a genius and the bosses know it. He is going to Europe to record Syn.'s winter releases. Someone told him about a young pianist who Mr. Hemmlein's going to make into an· other Horowitz or Rubinstein. This pianist is a young fellow from one of those Iron Curtain countries and he escaped not so long ago. We're going to meet him in Zimmer·am Amster, a little town near where Mr. H. was born. Mr. H. wants to record him there because he doesn't want the other record companies to find out how this fellow plays or what he's going to record for us. Mr. H. doesn't want the other companies to discover his recording secrets. He has his own way of recording so it sounds better than any body else's. He doesn't want our competitors to know how he does it and I'm not supposed to tell anybody. He won't even tell me the pianist's name. We're going to stay in Paris two or three days while our tape recording equipment goes on ahead to Zimmer-am Amster. Then we'll drive out and get to work. Mr. H. is real energetic. He can work right through a whole week with hardly any sleep or time off for eating or anything. He's awfully handsome, a real dreamboat, about 6 foot one with wavy hair. I wonder if he's married. He never talks about personal matters; he's all business. He's very dynamic, knows just what he wants and makes sure he gets it. I'll tell yo u all about everything when I have a few free moments. Remember me to the gang. Au revoir, Allison Zillllllel'-am-Amstel' May 14, 1958 Dear Mabel: This town is just like a postcard. There's the river down below, and bea utiful fields and mountains right in back of us. We have all our tape equipment in a lovely old building they call a schloss-that means castle-it's small but very old and has a very large room that Otto (Mr. Hemmlein) uses as a recording studio. It's filled with microphones and two big tape recorders and two tremendous grand pianos. " IT SOU NDED HIGH AND BRI LLIANT and Otto's eyes started to The rooms in the schloss don't have the conveniences of gleam. He lVas excited." home, but they are very clea n. Otto's room is across the hall, 40 I1IFI REvmw next to Howard Wemley's-he's the pi ano tuner and more fe atures that Otto had built into them. When he finished or less Otto's assistant- he's a mousey sort of fellow. adjusting the machines, he told us to listen carefully while • Next to Mr. Wemley's room is Shibi Ornuld's room. That's he played back both of the scales. the name of that pianist I was telling yo u about. Otto says Suddenly the music started and Mabel, I swear you never he will be a sensation. heard such a brilliant scale in your whole life. It was as fast We go t to work as soon as we unpacked our clothes. The as lightning, yet every note was just so, clean as could be. fir st thing, Mr. Wemley tuned the pianos. There are these Then the slow scale started, and Mabel, it was slower than two big grands plus a small upright. The upright won't be slow. You'd swear no pianist co uld play that slow and still used for recording. It's just for reference and Mr. Wemley have one note tied to the other. tuned it fir st. Otto told him how he wanted it tuned, exactly Then I realized the pitch of both scales was the same! to 44,0 A. That's the standard pitch that practicall y &. 11 pianos What I mean is origin~ll y, the slow scale had sounded mu ch and other instruments are tuned to for concert purposes. It higher than the fast one. Now both scales sounded alike. mean s ,hat the middle A on the piano vibrates 440 limes or Mr. Wemley yelled that OUo had done it, but Shibi Ornuld cy cl e~ per ,econd when it is struck. Gee, isn't science won just sat there. He was flabbergasted. derful! Well, there we had it. An example of pure genius by the Otto then told Mr. Wemley to tune one of thp. grands with greatest A & R man in the :msiness. Was I ever proud! the A at 350 cycles. Mr. W. said he had never heal:d a piano None of this fazed Ouo. He got right down to business. tuned so low, but Otto told him to go ahead. If you ever He and Mr. W. loaded the tape machines with fresh tape heard Otto give an order, yo u know that Mr. W. went ri ght and then Otto told Shibi to sit down at the low piano and to work and tuned it just as OUo wanted. Otherwise, there start playing the H ammerklavier Sonata by Beethoven. Just would have been fireworks and Mrs. Wemley's husband would like that! Mabel, that Hammerklavier Sonata is about 45 have been out of a job. minutes long and it's ever so hard to play. But there you are. When Mr. W. fini shed tuning thjs piano, Otto had Shibi The first recording Shibi Ornuld is making for Syn. Records play some scales first on the upright and then on the grand. and it's no less than the H. Sonata. They sure sounded different. The grand so unded so deep What a day ! Ornuld played the Sonata through on the that Shibi Ornuld said it was hard to get used to playing it. low piano, stopping every time he hit a clinker and playin g Then Otto told Wemley to tune the other grand, only he that part over. They patch up the bad spots easily on tape. wanted it tuned very high, about 550 cycles for the A. Mr. Then Otto made him play sections at a time, first at one w. said the strings migl1t not take it, but Otto told him to speed, then at another. go right ahead. Mr. W. wasn't happy about it but he co uldn't Got to close now. I'm bushed. Write yo u tomorrow. argue with Otto. He tuned it hi gh. A few strings snapped Love, but he replaced them. Allison Otto told Shibi to play something. It so unded high and brilliant and Otto's eyes started to gleam. He was excited. You could see he had something important in mind. I wouldn't want to get into an argument with him when he looks like Zinuuc.·-aUI-AulstC.· May 16, 1958 that. Of course, I wouldn't get into an argum ent with him about anything. Dca.· Mabcl: Anyhow, they set the mikes around the pianos and started We didn't finish recordin g the H. Sonata yesterday. OrnuJd up the tape machines. It took more than an hour to set the was too tired after about 6 hours of steady playing. After 4 mikes to Otto's satisfaction. They'd set one and play a few hours at the low-pitched piano, he had to do it all over again notes on the piano and then they'd play them back on the on the high-pitched piano. No wonder he was pooped. We tape machine and OUo would move the mike another inch or all were, except Otto. He's nuide of steel, I think. He wasn't so. He's so particular; everything must be just right. at all tired, just pepped up. After the longest time, Otto finally said, "I've go t it," and Today, they worked hour on hour, and believe me, it is I knew we were ready. I was almost dying with excitement. work. At about 3 P .M., Otto said that was it. Shibi went out Otto then told Shibi to play a scale on the low-tuned piano and Otto and Mr. W. made safety copies of everything they as fast as he could. Ornuld's fin gers ran up and down the had taped and then Otto set to work editing one complete keyboard and I thought it was very fast, but Otto said, performance of the Hammerklavier. He shooed us all out of "You 're slow, boy." He was smiling when he said it so I the schloss, telling us to go into the village and see a movie wasn't sure he really meant it was slow. or something, just so long as we didn't return until about Next he told Shibi to play the same scale slowly on the 10 o'cloc k. Otto likes to do his editing alone. hi gh piano, but play it legato. That means the notes are ti ed Just before we went out, I was alone with Otto for a few together so they won't sound choppy. Ornuld played th e minutes and I asked him what he thought of Shibi's playing. sa me thing on the high-pitched piano that he played on th e "It stinks !" he said. " But that doesn't matter. When I low one, but it certainly sounded different. When he fini shed, get through with these tapes, yo u'll hear the best perform Otto patted him on the shoulder and told him, "We'Jj slow ance of the Hammerkla·vier Sonata anybody ever heard. This yo u down , boy ; don't you worry." kid can't play for beans, but when we fini sh the record, the Shibi looked confused. You could see he did not under critics'll turn handsprings and hail him as a Horowitz, Rubin stand. Neither did I. But Otto played back the tape of the stein and Rachmaninoff rolled into one." two scales that Shibi had just played. They so unded fin e, In the village, Shibi, Mr. W. and I wandered around a j li st 1ik e the originals. while and then dropped into an inn for dinner and a co uple Ctto fiddled with the knobs and levers on the tape ma of beers. I'll tell you all about that some other tim e. Ri ght chineo • They are special mach.in es. with a lot of secret (Continued on page 50) MAY 1959 41 HAVE PIPE ORGAN, CAN'T MOVE Wurlitzer vs. Baroque history/ROBERT HAZELLEAF Part IT o.f Two. Parts HO is responsible for the sound of an organ? That is Wwhere the artisan leaves off and the artist begins. Each manufacturer employs a tonal designer. He is ' responsible for layout of the pipe blueprints for a specific installation and the ultimate quality. A good man is as jealously guarded as a Milwaukee brewmaster. When pipes are made, using methods little changed in a millenium, they are given to a voicer. He does the finish tuning along with bringing out the exact tonal nuances de sired: keen string, soft string, strident reed or plaintive oboe. On flute pipes, the voicer will gently notch the languid, lovingly benq the metal here and there; on reeds he will burnish and curve the reed . itself, performing other opera tions known only to him. He must match tone quality in sets going up to 96 pipes, l!long with volume of sound. The delicate shading's brought by partials or overtones must be balanced. . When the voicer is done, the completed instrument is set up on the builder's floor for a complete checkout. The man responsible is,a finisher, who must meld the instrument into a cohesive, pleasing blend of sound. W. H. Barnes, in his book, The Contemporary American Organ, says that finishers are a temperamental lot. They are sometimes lovers of the fermented grape, and not without reason-theirs is a tre mendously nerve·wracking job. Barnes goes on to say that more than once ...an o;gan.builder has had to hunt for his finisher, then dry him out before he could be put to work. WheI1 his job is done, all circuitry checked, and the organ given a complete run-through, it is taken down and shipped to the buyer. It will weigh many tons, made as it is from 5,000 pipes or more if a large church or auditorium instru ment. Each pipe must be carefully guarded against dents or other damage. Any slight mar or blemish can frequently change the delicate tonal balance. On church instruments especially, there is the additional task of designing a suitable case. Some of these are great works of art, serving to set off large speaking pipes at the front of the organ. Heavy tomes have been written about casework alone, delving into acoustics as well as looks. 42 HIFI REVIEW ,EarLy in the 18th century, the romantic outlook first began ti!lle. his association with organ companies here and abroad to make itself felt in the arts. The pipe organ was not immune was marked by a trail of financial losses, lawsuits, firings and' to die, movement. Composers from Mozart onward began to hirings, and finally his suicide. His genius, however, has its t~a t themselves from classic form. Gradually, the organs monument in thousands of pipe organs, became partners in this movement with the addition of purely In an early demonstration of his newly designed electro orc_hestral-imitative voices-much to the chagrin of the classi pneumatic action, about 1886, he played on a console among cists. It became during the next century a period of high ~ the tombstones in a churchyard. The organ and audience voltage dissension among composers and keyboard artists were inside the church. Hope-Jones had a decided flair for alike. The outcome was the ascendency of the romantic the dramatic. "orchestral oriented" organ_ Previously the organ had He designed many new kinds of pipes, among them tibia -been limited almost exclusively to the music for oratorios. clausa, "sobbing flute," and kinura, both dear to the hearts of Recitals were compounded of this music. Exemplifying a theater organists. He also used leathered lips on s.ome dogma still very much in existence, organists said, "Nothing voices to accommodate the great increase in wind pressure should be played on the pipe organ that is not expressly he pioneered. written for that instrument. Down with transcriptions of The old Wurlitzers bear the legend on the nameplate: symphonic themes, operatic works, and especially music "Wurlitzer Hope-Jones Unit Orchestra." The' idea was to composed for piano!" make an organ that would provide an orchestra at the fingers In reaIlty, the classic group may have had little room to and feet of the organist. "Unifying" meant the borrowing of quibble. They might have remembered that it was a long pipes from one set to ' combine with others, thus making time after the invention of the organ before the church ac "new sounds" as well as duplicating single voices of the clas cepted it. There was plenty of dissension too, because early sic organ. Hope-Jones went a step further with coupling, in their history the first water organs had been employed making it possible for the artist to use practically any stop in the Roman amphitheaters to accompany the gladiators set-up on any man~al, from top to pedals. 'and the throwing of Christians to the lions. The organ was The result was to give the theater organ, even one of two Uttle more than a calliope-type noise box then, but in Nero's manuals and eight or ' 10 ranks of pipes, the sound and time the pulific taste in entertainment was also crude. versatility of a much larger instrument. And don't you dare , These mt dern instruments incorporate many voices orig mention a fully unified organ to builders of classic organs. inated by the romanticists, though opinion is still sharply There are instances, for economy's sake, wheJ:e churches buy divided. We've mentioned the theater organ (Part I, p. 41, partially unified instruments, but some builders fight them HIFI REVIEW, March '59), but what makes it different from every inch of the way. The electrical work added on a unified any other instrument? Many details, all of them roundly organ is more than offset by the saving in pipework. cursed by classicists. Some of Hope-Jones non-controversial ideas are used today In a book published in 1934 in England, A. C. Delacourt on classic organs. The electric action, a swell shutter he in de Brisay says: " ... that it should ever pass under the term vented, and a few other brain-children have proved a boon of organ is, I repeat, to travesty and degrade a name which to overworked organists. five centuries and more of sanctified effort have made hal For theater music, you've got to have traps. Any percus lowed in the annals of music. Those who wish to go to a sion gimmick that can be actuated by striking with a blunt musical perdition should do so to the tune of an instrument object or· blown is fair game: chimes, bells, pianos, dru!lls, bearing a name other than that of organ; or be made con ll)arimbas, vibraharps, sleigh bells, train whistle, Klaxon scious of the sin of sacrilege." Opinionated, isn't he? That horn, you name it. The theater man in the silent movie days general thought was and is shared by organ builders aI)d handled sound effects as well as mood music. musicians. It will never be decided who is right, of course. The semi-circular arrangement of stop tablets at the con Some people like green olives, others prefer ripe. sole is a strictly theater organ innovation. It's an efficient Blame or credit for the theater type instrument most cer arrangement for the artist who had to keep one eye on the tainly' goes, in large measure, to Robert Hope-Jones. He was screen and one on the music, if any. '; n Englishman who was both electrical engineer and organ There are ;"escendo pedals and sforzando pedals. Some ,builder. As a businessman, he was destitute much of the 'times found on church organs, the former, when depressed, gradually bring more pipes into play to increase volume and effect. The sforzando ped'al does the same thing-not grad ually, but right now. Another cute trick is "second touch." Certain stops are designed as such. The organist plays with normal finger pressure until he needs to bring different voices into play. Depressed beyond the first set of keycsprings, the keys drop down, engaging' whatever is set up on. seco~d -tou ch stops. Be ~ ides ' all this, there ·are combination pistons, used on practically all typ-es of larger organs today. The artist selects the stops desired for a passage, then punches the piston lo cated u~der the ~roper manual or above the pedals. This he may do' for each "change until he runs out of piston? The ' little gadgets, when pressed again, cancel previous s'ettings and engage the new: voices immediately. Occasionally, the ' ROBERT HOPE-JONES- " created the high-powered pffut-pffut can be heard on a hi-fi theater organ recording as orchestral organ. piston changes are made. Some recording companies ask the MAY 1959 43 churches. Among these were Skinner, Kilgen, Moller. Aus artist to set the stops manually, pausing in the session. The tin, Marr & Colton, to name a few. Their combined output gap is lated edited out. An outstanding difference between church and theater or in' the motion-pictuTe field probably totaled far less than gans is in wind pressure. Classic organs do very well on from either Morton, with about 1800 installations, and Wurlitzer, 2% to 7% inches of pressure on a water gauge. On a theater with about 2500. Theater chains ordered from the latter monster that wouldn't make a peep. They usually start at firms not only by model number, but by the dozen! 7% inches, running as high as 25 on some of the really big Then came the debacle. When "talkies" made their appear ones. Hope-Jones designed an organ at Ocean Grove, New ance, it was as though someone had turned the blowers off of Jersey, on 50 inches of wind for the large pipes, which were nearly every theater organ in the country. "Why," said bolted down to keep them in the loft. theater owners, "pay good money for music when it's already Early builders experimented with attaining a tremolo ef on the film?" Partly due to maintenance costs, most theaters fect for certain vox humana stops, then carried the idea to merely let their organs wear out, after using them only for the whole organ. They tried fan-type beaters to disrupt the pre-program and intermission music. The records being air flow; tuning pipes slightly off-pitch; and weighted bellows made today depend on the Hub Rink in Chicago, the Para into which the main air supply for a wind chest was diverted. mount Theater in New York, Radio City Music Hall, the This, too, was a bone of contention among the classicists. Byrd Theater and Mosque Auditorium in Richmond, Vir They wanted nothing to do with such schemes. The theater ginia, to name a handful. organ took the weighted bellows to its bosom. It "shakes" the Much of the credit for today's fine recordings belongs to wind supply, and when two or more are used together, gives individuals who have had theater organs dismantled for in us the lush sound found only on the picture house giants. stallation in their homes or studios. A goodly number of these The theater organist of the silent film era was a busy fellow. individuals belong to the nation-wide American Association Sometimes he would have the advantage of a prior run of Theater Organ Enthusiasts or the Los Angeles Theater through of the filmed feature, but frequently he saw the pic Organ Club. The AATOE is composed of some 750 members tnre for the first time in a crowded theater. Cue sheets were -organists, music lovers and technicians. The Los Angeles furnished, but more often than not the organist was flying group embraces about 300 paid-up members drawn from the blind, ready to improvise a passage for a scene or call on his same cross-section. memory for Hearts and Flowers. Whenever a theater organ is about to be torn out, club Bob Mitchell, of boys' choir fame, says many of the early members hear the cry on their private frequency and im theater men didn't read music at all. The trick was to rush mediately try to find someone to save it. They have been downtown to hear Jesse Crawford or another top artist play successful. George Wright uses an organ from the Paradise a matinee so they could use the same new material on their Theater, Chicago, owned by Richard Vaughn of Los Angeles, evening programs. This silent film tradition was responsible who, incidentally, is the mentor of HiFi Records. Wright, for the flamboyant, colorful sound we hear today when the Gordon Kibbee (Omegatape), Don Baker (Capitol) and "old pros'" take a turn at the console in a recording session. others have used a 4-manual Morton from a Redwood City, o California, theater now owned by Lorin Whitney Studios in F you're looking for someone to build a theater organ, give Glendale. Other organs are spotted across the country, mak I it up. The two largest builders have long since given ing music instead of food for mice. up the ghost. Wurlitzer closed its pipe organ department Now, how about the music itself? Never did a devotee of in the early '40s. One of the last of the Wurlitzers made either theater "pops" or classical music have such a wide virtually the last boat to England in the early days of World field to choose from. Take a more-than-passing glance at the War II. Another grand old name, Robert Morton, is heard no organ selections available in any large record shop. You more. From something like 6,000 theater instruments that will see over two hundred good LPs waiting to be placed graced the silent movie houses during the palmy days, the on your turntable. Along with the theater organs, there are number has dwindled to little more than a score of first scores of excellent· classics made on some of the finest in class instruments in regular use across the country. struments in the world. As this issue goes to press, over fifty Some traditional organ manufacturers strayed into the theater organ stereo discs are on the market, as well as a theater field, but their primary customers have always been substantial number of classic organ recordings in the new medium. The labels on the latter read like an itinerary for a trip around the world. Organs in France, England, Hollll'nd, Germany, and stops in between are represented. Aeolian Skinner Organ Company has a series of fourteen records entitled "King of Instruments," made on their installations across the country from San Francisco to New York, and available on the Washington label. Stereo fans should come into their own in the near futnre. With an eye to the future, several companies recorded on stereo tape, "just in case." Undoubtedly, many of these re leases will be put out on stereophonic discs, as well as tape. E. POWER BIGGS Maybe you haven't gone in much for classical organ music. spearheads revival of Now you can break in gently, starting with lighter works and the classic instrument. developing a taste for the more aesthetically advanced com positions. Admitt'1dly, some music requires getting used to, but so does a taste for rocquefort! - Robert Hazelleaf 44 MA.IL - CA.LL FOR STEREO New features and circuits in "mail-order" stereo tuners equipment/HANS H. FANTEL HIS is an article about three stereo AM/ FM tuners. The AM, the other for FM-is by far the most convenient and eco Tone thing that they 118ve in common is that they are all nomical way to receive stereophonic AM/FM broadcasts. Now "house hrands" di stributed by mail-order firms with the aid that a wide repertoire of stereo recordings is coming into of catalogs. One of them is available only as a kit (Heathkit existence, numerous good music stations in the major metro PT·l), another as a pre-wired, preassembled model (Allied politan areas are devoting increased time to such broadcasts. Radio "Knight KN-1 20"), while the last is offered both ways The self-contained stereo tuner obviates the cost and com - kit or pre-assembled (Lafayette KT-500 or LT-50) :Y.. plexity of separate AM and FM tuners. Unlike conventional Combining two separate tuners on one chassis-one for AM/ FM tuners, they permit separate tuning of each section and provide separate signal outputs for AM and FM. This * Both Allied Radio and Lafayette also sell virtually every brand of cuslom made stereo tuner- in addition to th eir exclusive hOllse brands. allows the audiophile with stereo equipment to receive simul- HOW THEY STACK UP-three house-brand mail-order stereo tuners pictured here represent un.ique dol lar values. Heathkit (top), Lafayette (center) alld Knight (boltom) are similar in physical size. Each tUller has a ferrite rod antenna for built-in AM reception. On the Lafayette and Knight it overhangs the chassis but, on the Heath, is located on top of the chassis deck. The Knight ferrite rod may be swiveled to secure maximum AM signal pickup-a good idea accordil/.g to our tests. Heath is only tuner that is fused for maximum circuit protection. Lafayette has tlVO accessory a.c. sockets COl/.trolled from front panel-along with level adjustments of AM and FM output. 45 Make & Model Heathkit PT-1 Knight KN-120 Lafayette KT -500 (kjt) LT-50 (pre-assembled) taneously the AM signal through one channel and the FM What Is the AM Circuitry? signal through the other channel. Stereo by radio ~as actually the first two-channel sound Heath: An exceptionally well-engineered circuit design with ever reproduced in the home_ Years -before stereo discs and equivalent 7-tube performance. Selective tunable r.f. stage tapes made two-channel reproduction the modern norm, and rigidly mounted ferrite rod antenna atop the rear of the enterprising broadcasters were already linking AM and FM chassis. Two-position bandwidth switch and coil arranged transmitters for what was then called "binaural" transmis in plate circuit of the 6BE6 mixer--controlled from the front sion. In those early days, the only available stereo material panel. Two i.f. stages, first stage fully a.v.c. controlled, sec was live concerts_ ond stage Va controlled. Novel push-pull crystal diode AM Now that the bottleneck in stereo sources has been broken detector reduces possible r.f. and audio distortion. Also sim with such spectacular success, there is no doubt that the plifies filtering out residual i.f. signal. Highly effective trend toward stereo broadcasting is gaining rapid momentum. bridged T-notch filter removes 10 kc. whistle without undue With stereo broadcasting still in its infancy, some might loss of quality. Separate a.v.c. voltage amplifier and delayed hesitate to buy stereo tuners at this time. It has been pointed a.v.c. rectifier. Bandwidth is 6 db. down at 14 kc. ("Nar out that stereo broadcasting is inherently unbalanced be row") and 20 kc. ("Broad"). Image ratio is more than 55 cause of the different characteristics of the AM and FM db. and harmonic distortion is less than 1%. Tuning meter channels in regard to frequency response, dynamic range, (set for maximum swing) switched into circuit on "AM" and and signaI-to-noise ratio. For these reasons they look forward "Stereo" positions. Very sensitive tuning indicator driven to the replacement of AM/FM stereo by some form of multi by separate voltage amplifier. Also has cathode follower out plex transmission. ** put and provision for adding single-wire AM antenna. But this distant prospect is no reason to put off the pur chase of a stereo tuner. All tuners are designed with an eye to Knight: Basic 4-tube circuit with one tube having two sets of the future. Multiplex outputs are provided on all models. elements (3-tube total). Tuned r.f. stage with ferrite rod Whatever type of multiplex may finally become the national antenna, 6BE6 combination mixer-oscillator, single i.f. stage norm, present tuners will accommodate the proper adapters. using one half of a dual purpose 6AS8 tube. Half-wave diode In this sense, they are fully obsolescenceproof. Meanwhile, AM detector uses second section of above tube. Rod antenna stereo tuners are the royal road to the enjoyment of presently mounted on pivot and may be swiveled away from tuner and available AM/FM stereo broadcasts as well as conventionally transmitted radio programs. All three of these "house-brand" mail-order tuners are Your Opinion Please quality products capable of very fine performance. Each is This article has been made more "technical" in compari highly individual in concept, differing from the others in son with material of this nature we have previously pub design and circuitry. For this reason it may be helpful to lished. The editors would appreciate your comments on the value of this article and whether or not we should follow compare the technical aspects of these tuners. the editorial procedures outlined here. *. See "The Flip Side," this issue, p. 90. 46 HIFI REVIEW chassis to secure maximum, AM signal pickup. Thnie.posi Knight: A 9-tube circuit with a' tuned 6CB6 .d. stage (pen tion bandwidth switch peaks high frequency audio response tode-operated), 6AB4 mixer and 12AT'l oscillator/reactance while simultaneously lowering Q of rod antenna in r.£. stage modulator (for a.f.c.) followed by two 6CB6 i.f. stages and grid circuit when. in "Broad" position. Intermediate steps two 6AU6 limiters. Foster-Seeley discriminator, cathode of "Med" and "Sharp" lessen above ' effects. Nominal fre follower output" and EM84 tuning indicator complete the quency response flat from SO-7000 cycles. Built-in LC filter circuit. Most novel feature is the addition of what Knight removes 10 kc. ·'whistle. Separate tuning indicator (EM84 calls its "Dynamic Sideba,nd Regulator" (DSR), which" tube) turned on when function switch is moved to "AM" imllroves quality of overmodulated or very weak FM signals. position. Also has cathode follower output and , provisions May be switched in or out of the circuit. When an FM sta to add single-wire AM antenna. tion overmodulates, the DSR circ~it ' feeds a small voltage from the discriminator back to the local oscillator. This re Lafayette: Essentially the same circu,it as the Knight. How duces the frequency deviation by wobbling the oscill~tor to ever, ferrite rod antenna is rigidly mounted to rear skirt of co unteract the overmodulation effect. Disadvantage of DSR chassis. No provision is made to control AM bandwidth is in the need to switch it out of circuit when tuning from characteristics. Bandwidth is reported to be 6 db. down at station to station. However, DSR principle is valid and quite 8 kc. Utilizes 6US tuning eye-same one switched between valuable in areas where most FM' signals are very weak (it AM and FM sections by front panel control. Also has cath cuts back on noise picke,d up with t-he signal), or are heavily ode follower output and provision for adding single-wire AM overmodulated. Sensitivity rated at 2.S /Lv. for 20. db. of antenna. quieting. 1M distortion with 'DSR switched on is less than 2% at 130% modulation-a most remarkable figure sub stantiated,in our tests. Has a multiplex takeoff jack. What Is' the FM Circuitry? Lafayette: Also a 9-tube circuit with a grounded-grid d. Heath: Essentially an ll-t~be circuit counting the double stage (6AW8), triode mixer, and 6BK7B oscillator/reactance purpose tubes in the front end. Special antenna coil arrange modulator (for a.Lc.). Two 6BA6 i.f. stages, two 6AU6 limit ment built into the a.c. line permits good signal pickup in ers and Foster-Seeley discrimina,tor. Cathode follower and moderately strong si'gnal ar~as . Tuned r.f. stag~ is cascode: tuning indicator finish up circuit. Prealigned assemblies on co upled 6BS8 into a 6AB4 triode mixer from ,a 12AT7 re two printed circuit boards for convenience in kit wiring. actance modulator (for a.f.c.) and local oscillator. I.f. strip Identical model sold completely wired at extra charge consists of five 6AU6 tubes-four of which operate as limit ($SO.OO). Sensitivity claimed to be 2 /Lv. for 30 ' db. of .. ers. With a weak signal only the true 6AU6 limiter goes into quieting. action, but with increasing signal strength, consecutive limit ing in three of the previous i.f. stages occurs. A wide-band discriminator (with multiplex takeoff), tuning meter, am· plifier and cathode follower (latter tubes not included in Is It Convenient to Operate? above total) finish up the circuit. Full quieting occurs at 20 /Lv. input, 20 db. quieting at 2.0 /Lv. R.f. and i.f. sections Heath: Despite the presence of a well-proportioned front less discriminator-are pre-aligned to si mplify wiring. Print panel, it is unfortunately difficult to ' decide (in the ab ed circuits used throughout. sence of a stereo broadcast) whether , you are listening to BEHIND-PANELS OF THE HEATH AND KNIGHT show the intricate work manship that goes into the construction of a stereo tuner. Note that both units have massive heavy flywheels to. facilitate smoothness of tuning action. Heath (o n left) is built on a printed circuit board to simplify kit wiring. Spiral wound coil at bottom of illustration is , special ferrite rod antenna. Pre-assembled Knight uses point-to-point wiring . • MAY 1959 switches is a good idea. As mentioned above, DSR must be switched off when tuning FM section to find a new station. If left in circuit, there is a tendency for the tuner to go into "motorboating." DSR also reduces volume level of FM out put, necessitating readjustment of amplifier volume level. Lafayette: Smoothest working dial mechanism of the three units tested for this article. Mounting AM and FM level controls on front panel appears to be of doubtful advantage (could have been used best on the Knight) . Pair of a.c. con venience outlets on rear skirt controlled by tuner on-off switch. These are handy for the audiophile who listens most ly to AM/FM and wants amplifier turned on at the tuner. Disadvantage to the fellow playing records-must turn on tuner to start amplifier. Overly active tuning eye indicator LAFAYETTE KT-500 (or LT-50) has single "magic eye" tuning rather anachronistic on a supposedly modern stereo tuner. indicator hidden behind FM decal 011 slide rule dial glass. Both Eye closes completely with slightest signal input, tending to AM and FM output levels are cOlltrolled from the front pane/. make user undecided rather than assisting him while tuning Extreme left-hand position of control fUllction switch turns in a station. off tuner and two a.c. accessory sockets on rear skirt. AM or FM. The only available indication is derived from an What Are the Most Important Features the almost pointerless knob and the extremely small print under the rotary "Selector" switch. Has smallest slide rule dial of Buyer Should Consider? three units tested, only moderately illuminated. Although a kit, the tuning controls can be made to operate smoothly Heath: This kit was designed by some of the smartest engi and without backlash. Only tuner of this group with a fuse, neers in the electronic industry. It is the most complicated thus assuring adequate protection should p'ower supply fail. hi-fi kit offered to the general public. But, in keeping with The AM tuner section is probably one of the most sophisti standards established years ago by the Heath Company, the cated designs on the market. The FM section is equally as instruction booklet makes assembly a reasonably easy mat good and the novel arrangement of using signal pickup from ter. The AM circuit is capable of true high fidelity perform the a.c. line will often be preferable to the pickup obtainable ance-provided you are in an area where such programs are from twin-lead dipoles supplied with most FM tuners. being broadcast. The FM section is clean and straight forward and the inclusion of the novel signal pickup from Knight: Considerable "human engineering" went into the de the a.c. line should be used by more receiver manufacturers. sign of this tuner. Commendable convenience in mounting "Cascade limiting" is a valuable FM circuit innovation. both tuning knobs on the right-hand side of the panel. Such In strong signal areas it enables two of the i.f. stages to lead adjacent knobs save a lot of waste motion when tuner is used a double life and act as limiters. The quieting ability is for straight-through AM or FM reception. Oddly enough, equal to some of the best FM tuners on the market. The this is the easiest stereo tuner to show quickly whether the value of the assembled unit is well worth twice the selling output is AM or FM. Bright EM84 tuning indicators (AM to price of the kit alone. the right, FM to the left) are activated by the "Selector" switch. Use of horizontal levers on two of the 3-position Knight: The DSR circuit is far from being a gimmick tacked on to a conventional FM tuner. It is the only cure we have ever seen whereby the listener can neutralize the effects of FM station overmodulation. The Knight people claim that overmodulation is far more common than we suspect. There is little reason to doubt that this may' be so since it is often to the advantage of the small FM station to overmodulate and make its signal appear that much louder-while simulta neously losing quality. The DSR permits the tuner itself to correct this situation-dramatically improving the quality of weak as well as overmodulated signals. Lafayette: The kit version of this stereo tuner can be assem bled in just under fifteen working hours. This represents a :'M TlN!~G real bargain over the price of the wired model-unless yo u . ! ../ ~ .... , consider your personal time worth more than $3.30 an hour. KNIGHT KN-120 has two "beam-type" tuning indicators-the As in the Heathkit mentioned above, the r.f. and i.f. trans left for FM and the right for AM. When tuner is used to formers are prealigned. Satisfactory FM performance is ob receive non-stereo material, only one section (AM or FM) and. tainable with a rather simple "touch-up" procedure. The its indicator is activated. Bandwidth switch labeled "AM FM section is a joy to operate; first, because of its astonish Tuning" is oj the lever type, as is th e junction switch in the ing sensitivity and second, because of the very effective a.f.c. opposite corner. circuitry. -Hans H. Fantel 48 Realistic "Solo" Speaker System tem could not function to full advantage in the scant space. What is really important in listening is not so much ex :i\'Iallufacturer's Data: A small, ducted·port speaker sys· treme bass and treble, but clean, undistorted balanced sound tem in a dark mahogany enclosure. Lacquer fini shed on four sides (not too low and not too high) in the region from about for horizontal, vertical or suspended use. Employs an 8·inch du al· 60 cps to 10,000 cps_ Of course, the frequency extremes, cone driver. Frequency respon se : 50.14,000 cps. Power handling capacity: IS watts. Power requirement: less th an I watt 1m· deep lush velvet in the bass and silken in the treble, are pedance : 8 ohms. Size : 14%" w. x II" h. x 10%" d. Price : $15.95 dear to the hard-bitten audiophile_ But the less demanding (or 2 for stereo: $29.50). (Radio Shack Corp., 730 Comm onwealth listener can easily reconcile certain abridgements of range. Avenu e, Boston 17, Mass.) What he cannot abide is the grating erosion of his nerves caused by severe unbalance or high di stortion content. To him, the primary so ught. for object in high fidelity is low di stortion rather than wide range. JFD "Mardi Gras" Speaker System Model ALC-2 In this respect, both the Realistic "Solo" and the JFD " Mardi Gras" perform nobly. The sound is clean and bal Manufacturer's Data: A small sealed encl osure speaker anced. Bass becomes effective around 60 cycles, though there system with top and bottom panels of walnut, mahogany or blond is measurable output further down. It won't shake the floor, wood. Frequency response: 55·18,500 cps ± 5 db. Cone resonance: 63 cps. Power handling capacity: 10·15 watts continuous, 24·40 nor put much conviction into orchestral thunder. But if watts peaks. Power requirement: 5·15 watts. Ma gnet weight: 0.5 placed in a corner for acoustic bass reinforcem ent these lb. Total flux: 15,000 maxwells. Flux density: 5,000 gauss. COil e speakers will put an adequate bottom under most musical design: acoustic loading by cOil e center ·structure. Impedance : material. 16 ohms. 4 ohms and 8 ohms impedance taps also provid ed. Size: The high end of these speakers extends beyond what is 14" w. x 10" h. x 10" d. Price : $30.00 (JFD El ec tronics COql., Brooklyn 4, N. Y.) actually necessary to balance the bass response, thus offering the possibility of extra brightness to those who like that kind of sound. The speakers respond nicely to a deft touch of the tone High fidelity is a relative term. It has been stretched from controls. Adding a little bass boost and shaving just a trifle quality instruments of music reproduction to cover also what of treble produces an extremely listenable and musically might best be called a multitude of sins. Somewhere a line correct balance. must be drawn by which we can tell whether a given piece Though comparable in performance, the two systems differ of equipment is still on the side of the angels. Obviously, in design. The Realistic operates on the bass·refl ex principle, not all items can be of equal merit. Differences in size, price with a ducted port (plus lining) to provide low resonance in and concept-and consequently in performance-are legiti· a cabinet of minimal dimensions and effici ent use of ampli· mate inasfar as they serve a variety of situations and purses. fi er wattage. The JFD employs a sealed enclosure, lined with As long as we have to be practical, perfec tion cannot be the fiberglas for acoustic absorption of the back wave. Low res only aim. The industry must fire a few scattered volleys in onance in this case is attained through the speaker cone the general direction of intelligent compromise. In this kind design itself. of shoo ting these two speakers score a clear hit. Both systems have 8·inch drivers with unconventional cone The two bantam-size speakers, by example, provide a work· structures to obtain what amounts to dual-cone action with a able definition of minimum hi·fi . This is meant as compli mechanical crossover. In the JFD, the center cone heble ment and approbation, for speakers of this category are an radiator also acts as an aco ustic load for the surrounding honest answer to a definite need. parts of the cone_ To pin down specifics we must examine a) what is the High effi ciency is an inherent attribute of ported enclo need, and b ) what is the answer. sures. It is therefore to be expected that the Realistic excels Obviously there are innumerable people unwilling or un· in this respect. But relatively high effici ency for a sealed able to spend sizable sums on high fidelity, but eager to have enclosure is attained by the JFD. This means that either of music in their homes and have this music so und pleasurable. these speaker systems can be used with even the smallest Ordinary radios and or "hand-me· down" package· type phono low·power amplifier-an important factor to consider in a graphs fall short of their requirements while large hi·fi instal "minimum hi~ fi " installation. lations exceed them. For them "minimum hi-fi," as repre If JFD has sacrificed a small margin in efficiency by its oented at its best by these speakers, has much to offer, espe· choice of the sealed enclosure principle, it has gained in the .. r,i ally if installed in moderate·size rooms where a large sys- bargain the ability to absorb more bass boost from the ampli- 49 fier without encountering problems of cabinet resonance and There is a choice of blond, walnut or mahogany. The fabric a generally somewhat tighter sound and sharper transients covered "working structure" of the JFD enclosure is made than the Radio Shack's 'Realistic "Solo." of SA," "Tim-Board," a new type of composition board said The most conspicuous difference between the two speaker to be acoustically equivalent to l%," solid core lumber. systems is in their appearance. The grille cloth of the Real These speakers, each small enough to be tucked under one's istic is stretched to all four corners of the front panel and arm, make a convenient stereo pair, and it is in this capacity the sides of dark mahogany have lacquer finish in the Oriental that they will probably find their most widespread use. style, so smooth as to seem almost like plastic. In summary, if your requirements tend toward " minimum" , In ~o ntrast , the JFD has only a light finish on top and without degradation of essential musical quality, these speaker bottom slabs of decorative wood, permitting the grain to show. systems definitely deserve yOur consideration. • Letters of Mark wasn't his performance at all. I don't think it helped his morale either when Otto slapped him on the back and said, (Continued .from page 41) "Cheer up, Shibi, you'll be world-famous soon. Only you'd better not let the public and the critics get you on a stage and hear you in person." now, I want to tell you about tbe recording. Otto is so frank and honest. Poor Shibi Ornuld. He just I know you'll pe as.excited as I was. Well, almost, because ran up to his room. He couldn't take it. C'est la guerre or I could see btto in person and he's 'really something to watch something. when he's working. He's' awfully handsome. I guess I've got On second thought, it's not so bad. He's no worse off than a crush on him. What girl wouldn't? many movie actors. The director has to lead them around by Naturally, I didn't ' get a ,chance to finish this Jetter last the hand and film scenes in bits. These are spliced just like night because we didn't get back to the schloss until 10 for tape recordings. Put those actors on a stage in front of an the big event and I didn ~ t want to: mail what. I had written audience and they'd be paralyzed. until I could tell you all about it. ' So here it is the next day. Well, we slept .late this morning and today we'll loaf Well, it was a big eve~ t. When we got back, Otto was around. The mailman was just here with a special delivery ready for us. He',s a wonderful ·showman. He had our chairs for Otto. I'd better close now and go down to the village set in a circle in front of the speakers and then he started and get this letter 'off or it won't go ou~ today. the tape machine going. Auf wiedersehen, Mabel, y~u never heard anything so wonderful in your Allison , life! The sound was terrific and the. playing, well" all I can say is that nobody ever played the fast passages of, the H. Zimmer-am-Amster Sonata so fast and so clean' without even missing a single May 17, 1958 note. It was fabulous! The last movement, one of the most <;Iifficult things to play, it's a complicated fl,1gue, went at Dem' Mabel: breakneck speed, and was it brilliant! The slow movement We were just fini shing breakfast this morning when .a ,se'emed to float. You'd think it was an orchestra playing, it ~\' oman and two children drove up to the schloss and what was so rich. do you think? She's Otto's wife and they have two children. Of course, it was that final fugue ' that got us. Mabel, it She's not much to look at, horsey type, if you know what I was so exciting! When it ended, we 'got up and cheered. Mr. mean. I was just wondering if I shouldn't pack this job in W. brought out a bottle of champagne and we drank to and get back to the good old U .S.A. You get pretty lonesome Otto's wonderful achievement. . for ail honest-to-goodness hot-dog after a while. Only poor Shibi looked' downcast and almost ready to See you soon, burst into tears. You could hardly blame him. It really Allison • ORCHESTRA FOR HIRE Back in the dark days of the great Depression, the Vienna Philharmonic, they felt, would give a Vienna's Philharmonic, despite its musical renown, needed boost to their jJrestige..- sometimes found it expedient to balance the budget by A suitable assignation of this kind was thus arranged selling itself bodily. The kind of overtures the orches for an ambitious young American conductor. After a tra liked best apparently were those from well-heeled generous contribution, he found himself facing the baton-wielders who let it be known that they would great orchestra. The players gamely li v~~ up to their find ways to express their appreciation for the honor of bargain and gave a superb performance. But when a being invited to conduct the orchestra. Rank amateurs, newspaper reporter called the orchestra manager pre of course, wer, excluded 'from consideration. But there ceding the concert to find out "what Mr. x: was going were a number of orchestra leaders financially upper to conduct," he only got the tart answer: "That we class but artistically strictly lower-middle. Conducting don't know. But we are playing Beethoven's Fifth." I 50 HIFI REVIEW I for ,Ultimate , Fidelity I i WHAT'S THE -. STEREO ...0 ):0- :s: c: ;::;: _::E::I. (1) -. 3' MEANING OF :r::E I» by SHERWOOO*.. 0::1 ::::s CD So£, -"rI -(II --I- c: gil) ~ AN AWARD? (113 CD ;:;: oc: '< ~= ..... (11::1 II)ce ·outstandine honors ::1(11 c-) bestowed, unsolicited, ~.'< by m.,.t recOgnlled -(II tostingoraanllallons. ::.(1)-'- ::::s .ct3 ::::sIII :::::s Those illustrated above mean every thing! CD But some awards mean little-only that the manufacturer shook hands in * the right place, or paid ·the right price. Fortunately, for the audiophile, this sort of meaningless award "giving" has never been a part of the High Fidelity industry. Here, awards come the "hard way" for outstanding per formance based on high technical standards. Therefore, Sherwood is justly proud of its many outstanding honors be If your choice is stereo, 'Sherwood offers stowed, unsolicited, by most reco.g The Ultimate in performance-and two models nized testing organizations, plus to choose from : Model S·5000, a 20 + 20 watt dual many other special recognitions. amplifier'preamplifier for stereo "in a single package".. . . For the American Pavillion at the Model S·4400, a stereo preamplifier with Brussels World'; Fair, the ~nly FM tuner controls coupled with a single 36 watt s.elected. was the Sherwood, S-3000. amplifier for converting monaural systems to- . .w i - • ~ .,-. stereo (can also be used with Model S·360 -a 36 watt basic amplifier"-($59 .50) ·to Undoubtedly the most commonly dis mak~ a dual 36 watt combination). played seal in the United States is Basic coordinated controls for either stereo or monaural operation include 10. two · cha~nel the "UL" of Underwriters Laborato-. . controls, stereo norma l/reverse switch, ries-commonplace except in the Hi phase inversion switch, tape·monltor switch and dual amplifier monaural operation Fi fleld! Only Sher.wopd and two with either set of input sources. Bass & other popular Hi-Fi tUile'fs I1ear this treble controls adjust each channel individually or together. seal of acceptance-your guaran The five modes of operation (stereo, tee of safety from the hazards of stereo·reve r.sed, monaural I, monau(al 2, . monaural ' 1+ 2) are selected i1y the fun,ctlon shock and flre. switch which also operates a corresponding group of ind ic'ator lit es to identify the And when the Dean of High Fidelity selected operating mode ... and all Sherwood publishers created the Hi-Fi Music in amplifiers ' feature the exclusive presence rise control. the Home performance commenda tion seal, Sherwood's S-2000 AM 'Model S·4400: Stereo pre·amp, controls & . first single 36·watt amplifier, Fair T~de $159.50 FM tuner was the to be chosen Model S·5000 : 20+20 watt dual stereo . for the honor. amplifier, Fair Trade $119.50 Wyeth Engineering, Inc. just one of for complete specificalion., write oepi. v·s many,-many testing laboratories (one .: .- in particular must remain anonymous) recently tested Sherwood tuners and , ::.. SHERWOOD ... certifled their adherence to F.C.C • ELECTRONIC LABORATORIES, INC. and I.R.E. standards of conducted and/or interfe-:..ence. 4300 H. C ~Iif ~rn ia ~ve .• Chicago ,8. Illinois radiat~d Just ask High Fidelity dealers you'/I flnd a majority recommend The "complele high fidelity home' music ~ enter" monophon ic or stereophon ie. Sherwoocf as "the best buy" in a complete High Fidelity Home Music • Center• Edward S. Miller General ,Manager o t. l!l. J MAY ·1959 51 Four Great Premieres on GERSHWIN Gershwin'S last orchestral work-his own orches tration of the Suite from PORGY AND BESS never performed since his death. The first and only recording of this historic work. The Utah Symphony, Abravanel, conductor. Monophonic: (with Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite) XWN 18850. Stereo: (with Copland: EI Salon Mexico) WST 14063 PROKOFIEFF THE FLAMING ANGEL (Opera in Five Acts): A Gothic tale of the supernatural transformed into a dramatic masterpiece. Rhodes, soprano; Depraz, bass; other soloists; Chorus of Radiodiffusion-Television Francaise; Orchestre du Theatre National de I'Opera de Paris; Bruck, condo (Monophonic, OPW 1304) SCARLATTI TETIDE IN SCIRO (Opera in Three Acts): A newly discovered opera by Domenico Scarlatti in a mag nificent authentic performance. A historical find! Soloists, Angelicum Orchestra of Milan; Janes, condo (Monophonic, OPW 1305) WEISGALL THE TENOR (Opera in One Act): A modern psycho logical drama by one of America's outstanding composers! Cassilly, tenor; Coulter, soprano; other soloists; Vienna State Opera Orchestra; Grossman, condo (Monophonic, OPW 1206 -Stereo, WST 208) For complete Westminster catalog, write: Dept. MR-5, Westminster, 275 '7th Ave" New York, N. Y. W 32 52 RIFt REVIEW .. Reviewed by BEST OF THE MONTH MARTIN BOOKSPAN GEORGE JEllINEK • London's flair for "stereo theater" recording pays off again with a near DAVID RANDOLPH definitive album of Lehar's immortal Viennese operetta, The Merry Widow. - "In this bubbling production ... the over-all recorded sound JOHN THORNTON is delightful." (see p. 56) • Decca's stereo disc of the Richard Strauss Thus Spake Zarathustra is, • BACH: Clavier Concerto in D Minor; under Karl Bohm's baton, a brilliant achievement. - "A magnificent Clavier Concerto in A Major. Rugge ro Ger· lin (harpsichord ) with the Cento Soli Orches· addition to the recorded Strauss catalog . . . a vivid reading that bristles t ra of Paris, Victor Desarzens condo Omega OSL-13 $5.95 with energy." (see p. 60) Mu sical Interest: Masterpieces • Capitol's Music for Strings finds Leopold Stokowski achieving a remark Performance : Done with gusto Recording: Excellent able re-creation of the glorious string sound of his Philadelphia days. Stereo Directionality: Very good Ste reo Depth: Good - "Breathtaking ... and from start to finish commands attention for the plastic beauty of the string choirs." (see p . 63) Don't be frightened away by the tasteless back cover of the jacket, with its garish yellow. This is a fine disc. The perform ances are direct and straightforward. There movement, lasting less than four minutes. In the March issue I incl uded a brief dis is no attempt here at any "museum recrea It is presumed to be part of a larger work, cussion of this performance in the Basic tion" of Bach. The orchestra sounds fairly the remainder of which is lost. What it Repertoire article on the recorded Eroicas. full and the playing has body to it. lacks in length, it makes up in strength. It Walter's is a broad, assured reading, slower The soloist does a fine job, and his harpsi is a powerful, almost angry work, for double than mo st but with its own particular brand chord has an appealing sound. Moreover, chorus and orches tra. It is, with its anti- - of heroism. I would put it second to Klem· it is located squarely in the center of the phonal writing, a "natural" for stereo. perer's Angel disc in my own affections. group, with an amazing degree of presence. Prohaska has brought a fine sense of style The recorded sound is, surprisingly, The recording is full-bodied. to his readings of both works. D. R. bolder and fuller in the monophonic record The D Minor Concerto is, of course, one in ·Every month we will offer you ,the complete catalog of one or more record and tape libraries, such as Angel, Capitol" Columbia, Mercury, RCA, etc., thereby affording you vast, savings as you build your library from over 10,000 selections which we will offer you in 1959. * f}6Ut tJu * r;JMn flu J.../Il J. * * SMS Record Club * Stereo Tape Club (formerly Sam Goody Record Club) * * and receive FREE and receive FREE * Any One LP record (including stereo) * anyone of the full half hour * stereo tapes lis,ted below. * * These tapes are an SMS * product, (available stacked * or staggered), and cannot * * be obtained anywhere else. * SMS·l00l-AROUND THE WORLD SMS'loo3--8ASIN STREET, Old Fa * WITH ANTON KARAS, including La Vie vorites Including: Anastasia, Lady be an E'~)6,c~e * En Rose, La Paloma, River Kwal Good, Sam, the Old Accordion Man, * March, 0 Sole Mlo, etc. .and many others. "Stereo Cartridge and diamond needle. * SMS·l002-FLAMENCO CARNIVAL (lor Ceramic or Magnet;c ;np~t) * AS A , MEMBER OF EITHER CLUB YOU ENJOY ALL THESE ADVANTAGES: • 38% savings eac'h month on records and tapes (in'cluding ste~eo) from a library of a major company. • 30% savings on all other records, including' stereo. • 200A. savings on all other stereo tapes. • Great savings on equipment and recording' tape. • Immed!ate shipment. , • Free monthly catalogue of latest releases and , newsletter. FULL YEAR'S MEMBERSHIP IN EITHER CLUB $12.00 ------_._------~ 'U",: SMS Record Club MR·7 rut}., Stereophonic Music Society MR·7 1 303 Grand Avenue, Palisades Park, N. J. 303 Grand AVI., Palisades Park, N. J. , I understand that I am Under no ' obligation to purchase any minimum I understand that I am under no obligation to purcha,se any minimum number number of reeords and that I may purchase monthly special records at of tapes and I will receive my bonus stereo tape by return mall. Under the SMS group, purchasing plan, I may purchase monthly special stereo tapes for 38% discount and all other records for 30% discount. I am to receive 38% discount and, all other tapes for 20% discoun,t. FREE anyone LP record, Monaural or Stereo, or a FREE Electro·Voice Check one: SMS·1001 SMS·1002 SM5-1oo3 stereo cartrld,ge ,aOd dlall]ol1d n,eedle 0 0 o Check one: 0 ' machine (in·llne)' siacked o machine (offset) staggered CheCk cartridge: 0 Ceramic Input 0 Magnetic input or Ten 3'1'4 four ,track tapes now available for new Ampex, Pentron, Tandberg, o free record ______Telectro and Viking machines. My 0 check 0 money order for $12.00 Is enclosed to ,cover membership fee. My 0 check 0 money order for $12,00 Is enclosed to cover membership fee . ' Please nlake check payable to Stereophonic Music Society, ,303 Grand Avenue, Please make check payable to SMS Record ClUb. Palisades Park" N. J., ' , Name ______Name' ______-. ______ Address.s _-:-__' '--______Address.s ______ Clty'___ --'-_-'-'- _____State' ______Clty, ______--:- ______Stat,e.e ______ .. Make of Record Player Make of Tape Recorder' ______ MAY 1959 55 sages, a result of too close brass pickup, LECOCQ: Ma m'zell e Angot (see GLA- but whatever it is, Karl Donch has mas and the first stTin gs also become too bril ZO UNOV) tered it hilariously in the delicious char acterization of the bungling diplomat. liant at times. The problem can be solved • LEHAR: The Merry Widow (complete ). by high frequency roll-off. Otherwise, all Hild e Gueden (soprano)-Hanna G la wa ri; Equall y excellen t is EmlDY Loose in the is serene. The recording offers a great deal Per G ru nden (te nor)-Graf Da nilo ; Wa !de rol e of the "dutiful wife." of sublime melody and some really breath mar Km entt (tenor)-Camille de Ros ill on; Aside from certain spots on Side 1 where taking woodwind playing. J. T. Emmy Loose (sopran o )-Valencienne; Ka rl the choru s gets a slightly blurred reproduc Donch (baritone)-Mirko Zeta, and others. tion, the over-all recorded sound i delight Th e Vie nna Stat e O pera Chorus a nd Orches • HALFFTER: Si nfonietta. Orquesta Na ful. There is a distinct spatial illusion but t ra , Robert Stolz condo London O SA 1205 2 the engineers have wisely and tastefnll y con cional d e Espa na, Ataulfo Argenta con do 12" $10.96 Lond on CS-6029 $4.98 centrated on the " middle ' zone," leaving Musica l Interest : Everlasting inciden tal attractions ("on stage" dancing Mu si cal In terest: Fascinating Performance: Effervescent of the Polonaise and off-stage effects) di s Performance: Tremendous Recording: Exciting tinclly separated in the right channel. AI1 Stereo Directionality: Expert Recording: London's best in all, a high degree of stage ilJusion is Stereo Directionality: Perfect Stereo Depth: Exe mplary Stereo Depth: Exactly right achieved in this well-prepared production. The Merry Widow is Viennese operetta For all my whole-hearted endorsement of There are several reasons why this new at the summit. The story may add up to the foregoing, my admiration [or the oldcr London stereo record is exceptional. The little more than a conglomeration of tired (non-stereo) Angel set is by no means les most im portant reason is that the Halff:er cliches, yet mi sguided efforts to endow the sened. (SchwaTZkopf, Gedda, Loose and score is so fascinating ! It is unpretentious, book with Broadway.styled' "sophistication" Kunz are Angel's singing principals, th e it abounds with good humor, it is part clas can only result in a hopeless tangle akin to last named a superb Danilo even though sical, part Romantic, part modern in so und, a staging of Pal Jo ey by a group of Tyro this role is conventionally sung by a tenor). part sensual and nationalistic in tex ture lean yodelers. On the other hand, if you Angel's so und, on re-hearing, is as bright as and wholly individual. pr e~e rv e the spirit of the original inspiration ever and the over-all performance is every Magnificently played by Orquesta Na and entrust the parts to a group of singing bit as · exciting (even more so in the cional de Espana under the inspired direc actors who can perform their tasks with Schwarzkopf-Knnz ensembles) as the one tion of Argenta, this score, despite its trans conviction but also know the right moments offered by London. parency, poses no problems for the leading for a tongue-in-cheek approach-the enter The London set starts off with a spl endid seats and the first desk men of this orches prise jnst cannot fail. Not when you have performance of the overture- a brand new tra ~arry off their parts with polished Leluir's music on your side. potpourri fa shioned by Stolz. The updating virtuosity. London does not have a more In this bnbbling production, London wise· shows a masterly hand and th e passing perfectly engineered stereo disc in its al ly relied on yet another powerful ally- the anachronism of the beguine rhythm is more ready sizable catalog. It is easy to under charming than intrusive. On e demerit, how stand why Toscanini, Walter, Stokowski, ever, goes to London for failing to include and others so strongly favored this Sin a libretto. The notes and synopsis which fonietta when it won a prize in 1924. Play accompany the set are only so-so. G. J- ers and conductors alike must find this charming score a delight to work with. The MEN DELSSOHN: M i ds um m er N i gh t's Halffter work was the last recording Argen Dream (see TCHAIKOVSKY) ta made for London before his untimely death, which makes it all the more valuable. • MENDELSSOH'N: Violin Concerto in E Mi nor, Op. 64; BRUCH: Scottish Fantasy, J. T. Op. 46. Alfredo Campoli with the London Ph ilharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult HANDEL: Messiah-Ha ll elujah (see COL condo London CS-6047 $4.98 LECTIONS) Mu sical Interest: Me ndelssohn-A mas terpiece ; Bruch-No masterpiece, but • HAYDN: Symphony No. 100 in G Ma engaging jor (" Military" ) ; and Symphony No. I 0 I in Performance; OK o Major (" Clock"). Vi e nna State Opera Recording : Good Orchestra, Mogens Wold ik e condo Vanguard Stereo Directionality : Fine SRV 109-SD $2.98. Mono-Vanguard SRV- Stereo Depth: OK 109 $1.98 directorial hand of Robert S:olz, who, as Musical Interest: Enduring Haydn Campoli has had a previous go at th e masterpieces some will recall, presided over th e operetta's Mendelssohn Concerto, in a performance Performance: Exemplary brilliant New York revival of 1943 (Witll with this same orchestra under Eduard va n Recording: Good Martha Eggerth and Jan Kiepnra). Of Beinum (now available on Richmond Stereo Dir ectionality: Suffici ent course, his association with the treasurabl e 19021). That one is a beautifully poetic, Stereo Depth : Plea sing score is much deeper than that- it goes understated reading. Since then Campoli back all the way to 1905 when The Merry has become more of the virtuoso showman There is no attempt at the merely spec Widow started its fablllous journey. Stolz, and this new reading is fl ashier and more tacular in this recording. As a resul t, it now 79, is probably the world's leading ex extroverted. I still prefer the old Campoli is an eminently satisfying disc. Woldike's ponent of a great tradition, a fact this set for it possesses qualities which are all too way with Haydn is thoroughly admirable, most attractively demonstrates. rare in today's music mart. and his tempo in the last movement of the The cast is excell ent. Hilde Gueden's Bruch's Scottish Fantasy is a minor, bnt Military Symphony does not suffer from the glamorous and lively portrayal of the Widow charming score. Campoli plays it well, but excesses of the Scherchen version (West makes Danilo's stubborn reticence to the minster) . Boult's accompaniment is no more than rou very end of the third act almost incompre tine- much less involved with the score Both stereo and monophonic versions hensible, and she sings with charm and as than when he conducted the Phil harmonia might benefit from slightly more bass, but surance. P er Grunden, the young Swedish Orchestra for Rabin's Angel recording of this is a very minor criticism. A word tenor of the Volksoper, does not create a should be said for the fin e presence of the the music (35484) . The recorded sound is very dashing image of Danilo, but he, too, well-balanced and cleanly-focused. M. B. percussion instruments, so important in the sings with an easy grace, thoroughly steeped slow movement of the Military Symphony. in the styl e. Waldemar Kmenlt, as Camille, D.R. is an ardent-voiced wooer whose singing of • M OO RE : The Devil and Da niel W ebster (com plete) . Lawre nce Winters (baritone ) "Kontnt in das Ie/eine Pavilion" is one of the Dani e l Webster; Joe Blankenship (bass ) HAYDN: Trumpet Concerto (see COLLEC high points oE the performance. I am not J abez Stone; Do ri s Young (soprano)-Mary TIO NS) sure I could describe a Marsovian accent, Stone; Frederick Weidner (tenor )-Mr. 56 HIFI REvmw Juan Mcmtero. matador. From BULLFIGHT. by permisoion oj Simon and Schuster, Publishers. Copyright ©1958 by Peter Blickley. . . . for the matador - it comes paper claims, every brand, every when he can no longer play at the product of old must now face up game of bravery, but must at last to the new challenge wrought by face up to the supreme test of his stereophonic sound. Regardless of courage and greatness - when he past laurels, it is today's perform· must conquer or be conquered . ance that counts. . . . for the turntable or changer - The United Audio DUAL·I006 it comes when the stylus descends ••• totally new, significantly dif· to the groove of a stereo record, to ferent •.. is the only combination track as never before required ... professional turntable and deluxe vertically as well as laterally, with changer created for uncompro· lighter pressure, greater accuracy, mised stereo and monophonic less distortion and far more sen reproduction. sitivity-when the operation must be silent, smooth and flawless to We invite you to visit your author· permit the music to emerge with ized United Audio dealer ••• to clarity, purity and distinction. submit the DUAL·I006 to the most demanding of tests. : • to see and Shorn of pretension and mere hear it in its "moment of truth." The DUAL-1006 combination professional turntable / deluxe changer for uncompromised stereo and mono reproduction Actually tracks and operates auto Totally new design one-piece tone Stereo-mono switch has phase-can matically or manually with only 2 arm - provides perfect vertical and celling feedback circuit to remove grams stylus pressure. lateral tracking - no multiple arm vertical noise signal from mono rec resonance or cartridge vertical am ords played with stereo cartridge. Choice of heavy. large diameter 1united Gtudio plitude distortion. turntables· - new laminated con Obsolescence-proof intermix for I PROD U C T B 0 F 0 I BTl NeT ION centrically-girded design retains Truly freefloating tonearm - unique present or future record sizes_ I Desk 5. 202-4 East 19th St.. New York 3. N. Y. dynamic balance and plano surface. clutch disengagement for complete freedom. Elevator action changer spindle safe- : Please send fuJI details to: Rigid equipoise motor suspension guards record grooves and centers_ : NAME ...... " ...... prinCiple eliminates vertical rumble. Multiple transmission motor drive uses individual gears for each speed True manual (or automatiC) single I Built-in direct reading stylus pres - automatic disengagement makes play - permits setting tonearm on : ADDRESS ...... sure/tracking force gauge. "flat spot thumping" impossible. rotating or motionless turntable. l CITY...... zONE .. : ..... STATE ...... ""...... · s'h lb_ standard; 5~ lb. opticmal at small extra coat. MAY 1959 57 Scratch. and others. The Festival Choir and MOZART: Eine kleine Nachtmusik (see The newcomer to music, on first hearing Orchestra. Armando Aliberti condo West TCHAIKOVSKY) these concertos, will be puzzled, and even minsterWST 14050 $5.98 repelled by Prokofiev's unexpected changes • MOZART: The Magic Flute (highlights). of mood. But after a few repetitions, you Musical Interest: Fine Americana Wilma Lipp (soprano )-Queen of the Night; hear sounds emerge not heard before, and Performance: Enjoyable Hilde Gueden (soprano)-Pamina; Leopold before you can say Serge, you begin to Recording: Tops Simoneau (tenor)-Tamino; Kurt Boehme Stereo Directionality: Very effective appreciate what Prokofiev has been telling (bassl-Sarastro; Emmy Loose (soprano) you all along. ' Stereo Depth: Very good Papagena; Walter Berry (baritone)-Papa geno. and others. The Vienna State Opera Ricci in these performances displays a Douglas Moore's setting of Stephen Vin· Chorus and The Vienna Philharmonic Or rather wiry tone at times, but his ~rtuosity cent Benet's famous story has long been chestra. Karl Bohm condo London OS 25046 overcomes all of the technical obstacles that recognized as one of the best examples of $5.98 appear with frightening regularity on every American folk opera. It is tuneful, rich in page. Ansermet is careful not to let his mar· native color and makes its point plainly and Musical Interest: Masterpiece-streamlined velous orchestra sound too big, but keeps vigorously. The Westminster performance Performance: Above average the dynamics transparent and clear-cut. is no more than competent but, fortunately, Recording: Just about average ( Stereo Directionality: Slight Ricci seems more comfortable in the youth never less than that either. The magnetic Stereo Depth: Satisfactory ful D Major Concerto, and London has is personality of Webster should call for an sued better engineered stereos. But even American Chaliapin-and where are you London's complete Magic Flute dates so, the standard throughout is high, and going to find one? back to 1955-it must have been one of the the record is well worth the having. A The benefits of stereo are added to the first operas recorded stereophonically. Noth little tip . . . listen underneath the solo fine recorded sound with singularly happy ing startling is revealed in the two channels , parts to what is going on in the orchestra, results---the two channels are buzzing with -'-in fact the definition of choral voices especially the woodwinds, to appreciate activity. One niinor complaint-the faint leaves something to be desii-ed. The over-all right away the special brilliance .of. Proko· vocal presence allotted to the satanic Mr. sound, however, is entirely satisfying. fiev's way with instrumentation. ' :f.-T. Scratch. Otherwise-an excellent produc· TIie excerpts have been reasonably well tion job and decidedly fun to listen to. G. J. chosen-you just cannot condense this op PURCELL: Trumpet pieces (see COLLEC era on a single disc and hope to satisfy TIONS). • MOZART: Cosl fan tutte (highlights)" all listeners. This particular listener would Lisa della Casa (soprano I..:...Fiordiligi; Chris gladly reduce in this instance the gerierous RAVEL: Bolero (see BIZET) ta Ludwig (mezzo-soprano)-Dorabella'; An representation allotted to Walter Berry's ton Dermota (tenor)-Ferrando; Erich Kunz unsteady Papageno in favor of, say, "0 Isis • RAVEL: La Valse: Bolero: Rapsodie Es (baritone)-Guglielmo; Paul Schomer ("bari~ und Osiris," which is omitted. Sarastro, tone)-Don Alfonso; Emmy Loose (soprano) pagnole. New York Philharmonic. Leonard -'-Despihti. and others. The Vienna State sung by Boehme with imposing if not mellif. Bernstein condo MS 6011 $5.98 Opera Chorus and The Vienna Philharmonic luous sonority, gets decidedly shortchanged Orchestra. Karl Bohm condo London. OS her~nIy one verse is given of "In diesen Musical 'Interest: Great Ravel 25047 $5.98 heil'gen Hallen." , Performa nce: Routine The remainder of the distinguished group Recording: Substanda~d . Musical Interest: High of singers comes through in fine style, with Stereo Directionality: Good Performance: Outstanding ensemble Gueden's tender and sensitive Pamina tak Stereo Depth: Shallo~ Recording: Clear and welf balanced Stereo Directionality: Realistic ing the vocal honors. The orchestral accou,llt , The stereo release of Bernstein's all Stereo Depth: Good is above reproach, if hardly sparkling. For Ravel album is no different in essence than the time being this is all there is to "Zauber tlie monophonic version reviewed 'by the The cast of this performance features Vi flate" in stereo-doubtless a temporary state , 'writer in a recent issue. 'The performances etma's·fIDest singers, who happen to be. out of affairs which, nevertheless, should height- " are slick; pat,. routirie,. ana \Yi,th a less com. standing Mo~a,t specialists to boot. ~o ' is en the'appeal of this abridgement. G.}. petent orchestra c;O\ild :be considered quite conductor Bohm" and it naturally follows ordinacy;,~-Perhapk Here's VVhy RADIO SHACK'S 1959 SOLO Speaker Is VVorlh Tvvice Our Price! HEAL,sr,c "SOLO'· $15.95 $29.50 '~ Ultra-compliant suspension cone spealcer consisting of " woofer with If macje in this country, Radio Shack's exclusive "SOLO" a coaxially mounted "whiner" speak~r system would cost mor~ than twice its low price. Here at last is a VERY SMAll' SPACE HI·FI speaker with real lows and clean highs. It's designed by the same Radio Ex'ra Shack engineering staff that cr~ated the world famous ' heavy ElECl'ROSl'AT,3 tweeter. lAnd its magnificent performance Alnico is matched in appearance by its handsome furniture· ' mognet finished dark mahogany enclosure with blending grill,. Size 14 '12" x'll" x 10 '12" deep; 8 ohms to match any hi·fi ampli. fler. console or TV set; sealed back with terminal strip; cabinet finished on four sides for horizontal. vertical or suspended use; Acoustic 2' runners . of matching mahogany included; response is 50· lining 14,000 cps;!'iiQuality.wis,e, SR!I"ce,wise and ~udget·wise . . , throughout there's no other speaker to compare w ith our "SOLO" ! for clean sound The World Famous 5,000-25,000 cps TWEETER iII.iIITRIO" $44.50 2 for"S f ereo REAL,sr,c $79.50 u "ELECTROSTAT-3 Radio Shack's REALISTIC " TRIO" is a magni,ficent 3·speaker system $27.50 '" that compares brilliantly with $100 systems . . . ' and in~ludes features no other speaker system Radio Shack's REALISTIC ELECTROSTAT·3 adds a 'hi's . '. • such ;,. s' .th,e ,Pl'tented· center:mounted i'col1stlc cut·off filter' new acoustic brilliance to any speaker ' system. '.. in the 8" woofer. This .provldes clean lows without h·t Inter:ference. smooth, silky response from 5.000 cps to beyond The superbly engineered dual tweeters have a smooth wide range and the range of human hearing. It's the tweeter are mounted at o.ffset anghi s for dispersing the sound, unIformly in all that's been getting the rave notices • . . the directions. In adClition to. being solidly encased, they are so mounted tweeter the whole world wants most, regardless t hat they may be rotated 90· for m.aximum effectiveness in either up: of price. Mahogany, blond or walnut finish. right or lowboy positions. Dual hi-pass , filter; response 35·17,500 cps; Size ,11 'l's" wide x 5 %." high x 4'/2" deep. 8 ohms; laminated dark ,mahogany furniture·finished on 4 sides; size 22 % ~! x 13" x 11 'ht deep; complete .with 2 separate, fuatching runners. REALISTIC ELECTROSTAT·3 CROSSOVER NET· WORK KITS include coils, condensers and L pad, complete with simple assembly instruc tions. Either 8 or 16 ohm kit .... , .. . each $4.95 RADIO------SHACK CORPORATION, Dep• . 5 A ~I 730 Commonwealth Ave., Boston 17, Mass. , . ~~ ____~P;, I .~o~s;..~s~.~n~d~m~.~'~h~.~f~ol~lo~w~i~n~g~: ~ __~~ ;;: REALISTIC Sh, WL Order No. Sale 1 SOLO Speake r 12 Ibs, 90lX250 $15,95 1 TRIO Spe aker 25 Ibs. 90lX210 44,50 1 ::::::::::::::::::::::::~E~lE~C~T~RO~S~T~ATt' I3::::::::~7~I~b st, ::::~3~6~C~XO~li7IY:::::::: 2~7~,5~0 1 a·Ohm X-Over 2 Ibs. 911500 4,95 • Radio Shack 1959 Hi-Fi Buying Guide I Check 0 Money Order 0 C.O.D. 1 ------1 ------1 City Zone ____ Slale I ------____ --1 , MAy 1959 59 in a terrific release. Stokowski has a spe get more cial way with the Shostakovich "Fifth," and even with the Stadium Symphony Or chestra of New York, there are 'some great enjoyment moments. One does miss, though, the opul ence of tone, that glowing gorgeous color that Stokowski achieved with the P hiladel out ,of your phia strings, so right for the long drawn out lyricism of the slow movement. The electrical energy of the Finale, with its hair , HI-FI raising percussion in the first measures so unds rather Hat compared to existing for only mono versions, partly a fa ult of rillcrophon ing, partly because the percussion lacks real presence. Some forrilldable break-up also $1.00! occurs in middle and high frequencies at climactic points--an obvious reminder that not too much can be crowded onto a stereo cut groove at this stage of the art. The recording has some magnificent moments, especially in the first and third movements, and the bass work in the Scherzo is well reproduced. But, over-all, this disc is a dis appointment. J. T. • STRAUSS WALTZES-Emperor; Vienna Blood ; Blue Danube; Tales From the Vienna Woods. Virtuoso Symphony Orchestra of photo co urtesy Electro·Voice. Inc. London, Emanuel Vardi condo Audio Fidel Now-just $1 can show you how to get more listening pleasure from your hi-fi set! ity FCS-50,0 13 $6.95 That's the cost of the new 1959 edition of the HI-FI GUIDE & YEARBOOK - the Musica l In terest: Masterpieces all Performance: Not bad for non-Viennese authoritative Zift-Davis Annual that covers every facet of high fidelity enjoyment. Recording: Big and resonant Besides telling you how to use your equipment for the best possible reproduction, Stereo Directiona lity: Good the 1959 HI-FI GUIDE & YEARBOOK presents a round-up of the trends in the hi-fi Stereo Depth: Fine field, .. tells you how to save on repairs ... guides you in the selection of records .. . This disc and Wallenstein's recording of gives you tips on tapes. It's actually like getting two big books for the price of one! the Tchaikovsky "Pathetique" reviewed be low are two of the initial releases in Audio GUIDE Fidelity's entl'y into the field of recorded Section 1: IMPROVING YOUR HI-FI-Strange Allergies of hi-fi. Square Waves Check serious music. Since its creation about four Tone Controls. Give Your Pickup a Chance. Getting the Most from Your Tweeters. MX years ago the company has made rather a fetish of sound and the initial release of means Multiplex. Your Stereo Listening Area. recorded classical music has been accom Section 2: INSTALLING YOUR HI-FI SYSTEM-Hi-ing the Fi to the Suburbs. Index Your panied by extravagant claims in this area. Music. Ceiling Mounted Speaker. I've heard all five items in the initial re Section 3: TAPE RECORDING-Getting the Most From Your Tape Records. Tips and lease and can report that the sound on all of Techniques. Don 't Let Your Tapes Hiss at You. Make You r Own Stereo Tape Recordings. them is full and bold and very impressive but so is the work of almost every signifi YEARBOOK SECTION - TRENDS IN HI-FI: developments in 1958 and what the cant company in the business today, when future holds. you come right down to it. It is along mu sical lines that Audio Fidelity will either CRITICS' CHOICE OF RECORDINGS: a conductor, a music critic, and a sound engineer "make it or break it" in serious music, and tell what records (classical and jazz) they would select-and why. along these lines the company's initial ven ture is solid and promising. THE ULTIMATE IN FM STATIONS: here's how Vardi, the conductor of these Strauss an FM station in Chicago really caters to its Waltzes, is Audio Fidelity's Director of clas hi-fi listeners-in what could be a nationwide sical artists and repertoire. He is a well trend in programming! Also gives you a listing known viola player and has appeared with increasing frequency as a conductor in the of FM stations throughout the country. New York area in the past decade. These STEREO: the latest report on what is happen performances of the Strauss Waltzes don't ing in this big, exciting field. PLUS a photo have the matchless style nor tlle irresistible story showing what can be done to fit more appeal that someone like the late Clemens Krauss brought to them in his series of equipment into less space. J ohann Strauss recording for London, but All told, the HI-FI GUIDE & YEARBOOK brings for non-Viennese performances these are you a wealth of information to help you get quite good. Vienna Blood and Tales From the Vienna Woods fare best of all, with an the most out of your hi-fi listening hours. Only especially successful zither ·soloist in the $1.00 ($1.25 outside U.S.A.), it's a fabulous latter. The recorded sound is big and bold, buy! The HI-FI GUIDE & YEARBOOK is on sale with fine spaciousness and depth. M. B. now-make sure you pick up your copy to day at your newsstand! • R. STRAUSS: Also Sprach Zarathustra -Tone Poem, Op_ 30. Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Karl Boh m cond o Decca DL 79999 ZIFF-DAVIS PUBLISHING COMPANY $5.98. Mono-Decca DL 9999 $3.98 434 South Wabash Avenue, Chicago 5, Illinois Musica l Interest: Controversial Strauss 60 HIFI R E VIEW Performance: Immense! Recordin g : Superlative Stereo Directionality: Perfect Stereo Depth : Full and round For splendid sound, for the summoning of overwhelming orchestral forces, "Zara thustra" has no competition among "the Strauss tone poems except for moments of Ein' H eldenleben. Inspired by the writings of Nietzsclle, the music is magnificently contrived. In the full romantic sense of musical expression for its own sake, "Zara thustra" is an impressive example of mu sical architecture, conceived by a man who second-to-none understood the art of instru mentation. Karl Bi:ihm takes this impressive score and makes the most of it. The result is a magnificent addition to the recorded Strauss catalog. Engineering aids and abets a vivid reading mat bristles ,yith energy add ing up to one of the most thrilling issues in the whole Decca line. If the work fails to overwhelm you in the earth-shaking open ing measures, such as is achieved by Reiner on the RCA Victor stereo tape, do not be di sappointed, for what follows the rest of the way is sheer orchestral magic. Strange ly enough, the stereo version is superior to the monophonic in respect to solid ba'ss You've dreamed of "picture on the wall television" _ It's yours now with line. This is certainly the best stereo LP the new Fleetwood da Vinci ... the set designed for custom installation th e writer has yet heard on the Decca label. . _ . designed to be framed, as a picture, in a frame just right for your J.T. decor. Fleetwood's new slim design lets a bookcase give a perfec~ "built in" appearance without actually building in. • STRAVINSKY: Ebony Concerto; Sym phony in Three Movements. Lond on Sym .. phony Orchestra, Sir Eugene Goossens cond.; Revolutionary new 21-inch* Fleetwood picture tube has non-glare W oody Herman and his Orchestra. Everest safety glass laminated to tube face_ Picture is brighter, viewing angle is SDBR-3009 $5.98_ Mono-Everest LPBR-6009 $3.98 wider, reflections are virtually eliminated. Wide band pass and excellent circuitry ... with no manufacturing shortcuts ... gives picture detail Musical Interest: Echt Stravinsky Performance: Exemplary on both that allows you to see an individual eyelash on a pretty girl. Record ing: Overmodulated at times " Stereo Directionality: Perfect The Fleetwood da Vinci is available in two models_ Model900-a two Stereo Depth: Also chassis system that features the lazy luxury of full electronic remote If all the devotees of modern and · so control, and Model 910-with self contained controls. called "progressive" jazz, could listen in 'Diagonal measure. telligently and closely to 'Ebony Concei·to, and the lovers of contemporary music for large ensemhle give repeated listenings to THE Symphony In Three Movements, then I'm gPeetwood®da Vinci sure there would be a remarkable meeting BUILT-IN BEAUTY of the minds. A great master, writing in any form, and choosing to express musical THAT BELONGS thought influenced by the changing times, will almost always manage to create some thing that will outlive the birth pangs_ See it at your Stravinsky composed Ebony Concerto as a hi fi short composition, and says more in this W/# . minor piece, than a thousand "Progressive" dealer . .. jazz bits that have come and gone since you'll 1946, when Woody Herman et al (for want it 'in whom it was dedicated ) performed it first at Carnegie Hall. your home. ' Symphony in Three Movements dating from 1936 is a much larger and more seri ous composition. Every bar has the stamp of a master at this trade, and it is musically and intellectually fascinating from begin ning to end. The coupling provides a fascinating study ill contrast, with the chamber w un d of Woody Herman and his. ensemble on the opening bands, and the large forces of the 9 P£;tt;;;~l:~~e~~e~;st ;;u~ EV IS ION Symphony on the remainder. In bo~h, a great master, pI'obably the greatest com Crafted by Conrac, I ~c. . ' Dept. Y • Glendora, Californiq. poser of our time, says so well ·what ·be must MAy 1959 . 61 that you wo nder what he can possi bly "ex I«ajority of collectors purcha-ed the album Comparison of two recent issues of the plore" next_ for the music, or to heal' th e cannon, can same score would place either competitive The performances are splendid, but the not be accurately determined, but the fact l-ecording on a superior platform if -you con recording is somewhat overmodulated. This remains, the public did buy this particular sider only the sonics of the finale. Slatkin is not the usual tbing for Everest, and the Mercury release, in fabulous quantity, al uses only percussion, and to great advan overloads occurred only in f f f passages, de though the 1812 Overture had all-eady been tage in the Capitol stereo disc reviewed spite the use of three different cartridges, recorded in some depth on other labels. elsewhere in this issue. London's recording several equlization changes, and a close With tlle advent of stereophonic I-ecord to my ears is still the best, and A1wyn uses check of stylus. ing, it must have become immediately evi some sort of cannon, or cannons. Compare The mono recording was the lesser of dent that the "1812" should be J-e-recorded, the solid impact of the London stereo to fender, and the Ebony Concerto was tech bells and all. Therefore, on April 5, 1958, the Mercury, and the difference will he nically almost flawless. Stereo spread gives at Northrop Memorial Auditorium, the proj quite noticeable. Both readings are good , added meaning to the Symphony, and lends ect was accomplished for tbe second time, on a pal', altbough I slightly prefer ilie Lon a fascinating new dimension to the Con in full stereo fashion. Mercur y's technique don LP. From the viewpoint of well bal certo. J. T . placed the Minnesota Brass Band players anced stereo sound, and wide frequency behind the brasses of the Minneapolis Sym response well contained in the grooves, Al phony Orchestra. The orchestra itself was wyn's effort is by far the more desireable. SUPPE: Overtures (see COLLECTIONS) spread in normal classical fashion, with Perhaps if Mercury had not spent so percussion right center, and double basses much of an effort for authenticity and had • TCHAIKOYSKY: Nutc ra c ke r S u ite, on the left. Although the liner does not in just used its very talented engineering staff Op. 71a : MENDELSSOHN: A Midsumm er Nig ht's Dream-Incidental music. Holl ywood clude microphone information, I assume the to recOI'd a full-throated reverberant can Bow l Symphony Orchestra , Fe li x Sl atkin newest Telefunken stereo m ikes were used, non roar that would sound with overtones con do Capitol SP 8404 $5.98 and of course three-channel tape machines. £01- five or six seconds, a sound that you In order to achieve the spectacular effect could feel in the low, low hequencies in Mu sical Interest: Ma sterpi eces both indicated in the original score, Mercury en stead of capturing the sharp whap of the Performanc' Excellent Nutcracke r gineer's previously made a stereo-tape of vintage hl'Onze at West Point, a much hap Rec ording: W ell above par the Laura Spelman Ro ckefeller Memorial pier result might have been obtained. J. T. Stereo Directionality : Well divid ed Stereo Depth : Just right Carillon at Riverside Church, which con tains 74 bells. Bass bells are quite impres There are now about thirty versions of sive, weighing more than 40,000 pounds, • TCHAIKOYSKY: String Serenade in C Major, Op. 48 ; MOZART: Serenad e-Eine Nutcracker available to the collector III and the whole of the galaxy is housed atop the 392 foot church tower. It total weight, Kle in e Nacht mu sik (K. 525). Isra el Phil ha r various versions from the complete score to monic Orchestra, G eorg Solti condo Lo ndon the familiar Suite recorded here. Slatkin if you are interested in that sort of thing is CS bObb $4.98 enjoys the distinction of being one of a very more than a balf-million pounds ! Bells were recorded through the cooperation of few worthy stereo-is-sues of the Suite, and Musical Interest: La sting favorites unless future releases are topnotch, then Carrol B. Fitch and carillonneur Dr. Kamie l Perfo rm an ce: Excell ent the Capitol LP should hold its own, the Lefev ere of Riverside Church. In order to Recordi ng : Tcha ikovsky fares better fin est for so me time to come. T he Holly preserve the sound of th e carillon, Mer Stereo Direction ality: See above wood Bowl Symphony OrcheS l1-a performs cury's technicians hung thTee mikes, left Stereo Depth: Good the Suite with elegant precision, and Mr. channel for the low pitch bells, right chan Slatkin presents a reading notahle for ex nel near the medium pitch, and center First, let it be said that this is excellent quisite detail. Capitol engineering has pro microphone for the brilliant high-pitched playing. There is remarkable technical duced one of the best stereo discs in its bells. address and tonal richuess. Both perform catalog to date, with a noticeable lack of In order to capture the cannon sho:s, th e ances, moreover, are fin ely suited t.o the distortion in transients, and with all the recording team visited We3 t Point 8gJ in , stylistic needs of the respective works. lines beautifully balanced. A well artic u and through the cooperation of Museum Tchaikovsky's familiar music brings new lated and resonant sounding "Nutcracker," Curator Gerald C. Stowe, cho e Cannon 10 • thrills, thanks to the spirited conception and one to own. The reading of Mendels 87, a venerable beauty weighing 3,180 and "close to" recording. One has the feel sohn's Incidental music does not match the pounds. By ancient formula, this bronze ing of being right on the conductor's po Tchaikovsky, hut it is ivell played through beauty was loaded with black powder, dium. True, the strings do no t benefit from out, and the engineering is just as fi ne. The rammed tight with wet wadding. the sheen that might have resulted from a scherzo emerges as a real miracle, for stereo Now, all this information is to let you more distant placement. However, one can sound gives to this little masterpiece the know the enormous amount of trouble that hear the inner Pal·ts as never before, even Mercury executives and other personnel had dimension it needs for perfect ]-ecorded if, as a consequence of this proximity to tto go through for this project. After the realization. J. T . the players, one also occasionally heaTS the music was l-ecOI'ded, and th e carillon tape so und of the bow against the stI-ings. If and the cannon-shot tape int egrated into a yo u like to follow the score while li tening, TCHAtKOYSKY: Ove rture 1812 (see COL first "composite" master, the metal parts tbis recording will put you right among the LECTIO NS) made, the tests fi na ll y okayed, the presses players. begau their production run. The Mozart, on the other hand, emerge • TCHAIKOYSKY: Overt ure 1812 , Op. The result, musicall y, technically, and with a shallower quality. Moreover, lhe di 49; Capric cio Italien, Op. 45. Minneapolis "dramaticalIy?"-Dorati and the Minn eap rectionality which was so fine in the case Symphony Orchestra, Uni versity of Minne sota Bra ss Band, West Point cannon, River olis Orchestra and University of Minneso ta of the Tchaikovsky seems to be not as much side Ch urch Carillon, Anta l Dorati condo Brass Band play er combine to render a in evidence here. Most of the players seem Mercu ry 90054 $5.95 very exciting and sonicaUy supel'im stm-eo to be co ncentrated on the left channel. recording. The percussion ection acquits D.R. Mu sica l Interest: His most famili ar over itself nobly, and the carillon effects are ture good. Lamentably, th0ugh, tIl e cannon Performance: Good musi ca ll y, not so sounds like two sticks bei nb hit together, • TCHAI KOYS KY: Symphony No. 6 in B good for cannon son~s Minor, Op. 74 ("Pathetiqu e"). Virtuoso Recording: Va rie d and is a very large disapP.ointment. The cannon used ir. tIl e 1954 monophonic ver Symphony of London, Alfred Wa llenstein Stereo Directionality: Very good cond o Aud io Fidelity FCS-50,002 $6.95 Stereo Depth: Good but a little close sion was a great deal better. That piece did have a satisfactory reverberatory bang, Back in 1954 Mercury released its now and added a vital bit of excitement to the Musical Interest: A classic famous recording of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Perfo rmance: Respectable old "1812." What is lacking, quite obvi Recording : Good Festival Overture. It was Mercury's inten ously, is a low hequency impact, a series Stereo Directiona lity: Good tion that the m usic be played as nearly as of dissipating reverberations as the sound Stereo Depth: Good it was originally conceived, complete with decays. No matter how yo u explain it, the church bells, and cannon. Whether the cannon so unds· harsh, loud, and too close. Wallenstein's is a -respectable pel'form 62 HIFI REVIEW ance of th e "Pathetiqne," if lackin g a bit in personal profile. But this seems to be the prevailing style in Tchaikovsky perform· ance these days. You can enumerate on the fingers of one hand the poet·conductors of Which twin has 1959-and Wallenstein is certainly not one of them. But within its own aesthetic framework this is a valid performance. The recorded sound is on the thick side, with a the Audiotape? resultant muddiness in some passages, es· pecially the very end of the symphony with its divided low strings. The clarity and articulation here are not all th ey should be. M.B. VIVALDI: Concerto for 2 Trump ets (see COLLECTIONS) COLLECTIONS • MARCHES FROM OPERAS Marches from Aida (VERDI); The Mar riage of Figaro (MOZART); The Damnation of Faust (BERLIOZ); Tannhauser, Die Mei stersinger (WAGNER); Carmen (BIZET); Coq d'Or (RIMSKY-KORSAKOV); Russian and Ludmilla (GLINKA); Prince Igor (BORODIN); Le Prophete (MEYERBEER). Virtuoso Symphony of Lond on, Arthur Win ograd condo Audio Fidelity FDS 50,008 $6.95 Musical Int erest: Moderate I'erformance: Variable Recording: Supercharged Stereo Directionality: Impressive Stereo Depth: Perfect The idea of programming operatic marche is appealingly unconventional, and the excerpts here have been well chosen for variety of color and spirit. Of course, certain marches are very effective outside of the dramatic context (the Rakoczy March and the Fest March frol11 Tann hauser) while others suffer by the loss of pageantry or stage action (Aida, Carm. en, The Marriage 0/ Figaro and Die Meister singer). The relatively seldom heard Rus sian excerpts are welcome choices in any NOT EVEN their mother can always tell these boys apart. case. According to the rumors that have But it's pretty easy to see which one is getting the rich, reached us the individual talents which realistic performance that Audiotape consistently delivers. make up The Virtuoso Symphony of Lon don are of the caliber to justify the extrav Like twins, different brands of recording tape often look agant designation. But the pedormances the same, but are seldom exactly alike. And though the are several degrees short of virtuosity. Some of the marches come off creditably but the differences may be slight, the discriminating tape recordist "Rakoczy" is singularly unexciting at such won't be completely satisfied with anything but the very a slow tempo, th e Coronation March of finest sound reproduction he can get. Most of all, he wants Meyerbeer suffers from poor ensemble and Borodin's Polovetsi March needs more co n this fine quality to be consistent-he wants identical results viction and fire to save it from its inherent from every reel, regardless of when it was purchased. And dullness. so, he chooses Audiotape. There are some stunning moments on this disc-the reproduction of the trumpet You'll find that Audiotape is different in other respects, soun d and the sense of directionality at tendant to the contrapuntal string passages too. For example, only Audiotape comes on the C-slot reel in the Aida Grand March, and the clear -the easiest-threading tape reel ever developed. Another definition of insu'umental nuances in the example is quality. Audiotape has only one Mozart excerpt, for example. Also I do not recall the cello passages so clearly revealed standard of quality: the finest possible. in other renditions of the Berlioz march (is And that's true regardless of which of the conductor's cellist background respon the eight types of Audiotape you sible for this?) . However, in the portions requiring full instrumentation and height buy. Don't settle for less. Insist on ened dynamics the grooves are evid ently Audiotape. It speaks for itself. taxed to the limit of endurance alld the ex· cessive reverberation hampers the desired clarity. G. J. Mo"",,,'""" by AU.'•• 'V"". '.C. • MUSIC FOR STRINGS-BACH 444 Madison Ave., New York 22, New Yo.rk GlaciiotaR'-. ~ S::ox:.;; STOKOWSKI: Mein Jesu, Was Fur See len Offices in Hollywood & Chicago MAY 1959 63 Musical Perform- Stereo Stereo Tlfle Interest ance Direction Depth Score CHOPIN HITS IN STEREO HI-FI-Badura-Skoda, Boukoff, Lewenthal, Reisenberg 16 Polonaise No.6; Waitz No.6; Fantaisie·!mpromptu; Mazurka No.5 & 6 others. """" """" Westminster WST 14055 $5.98 """" """" YOUNG IDEAS-Ray Anthony and His Band 14 Moonglow; WhyDo I Love You?; lonely Night In Paris; Coquette & 8 others. """ Capitol ST 866 $4.98 """ """" """" CONCERTOS UNDER THE' STARS-Leonard Pennario with Dragon condo the Hollywood Bowl Sym. 13 liszt: liebestriium; Bath: Cornish Rhapsody; Addinsell: Warsaw Concerto & 4 others. """ Capitol SP 8326 $5.98 """ """" """ LEIBERT TAKES A HOLIDAY-Dick Leibert playing Byrd Theater organ 13 All The Things You Are; Donkey Serenade; laura; September Song & 8 others. """ """" Westminster WST 15034 $5.98 """ '"'' MITCHELL AYRES PLAYS ROMANTIC BALLADS FOR YOU-with Orchestra 12 Embraceable You; I Love You; There's A Small Hotel; Dearly Beloved & 8 others. """ Everest SDBR 1016 $5.98 """ """ """ STRINGS BY STARLIGHT-Hollywood Bowl Sym. Orch., Felix Slatkin condo 12 Borodin: Nocturne; Bach: Air for G String; Tchaikovsky: Waltz & 3 others. ""',, Capitol SP 8444 $5.98 """ """ """ CHOPIN BY STARLIGHT-Hollywood Bowl Sym. Orch., Carmen Dragon condo 11 ~ , Polonaise in A·flat Major; Fantasie·lmpromptu; Prelude in A Major & 7 others. "" Capitol SP 8371 $5.98 """ """ """ MUSIC OF JOHANN STRAUSS-Musical Arts Sym. Orch., Leonard Sorkin condo 11 Die Fledermaus; Pizzicato Polka; Blue Danube Waltz; Perpetual Motion & 2 others. """ "" " Concert-Disc CS 28 $6.95 """ """ ON WINGS OF SONG-Mishel Piastro and His Concert Orchestra 11 Spanish Serenade; Zapateado; Hungarian Dance No.6; Vocalise & 6 others. """ "" Decca Dl 78675 $5.98 """ """ THE ORCHESTRA SINGS-Capitol Symphony Orchestra, Carmen Dragon condo 11 Largo 01 factotum; Toreado Song; Amami Alfredo; Vesti 10 giubba & 6 others. """ Capitol SP 8440 $5.98 "" """ """ VOICES FROM THE VIENNA WOODS-The Boys Choir of Vienna, Carl Elti condo 11 Songs of Johann Strauss, Beethoven, Schubert, Haydn and Mozart. """ """ """ "" Omega OSl28 $5.95 CONCERTO-Freddy Martin and His Orchestra 10 We live For Love Tonight; Cornish Rhapsody; Our love; My Reverie & 11 others . "" """ "" Capitol SW 1066 . $5.98 """ SWINGIN' SCHOOL SONGS-D~ve Pell and His Octet 10 On Wisconsin; The Victors; Iowa Corn Song; The Eyes of Texas & 12 others. Coral CRl 757248 $5.98 "" """ """ "" GOSPEL SINGING IN WASHINGTON TEMPLE-Ernestine Washington 9 I Thank You lord; Wipe All Tears; I'm Tired And Weary; Holdin' On & others. "" """ "" Westminster WST 15032 $5.98 "" MUSIC FROM THE BLUE ROOM-Jan Garber atthe Roosevelt Hotel (New Orleans) 9 Cheek To Cheek; Swingin' Shepherd Blues; lonesome And Sorry and Medleys. "" "" Decca Dl 78793 $5.98 "" """ CHA CHA CHAS AND MAMBOS-Socarras and His Orchestra 8 Tea For Two Cha Cha; Sixty Second Mambo; Nervous Gavotte Mambo & 9 others. "" "" Decca Dl 78936 $5.98 "" "" OPERA WITHOUT WORDS-Rome Symphony Orchestra, Domenico Savino condo 8 Tasca. "" Kapp KCl 9022 $5,98 "" "" "" MOST HAPPY HAMMOND-Jackie Davis, organ 7 Standing On The Corner; Surprise; Push de Button; All Of You & 8 others. "" "" Capital ST 1046 $4.98 "" " M HIFI REVmW weh Befiillt Dich in Gethsemane; Preludio; he lit on cue, score excerpt furnished in LEONARD BERNSTEIN'S GLUCK: Suite; BORODIN: Nocturne; PA deluxe issues) . Mr. Slatkin uses a big bass GANINI: Moto Perpetuo; RACHMAN drum, with a fundamental of below 40 INOFF: Vocalise. Leo pold Stokows ki with cycles, and it so unds real fin e. A fin e sheen Symphony Orchestra. Capitol SP 8415 $5.98 is imparted to the strings, especiaIly in the MIRACLE Musi cal Interest: ;'xceptional transcrip- " William Tell," where they manage to mask tions the trombones in the storm scene. The "Lone th Performance: Superb Ranger" finale is a shade slow in tempo. ON 57 STREET Recording: Likewise Suppe's wonderful overtures are given slick Stereo Directio nality: Classic seating treatment too, but "1812" is the real solid Stereo Depth: Just right effort here, and worth the price of th e whole At last! Of all the Stokowski reco rdin Reviewed by BEST OF THE MONTH MARTIN BOOKSPAN ,. Westminster has a real "sleeper" in its anthology of Debussy master ~ GEORGE JElLINEK pieces conducted by Manuel Rosenthal - "combining breathtaking DAVID RANDOLPH performance with fabulous engineering .... There are no weaknesses JOHN THORNTON ... not anywhere." (see below) • Monitor's disc' of Schubert's A Minor Piano Sonata rev.eals in its good ' I • BACH: Prelude and Fugue in C Minor sonics the real greatness of Russia's Sviatoslav Richter. - "Here is (BWV 546). Prelude and Fugue in C maior {BWV 547}; Fantasia in C Minor {BWV nobility and power, mated to instinctive feeling for the music's ebb 562}; Toccata and Fugue in F Major (BWV 540). Finn Vid er0 (O rgan of St. Johannis, and flow./I (see p. 72) Veile, Denmark) . Bach Guild BG-580 $4.98 J • Columbia's coupling of Richard Strauss's almost unknown Frau ohne Musica l Interest: Tops , Pe rform a nce: ExO)ert Schatten Suite with the familiar Rosenkavalier music, as led by Eugene Recording: Resonant OrmandYi is a masterstroke - "the full Philadelphia treatment These are skilled performances of fine music, with recording that captures the sound is gorgeous./I (see p . 72) so und of the organ wi th complete success. My only slight complaint would be about lack of variety in registration. In other CHOPIN: Pia no pieces (see COLLEC too heavy. Altogether a tremendous release, words, here is a well·played conventional TIONS) an d one that this reviewer, for one, will conception of Bach's organ music that can enjoy fpr many, many playings. J. t. readily be recommended-provided that CORElLl: Concerti Grossi (see p. 54) one enjoys that "conventional conception." DEBUSSY: Reflets dans I'eau (see COL But, as I have stated in the past, I would DEBUSSY: Iberia (see COLLECTIONS) LECTIONS) prefer to hear Bach played on an organ in a room that offers great clarity of line, in· • FRANCO: The Virgin Queen's Dream stead of a blur that obscures the music. • DEBUSSY: Jeux-Poeme Danse; Prelude Monologue (with Paula Lenchner, soprano); D.R. to The Afternoon of a Faun; Fetes, Nuages Fantasy for cello and orchestra (with Sam uel from Nocturnes for Orchestra. Orchestre du Brill . cell o ). Rotterd am Philharmonic Or Theatre Nationa l de I'Opera de Paris, Man chestra, Ed ua rd Flipse condo HOWE: Cas • BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No.3 in uel Rosentha l condo Westminster XWN 18771 tellana for two pianos and orchestra {with C minor, Op. 37. Pa ul Badura-Skoda, with $4.98 Celi us Do ugherty, Vi ncenz Ruzi cka, pianist.}; the Vi e nna State Ope ra Orchestra, Hermann Musical In terest : Jeux is magnificent! Stars; Sand. Vienna Orchestra, William Scherchen condo Westminster XWN-18799 Stri ckland condo Composers Recordings CRI $4.98 Performance: Worth an award Recording : Westminster's best 124 $5.95 Musi cal Interest: Yes, yes One of the most perfect Debussy record· M usica I I nterest : Moderate Performance: Fine Performance: Sympathetic Recording: Good ings in the disc repertoire, combining Recording : Good average breathtaking performance with fabulous en· An element of exhilaration is' lacking in gineering, has been issued by Westminster The program of this LP is evenly divided the finale, but otherwise this is a first·class here in this monophonic issue. Of all the between two contemporary composers, Hol recording. Badura·Skoda plays the solo Rosenthal releases on Westminster, this one land·American .T ohn Franco (b. 1908) and beautifully and Scherchen gets the proper by far is the best. There are no weaknesses. Virginia.born Mary Howe (b. 1882). The strength and sensitivity into the over·all Not anywhere. f eux comes forth in jewel monologue for dramatic soprano and or presentation. The recorded sound is good, like splendor with every facet glistening, chestra from Franco's uncompleted opera. with ' fine balance between the solo instru· with every delicate nuance of tone placed about Sir Francis Bacon is the most impres- , ment and orchestra. This version automat· with shimmering perfection, in just the right , sively ' individual entry on the record-a ically takes a place near the top of available place. Virtuoso playing under a man who scene of considerable dramatic impact recordings of this Concerto. M. B. has a superb sense of dynamics, and who heightened by the imaginatively eerie use never loses the long line, adds up to a re· of celesta and percussion in the accompani BEETHOVEN: Leonore Overture No. 3 (see cording you must own. ment. P aula Lenchner performs the music COLLECTIONS) . So many times the music of Debussy suf· admirably. The Fantasy, in which a g/)r fers from over· transparency, resulting in a minal motive is treated to an elaborate BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat "cyclic" development is, apart from ex- {"Eroica"} (see p. 53) clear, but brittle sound. Rosenthal manages to obtain this ice·clear articulation without . hibiting the composer's contrapuntal skill, BIZET: L'Ariesienn e; Carmen Suites (see p. losing warmth of tone, and the result is in· decidedly less interesting. 53) toxicatin g. f eux is the prize·winning effort, Mary Howe's Castellana is an eflective and worth the price of the recording many virtuoso showpiece for two pianos and or BRUCH : Violin Concerto No. I (see MEN times. "Afternoon of a Faun" is very well chestra whose openly romantic appeal DELSSOHN) done, and Fetes is most notable because of makes one wonder why it is not better the steady bea t that Rosenthal maintains known. Stars and Sand are miniature tone CHARLES K. l. DAVIS SINGS ROMAN poems of consi derable skill and expressive TIC ARIAS FROM FAVORITE OPERAS in the middle section. Nuages is very good (see p. 66) too, and tbe orchestral tone never becomes ness and just as easi\)' accessible. The per- MAY 1959 67 69 . 1 Olympia and Antonia to the same singer On the other hand, the Entr'acte to Act I, side, Palestrina's relatively reserved music; is quite permissible-the adventurous his the interlude before the Waltz Scene and on the other, Monteverdi's emotional out tory of this opera provides handy prece the finale of Act I are abbreviated. The bursts, including the famous Lasciatemi dents for all kinds of productional twists. Barcarolle Entr'acte, also unaccountably morire. Mattiwilda Dobbs is an unusually agile shortened, is placed after Act III, which It is to the credit of the conductor that Olympia-her Doll Song exhibits, aside seems rather illogical. Definitely on the he is so sensitive to the needs of both from two firmly anchored E flats, a daz credit side is Epic's smartly designed pack kinds of music, and to the credit of his zling interpolated F -also scale passages of age (Hollywood, rather than Paris-influ singers-apparently eighteen in number almost impeccable purity and accuracy. For enced) with full libretto but no informa that they respond completely to his de the part of Antonia a warmer, fuller sound tion on the performers. mands. The recording, likewise, leaves noth would be conducive to better results, but Hats off to the recorded sound- plush, ing to be desired in tonal beaut¥', balance, her portrayal is touching and agreeably spacious; cleanly articulated. Stereo adds and acoustics. musicaL Uta Graf, on the other hand, is a mixed ble ss ing ~sh ar per definition of or A compariso n of the Monteverdi side with rather colorless Giulietta, a part that re chestral detail and vocal ensembles (partic the Vox version of a few years ago, by the quires more vocal allure. Weakest of the ularly the two trios of Act III) . On the Couraud Vocal Ensemble reveals the fact entire cast is Nata Tuescher who appeal"S other hand, Hoffman and Nicklausse, who that the earlier conception is somewhat in the entirely unrelated parts of Nicklausse enter the stage side by side in the first more emotional, while the present disc has and the Voice of Antonia's mother (for this scene, reach your ears through separate greater tonal warmth. D. R. I don't recall a precedent) . Her singing is speakers. It's separate speakers, too, for the a di stinct handicap to the performance and, Barcarolle, supposedly an intimate duet • POULENC: Dialogues des Carmelites to make matters worse, by maintaining a sung in a clinch. (complete opera). Denise Duval (soprano) respectful distance from true pitch she Faults aplenty, this is still an enjoyable -Blanche de la Force; Denise Scharley (m ez turns the Barcarolle into a real triaL performance. It may be a while until a zo-soprano)-The Prioress; Regine Cres pin better one comes along, so the set is well (soprano)-Madame Lidoine; Rita Gorr Similar expediency-or economy- has (so prano)-Mother Marie; Xavier Depraz evidently ruled that the interpreter of worth considering if you want Offenbach's (baritone)-The Marquis; Paul Fin el (tenor) Crespel should also assume the roles of weird but brilliant ma'sterpiece in your col -The Chevalier de la Force; and others. Schlemihl and the student Hermann. The lection. G. J. Orchestra and C horus of the Th eatre Na singer in question, Bernard Lafort, fortu tionci de l'Opera de Paris, Pi erre Derva ux condo Angel 3585 3 12" $15.94 nately comes through handily. Aime Donat, • PALESTRINA: Sicut cervus; Soave fia iI however, who is called upon to add the morir; 0 beata et benedicta et gloriosa; Musi ca l Interest: Major contemporary parts of Nathanael and Spalanzani to the Adoramus te Christe, Stabat mater; MON opera quartet of tenor buffo roles, sports a frail, TEVERDI : Lamento d'Arianna; Ch'io t 'ami. Performance : Very good trem ulous voice that is tailor-made for the Netherlands Chamber Choi r; Fe lix de Nobel Recording: Good-with some reserva feeble Frantz, but not quite so for the cond o Angel 35667 $4.98 tions vigorous student NathanaeL Francis Poulenc has written three operas. M usica I In terest: Masterpieces This is, for all purposes, a complete Performance: Sensitive The first one, a youthful work (Le gen version, although a somewhat baflling one. Recording : Excellent darme incompris, 1920) is hardly known. Both the Prologue and Epilogue offer more Les mamelles de Tiresias followed in 1947 music than found in the Schirmer score. This is an admirable disc. On the one and quickly ascended to fame (or notori- ; HIFI ItEvmw ety} by virtue of its daring subject matter. itates slowly and inexorably. The nuns ap' i ll ~s of the preceding two hours. Then, in 1953, Poulenc accepted a commis proach the scaffold singing "Salve R egina" Here a word may also be added about th e sion for La Scala, choosing for his libretto in steady tones of celestial puri ty over orchestral writing which, though full-tex the moving Dialogues des Carmelites, a vaguely defined choral voices emerging from tured and abundant in vivid harmonies, is play of Georges Bernanos based on a his· the crowd. The grisly and terrifying noi se always transparent and sensitively shaded torical fact. La Scala introduced the "Dia of the falling blade is heard at irregular to the all-important vocal design. The de logu,es" on January 26, 1957, and the NBC intervals, and each time it is heard the served world recognition of the "Dialogues" Opera made a memorable television pro singing dimini shes in strength until the should inspire other operas from Poulenc's duction of it a year later. The Paris pre melody is sustained by a single voice. As pen-few indeed are the skills today com miere by the Opera took place on June 21, the last nun is silenced Blanche lifts her parable to his. 1957, presided over by the conductor of voice in the last verses of Veni Creator The cast presented here discloses only Angel's performance, Pierre Dervaux. then her voice dies out sudderily and one singer of renown, Denise Duval, in the ihe fervor of religious fai th is the only curtain. role of Blanche. This is a difficult pal'!, too emotion manifested in this opera. The story The chilling drama of the opera's last demanding vocally to allow full concentra begins in 1789. Blanche de la Force, the scene is all the more electrifying since it tion on the considerable variety of shadings central figure, is a creature of Melisande is preceded by a series of episodes in that make up this fragile and pi tiful figure. like fragility. Unable to adjust herself to which dramatic elements are understated Miss Duval falls h wIlanly short of perfec life's turmoil she seeks escape-against the or completely absent. Through most of the tion, which makes her characterization all wishes of her father and brother-as a opera the characters express themselves in the more human. My recollection of Pa Carmelite nun. But convent life, with its a natural, conversational tone-theatrical tricia Neway's television performance find s unquesfioning acceptance of rigid disci ism is pointedly avoided and the music Denise Scharley's Prioress a little paler in pline, proves equally harrowing. The storm runs a delicate course of restraint. To be dramatic strength by comparison, but Re of the Revolution soon overtakes the shel sure, Poulenc di splays a mastery of the gine Crespin is very impressive in the part tered world of the convent. The Carmelite flowing song-speech that is r eminiscent of of Madame Lidoine and Rita Gorr is ap order is disbanded by the government and Debussy and Moussorgsky at their most in propriately stern as the determined Mother the nuns are expelled. They are joined in spired. But the predominance of feminine Marie. In the all too brief role of the a vow of martyrdom, but Blanche, find i:;:; voices, wh ich inhibited P uccini's exquisite Marquis, Xavier Depraz is excellent, while herself incapable to meet this new crisis, Suor Angelica, proves even more formidable Paul Finel displays a rather light and not escapes. The Revolutionary Tribunal finds for Poulenc's subtler, less demonstrative too expressive tenor voice as Blanche's the entire order guilty of forbidden activ talents. Where Puccini made us constantly brother. Dervaux's direction may be ac ities and the death sentence is summarily aware of the undercurrent of hidden emo cepted as absolutely authoritative and the pronounced on the nuns. In the last scene, tions, Poulence offers only brief moments of balances he maintains between voices and as -the tragic procession moves toward the contrast and relief- the gripping death orchestra most happily reveals both ele guillotine, Blanche appears in the crowd in scene of the Prioress, the poignant duet be ments in a complimentary light. time to join her sisters in their last mo tween Blanche and her brother- which For the most part the perfllrmance is ment of martyrdom. seem like isolated ripples in a sea of un blessed with luminous sound. The over We might pause a moment here, for this disturbed placidity. But then comes the abundance of high soprano tones is fraught is an unforgettable scene-the implacable final scene with an impact to make one with engineering diffic ulties which are nol climax toward which the entire opera grav- momentarily forget the dramatic shortcom- always solved to satisfaction-there's quite NEW STEREO PRE-AMPLIFIER BY STROMBERG-CARLSON A dramatic interpretation by Yul Brynner guarantees a performance outstand ing in its integrity. High Fidelity engineered by Stromberg-Carlson guarantees integrity in music. Our new stereo pre-amplifier has the exclusive Stromberg-Carlson "Stereo Tone Balance" Signal-and all the flexibility and multiplicity of operation the discerning music lover demands. "Stereo Tone Balance" is the sure way to achieve stage effect iri stereo phonic reproduction ••• For a demonstra tion see your dealer. 'TA PE OUTPUT: each channel. RUMBLE FILTER : Switched. PHANTOM OUTPUT (A and B): .3V out. SCRATCH FILTER: Switched (7500 cps). TUBES : 2-7025; 4-12AU7. OFF-ON SWITCH: Separate. RECTIFIER: 2 silicon voltage doubler; AC OUTLETS: 1 not switched 200 W; 1 silicon-filament supply. 2 switched 100 W . PHONO TAPE EQUALIZER: DIMENSIONS: 4% " high, 13'12 " wide, RIAA/NARTB ~ .. 7'12 " deep. Switched f operates .n any mput OUTPUT BALANCE SIGNAL . VOLUME/LOUDNESS: Switched, clutch SELECTOR SWITCH: Phono, Tape Head, type control knob.s. Tun e r/Auxiliary, Ceramic/Tape. BASS CONTROL: 15 db droop; CHANNEL SELECTOR: A, B, Stereo, 15 db boost. Stereo Reverse, Monaural. TREBL E: 14 db droop; ~ 2 db boost. PRICE: $99.95IAudiophile Net, Zone 1). STROMBERG - CARLSON A DIVI S ION O F GEN,ERAL DVNAMICS CORPORATION 144BC N , GOODM.AN STREET . ROCHESTER 3 , N . Y. lVIAY 1959 71 a bit of shrill singing, some of which, of Even if these performances were not as course, cannot be blamed on the engineer good as they are, we should be in debt to DIETRICH AUF ing. Still-more care should have been the Endres Quartet and to Vox for this taken in this area. G. J. tremendous undertaking. As it happens, the players are fully equal to the demands DEUTSCH RAVEL: Alborada del gracioso (see COL LECTIONS) of Schubert's music, with the result that these arC" rich, technically secure and ex ROSSINI: L'ltaliana in Algeri-Overture pressive interpretations. In view of the (see COLLECTIONS) great number of works included, it would be pointless to dwell on the interpretations • SAINT·SAeNS: Piano Concerto No. 4 accorded individual movements. Suffice it in C Minor, Op. 44; MILHAUD: Le Carnaval d'Aix for Piano and Orchestra. Grant J oha n to say that these are searching readings, nesen wit h th e Philh ar.monia Orchestra, and that the recording is tonally faithful Georges Tz ipine condo Capitol EMI G 7151 and well·balanced. $4.98 . My enthusiasm for this undertaking-es pecially at the asking price!-is as great Mu sical Interest: For French pastry fan as this review is brief. ' D. R. ciers Performan ce: Saint Saens-Lacking a lit R. STRAUSS: Also sprach Zarathustra (see tle in seasoning; Milhaud-Just right p. 60) Recording : Slightly boo my Johannesen doesn't bring to his perform • R. STRAUSS: Death arid Tra nsfi gura tion;' Dance of the Seven Veils from Salome ; ance of the Saint-Sa ens quite the degree of Dance Suite After Couperin. Philharmonia sophisticated elan which characterized the Orchestra, Artur Rodzi nski condo Capitol These recordings by Marlene Dietrich went pre-war recording of the score by Alfred to war, did their work (they were broadcast EMI G 7147 $4.98 to audiences in enemy territory) and van Cortot with the Paris Conservatory Orches ished into ass files in Washington. Fortile tra under the direction of a then obscure Mu si cal In terest: Variable nately Miss Dietrich had her own copies, conductor named Charles Munch. Nor does Performance: Clean which were made available for this album Tzipine illuminate the orchestral part with Recording: Fine a collection filled with the haunting sadness any great insight. This, in short, is a serv and deep feeling which represents her at her iceable but by no means exceptional per The most impressive thing about this unforgettable best. formance. Death and Transfiguration is the enormous LlLI MARLENE-Marlene Dietrich CL 1275 The saucy Milhaud score, on the other dynamic range contained within the grooves GUARANTEED HIGH-FIDELITY AND hand, fares very well in this, its first re of the disc, from the whispered opening STER EO-FIDELITY R ECOR DS BY corded performance. This is a product of to the III of the apocalyptic pages. The the 1920's and is a re-working by the com· performance is steady, if a bit antiseptic. poser of some of the material he used in his I want more passion and drive here than ICOLUMBIA. ballet, Salade. There are twelve section.s to Rodzinski summons. In. case you've been wondering whether Pairing the familiar, though not over or not all the talk about the greatness of recorded "Rosenkavalier" score with the Richter has been exaggerated, just listen to first recording of the suite from Die Frau these performances. Here is nobility and ohne Schatten rates as "A & R" inspiration name power, mated to an instinctive feeling for of the highest order. We have had several the 'music's ebb and flow. The Sonata itself excellent readings of the former-all, with is one of the great ones of the literature address slight alterations, following the sequence and Richter's reading is remarkable. laid out by the composer himself decades He is equally successful with the two city zone state ago-and only recently Capitol gave us a Impromptus, neatly capturing the casual beautifully recorded one with Steinberg charm of the music. $10 and the Philharmonia (PAO 8423). But Check one: 0 3 years for The sound is resonant and bold, among 2 years for $ 7 Ormandy is a masterful hand with this mu o the best I've yet heard from the Soviet. o 1 year for $ 4 sic, and his treatment is all one can ask for. M.B. In the U. S., its possessIons and Canada Avoiding both fussiness and over·dramatiza Foreign rates: Pan American Union • SCHUBERT: String Quartets and Quin tion he guides his unique ensemble through countries, add $.50 tets-complete (15 quartets and 2 quintets) . familiar episodes with tempi that are reo per year; all other Endres Quartet, with Rolf Reinhardt (piano ) laxed and logical, and builds to a stunning s foreign countries, and Fritz Kiskalt (c ello). Vox VBX-4 3 12"; climax in the ecstatic music of tIle tIlird add $1.00 per year. VBX-5 3 12" ; VBX-6 3 12" $6.95 per album act trio. Mail to: HiFi REVIEW H-5-9 Musical In terest : Unquestioned But what makes this an irresistible disc 434 S, Wabash Ave., Chicago 5, Ill. Performance: Splendid is the revelation offered overside. Although Re cord ing: Good the mystically pel'plexing story of Die Frau 72 HIFI REVIEW ohne Scli alten is leagues apart frOIll tllc an impressive percussion section. In this cltmg, and the words can be understood, hwnanly engagin g one the same von Hof new Capitol-EMI recording Sir Malcolm but the soloist, Dennis Noble, is not as vo mannsthal fashioned for Der Rosenkavalier, Sargent makes the most of the considerable cally sure as Milligan. tbis juxtaposition clearly proves that both fOl"ces at his command. This new recording also offers as a plus have sprung from the same rich fountain Capitol falls short of a stunning release the most famous of Handel's Coronation of musical inspiration. One might add that only because the pick·up is too di-stant, and anthems which is stirringly performed, as the massive colors, bold orchestrating while the chorus acquits itself magnifi well as the excerpt from Solom.on, a teaser strokes and sweeping waves of sensuous cently, the ear keeps "reaching" to under that will make you want to own the whole melody never again returned into Strauss's stand the English text. The old Westmin set. (You won't be sorry, either, for it's on ope~atlc writing with the magical effect ster set (WL 5248) has a much closer Angel with Beecham conducting.) J. T. presen t in these two scores. sound, and as a result, has a mOl"e intelli WEBER: Oberon-Overture (see COLLEC- Columbia has come through with the hIe, cleaner articulation. TIONS) full Philadelphia treatment- the recorded However the Huddersfield choir is much sound is gorgeous from the fir st note to the better group, and Sir Malcolm, who · .. not exactly the last, for th e sustained also conducted the premiere, lead'S his com COLLECTIONS chords at the very end are marred by sag bined forces in a warmer, more vital read· ging pitch. G. J. ing. Boult's performance is sonically ex- • DEBUSSY: Iberia. RAVEL: Alborado STRAVINSKY: Ebony Concerto; Symphony in Three Movements (see p. 61) • TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 36. New York Philharmonic, Leonard Be rnstein con do Columbia ML-5332 $4.98 Mu sical Inter est: Repertoire cornerstone Perfo rma ne e: Excellent Recording: Excellent Here is a performance of the Tchaikov sky "Fourth" that has real personality. This doesn't necessarily mean that tbe conductor distorts the music to fit it into his own per sonal conception; what it does mean is that r one can feel an overwhelming involvement on the conductor's part with the music- he feels it deeply and passionately and it is these qualities which he conveys in his performance. Not everybody will agree with Bernstein's ideas; for one thing, he favors generally 'Slow tempi and he indulges in an occasional rubato which may be questionable. And sometimes he will draw out an inner voice and give it an exaggerated prominence. As for me, however, I find the reading always an absorbing and often an exciting one. Columbia has captmed an admirably transparent and vibrant orchestTal sound and how well th e Philharmonic plays in this recording ! M. B. VERDI: La Forza del Destino-Overture (see COLLECTIONS) WAGNER: Die Meistersinger-Prelude (see COLLECTIONS) ... A MATCHED [/JfwaIwv [/Jet FOR STEREO • WALTON: Belshazzar's Feast. HANDEL: Coronation AntheM-Zadok the Priest; From Features the new, CATHEDRAL 12-inch Flex-Edge Woofer with the Censer Curling Rise, from ~olomon. Hud dersfield Choral Society, with J ames Mi lliga n Indox Magnet for 10,000 Gauss and over I-million Maxwell Lines (baritone) and the Royal liverpool Philhar monic Orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent condo Here is an idea as practical as it is ne w .. . a matched set Capitol-EM I G 7141 $4.98 woofer-middler-dual tweeter with controllable LC network. Engineered as a compatible set to provide the finest listening pleasure over the full audio spectrum ... monaural or stereo. Mu sical Interest: "Must" for choral fans Features the new C-12RW Flex-edge Cathedral woofer that Performance: Excellent! is unexcelled in bass response by any other 12-inch speaker Recording : Good, but too distant available ... at any price. Fu1l1-inch excursion of the cone at 16 cps (with only 4 watts input). Thoroughly use-proven to Belshazzar's Feast, a work that has been operate efficiently at 5 watts ... just as efficiently at 25, and popular in England since its premicre in peaks at 35 watts. (Efficiency cuts out before 4000 cps.) 1931, calls for an exceptionally large or· The 8-inch middler ranges to 8000 cps with axial sensitivity of 95 db and features a solid basket that eliminates inter chestm, which i'S probably the reason why action effect when mounted in same cavity as the woofer. Dual amateur choral organizations do not per 3-inch tweeters range to 18,500 cps to complete the spectrum. form it with any frequency in the United Engineeringly matched ... pleasure perfect ... attractively States. The score presents no serious musi packaged to carry away @ $98 Audiophile. Includes sug gested enclosure diagram. (Kit Model C-33812) I'al problems for the chorus, and the solo part can he handled with ease by any com· ]Jetent and robust baritone. The real impact of the work is furnished by the instrumental ensemble, aided by extra bras. choirs and Expose your ear to the new CATHEDRAL dimension in breathtaking audio realism. MAY 1959 73 d el Gracioso. IBERT: Escales. Orchestre d ir ist Fre ude; SCHUBERT: Impromptu in National de la Radiodiffusion Francaise, Leo B-f1a t; DEBUSSY: Ref/ets dans /' eau; RIM pold Stokowski condo Capitol P8463 $4.98 SKY-KORSAKOFF-RACH MANINOFF: Fli ght Mu sical Interest: Sta ndard impressionist of t he Bumble Bee. John Browning (piano) 0 Ca pitol P-8464 $4.98 • a: fare ro: ui (!) 0 Performance: Fair Musical Intere'st : Consist ently high C) > Recording: Good 0 u< Performance: Poetic a nd sensitive ... C) 2 Recording: Excell e nt ~ < 200( ..i Mr. Stokowski, who has been very busy ...00( -C) In 1954, J orm Browning was one of the u = on the Capitol label, conducts still another ~ g:c .,; orchestra, that of the French Radio, one of two top winners in the Queen Elizabeth ro: C U 0 oro:=: - the best ensembles in France, but what he of Belgium In,ternational Competition-the ... <>. 0 on C) . exacts is not one of the better performances same contest which Leon Fleisher had >- w « < walked_off with two years earlier. Upon his ... 0 u of any of the trio of selec tions he has ... '"W ii ...w :I: <'< X chosen. He has conducted these in much return to this country Browning appeared rn Q C'I 3 U <'< U 0 - better fashion before, notably Escales on in many of our leading cities in recital and -0 c>.. RCA-Victor LM9029. None of the excite with orchestra, and then in 1956 he went >- --' ment that runs through the "Albarado" is into the army. He was released a little more N ~ N conveyed to the orchestra by the conductor, than a year ago and since that time has re UJ ~ < co ...... 0 , Il: and the one major piece on the recor.d, turned to the concert stage. This disc marks (J) .... '"-0 his recording debut . « ~:<;i c>.. <, I beria, is taut, unrelaxed, and wiry through :E w~--' out. For the best performances of this last It is a very impressive one, for Browning I (J) Z--'w OJ has a poet's soul and it is in the more in ...,« wco::::E work, turn to Mercury, Victor, or to the ::cCO London disc where the late Ataulfo Arf;enta trospective pieces, like the Chopin ,N oc c I-::::EO turne and ' the first of the Bach Chorale >- « u...wu... conducts the complete Images in the best :E effort of them all. Reiner does an electrify Preludes (in the Busoni arrangement) that 0 J: O ~I- « uzO ing "Albarado" on the Victor LP. It is un he is most successful. He displays the ;n ::>z greatest refinement and sensitivity and .Jlis III: fortunate that neither the recording quality O · w ::>01- ear for delicate tonal shading is a' joy. And J: . ::::E u ::> nor the performance ha:s any substance, for .... ' co -. ' Mr. Stokowski can usually be counled on yet at' the same time these very qualities 0 <>e: 0 0 w e to work miracles with this kind of music. would s~em to conhibute to a certain weak ::::E"" ness in some of the more virtuosic pieces < Vi'" J. T. J: of this l'ecital. The Mephisto Waltz, for Q u !: example, is lacking in the demonic drive • OPERA OVERTURES-WAG NER : Die and kaleidoscopic fireworks display which ::a'" Meistersinger-Prel ude; ROSS INI : L'ltaliana ::l ~ pther pianists have brought to' the music. '0' in Algeri-Overture; W EBER : Oberon > O verture; MOZART: Th e Marriage of Figaro , If Browning is able to' develop the power « ~ -Overture; B EETHOVEN : Leonore O verture to go along with his poetry, he is certain " No. 3; VERDI : La Fo rIa del Destino-Over to become one of our most hnp.ortant pian ture. Ph ilharmonia Orchestra, Erich Leins ists; M. B. dorf condo Capit ol P 8465 $4.98 Mus ical Interest: Tops in their class • RENATA SCO n O-O P"E'RQIC Performance: Expert ARIAS~VERDI : La Traviata-Ah fOl's'e lui( Recording: Good BELLINI : I Puritani-Qui la' voce; D0N'1ZET TI : Lucia di Lammermoor-'::II d'GI.ce suono No mere curtain~aisers, these, but a col (Mad Scene) ; ROSSINI : li" Barbier,e d.i-Sivfg'. lection of overtures one is likely to encoun lia-Una voce poco fa; PUCCIN"I:.'f, urando ter in concert halls as frequently as in the -Signore ascolta; Tu che. di gel sei cinta; .' opera house. They follow a well-contrasted - Madama Butterfly-Un bel d l, v e d r e m o ~ sequence and receive, not unexpectedly, ex Gianni Schicchi-:O mio babbino caro; cellent performances from a conductor who BOITO; Mefistofele-L'altra notte; with Phil is equally at home in symphony and opera. harmonia O rchestra, Mann'o Wo l f~ Ferrari cond_ Angel 35635 $4.98 Credit must also be given to the topnotch Phil harmonia Orchestra, ' whos~ members Musica l rnterest:· Standard· arias co . Performance: Pl easing M perform brilliantly-with special recogni -0 Recording: Just right ....c>.. tion due the flute and oboe soloists in the C Rossini overture. In addition 'to a- fetching physiognomy Q~ Z Leinsdorf renders all there's due to Ros and a promising first name, Renata Scotto 0 sini's lighthearted humor, Verdi's grandeur, also possesses a very agreeable voice and i= and Weber's glowing romanticism with impressive technique. This is her debut disc 0 W ' equal aptness. Only the "Meistersinger" recital -and; in all aspects, an auspicious one. Minor and momentary lapses of in· ~~ w::>c::::E . Prelude disappoints slightly with a reading .... co that 1-S careful, correct, but a bit mechanical tonation and an occasional explosive phrase - --' ::::E< and lacking the full measure of expressive will not alter the fact that she can meet :::;ci the florid challenges of Donizetti and Bel --,<>e: . ness. <0 Aside from treating tlle brasses as step lini with agility and accuracy (her chro . ~~ -uU children of the instrumental family in the matic runs in the Bellini cabaletta are w ~o:: " ill[ eistersinger" Prelude, the engineering particularly expert!, can ·hit a strong and V)'" confident high C at will, as well as nego LL.. --' successfully preserves the likeness of these 0 < attractive performances, bringing the inner tiate the E-f1at of the Mad Scene without ::::E undue effort. 0 :C~ .....< voices, particularly in the Beethoven and ...J Verdi excerpts, into clear focus. The over The Boito and Puccini excerpts are_also C 0 .. < all sound is slightly under the level of Cap well vocalized, though without revealing u... ::::E itol's best, but still considerably better than striking individual qualities and without t- ~~ ' ::c 0<: "good enough." G. full exploitation of the dramatic subtleties. 0 < J. fl... These, too, will come in time. Miss Scotto is ouly 25 years old and ~vill undoubtedly ~ • DEBUT RE CITAL - CHOPI N: " Black Key" Etud e; Nocturne in D-f1at; G rande go places. Here she benefits from excellent Valse Brillante; LlSZT: Mephisto Waltz; orchestral background and faultless repro BAC H: Nun Komm' d er Heiden Hei land ; In duction. G. J .. 74 HIFI REVIEW' I I Stereo Entertainment Jazz, Pops, Stage and Screen BEST OF THE MONTH Reviewed by • The new Stere-O-Craft label made liThe Best" last month and does it RALPH J. GLEASON again with Dick Cary Hot and Cool-a fine collection of modern jazz STANLEY GREEN stylings ... lithe ears of this veteran reviewer were consistently sur prised and delighted ... definitely recommended for all schools of NAT HENTOFF ] jazz fans." (see below) JAZZ • Capitol's stereo version of The New James displays the trumpeter in great form. "Like his band, his trumpet playing is clean, economical, • MOVIESVILLE JAZZ - HEINIE BEAU AND HIS HOLLYWOOD JAZZ STARS and hits with sharp impact ... engineers are t.o be congratulated for Heinie Beau (clarinet, alto saxophone, their tasteful use of stereo." (see below) flute), Don Fagerquist (trumpet), Ted Nash (flute, alto, clarinet) or Buddy Collette (flute, tenor, clarinet), Bill Ulyate (bass sax, • London scores a major coup in stereo theater with its drama produc baritone sax, bass clarinet), or Chuck Gentry (bass sax, baritone sax, bass clarinet), Jack tion of Alice in Wonderland-"a treat for the ears and-almost-the Sperling or I!ill Richmond (drums), Red Cal lender or Red Mitchell (bass), Jack Cave or eyes ••• the illusion of actually taking part in the mad tea party John Graas (French horn), Tony Rizzi or is little short of startling." (see p. 78) Howard Roberts (guitar), Frank Flynn (per cussion). In Yo ur Pri vate Eye; Gullible Travels; Moonset Boulevard a nd 9 others. solos (which are excellent, musically) are and it's characterized by functional, swing Coral Stereo CRL 757247 $5.98 just off dead center. This one is definitely ing arrangements (by Ernie Wilkins and Musica l In terest: Unusual if thin recommended for all schools of jazz fans. J . Hill in this set). The feeling communi Perform a nce: Well integrated R.J.G. cated is that of the better swing era units Recording : A little distant . in terms of directness of approach. There Stereo Directionality: Good • DIXIELAND FROM ST. LOUIS with are modern overtones as well. The secti~ n Stereo Depth: Very good Sammy Gardner and his Mound City Six. work is exact without seeming mechanical, This is a collection of parodies and some J azz Me Blu es; Tiger Rag ; Tin Roof Blues; and there is a superior use of dynamics. relatively serious "impressions" of movie H in dusta n and 8 others. Everest Stereo The rhythm section is admirably crisp and SDBR 1002 $5.98 scores by a jazz-oriented arranger. Not in consistent, and there are good soloists in Mono LPBR 5002 $3 .98 tended to be taken too solemnly, the album tenor saxophonist Sam Firmature, altoist contains a fair portion of effective satire. Mu sical Interest : Nil Willie Smith, and J ames himself. The "mood" tracks are attractive if not Perfo rmance: Uneven The "new" James has abandoned nearly memorable. The playing is skilful, and the Recording: Excellent all of the neighing sound that used to mar Stereo Directionality: Good his work. Like hi,s band, his trumpet play solos are quite competent. The basic idea, Ste reo De pth: Adequate however, wears thin fairly soon and Beau ing is clean, economical, and hits with sharp might be encouraged to work on a more sub The trouble is with the music, not the impact. Capitol engineers are to be con stantial thematic premise in his next album. recording, here. Dixieland as drab and dull gratulated for their tasteful use of stereo As jazz, the album is unimportant. As a as this is little better than amateur and not and the clarity of the balance. Monophonic pointed look at film scoring, it's interesting as good as some amateurs, at that. Despite version reviewed November, 1958. N. H. enough. N. H. the competent recording, there is little of interest. Groups of this ;size and makeup • JUMPIN' WITH JONAH - THE JO • DICK CARY HOT AND COOL. Rose don't lend themselves particularly well to . NAH JONES QUARTET-Jonah Jones room; You Do Something To Me; More Th a n stereo; thus, for once, the monophonic is (trumpet), Hank Jones (piano), Harold Aus You Know a nd 5 othe rs. Stere-O-Craft RTN just as good. R. J. G. tin (drums), John Brown (bass) . No Moon 106 $5.98 . - At All ; Night Tra in; Th at's A Pl e nty and 9 others. Capitol Stereo ST 1039 $4.98 .Musical Interest : Unusual • THE NEW JAMES - HARRY JAMES Perform ance: Topnotch AND HIS ORCHESTRA. Fai r And Warmer; Musical Interest: Pleasant Recordin g: Crisp Just Luc ky ; Be ll s and ' 6 others. Capitol Pe rfo rm ance: Good cooking by Jonah Stereo Directionality : Good Stereo ST 1037 $4.98 Recording : Very alive Ste reo De pth : Just right . Stereo Di rectionality: Tasteful M usica I Int erest : A delightful band Stereo Depth : Well done • A group of men . mostly associated with Pe rformance: Consistent verve ,so-called "dixieland" jazz in a collection of Recordi ng: First-rate It is questionable how much a jazz quar Stereo Directionality: Excellent tet benefits from stereo, unless its arrange standards and originals in a modern jazz Ste reo Depth: Very c'onvincing style that is quite surprising: They play ments are specifically geared for it or are with facility, feeling and fine emotional con This stereophonic version of The New unusually intricate. In this ca'se, since Jones cept and the ears of this veteran reviewer James underlines even more clearly how is the focal point of the set, I find th e w~ r e .. consis.tently sUl:prised .and delighted at valuable and stimulating a band J ames now greater cohesion of the monophonic version the result. The stereo has' proper depth, the leads. It's easily the best he's ever had, more satisfying. I MAy 1959 75 :Musically, Jones' straightforward, swing The Pennies' vein. All the playing is very ing trumpet with its full tone is enjoyable. competent, but these Pennies' performances SERKIN CONCERTOS His casual vocals are pleasant but not dis· -like most of the originals- are stiff rhyth. tinctive. The occasional shuffle rhythm mically. And the arrangements (called background is irritating. N. H. "models of imagination, color, and good taste" by Beau) are like slick magazine fic • RENDEZVOUS WITH KENTON. Mem tion. They're well·made but shallow in con· ories Of You; Two Shades Of Autumn; Hig h tent. There's often enthusiasm in the play On A Windy Hill ; I See Your Face Before ing, but most of its effect is dated by the Me and 8 others. Capitol ST 932 $4.98 over·all context. The stereo version is preferable to the Musical Interest: Modern big band jazz Performance: Slick mono because the band is big enough for Recording: Excellent sections to play against soloists and there Stereo Directionality: Good are other parts of the arrangements as well Stereo Depth: Good ballroom sound that are apt for stereo's spaciousness. N. H. This is one of Kenton's best bands of • GEORGE WETTLING AND HIS recent years. The LP was recorded on 10· WINDY CITY SEVEN. Four Or Five Tim es; cation at Balboa Beach in California, in Hindustan; Mo ritat; I Found A New Baby 1957 and the sound is quite good. The solo and 3 others. Stere-O-Craft RTN 107 $5.98 ists are flexible and competent and are fea· Musical Interest: Unusual \'Vhen it comes to the piano concertos oC tured prominently. Even though this reo Performance: Topnotch Mozart, probably no man's performances of viewer feels little warmth for the Kentonian Recording: Tops them are as close to ideal as those of Rudolf brass and bluster, this is one of Tbe Great Stereo Directionality: Good Serkin. His pianistic equipment is just the White Father's more easily digestible LPs. Stereo Depth: Adequate rare blend of agility, eloquence, control and Even so, there is more frenzy than seems This is a rewarding LP of dixieland·type poetry this music demands. H ere are two quite justified. Kenton no longer holds the music, with a fine clarinetist, Herb Hall .cxiJ-inples of Serkin perfection-the aimiable (brother of Edmond) ,and an excellent tram· F Major and the passionate D M'inor both attention of the young jazz fans: this is an on a single @ R ecord. interesting postscript to hi,s decade of "for· bonist, Vic Dickenson, featured throughout. MOZART: Piano Concerto No. 20 in 0 Minor. wardism." R. J. G. The mood, feeling and virility of this music K. 466; Piano Concerto No. 11 in F Major. K. is surprising when played by ranking artists 413-Rudolf Serkin, Pianist, with the Marlboro such as these. The stereo sound is quite Festival Orchestra conducted by Alexander • CHICAGO JAZZ-JOE MARSALA Schneider ML 5~67 MS 6049 (ste reo) ·Joe Marsala (clarinet), Adele Girard (harp), good, though there is a bit too much sep· GUARANTEED HIGH-FIDELITY AN D Dick Cary (piano), Carmen Mastren (gui aration for my taste. R. J. G. STEREO-FIDELITY RECORDS BY tar), Rex Stewart (trumpet). Johnny Blowers (drums). Pat Merola (bass). Wolverine Blues; Sing in' The Blues; Mandy and 4- others. POPS ICOLUlVlBIAIl Stere-O-Craft RTN 102 $5.98 ® "Columbia " "Masterworks" QV ~ Marcas Reg, • REPERCUSSION featuring David Car A division of Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc , Musical Interest: Joe's been missed Performance: Mostly spirited and warm roll and his Orchestra. · La Paloma; Dizzy Recording: Good Fingers; The Bells Of St. Mary's; The Peanut Stereo Directionality: Competent Vendor and 6 others. Mercury SR 60029 Stereo Depth: OK for small combo $5.95 Musica l Inte rest: Sound bug special This is the first record by veteran clar Performance: Outstanding inetist Joe Marsala and his jazz harpist wife, Recording : Topnotch . Adele Girard, in some time. Despite the fact Stereo Directionality: Sharp that some of the performances are uneven Stereo Depth: Excellent and Night Train could have been omitted, As with the monophonic version, the the record brings pleasure. Marsala's solos tweeter· woofer 'set will have a field day with are personal, logical and emotional; Adele this one. It's made for sound bugs and al· continues to be one of the few harpists who most every conceivable percussion instru· somehow manage the illusion of making ment is utilized, as well as strings and wind that cumbersome insu·ument swing. Rex instruments. The music itself is more an Stewart contributes. some of his most con excuse to show off than to communicate, sistent playing in years. The rhythm sec· but it makes a fine forty minutes 01 Iun. Sparkling champagne music, uncorked by lloyd tion could have been more supple. The bal· The stereo version is better than the mono, Mumm and His Starlight Roof Orchestra on ance on Wolverine Blues is bad. N. H. Omega disk! Three new stereo albums each a as the possibilities in stereo have been uti varied dance program of bubbling waltzes, lized quite well. The recording is crisp and polkas, fox trots and novelties. • PARADE OF THE PENNIES - RED clean. R. J. G. NICHOLS AND HIS FIVE PENNIES-Red CHAMPAGNE MUSIC OSL·l • SAMMY DAVIS, JR. AT TOWN HALL -Lloyd Mumm pours as you sip BUBBLES IN THE Nichols (cornet). Moe Schneider (trom bone), Jackie Coon (mellophone), Wayne with Orchestra Conducted by Morty Stevens. WINE, IN A LITTLE SPANISH TOWN, POOR PEOPLE Hey There; Eth el, Baby; Chicago and II OF PARIS, LA RONDE. Intoxicating! Songer (clarinet, alto and baritone sax). Heinie Beau (clarinet and tenor), Jerry Kas others. Decca DY 78841 $5.98. Mono PINK CHAMPAGNE OSL·37 per or Joe Rushton (bass sax), Bobby Ham DL 8841 $3.98 -PINK COCKTAILS FOR A BLUE LADY, CHAM· mack or Bobby Van Eps (piano), Allan Reuss PAGNE WALTZ, BEER BARREL POLKA, THE HAPPY Musical Interest: It's better seen (guitar), Morty Corb (bass). Jack Sperling Performance: Aggressive WHISTLER, MISSOURI WALTZ and others. For the or Rollie Culver (drums), Ralph Hansell connoisseur! Recording: Good location engineering (percussio·n). Capitol ST 1051 $4.98 Stereo Directionality: Excellent BLUE CHAMPAGNE OSL·46 Stereo Depth: Very good -lloyd unbottles the SHADOW WALTZ, PUT YOUR Musical Interest: Mostly nostalgic LITTlE FOOT, HOT LIPS, BLUE CHAMPAGNE, Performance: Highly professional This is part of a Town Hall concert given LITTLE SIR ECHO. limit: one per customer! Recording: Well balanced by Davis for tlle Children's Asthma Re Stereo Directionality: Good search Institute and Hospital on May 4, Stereo Depth: Very convincing 1958. Although Davis is a remarkable per· omega DISK "The idea for this session," writes an former, his effectiveness is much more visual notator·musician Heinie Beau, "was to than aural. When you see him, his tornado· STEREOPHONIC recreate some of the classic renditions by like energy often makes what he's doing PRODUCED BY OMEGATAPE • INTERNATIONAL PACIFIC RECORDING CORP .• 6906 SANTA MONICA BOULEVARD Red and the 'Five Pennies.''' There are seem better than it is. In stereo, more of HOLLYWOOD , CALIFORNIA also three originals by Red and Heinie in that force comes through than in the mono· 76 HIFI REVIEW phonic version. Thel'e is, for example, a tap dancing number that becomes quite LAFAYETTE realistic as Davis moves from speaker to STEREO TUNER KIT speaker; and in general, the greater space THE MOST FLEXIBLE TUNER EVER DESIGNED made possible by stereo makes it appear at • Multi,lex 'Output lor N•• St.". FM • . 11 rubes (includin, 4 dual-purp ...' + times as if your living room has become Tun ..tg Eye + Selenium rectifier p,o .. Davis' 'Stage. vide 17 Tub. P,,'.rman,e Without visual aid, however, a Davis song .~ 10KC Whistie Filter • P;e.aligned IF's • Tuned Ca".de FM • 12 Tuned Cirruits recital fails to impress. He's simply not • Dual Cathod. Follower Output that perceptive a musician. He adds little • S.pa;at' IY Tun~d FM and AM Swions to most of his material but volume or ob • ~~s~:~'at Cirruit with FM/AFC and vious sentimentality. He gives a reading of • Dual Double-Tuned Transformer Old Man River, for instance, that could al Coupled Limiters. most be taken as a parody, but I'm afraid More than a yeor 0·' research, planning and englneering wont into the making of V.e .t ... B .....r.,. the Lafayette Stereo Tuner. Its unique flexibility permits tho feception of binaural he didn't mean it that way. The audience, Stereoplao.de broadc.osting (simUltaneous transmission on both fM and AM), Hilt independent operation of both the fM and AM sections at the same time, and the ordinary t ... it should be noted, clearly had a good time. I'M~AM er reception of either FM or AM. The AM and fM sections are separately tuned I did only during his impersonations. N. H. VUJ It _ • B ••l. each with a sepa.rate 3-9000 tuning condenser, separate flywheel tuning and Mo.... ral I'M.AM t ...er separate volume control for proper balancing when used for binaural programs. Simplified accurate knife-edge tuning is provided by magic eye which operates • JULIE IS HER NAME Vol. II-featur V.e It _ • .'ralf11a' jndependently on FM and AM_ Automatic frequency control "locks in" FM signal ing Julie London. Blu e Moon; Spring Is Mo.. a.ral I'M or AM permanently. Aside from its unique flexibility, this is, above all else, (, quality high-fidelity tuner incorporating features found exclusively in the hiahes; priced He re; Little White Li es; I Guess I'll Have To t ...er tuners. Change My Plans a nd 8 others. Liberty LST FM specifications include grounded-grid triode low noise front' end with triode 7100 $4.98 mixer, double-tuned dual lImiters 'with Foster-Seeley discriminator, 'less than ,0/0 harmonic distortion, frequency response 20-20,000 cps ± 1f2 db, full 200 kc Mu si cal Interest: Pleasant Pop bandwidth and sensitivity of 2 microvolts for 30 db quieting with full limiting at one microvolt. AM specifications include 3 stages of AVe, 10 kc whtstle filter, Performance: Good buJlt-in ferrite loop antenna, less than r % harmonic distortion, sensitivity of 5 Recording: Warm, intimate microvolts, 8 kc bandwidth and frequency response 20-5000 cps ± 3 db. Stereo Directionality: Good The 5 controls of the KT-500 are FM Volume, AM Volume, FM Tuning, AM Tuning and 5-position Function Selector Switch_ TotfefutJy styled with gold-brass escu Stereo De pth: Adequate tcheon having dark maroon background plus matcMng maroon knobs with gold inserts. The lafayette Stereo Tuner was designed with the builder in mind. Two Miss London is a warm singer with a separate printed circuit boards make construction and wiring simple, even for small voice and great ability to transmit KT-500 IN KIT such a complex unit. Complete kit includes all parts and metal cover, a step-by_ FORM step instruction manual, schemfl~ic and pictorial diagrams. Size is 13 34" W x emotion in numbers such as Little White 74.50 10'/," D x 4 11z" H. Shpg. wt .• '22'lbs. . Lies. The usual guitar accompaniment helps ONLY 7.45 DOWN KT·500 ...... •...... Net 74.50 700 MONTHLY keep the sound intimate. The recording is LT ·50 Same a s abov~, completely factory wired and tesled .. Net 124.50 good, the voice is handled nicely and the NEW! LAFAYETTE PROFESSIONAL STEREO guitar does not intrude. There is no spark MASTER AUDiO CONTROL CENTER to the LP, however, either technically or Solves Every Stereo/Monaural Control Problem I in the performance. R. J. G. • UNIQUE STEREO & MONAURAL CONTROL FEATURES • AMAZING NEW BRIDGE CIRCUITRY FOR VARIABLE STAGE 3d CHANNEl OUTPUT & CROSS-CHANNEL FEED • PRECISE "NULL" BALANCING SYSTEM • FLOWER DRUM SONG (Richard REVOLUTIONARY DEVEioPMENT IN STEREO HIGH Fl. Rodgers·Oscar Hammerstein Ill. Orig DELITY. Provides such unusual features as a Bridge Control, for variable cross·channel signal feed for elimination of "ping ina l cast recording with Miyoshi Um eki. Pat pong" (exaggerated separation) effects and for 3d channel Suzuki . Larry Blyden, Ed Kenney, Juanita output volume control for 3-speoker stereo systems; 3d channel Hall, Arabella Hong, Keye Lu ke and others, output also serves for mixing stereo to produce excellent man· aural recordings. Also has full input mi xing of monaural program wi th Orchestra and Chorus, Salvat ore Dell' sources, special "nuW' stereo balancing and calibrating system Isola condo Columbia OS 2009 $5.98 ONLY 7.95 DOWN (better than meters), 24 equalization positions, all ~co ncentric 8.00 MONTHLY controls, rumble and scratch filters, loudness switch. Clutch type Mu sical Interest: Considerable volume controls for balancing or as 1 Moster Volume Control. Performance: Admirable company Has channel reverse, electronic phasing, input level controls. Recording: Slight surface noise Sensitivity 1.78 millivolts for 1 volt out. Duol low·impedance T outputs (plote followers). 1300 ohms. Response 10·25.000 cps Stereo Directionality: Little needed • RESPONSE 10-25,000 CPS ± 0.5 DB ± 0.5 db. Less than .03% 1M distortion. Uses 7 new 7025 low. Stereo Depth: Excellent • 6 CONCENTRIC FRONT PANEL CONTROLS noise dual triodes. Size 14" x 4 112" x 10'/,". Shpg. wt., 16 fbs . • 4 CONCENTRIC REAR PANEL INPUT Complete with printed circuit boord, cage, profusely illustrated Each soloist is beautifully spotlighted in instructions, all necessary parts. this stereo version of the original cast re LEVEl CONTROLS 0 LAFAYETTE KT-600 - Stereo Preamplifier kit ...... Net 79.50 lease (reviewed in the March issue), but • 180 ElECTRONIC PHASE REVERSAL LAFAYETTE LA·600-Stereo Preomplifier. Wired ' .. Net 134.50 there is still little feeling of dramatic move LAFAYETTE STEREO/MONAURU BASIC POWER AMPLIFIER KIT ment, even in the few cases in which it • 36·WATT STEREO AMPLIFIER· • 2 PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARDS FOR seems called for. Don't Marry Me fixes 1'·WATTS EACH' CHANNEL NEAT. SIMPLIFIED WIRING • FOR OPTIONAL USE AS 36·WATT • RESPONSE lETTER THAN 3S·30.000 Miyoshi Umeki at the left and Larry Bly MONAURAL . AMPLIFtER CPS ± 1/, DB AT 11 WATTS den at center stage although some action • EMPLOYS 4 NEW PREMIUM·TYPE • LESS THAN 1"1. HARMONIC OR is indicated from the song, and the same 7119 OUTPUT TUBES tNTERMODULATION DISTORTIOM A superbly·performing basic dereo amplifier, in easy· fa-build kit form 10 save is true of Sunday which puts Pat Suzuki you lots of money and let you get Into stereo now at minimum expensel Duol inputs ore provided, each wilh individual volume control, and ttle unit may be and Mr. BIyden between the speakers. Dur used with Q stereo preamplifier, for 2-18 watt stereo channels or, ot the fl ick of ing A Hundred Million Miracles, however, a switch, as a fine 36-watt monaurol amplifier - or, if desired, it may be used as 2 separate monaural l8-watt amplifiers' CONTROLS include 2 input volume con· stereo does manage the dubious miracle of trois, channel Reverse switch (AB -BA), Monaural-Stereo switch. DUAL OUTPUT IMPEDANCES' ora: 4, 8, 16 and 32 ohms (permitting para lie' (monaural) opera stretching poor Miss Umeki's arms; while 'fion of 2 speaker systems of up to 16 ohms. INPUT SENSITIVITY is 0 .45 volts per her voice comes from the center, the flower channel for full output. TUBES are 2-6ANS, 4-7189; OZ-34 rectifier. SIZ~ 9-3/ 16" d ONLY 4.75 DOWN (10-9/ 16" with conlrots) x 51/4"h x 131j4" w. Supplied complete with perforated drum she is supposed to beat is heard clear S.OO MONTHLY metal cage, all necessary parts and detailed instructions. Shpg, wit. "22 Ibs. ly from the left. S. G. 'Y KT·310 Stereo Power Amplifier Kit ...... Ne! 47.50 ,------_LA-310-Stereo._------, Power Amplifier. Wired ...... Net 69.50 SCREEN I I I I I 0 Send FREE LAFAYETTE Catalog 590. I • SLEEPING BEAUTY (Peter Tchaikoy· I CUT OUT I sky·George Bruns). Soundtrack recording with Orchestra and Chorus, George Bruns : Name ...... --.. . .. • ...... • . • • ••. PA~~D ON I cond.; Mary Costa and Bi ll Shirley (vocals). Disneyland STER-40 18 $4.98. Mono-WDL· I Address •••••••• • .•• ...... •••.•• , .••.....••. '.' • • POSTCARD . : 4018 $4.98 I Musical Interest: Tchaikovskyland t.fitY:..:..::.!.:.:_:.. ~:.:.:::.:. ZO~''':':' ~~e.:.:.... :... :': :... :.:.::.::':":' ______I MAY 1959 77 Performance: Suitably spacious Recording: A bit sharp (ste'reo); tops (monp) - Stereo Directionality: Always tasteful The responsibility of being the finest ... Ste reo Depth: Impressive Adapting the Tchaikovsky Sleeping Beau ty ballet score to fit the requirements of the latest Disney dI'eam has been splendidly accomplished by George Bruns, plus a ret inue of others including Sammy Fain. The 'stereo effects are done in good taste, and in ~iew of the fact that the price is the same for both versions, might be given the edge in preference_' ' S. G. SPOKEN WORD • ALICE IN WONDERLAND (Lewis iinc Carroll!. Jane Asher, Margaretta Scott, FL.UlIVAL';£ "NO T.GUARD ARt TRAOEM"RKS USED TO DENOTE THE OUALITY OF P ICK eRING a COMPANY INVENTIONS. Vivienne Chatterton, Ian W allace and Truly the finest stereo pickup ever made ... And ... because of this the STANTON others. London OSA 1206 2 12'; $11.96 'the STANTON Stereo FLUXVALVE is Stereo FLUXVALVE reproduces musi ~ hermetically sealed in lifetime polystyrene with with magnificent sound quality ... from both Interest: For everyone ,all of the preCision that has made Pickering stereophonic and monophonic records ... with Performance: Superb company a quality leader in the field of high fidelity negligi ble wear on record and stylus. Recording: Crystal clear for more than a dozen years. Stereo Directionality : Outstanding In plain truth ... the STANTON Stereo Depth: Brilliant For instance ... only the ,Stereo FLUXVALVE is by far the finest stereo _ STANTON Stereo FLUXVALVE has the pickup made ... backed by a Lifetime Warranty·, Already hailed for its splendid stereo re ~j T·GUARO " stylus assembly-so safe and easy assuring you a lifetime of uninterrupted, leases of operas and operettas, London has to handle ... so obedient and responsi~j trouble· free performance-with a quality of to every musical nuance in the stereo groove. ' reproduction no other pickup can equal. now entered the field of straight theater. The results couldn't be more impressive. Only the STANTON Stereo FLUXVALVE 'has W. suggest you visIt your Pickering DeiTer soon Using an acting version prepared by Doug the parallel reproducing element contained in the -drop in and ask for a personal demonstratIon; ,"T·GUARO" ... assuring the proper angle of las Cleverdon and with Margaretta Scott a'S -COrrespondence between' recording and playback N£WLY REVISED-"IT TAKES TWO TO $TEREO"- narrator, a group of topnotch English actors AODRESS DEPT. E!59 FOR YOUR FREE COPY. styli f~r maximum Vertical Tracking Accuracy. performs the classic story in a manner that ~;, lor !/Jose who con~ !/Je tltllerence -'w, 0.'"" .00. ,.ow" •••••• ~. or is a treat for the ears _and-almost-the ::'lidlldlft l Writ ' lIiI lut 0; lilt d f .ma~ sl,ln lip ,114 "tt. eyes_ il "It ""Itd ",o~ I I\' J,SUIII In Ihl " T·C;UAJlO " UlflftblJ. ~ PICKERING & COMPANV, INC., Plainview, N. V" All the familiar scenes take on a dramatic clarity that would be impossible ,to achieve FOR STEREO/MONO SYSTEMS on a monophonic release, or even, in some cases, on the stage_ For example, when Alice swims around in her own tears, not FACTORY ASSEMBLED only does the very room seem to be flooded . Only $69.95 but her voice has even been given an ap SO SIMPLE TO propriately hollow sound_ The sequence at ASSEMBLE ... the Duchess' house may well have you WORK I ducking the flying pots and pans, while the illusion of actually taking part in the mad tea party or the Queen's croquet game is Ii ttle short of • MIKE NICHOLS AND ELAINE MAY -IMPROVISATIONS TO MUSIC with Marty Rubenstein fpiano). Mercury SR 60040 $5.95. Mono MG 20376 $3 ,98 Inte rest: Considerable Performance: Remarkable Anyone Can Assemble in I HOUR Recording: Tops Stereo Directionality: Who needs it? CHECK (~4ftedlica~ Stereo Depth: Ditto * 40 Watts RMS - 80 Watts peak. * 5 to 200.000 CPS response Mike Nichols and Elaine May are two "Sing Along" is now a national pastlme, and * 1M distortion less than 1 % @ 40 watts bright, observant and extremely gifted per * 3 / 10 volt input for 40 watt output Mitch Miller our national kapellmeislel' for * Hum and Noise - minus 92db formers whose special forte is improvising * 4 - 8 - 16 ohm output impedances community singing. There seems to be no end COMPARE a humorous situation around a given theme, to d.e4e!-tw&e4, the old chestnuts America enjoys singing * 100% Printed Circuit - no wires. and in this release they offer a J azz, Pops, Stage and Screen BEST OF THE MONTH Reviewed by • Capitol's Nat " King" Cole in Welcome to the Club comes through with RALPH J. GLEASON "his best LP in a long time . ... The whole LP swings beautifully, but STANLEY GREEN Wee Baby Blues has classic proportions and seems destined to endure." NAT HENTOFF (see below) • United Artists makes a major contribution with Hard Driving Jazz JAZZ starring the Cecil Taylor Quintet. "Taylor, a furiously personal modern jazz pianist ... impresses almost by his fire alone . . . draws on • THINGS ARE GETTING BETTER CANNONBALL ADDERLEY WITH MILT the whole jazz tradition, g'ospel music, and his studies of Bartok and JACKSON: Julian Adderley (alto saxo. ph?ne); Mdt Jackson (vibes); Wynton Kelly Stravinsky." (see'p. 81) (plano) ; Percy Heath (bass) ; Art Blakey (drums). Blues O rien tal; G roovi n' High; Just • Capitol's presentation of film star Judy Garland At the Grove "is a One O f Th ose Things and 3 others. Ri ve rsid e RLP 12·286 $4.98 striking set" of interpretations ... . She can hurl herself into a song Mu sica l Interest: Hot modern jan much as AI Jolson did. An album that can be replayed often, and there's Performance: The growing cannonball Re cord ing : Good no cover charge." (see p. 83) A wholly unpretentious and infectiously In this set, clarinetist Buster Bailey con· rhythm 'section is sturdy, based co nfid entl y, relaxed album, th is is a successful first pair· tributes his best playing on records so far. as have been all Basie units since 1937, on ing of Milt Jackson, the best of the modern As always, he is technically expert but he Fredd ie Creene's gui tar. jazz vibists, and Cannonball Adderley of the uses the technique much less as an end in These men play wi th so much outgoing Miles Davis unit. As has been mentioned itself than he has usually done. His play· intensity and collective exhilaration that in these pages in recent months, Cannon· ing-as in the long Memphis Blues- often the album should wear very well. N. H . ball's growth in the past year has been im· has considerable emotional impact and he pressive, and this album is further proof receives fully swinging aid from the side· that he has not only found his own style • BENNY CARTER. JAZZ GIANT. Blue men. His original themes are also attrac· but is becoming sufficiently at ease in it to Lou; Old Fashio ned Love; Ain't She Sweet tive. T here are rough spots, but the album and 4 others. Contemporary C3555 $4.98 be able to edit his solos more and more as a whole is refreshingly enj oyable and e ffectively. Musica l Inte rest: Mainstream ja zz Mr. Dance and London Records are to be Cannonball is convincing in a variety of Performa nce : Good all around commended. N. H. roles here--the shouting blues of Sounds Recording; E ~ cell e nt for Sid ; the thoughtful tenderness of Serves Two of the very best jazz musicians of Me Right; and the gospel·like jauntiness the '30's join forces here; Benny Carter, of Things Are Getting Better. J ackson is • BASIE REUNION - Paul Quinichette (tenor saxophone ), Buck Clayton, Shad Col who is heard on alto sax and trumpet and in characteristically flu ent, flowing form; lins (trumpet s), Jack Washington (baritone Ben Webster on tenor. It is Carter's trum and there is excellent rhythm section sup· saxophone), Nat Pi erce (piano), Freddie pet work that is the most interesting be port. N. H . Greene (guit ar), Eddie Jones (bass). Jo cause, despite his technical proficiency on Jones (drums). Blu es I Like To Hea r; Lo ve the alto, he has never really communicated o ALL ABOUT MEMPHIS-BUSTER Jumped O ut; John's Idea; Baby Do n't Tell very broadly on that instrument. Webster, BAILEY. Buster Bailey (clarinet), Red Rich· O n Me; Roseland Shuffle. Prest ige 7147 $4.98 who is great ballad interpreter, shines on ard s (piano). G ene Ramey (bass). Jimmie Musical Interest: Valuable memories I'm Coming Virgini:a and there is good sup· C rawford (drums) on four numbers. On port throughout from the rhythm. All in three, H erman Autrey (trumpet). Vic Dick· Pe rformance: Virile, swinging Recording.: Very st rong presence all, this is a pleasant, if not historic, LP. enson (t rombo ne ) and Hilton J efferson (alto R. J.G. sax ophone) a re added. Bea r Wa ll ow; Beale ' St. Blues; Hot Wat er Bayou and 4 others. Six fo rmer Basie sid emen and two present Fe lsted FAJ 7003 $4.98 . members play tunes originally recorded by • WELCOME TO THE CLUB-Nat the full band between 1937-40. Baritone "King" Cole wi th orchestra conduct ~ d by Musical Interest : Full·bodied swing saxophonist jack Washington hasn't been Da ve Cavanaugh. Mood Indigo; The Late, Perfo rm ance: Solid jazz e lders recorded since the late 194.0's, and while Late Show; I W a nt A Little Girl; W ee Baby Recording: Well balanced he's a little rusty, as the notes honestly Blues and 6 others. Capitol W 1120 $4.98 admit, he plays with such robust spirit and This is one of seven historically valuable Musi cal Int erest: Almost un iversal albums British cr itic Stanley Dance super· swing that he's very invigorating to hear Performance: Scintillating vised in this country last year for British again. Recording: Brillii.nt Decca and American London Records. The best solo~ are by Buck Clayton, who They're being released here on Felsted, a continues to grow wi th the years. Also gen This is the best Nat Cole LP in a long, London subsidiary label. It was Dance's erally effective is trumpeter Shad Collins. long time and the best accompaniment he contention that a substantial number of Paul Quinichette plays with' much emo· has ever had by a big band That's because older jazzmen-mostly swing era players tional power ' bu t his conception is some it's really the Co unt Basie band (with still had much to say But were being largely times debatable and his to ne occasionally Cerald Wiggins sitting in for Count) play ignored by most American labels. wavers. Yet he certainly swings. The ing behind Nat and it makes him sound M AY 1959 79 like the jazz sin ger he is, basically. The· • JONAH JUMPS AGAIN-The Jonah whole LP swings beautifully, but Wee Baby Jones Quartet. Pennies From Heaven: Any Blues is the outstanding track, a blues vocal Time: They Can't Take That Away From Me: PUR ·CHASING Poor Butterfly and 8 others. Capitol TIllS that has classic proportions and seems des· $3.98 tined to endure. Any Time, Any Place, Any· A HI-FI where is another gem. Interestingly enough, Mu sical Interest: Good pop jazz this LP shows what can be done when a big Perfo rmance : Excellent band is a truly cohesive unit. It is better Recording : The best SYSTEM? backing for swing vocals than any of the The formula is the same. It will probably PARTIAL LIST studio groups extant, not excluding the always remain so. But it is still pleasant, OF BRANDS highly publicized ones. While there are firmly swinging, melodic and thoroughly IN STOCK Send Us occasional solo spots, it is the ensemble good jazz. Jones plays open and muted Altec Lansing sound of the Basie band and its irresistible Electrovoice trumpet and occasionally sings. His ballad Your Jensen rhythm that pushes this album into the top work is reminiscent of Eldridge, but it Hartley rank of vocal efforts. R. J. G. University makes no difference what type of tune he List Of Acoustic selects; the result is tasteful, mainsn'eam Research Janszen • SONGS FOR DISTINGUiE LOVERS jazz that fits into everyone's taste categories. Wharfedale Billie Holiday (vocals). Day In Day Out: R.J.G. Components Karlson Viking Stars Fe ll On Alabama: I Didn't Kn ow What Concertone Time It Was and 3 others. Verve MF V-8257 For A Bell. G.E. $4.98 • THE POLL WINNERS RIDE AGAIN! Weathers Barney Kessel with Shelly Manne and Ray Hormon-Kordon Mu si ca l Inte rest: Billie is nonpareil Package Eico • Pilot Brown. Vo lare: Spring Is Here: Ange l Eyes: Sherwood Performance: Generally consistent The Merry Go Ro und Broke Dow n and 5 Acrosound Re cording : Competent others. Contemporary C 3556 $4.98 Quotation Fisher Bogen • Leak WE WON'T BE Dynokit Most critics continue to dismiss the cur· Mu sical Interest: Broad jazz H. H. Scott rent Billie Holiday as a cracked shell of her Performance: Tops UNDERSOLD! Pentron former uniquely penetrating self. She may Recording: The best Ampro • VM A 11 merchandise Revere • Chol· well be uneven these days, but to this reo This is a wonderful trio with a fine beat, is brand new, lenger viewer she is capable at her best of ecli ps· factory fresh & Wollensok good solos, fascina ting interplay between ing every other jazz singer. She has several guaranteed. Garrard the musicians and at least two major jazz Miracord eloquent moments in this set, and no bad Glaser·Steers solo voices in Kessel and Brown. Their suo ones. There are long solos for the relaxed Rek·O·Ku't periority is evident in their treatment of Components accompanists; the tempos are right for her; AIREX Norelco tlle banal Volare and the novelty The and throughout, she gives the lyrics more Fairchild Merry Go ROltnd Broke Down, as well as Pickering. Gray meaning than anyone else now singing. Audio Tape in the beautiful ballad Angel Eyes. This RADIO Full Line of Norman Granz strangely doesn't list a CORPORATION Cabinets single supporting player. They sound like album is well worth space on any LP shelf. 64-MR Cortlandt St., N.Y. 7, CO. 7-2137 Ben Webster (tenor saxophone) , Harry The transcribed comments of the partici· Edison (trumpet), Barney Kessel (guitar) pants make fascinating liner notes. R. J. G. and perhaps Alvin Stoller (drums) and for the Camera fan ..• Jimmy Rowles (piano). Even Billie, by the • LEGRAND JAZZ with Michel Legrand INTERESTING, INFORMATIVE way, can't make the lachrymose One for the (conductor.arranger), Miles Davis (trumpet) Road come alive for me. N. H. on four numbers, Ben Webster (tenor saxo· ZlfF·DAVIS PHOTO ANNUALS phone) on four numbers, and others. Di ango: YOU'RE SURE TO ENJOY! 'Round Midnight: In A Mist and 8 others. • KEEPIN' UP WITH THE JONESES Columbia CL 1250 $3.98 featuring the Jones Brothers playing the music of Thad Jones and Isham Jones. Thad Mu si cal In terest: Mostly for soloists Jones (trumpet and fluegelhorn), Hank Jones Performance: Fine despite the paper 3S-MM (piano and organ) , Elvin Jones (drums), Recording : Clear and clean Eddie Jones (bass) . Nice And Na sty: Three ANNUAL This is Michel Legrand's first all·jazz m And One : It Had To Be You and 4 others. '1;] I . 1 now on sale Metrojazz E I 003 $3.98 album. In his previous sets (Cole Porter, French and Italian music, etc.), Legrand only $1.00 Mus ica l Inte rest: A major jazz family indicated he was a technically brilliant ar· ($1.25 outside U.S.A.) Pe rfo rm ance : Excellent ranger who could rarely resist the tempta· Re cord ing: Superior tion of using bravura effects for their own a complete g uide to 35-MM photog Three of the best contemporary jazzmen sake. He would seldom let a line unfold ra phy by t he editors of Pop1,lm' Photog ?'aphy, the world's largest selling photo are brothers. Thad Jones is a trumpeter or a mood develop without letting gratu· magazine. It covers everything you want and arranger for the Count Basie band. itous cleverness intrude. The same fault is t o know a bou t miniature photography: how to use color, shooting techn iques, the best Hank Jones is one of the most active free· evident here. in 35-MM pictures, facts on lenses, filter s, lance pianists in New York; and drummer That the album is worth having i·s due fi lm. P lus a buying guide to ca m eras a nd equipment. Be sure t o get your copy of Elvin Jones works with Tyree Glenn and almost entirely to the caliber of the soloists, this valua ble Annual! is in increasing demand in the recording especially Miles Davis and Ben Webster. studios. Each has a clearly identifiable The arrangements are best when they're style, and each is consistently inventive. In most economical, as in Blue and S entim.en· COLOR this album, they're joined by bassist Eddie tal and Night in Tunisia. They are worst Jones (no relation) of the Basie band. when overly cluttered as in In a Mist, ANNUAL The result is an unusually warm, con· Wild Man Blltes, the background fi gures to now on sale tinuously satisfying session. The star is 'Round Midnight and several other pas· Thad. Since he's more or less buried in the sages. Some of the figures are, in fact, only $1.25 Basie brass section, Thad isn't as widely surprisingly corny. There is little evidence everywhere appreciated a modern trumpet soloist as he in this album that Legrand has much to deserves to be. He has a real brass sound contribute to jazz although he does know Popu l a,' Photog?"alJhy's 1959 COLOR AN that can be assertively ringing and also wbich soloists to use. N. H. NUAL is one of the outstanding photo touchingly lyrical. He constructs choruses graphic achievements of the year! OVe!' 172 with logic and taste, and he lias a superb pages-including the year's best color shots, • THE GAMBIT, Vol. 7-Shelly Manne & portfolios of leading pros, equipment and rhythmic sense. His accompaniment is ex· accessories r eview, a big InternationaJ P ort His Men. Th e Gambit; Blu Gnu: Tom Brown's J folio. Don't miss t he exciting 1 959 COLOR cellent, and there are characteristically Buddy & Hugo Hurwhey. Contemporary C ANNUAL! crystalline solos by Hank. N. H. 3557 $4.98 80 HIFI REVIEW Musica l Interest: Good modern jazz was produced by Tom Wilsoll, w],o gave Performance: Competent-to-excellent Taylor his first chance to record a few Recording: Topnotch years ago when Wilson owned the now de SANDBURG SINGS This group, which varies between a sort funct Transition label. The liner note writer of reprise of the bebop concept and an means Brandeis composer-teacher, Harold FLAT BAlLAD'S: escapade in the Hollywood far-out writing Shapero, not Shapiro. N. H. school, produces some very good jazz when it essays numbers like Blu Gnu and Torn • THE REAL FATS WALLER. Carolina Brown's Buddy, in which the jazz freedom Shout; Rosetta; Harlem Fu ss and 8 others. can help out the dullness inherent in the Camden CAL-473 $1.98 horn soloists_ But on the title suite, the Musical Interest: Some of the best Fats whole thing bogs down completely and Performance: Superior piano and wit sounds pompous_ Even the excellent drum Recording: Good transfer ming of the leader and the bass playing of John Wilson has assembled one of Cam Monty Budwig cannot move it. R. J. G. den's best reissue sets. Included are not • SHELLY MANNE & HIS MEN PLAY (e~~) PETER GUNN. Peter Gunn; The Floater; *<>,q X v ¥:>""... Slow And Easy; Dreamville; A Profound Ba ss a nd 5 others_ Contemporary C 3560 $4.98 Musical Interest: Commercial jazz Performance: Excellent Someone once asked Carl Sandburg what he Recording: First rate wanted out of life. He mentioned being out of jail, eating " regular", getting what he Aided by the excellent recording tech wrote printed and " a littlc love at home" . niques of the Contemporary studio, drum " And then, maybe the fifth thing I need ," mer Manne has produced an LP that should he said, "it seems like every day when I'm be a big seller, even though its actual value, at all in health, I got to sing." H ere's a jazz-wise, is questionable. The tunes are collection of the songs Mr. Sandburg's " got" all from the pen of Hank Mancini, who to sing-American songs which have come does the Peter Gunn TV show, and include down through the generations. several quite familiar to TV audiences. The FLAT ROCK BALLADS-Sung and played by Carl Sandburg ML 5339 best solos occur when Victor Feldman plays marimba and when Herb Geller takes GUARANTEED HIGH - FIDELITY AND a blues chorus on Slow and Easy. R. J. G_ STEREO-FIDELITY RECORDS BY only several of Waller's most exuberant • HARD DRIVING JAZZ-THE CECIL (and often irreverent) vocals, but also the [COLUMBIA. TAYLOR QUINTET-Cecil Taylor (piano), ® "Columbia" "Mns terworks" ~ Marcas Reg. piano solo on Carolina Shout and an ex . A divis ion of Columbia Broadc8stinac Sys tem. In('. "Blue Train" (tenor saxophone). Kenny Dor cellent instrumental small band blues. Un ham (trumpet), Chuck Israels (bass). Louis Hayes (drums). United Artists UAL 4014 fortunately, however, two essentials for any $4.98 reissue album are missing-complete infor mation on personnel and dates. The latter Musical Interest: High and intense Performance : Rewardingly individual omissions aside, this is a fine bargain. N. H. Recording: Good A fascinating album. This is the first POPS time Cecil Taylor, a furiously personal modern jazz pianist, has recorded with • LES BAXTER'S AFRICAN JAZZ. Con ARM already established contemporaries. The go Train; Ele phant Trai l; Walkin' Watusi; tenor saxophone is actually John Coltrane, Balinese Bong os and 8 others. Capitol T 1117 THAT playing under a pseudonym. Taylor, the $3.98 CONTROLS most absorbingly original jazz pianist since Musical Interest: Exotica Bill Evans, draws on the whole jazz tradi Performance: Competent tion, gospel music, and his studies of Bar Recording: Fine tok and Stravinsky, among other cla'ssical everything: This is a compendium of blues cliches musicians. His burningly personal style is with phrases and paraphrases from Every not, however, a pastiche. He has managed Day to Sirnill£ running through the "orig to assimilate these influences without being inal" compositions. Emotionally, it is empty restricted by any of them. He is of partic music ; highly derivative and though pleas ular interest harmonically, and is also ant enough as a background for conversa ESL Gyro working toward freer rhythmic practices, tion, even the presence of some jazz men but so far he has not found a rhythm sec (Larry Bunker and so on) doesn't give it tion that can play with ease within his enough content to warrant serious listen Provides cleaner lows, better Ilighs. Illcreases rhythmic concepts. ing. However, it is excellently recorded So intense is Taylor's emotional energy stylus and record life. Perfect stylus contact with and for this alone it will gain some accept both sides of recoid groove-regardless of turn that he impresses almost by his fire alone, ance. The liner notes infer that Mr. Baxter although he has much besides to offer. table leveling. App roved by-the High Fidelity rivals Martin Johnson as an explor~r. The Coltrane, one of the most daring of the music sounds more like he went only as far Consumer's Bureau of Stalldards. Only $34·9 S. modern tenor players, is an appropriate as the nearest record shop. R. J. G. companion for Taylor because he welcomes FOR LISTENING AT ITS BEST any musical challenge. He plays with con • FRANCOIS CHARPIN TRIO-CHAM sistent invention here. This quality of com PAGNE COCKTAIL_ Lazza rell e ; C'etait Electro-Sonic pany spurs Kenny Dorham into some of his hier; Cha Cha Cha des Thons and 13 others. Laboratories, Inc. best trumpet playing on records. Kapp KL-IIII $3.98 The rhythm section is steady. There are Musical In terest: Aimable Dept R·• 35-54 36th St· Long Island City 6, NY interesting solos by young bassist, Chuck Performance: Beaucoup de charme ps: The new ESL Gyro /jewel electrodjmalllic stereo Israels, a Brandeis music student, who has Recording : Realiste both imagination and good tone. The album This is very pleasant list~ning. M. Char- cartridge is years alfead in performalfCe. Only $64.95. MAy 1959 81 pin breathes the Parisian airs in an inti· KIT BUILDERS · EVERYWHERE ASKED FOR IT! mate cocktail lounge fashion, backed by his own piano, plus guitar and drums. Four of Completely new edition of the numbers were written by the singer, while two are the inspirations of the pro· lific Domenico Modugno. No translations ELECTRONIC KITS are on the jacket. S •. G • • MAURICE CHEVALIER SINGS BROADW AY with Orchestra, Glenn Osser now on sale! condo Give My Regards To Br.oadway; Just In Tim e; Do It Again and 9 others. MGM E3738 $3.98 Musical Interest: For Shubert Alley cats Performance: In the Chevalier manner Recording: A bit echoey Broadway, as sung by Maurice Chevalier, easily turns into a gay Parisian boulevard -no matter what the tune may be. With his own very special jutted·lip personality, he gives a bright new sheen to even the most familiar musical fare, from Give My Regards to Broadwa:y all the way to I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face. S. G. • A MUSICAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BING (1934·19411 - with BUDDY COLE AND HIS TRIO. June In January; Small Fry; Yes I ndeed and 23 others. Decca DL 9064 $.4.98 Musical Interest: Still dean of men Pe rforma nce: Contagiously relaxed Recording : Good This single album is taken from the pre· vio\lsly released five-volume Crosby package Because of the wide popularity of- its' first Annual on kit construction, Ziff (DXK-151). There are brief versions of 26 Davis now offers this exciting follow-up songs with which Crosby had success be· -ELECTRONIC KITS #2! This brand tween 1934 and 1941. The accompaniment new sequel will save you money on hi-fi, by Buddy Cole and his trio is unobtrusive, ham radio, other electronics devices by but I would have preferred the original reo showing you how to·use easy-to-assem cordings (only two originals are included, ble kits! What's more, ELECTRONIC the duets with Johnny Mercer in Small Fry KITS #2 features a big up-to-date di and with Connee Boswell in Yes Indeed) . rectory of available kits, complete with specifications, prices, and manufactur Crosby sings with mellow consistency and ers' names ! his spoken introductions are warm, concise, informative, and never arch. For many, these performances will bring back memo over 160 pages-600 illustrations ories of those crowded years. Bing's sing· ing demonstrates once again that, as Dean HOW TO BUILD A KIT-Learn what's involved in building a kit, and pick up tips on good construction practices. Martin said recently, "Bing set the pattern for the whole present style of casualness, of KIT CONSTRUCTION CHECK LIST-Here's a summary of im being yourself, not only in singing but in portant steps in assembling a kit, enabling you to get it right the acting." N. H. first time. • SOPHISTICATED SAVAGE featuring HOW NOT TO MAKE MISTAKES-Pick up tricks to simplify the Savage Beat of AUGIE COLON. I'll work and reduce the chance of error. Always Be In Love With . You; EI Doctor;, Tambo; The Peanut , Vendor and 7 others. WORKING WITH WIRE-For rapid assembly and reliable opera Liberty LRP 310 I $3.98 tion, you should know how to handle various types of wire. You'll Musical Inte rest: Exotica find out here. Performance: Good Recording: Excellent FOR YOUR HI-FI-How to construct a Stereo Preamplifier. Stereo Adapter. Tape Recorder. Turntable. AM-FM Tuner. Book ~ Shelf Mr. Colon seems to be more sophisticated Speaker Enclosure. Integrated Stereo Amplifier. Monaural Ampli than savage throughout this LP, but on oc· fier. Record Changer. Tone Arm. Speaker Enclosure. casion manages to sound a bit like Migue· lito Valdes. There's a fine drup1mer (ap· FOR YOUR SHOP-How to build a Vacuum Tube Volt Meter. parently Mr. Colon) spotted throughout; Signal Generator. Oscilloscope. Tube Tester. Multitester. Transistor Tester. . some of the songs have considerable humor and occasionally a marvelously heterogene· FOR YOUR HAM SHACK-Transmitter. Receiver. Grid-dip ous mixture of musical elements from Ha Meter. Modulator. Single-sideband Converter. Mobile Transmitter. waiian to bop! The latter is especially flavorsome in I'll Always Be In Love With FOR YOUR HOME-Table Radio. Transistor Pocket Radio. Jun You. By no means a dull LP; the sound ior Electronics Experimenter's Kit. Clock Radio. Radio Control alone makes it attractive to hi·fi fans. Transmitter. R.J.G. ELECTRONIC KITS -# 2 IS NOW ON SALE • SENTIMENTAL AND SWINGING TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA Be sure to pick up your copy today-only $1.00 (outside ·U.S.A., $1.25) featuring JIMMY DORSEY. Ruby; Let's J Have A Party; Just Swinging and 9 others. ZIFF·DAVIS PUBLISHING COMPANY, One Park Ave., New York 16, N. Y. Columbia CL 1240 $3.98 82 HIFI REVIEW Musical Interest: Moderate expansive style and voice and her huge ca- ' Performance: Not the best Dorsey band pacity for communicating emotion. Recording: Competent ) The material includes several songs long JOHNNY CASH This is a collection of p~rformances re identified with her; a few Jolson special corded by Tommy Dorsey in 1955 and later ties; and even a Purple People Eater that sold to Columbia. Among the sidemen are becomes her own "special materia1'1 by the .~~--."'-- SINGS HYMNS .. -...... ,;; ,. trumpeters Charlie Shavers, Lee Castle, and time she's through with it. This is an al the late Andy Ferretti; and drummers bum than can be replayed often, and there's Louis Bellson and Buddy Rich. The pro no cover charge. N. H. gram is similar to what one could have heard around that time during an evening • LISA KIRK SINGS AT THE PLAZA at the Hotel Statler in New York. The band with Orchestra, Don Pippin condo Travel is well drilled, at its best on ballads and Light; Anything Goes ; Good Little Girls and 8 others. MGM E3737 $3.98 med ium tempo dance numbers, arid rather strained on up tempo swingers. The lead Musical Interest: Well maintained ing soloist was Tommy, but he didn't give Performance: Full of razzle-dazzle Recording: All right himself nearly as many solos as he should have. N.H. Lest the album title lead you to assume that this is an on-the-spot recording at a night club, the liner notes set you straight • DEANNA DURBIN with Orc~estras, Ed gar Fairchild, Charles Previn, Victor Young by allowing that the recital is "based" upon and Johnny Green condo Spring Will Be A Miss Kirk's night club act. To provide the Little Late This Year; Amapola; Always and proper atmosphere, however, she is accom 9 others. Decca DL 8785 $3.98 panied by four male singers, and every now Musical Interest: Quite a mixture and then a can is pried open to let out the In this insplnng collection, Johnny Cash Performance: Rather bland applause 'and laughs. Miss Kirk's routines turns his attention from the popular songs Recording: Shows age are apparently elaborately staged affairs, that have made him one of the brightest stars of today to the simpler songs of faith and Decca has dusted off some of the singles but even without visual aids she is impres sively slick and slinky throughout her as devotion. H e sings them reverently and fer made by Deanna Durbin oven ten years ago, vently. Listening to them, you will at once and while the dubbing may leave much to sortment of standards an!~ specialty num sense the warm blend of artistry and sincerity be desired, there is no doubt that her fans bers. S. G. that has sO'CJuickly made him a star. will enjoy hearing her again. She seems HYMNS BY JOHNNY CASH • I LIKE MEN! featuring Peggy Lee. CL 1284 CS 8125 (stereo) to have had little vocal projection, but there Good For Nothing Joe; I'm Just Wild About is an attractively serene quality present on Harry; My Man ; Bill and 8 others. Capitol GUARANTEED HIGH-FIDELITY AND most pf the less-demanding songs. S. G. TI131$3.98 STER EO - FIDELITY R ECOR DS B Y ' Musical Interest: Medium • JUDY G,ARLAND AT THE GROVE. Perform ance: Good ICOLUMBIA. You Made Me Love You; When The Sun Recording: Excellent ®'-'C'~lumbia" ~ Martas Reg, Adivis ion 01 Columbia Broadcasting Syslem,lnc, Comes Out; Swanee and 10 others. Capitol T 1118 $3.98 Miss Lee can be one of the very hest jazz-oriented pop singers on occasion, but Mu si ca l Interest: This is show biz this is not one of the occasions. Here she Pe(formance: An unforgettable stylist concerns herself with an attempt' to be b~ld Recording: Yivid How .can two and almost brazen in her implementation of Recorded at the Cocoanut Grove, this is a the album title and loses a few points by so striking set of interpretations by Judy Gar- . doing. Some of the tunes, though, are quite stereo speakers land. It's difficult enough to verbalize mu well done; I'm Just Wild about Harry, Jim sical experiences ( it's all the harder to try and When a Woman Loves a Man. There cost so little? to define the "star" quality Miss Garland are good jazz solos s potted here and there possesses, and" has had since she was quite and the recording is really excellent. small. Part of it is her controlled abandon. R.J.G. This seeming paradox simply means she can hupt.hetseH -into -a song, much as Al • JEANETTE MACDONALD and NEL· J olson did, while part of her remains keenly SON EDDY-FAVORITES IN HI·FI with aware of the audience's reactions and knows Orchestras, Lehman Engel and David Rose exactly when to alter- speed and dynamics. condo Rose Marie; Italian Street Song; Wanting You and 9 others. RCA Victor Her timing, then, is superb. Her sense of LPM-1738 $3.98 drama, which might seem overblown in a lesser artist" is just right for her naturally Musical Interest: Ah, romance! Performance : Rather well preserved Recording: Splendid . . Offering gobs of Herbert, Romberg and No mistake •.. you heard the price correctly I It's unbelievable because you'd expect to Friml, the fondly-remembered movie team pay so mu<;h more for just one superb high has finally been recorded in high fidelity fidelity speaker. How much does R&A cost? Let your dealer tell you the price twice sound, and there is little question that mem (you'Ii raise your eyebrows the first time). bers of the Eddy-Mac cult w.ill lap it up. But it's true! Compare MA's "full-spec Mr. Eddy's nasal baritone seems to be bet trum-of-sound" performance with higher... priced speakers. Convince yourself that your ter preserved than Miss MacDonald's rather stereo speaker investment can be minimized Schraffty soprano, but together they do without sacrificing Quality. If stereo is in your future plans, single R&A speakers manage to recapture those dear, dead, ro offer superb Hi-Fi enjoyment at a most mantic days when hearts were always happy sensible price. Coaxial construction! in May. ' S. G. 8". 10" and 12" models ... Alcomax III Aniso-tropic Magnet system of 12,000 Gauss Flux Densities. • MATTY MALNECK ORCHESTRA At better Hi-Pi dealers. WILLIAM HOLDEN : AS I HEAR IT. La vie Buy it ... try it .. . money back guaran tee. en rose; Diane; Tangerine; My Silent Love and 8 others. Warner Bros. B 1247 $4.98 ERCONA CORPORATION (Electronic Division) Musical Interest: For Holden fans 16 W. 46 Street, Dept. 32, N. Y. 36, N. Y. Performance: For Holden Recording: Four stars MAY 1959 83 ~ntertalnmeDt Music MisceHany MORE NEW ITEMS ~ATED AT A GLANCE Musi(ul Perform- Re(orded Title Interest un(e Sound S(ore BE GENTLE PLEASE-Ernie Coleman Trio ,f,f,f,f ,f,f,f,f ,f,f,f 11 Stella By Starlight, April In Paris, So In love, Say It Isn't So & 8 others. Warner Brothers W 1261 $3.98 DANCING AT THE MARDI GRAS-Lester Lanin Orchestra Medley of 43 dance tunes. Epic LN 3547 $3.98 FOR LOVERS-Ray Hartley (piano) and Ray Walker Orchestra 11 Heart of Paris, Secret love, A Certain Smile, Shadow of love & 8 others. . RCA Victor LPM 1870 SONGS OF OLD NAPOLI-Roberto Murolo and Guitar 11 Marionni, Lu cardillo, lo zoccolaro, Cicerenella & 8 others. Epic LC 3544 $3.98 STILL MORE-Sing Along with Mitch Miller and the gang 11 Smiles, When Day Is Done, Beer Barrel Polka, Good Night Sweetheart & 9 others. Columbia CL 1283 $3.98 AROUND THE SAMOVAR-Leonid Bolotine and Orchestra 10 Curly Haired Catherine, Song of the Volga Boatmen, lesgi nka, Moscow & 8 others. Warner Brothers W 1255 $3.98 COCKTAIL DANCING-Lester Lanin Trio 10 Medley of 56 dance tunes. Epic LN 3531 $3.98 . DANCING ROOM ONLY-Guy Lombardo Orchestra 10 Arrivederci Roma, Stardust, Autumn leaves, Fascination & 8 others. CapitolT1121 $3.98 PLAY FOR KEEPS-Jerri Adams (Ray Ellis Orchestra) 10 Fo r All W e Know, Every Night About This Time, But Not For Me & 9 oth ers. Columbia CL 1258 $3.98 . THE FRANK MOORE FOUR 10 Take The "A" Train, Frenesi, Manhattan. Night Train & 8 o the rs. Capitol T 1127 $3.98 THE GYPSY AND HIS VIOLIN-Antal Kocze and his Bond 10 Magyar Dance, Balaton Czardas, Temesva r Czardas & 3 o thers. Westminster WP 6103 $3.98 EXCITING SOUNDS FROM ROMANTIC PLACES-Leo Diamond (Harmonica) and Orchestra ,f,f,f 9 la Vie En Rose, Arrivederci Rom a, Sleepy lagoon, lili Marlene & 8 o thers. ABC-Paramount ABC 268 $3.98 MISTER PIPE ORGAN-Eddie Dunstedter at Morton Pipe Organ ,f,f,f 9 Serenade In Blue, Poinciana, Brazil, Deep Purple & 7 others. Capitol T 1128 $3.98 WORLD'S GREATEST LOVE THEMES-Joe Harnell (Piano) and Orchestra ,f,f,f 9 Medley of 12 themes fr om Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Grieg, Brahms, etc. Epic LN 3548 $3.98 DRINKING SONGS SUNG UNDER THE TABLE-The Blazers ,f,f 8 Father Dear Father, Rye Whiskey, Show Me The W ay To Go Home & 8 others. ABC-Paramount ABC 270 $3.98 INFORMALLY YOURS-The Smart Set with Orchestra 8 Careless, Mean To Me, lover Come Back To Me, Hooray Fo r love & 8 o thers. Warner Brothers W 1258 $3.98 SING ALONG AROUND THE CAMPFIRE-The Four Counselors 8 Clementine, Alouette, Good Night ladies, Red River Valley & 7 others. ABC-Paramount ABC 266 $3.98 CHANTILLY LACE-The Big Bopper 6 The Clock, Pink Petticoats, White lightni ng, Strange Kisses & 8 others. Mercury MG 20402 $3.98 Pleasing Fair " " Performanc.e: Good Adequate i1" Recorded Sound , B OK . Fair .,.. " 84 HIFI R EVIEW Golly, gang, here's an album of songs that were taken j ust from Bill Holden's movies! Not only that, but each one was ) picked by Bill himself, no foolin', and they're all played just the way he likes to hear them. And you know something, Bill doesn't always hear them the way they were l' played in the pictures. No sirree, no t Bill. Like, take for instance, you remember how Isn't It Romantic? was always played sorta gooey-like every time he and Audrey got to· gether in Sabrina? Well, Bill hears that one real fa st. And that River Kwai March -man, you should hear the way they swing out on that one now. Gee, that Bill Holden ! S. G. • UMBERTO MARCATO-THE ROMAN TIC VOICE OF UMBERTO MARCATO. A nema e co re ; Arrivederci Ro ma; Picco lissi why ma se renata and 9 othe rs. Kapp KL-1114 $3.98 profeSSionals ,f) ~ Musical Inte rest : For the heart Pe rfo rm a nce : From {he heart choose /.?(}l'OtfS Reco rd in g : A bit close Unlike the French, whose interpreters of th~ 'f--!STEREO RECORDER 50 musical romances seem to be mostly women, Sound engineers select the Roberts be cause its $349 the Italian singers of amore are usually recording and playback features fulfill the highest men. One of the newest is Umberto Mar standards of professional performance. Precision cato, who whispers his emotions with ap· elements that make for .smooth, controlled operation NOW! RECORD IN STEREO propria te fervor in both Italian and English, are Roberts calibrated V.U. meter, exclusive, new ROBE'RTS MATCHING no matter if the origins of the songs are MULTI-RASE HEAD (for full track erase in stereo Viennese (Fascination) , American (ehe record ing) and hys teresis synchronous mo tor. RECORDING AMPLIFIER Sera Sera, Around the World) or French Responding faithfully from 40 to 15,000 CPS, the PROVIDES IDEAL SECOND CHAN· (Autumn Leaves) . S. G. Robert s sa t isfie s discriminating audioph iles in N EL PLAYBACK AND RECORD. their 1110st exacting listenin g and recording needs. COMPLETE WITH ROBERTS RECORDER ...... • •. •• •• • •• , • SALUTE TO THE SMOOTH BANDS ROBERTS ELECTRONICS Inc. 00 FREDDY MARTIN AND HIS ORCHESTRA. 1028 N. La Brea Avenue, Hollywood 38, California $499 Do es Yo ur Heart Beat Fo r Me ? ; Accent O n Yo uth; Moo nlight Sere nade a nd 9 ot he rs. Capitol T 1116 $3 .98 Musi cal Interest : Excellent concept From the pioneer in ceramIcs for electronics Pe rformance : Fine, loving replicas Record ing: Superior Historically, this is an intriguing record. Freddy Martin has recreated the styles of twelve of the best known "sweet bands" of ~lfERIEfID the Thirties and Forties, even unto the "Here's the band again" introduction to Dick Jurgens. It's the only available an the new single thology I know of that allows immediately available comparisons between these lead ers, who certainly did establish strongly in ceraOOc element divid ual styles. Although this kind of music is not my Stereophonic area of preference or specialization, I did enjoy hearing all these styles come alive again, because it also reanimated some rec cartridge ollections of the era with which these "sweet" bands were connected. Very good notes by Martin. DYNAMIC BALANCING MAKES THE DIFFERENCE The bands saluted are Lawrence Welk, DYNA MIC BALA N C ING during m anufacture provides full ster eo repr o Russ Morgan, Ambrose, Henry King, Hal duct ion. S INGLE ELEMENT D E SIG N offers b alanced o utputs; excellent Kemp, Clyde McCoy, Dick Jurgens, Guy separation of 20 db over full a udio-freq uency ran ge, with .e q~a l outputs Lombardo, Orville Knapp, Wayne King, from bot h channels. C om patible wit h ster eo a nd monop h OnIC diSCS. Glenn Miller, and Ray Noble. N. H . SPECIFICA. TlONS RESPONSE: 20 to 16,000 cps. OUTPUT VOLTAGE: 0.5 vrms ot 1 KC each channel. COMPLIANCE: • OPEN FIRE, TWO GUITARS featuring 3 x 10-6 em/dyne vertical & lateral. RECOMMENDED LOAD: 2 megohms. RECOMMENDED JOHNNY MATHIS. Te nd e rly ; I C once n TRACKING PRESSU'RE: 5-6 grams. CHANNEL SEPARATION: 20 db. STYLlI: Dual tip; 0.7 mil dio t ra te On Yo u; Pl ease Be Kind; My Funny mond or sopphire, and 3 mil sapphire. MOUNTING DIMENSIONS: EIA Standard 'lI6/1 & Y2/1 centers. Va lentine a nd 8 others. Columbia CL 1270 $3 .98 For additional information, see your Authorized E RIE Distributor Musical In terest: Middling Pe rfo rm ance: Uneven Re co rding: Elegant This.is not Mathis's best LP, though any ~~D I~J;~~P'~~ thing by him these days has the Midas J!A~ -eRiE RESISTOR CORPORATION MAIN OFFICES' eRIE. PA . USA touch. He is more excitable th an usual ; MAY 1959 85 RATE: 35¢ per word. Minimum 10 words. July Issue closes May 4th. Send order and remiltance to: HiFI REVIEW, One Park Ave., New York 16, N. Y. THOUSANDS of Satisfied Audiophiles Buying Famous F&B Recording Tape-Top Quality 30·15000 CPS Guaranteed-Complete Satisfaction or Money Refunded -Compare these Low-Low Prices. 600 Ft. 5" Reel Acetate Base-3 for $2.85. 900 Ft. 5" Reel-Acetate Base-3 for $3.40. 900 Ft. 5" Reel-Mylar Base-3 for $4.20. 1200 Ft. 7" Reel-Acetate Base-3 for $3.95. 1800 Ft. 7" Reel-Acetate Base-3 for $5.25. 1800 Ft. 7" Reel-Mylar Base-3 for $6.85. GOVERNMENT Surplus Receivers, Transmitters, Snoop 2400 Ft. 7" Reel-Mylar Base-3 for $10.60. Mall erscopes, Parabolic Reflectors, Picture Catalog 10¢. Orders Filled. Please add 15¢ PP & Handling-Per A HANDY GUIDE TO PRODUCTS AND SERVICES, NOT Meshna, Malden 48, Mass. Reel. Write for free Complete Hi-Fi Catalog. Florman NECESSARILY IN THE HIGH FIDELITY FIELD, BUT OF WIDE GENERAL INTEREST. AMPEX, Concertone, Crown, Ferrograph, Presto, Tand & Babb, Inc., 68 W. 45th St., N. Y. 36, N. Y. berg, Pentron, Bell, Sherwood , Rek-O-Kut, Dynakit, RECORDERS, Tape Decks, Stereo Tapes, Accessories, others. Trades. Boynton StudiO, Dept. HM, 10 Pennsyl Excel/ent Values, Catalogue, EFSCO Sales Company, vania Ave., Tuckahoe, N. Y. 270 Concord, West Hempstead , New York. FREE Monthly HI-Fi Magazine. Write for quotation on " SPACE Ship to Mars" ! Astonishing, professionally any Hi Fidelity components. Sound Reproduction Inc., produced 15 minute tape (7'I2-full track) takes you 34 New St. , Newark, N. J. Mitchell 2-6816. 10 Mars on Space Ship R-9, A fantastic adventure in HI-FI Haven, New Jersey's newest and finest sound high fidelity sound effects, narrated by famous radio center. Write for information on unique mail order TV personality. Never before released to the public. Economy! Anscochrome, Ektachrome film de plan that offers professional advice and low prices. $5.00 postpaid or COD. Delco Productions, Box 140, veloping, 80¢ (20 expo 35mm rolls mounted). Color 28 Easton Avenue, New Brunswick. New Jersey. Grand Island, Nebraska. prints from transparencies-2V2x3V2 six for $1.00, BUILD your own high fidelity kits; simple instructions.· CUSTOM Recording and Duplicating of Tapes and 3V2X5 six for $1.50, 5x7 each 75¢, 8x10-$1.50. Lee Also, wired and tested sets available. Box 301, HI Fi Discs. Specialized Services. Write-Merle Enterprises, Jan-Lab. , Box 382, LaGrange, Illinois. Review, One Park Avenue, New York 16. Box 145, Lombard, Illinois. SAVE $$$. Fresh 8mm, 16mm B&W and color film. WESTERNERS! Buy Your Sound Equipment Near Home Home Processing Equipment. 'Free Catalog. Superior and save. money. Get our delivered prices. Free con Bulk Film Co., 442-444 N. Wells, Chicago 10. sultation service. Charles MunrO-Audio Components, 470 Linden, Carpinteria, California. "CROSSOVER network kits. Write Watson Industries; 110 Mildred, Venice, California." MOVING to · Europe: Selling $1300. Fisher Hi-FI (Cus j tom Sixty) Performance, Appearance perfect. $450.00. SCHEMATIC, Repair Instructions, HiFis, T.V.s, Ra Write: Lussenburg, 94 North 6th Street, Paterson 2, dios, Phonographs, Tape Recorders, 99¢ . Send Make, tlew Jers.ey. Model Number. "Radio Coop," Box 5938, Kansas City EARN Extra money selling advertising book matches. GARRARD RC98 Changer mounted, Fairchild Cartridge 11, Missouri. Free samples furnished. Matchcorp, Dept. MD-59 , Chicago 32, Illinois. 225A like new $60, or best offer. Dr. Museles. 91 HI-FI Doctor-Will solve your hi-fi problems on-the Esmond, Dorchester, Mass. spot. Acoustic, Audio, Radio Engineer. Stereo design MAKE $25·$50 Week, clipping newspaper items for STEREO equipment: Stereo Preamp Two-32 Watt Am ing. Professional visits, day, evening, New York area. publishers. Some clippings worth $5.00 each. Par plifiers AM-FM Tuner Miracord Stereo Changer. Pen William Bohn, Plaza 7-8569, weeks days. ticulars free. National, 81 -DG, Knickerbocker Station. New York. . tron Tape recorder stereo play back plus Tapes , Mike. PROFESSIONAL HI-FI repairs. New precision method Write Martines, 29 April Lane, Hicksville, New York. restores peak performance inexpensively. Laboratory PRICES? The Best! Factory-sealed Hi-Fi components? test report included. Bring or ship defective com Yes! Send for Free Catalog. Audion, 25R Oxford Road, ponents to Bremy Electronics, 394 East 18th Street, Massapequa, L. I., N. Y. Paterson 4, New Jersey. Tel. : LAmbert 5-1191. UNUSUAL Values, HI-FI Components, tapes and tape ALL Makes High Fidelity Speakers Repaired. Amprlte, recorders. Free Catalogue MR. Stereo Center, 51 70 Vesey St., N. Y. 7, N. Y. BA 7-2580. W. 35 St., N. Y. C. 1. FOR Saie-Custom-Bilt Heathkit Preamps: WA-P2 1959 INDUSTRY Training. Home·Study. Drafting, De ($25.00); SP-2 ($72.50); Excellent quality. A. Stieg sign , Electronics. Aero Tech, 2162·ZD Sunset Blvd., litz, 179 Beach 66 St., Arverne 92. N. Y. Los Angeles 26, Calif. DISGUSTED with "HI" Hi Fi Prices? Unusual Dis counts On Your High Fidelity Requirements. Write Key Electronics, 120 Liberty St., New York 6, N. Y. EVergreen 4-6071. SOUNDTASHC-That's what our customers are saying HI-FI Salons and Record Stores! Someone "borrowing" upon receiving our price sheets on our latest High your personal copy of Hi-Fi Review each month? You Fidelity Stereo and Monaural, amplifiers, tuners, turn ought to be taking advantage of Hi-FI Review's con tables, speakers, tape recorders, kits. All brand new venient resale plan. Sell copies in your store . .• with factory guarantee. Prompt in-stock service. Free perform a good service for your customers ... with GIGANTIC Collection Free! Includes triangles, early selector and planning booklet #M, available on re no risk involved. For details, write: Direct Sales De United States, animals, commemoratives, British Col quest. Audio World , 2057 Coney Island Ave., Brooklyn partment, Hi-Fi Review, One Park Avenue, New York onies, high value pictorials, etc. Complete collection 23, N. Y. 16, New York. plus big illustrated magazine all free. Send 5¢ for lP RECORD Cleaning Cloth in Handy Case, Only 25¢! postage. Gray Stamp Company, Dept. Z2, Toronto, Costs $1.00 in stores. To introduce "Record Collec Canada. tor's Catalog" included Free! Leslie Creations, Dept. FREE-Mint British Colonies from Brunei, Solomon Is HFR-1, Lafayette Hill, Pa • . lands, Negri Sembilan; Sarawak, St. Christopher, Nevis, Tregganu, Gilbert Ellice. Free with approvals. WANTEDI Viking, Great Neck 35, N. Y. BET you haven't stamps from North West Pacific Is HI-FI EQUIPMENT, lands! Absolutely free with approvals, elusive: North West Pacific Islands stamp. Viking, Great Neck 120, ACCESSORI ES N. Y. OR RECORDS! The 125,000 people who purchase HiFi REVIEW are always in the TAPE recorders, hi fi components, Sleep Learning i;,quipment, tapes. Unusual values. Free Catalog. market for a good buy. So if you Dressner, 69-02HF 174 Street, Flushing 65, New York. have something to sell, let HiFi LEARN While Asleep with amazing new Electronics . REVIEW readers know about it· AESTHETICIANS: Abstractions created from free ques Educa~or endless tape recorder. Details Free. Research through our classified columns. It tionnaire. Box 2301, Norman, Oklahoma. ASSOCiation, Box 24-S, Olympia, Wash. costs very little; just 35¢ a word. OPTICAL Bargains-Request free Giant Catalog " CJ." RECORDS & Tapes-Factory 'Fresh-All Labels-Dis~ Minimum message: 10 words. For 96 pages-Astronomical Telescopes, Microscopes, count Prlces~Free Catalog. GTRS. Box A-102, Wan further information, write: Lenses, Binoculars, Kits, Parts. Amazing war surplus tagh, N. Y. bargains. Edmund Scientific Co., Barrington, New Martin Lincoln · Jersey. HI -FI Tape .Buy splice free. 40/15,000 CPS. Perma nently lUbricated. Money back guarantee. 7" boxed HI FI REVIEW TRADE your monaural (mint condition) LP's in for reels. Acetate 1200' 1V2 mil 4/ $5,20. 1800' 1 mil Stereo. Write: The Definitive Record Club-11024 Mag 4/ $6.76. Mylar 1800' 1 mil 4/ $9.60. 2400' V2 mil One Park Avenue nolia Blvd., North Hollywood, California. 4/ $13 .00 . . Postage 15¢ per reel. Hi-Sonic Box 86N New York 16, New York BARBELLS, Courses, Apparatus . Catalogue 10¢. Good tlew York 63, N. Y. " Barbell Co., Dept. D, Siloam Springs, Arkansas. 36 HIFI REVIEW YOUR COPIES OF there are times when he strams and all his unsure intonation is exposed. He is al· most cloying in his sweetness on Bye Bye BEETHOVEN· Blackbird. But Columbia has given him the HiFi best of recording and some sympathetic ac I:I1!Jm'J companiment by guitars and bass. R. J. G. FOR THREE • CARMEN McRAE BOOK OF BAL LADS with Orchestra directed by Frank Hunter. The Thrill Is Gone; My Romance; Please Be Kind; Angel Eye s and 8 others. Kapp KL 1117 $3.98 Musica l Interest: Popular ballads Performance: Not her best , Keep them neat ••• Recording : Good Despite the fact that this is superior pop clean ••• ready for singing, it is by no means the best of Car instant reference! men McRae, who is one of the very top girl singers around. The selection of songs Now .you can keep a year's copies of RiFi is first class and the accompaniment is REVIEW in a rich-looking leatherette file that makes it easy to locate any issue for quite sympathetic, but Carmen is basically ready reference. a rhythm si nger and these songs are all Specially designed for RiFi REVIEW. taken straight and sometimes a bit blandly. H ere is some unusual music-a concerto, a this handy file-with its distinctive, wash R.J.G_ large one, with not one soloist but three. able Kivar cover and 16-carat gold leaf Listening to it is a little like hearing a lettering-not only looks good but keeps every issue neat, clean and orderly. • GARRY MOORE - THAT WONDER· Beethoven trio and one of his symphonies at So don't risk tear.ing and soiling your cop FUL YEAR-1940 with Orchestra and Cho the same time-a musical banquet in terms ies of RiFi REVIEW-always a ready rus, Irwin Kostal and Keith Textor condo You of sheer sound! Bruno Walter conducts this source of valuable information. Order Are My Sunshine; Intermezzo; Johnson Rag fine performance. several of these RiFi REVIEW volume and 10 others . Warner Bros. W 1282 $3.98 files today. They are $2 .50 each, postpaid BEETHOVEN: Concerto in C ("Triple"); leon ore Overture No.3-John Corigliano, Violinist; -3 for $7.00, or 6 for $13.00. Satisfaction Musica l Interest: Nostalgia stuff leonard Rose. Cellist; Walter Hendl, Pianist; guaranteed, or your money back. Performance: In .the right mood Bruno Walter conducting the New York Phil Order direct from: Recording: Up-to-date harmonic Ml 5368 GUARANTEED HIGH-FIDELITY AN D JESSE JONES BOX CORP. Under the over·all title of Tha.t Wonder· STER EO- FIDELITY RECORDS BY Dept. HF /ul Year, Garry Moore devotes a portion of his weekly television program to the songs Box 5120, Philadelphia 41. Pa. -. and the fads of a particular year. With a ICOLUMBIA II (Established 1843) vocal group singing some pleasantly 'unob ® " Columbia" "Masterworks" ~ Marcl1s Reg. trusive arrangements, this is an acceptable A division of Columbia Broadcnslina' System, Inc. enough formula for rounding up a group of numbers that were either written or pop I'm walking ularized during 1940. Mr. Moore is on HiFi REVIEW HAS A hand to sing occasionally, while the theme song is used to bridge the selections by in BUYER FOR YOUR quiring, somewhat redundantly, "Do you re USED EQUIPMENT o.n call-remember at all... ?" Of course, whether 1940 was such a "wonderful year" If you have hi·fi equipment, acces • has a lot to do with geography, as the in clnsion of The Last Time I Sa.w Paris all sories or records to sell, look to the too painfully attests. S. G. classified columns of HiFi REVIEW air. for fast results. • I'VE HEARD THAT SONG BEFORE featuring PATTI PAGE. Let Me Call You Your message, placed in our classi· Sweetheart; Tenderly; Memories Of You; It fied columns, will be read by more Had To Be You and 8 others. Mercury MG than 123,000 hi·fi fans. Best of all, 20388 $3.98 your classified ad costs you only 35e Musica l Interest: Tops in pops per word (including name and ad· Perfo rmance: Good Recording: Excellent dress) . For further in formation write: There's a fine selection of material here designed to give Miss Page's voice a favor Martin Lincoln able showcase. It Had To Be You is one HiFi REVIEW of the best (and swingingest) and Sunday One Park Avenue Kind 0/ Love gets a good, intimate feeling to it. She is not a great singer, but an ex· New York 16, New York Just had my annual medical check ceedingly pleasant one and the recording up. (Smart move.J I'm making out is topnotch, live .and vibrant. R. J. G • . a check to the American Cancer UNHAPPY Society, right now-that's a smart • BLUE CHIFFON-THE GEORGE WITH "HI" move, too. SHEARING QUINTET AND ORCHESTRA. Noctu rn e ; Kinda Cute; My One And Only HI-FI PRICES? Love and 8 others. Capitol TI124 $3.98 Write us your hi-fi needs Musical Interest: To read Mary Worth by -you'll be pleasantly sur Guard your family! prised. Ask Jar ollr Jree Performance: All the notes are right audio catalog, too. Fight cancer with Recording: Very good KEY ELECTRONICS CO. a checkup and a check! George Shearing and his quintet are 120 Liberty SI. heard with a string orchestra in an innocn N.Y. 6, N.Y. . : AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY ous mood album. Shearing's piano is the EVergreen 4·6071 MAYI 1959 87 heavily {ea:ured solo instrument through· Verdon, Richard Kile y, Leona rd Ston e, Cyn out. N.H. thia Latham, Do ris Ric h and others, with Or chestra and C horus, Jay S. Blackton condo • LOVE IS A KICK featuring FRANK RCA Victor LOC·1048 $4.98 SINATRA. You Do Something To Me; Sat Musica l Interest: Infrequent urd ay Night; Deep Night; Five Minutes Perfo rmance: Fabulous More and 8 others. Colum.bia CL 1241 $3.98 Recording: First-rate Mu sica l Interest : Broad Perform ance: Excellenf That Redhead is New YOl·k's latest hit is Recording: Early hi-fi unqnestionably due to the performance of Gwen Verdon, and the recording of the These are re·issues from the last time THE FINEST OF ITS KIND ••• score does little to change the general ver Get more FM stations with the world's most Sinatra was with Columbia and, although dict. Miss Verdon's numbers are all in· powerful FM Yogi Antenna systems. he sings very well on some of them, such fused with an altogether winning quality as Deep Night and Satlbrday Night, they To be fully informed, of plaintiveness; even when she is at her are not up to what he is doing right now, send 25¢ for book most joyous, as in Look Who's In Love, or nO!" is the sound as good as what is pro· "Theme And Varia · amusing, as in ' Erbie Fitch's Twitch, she duced today. However, Sinatra fans (in tions" by L F B. Carini is still the shy little kid trying her darned other words, 9/l0ths of th e world's popula·· and containing FM est to enjoy herself and also to pl ease Station Directory. tion ) will dig them as much as I do, which others. What is also revealed on the record· is a lot. R. J. G. APPARATUS DEVELOPMENT CO. ing, possibly even more than in the theatre, is that Richard Kiley is one of the best Wethersfield 9, Connecticut THEATER & FILMS musical comedy leading men around, with a rich, mascnline voice that can do wonders even with the most ordinary lyric. ------~ • THE INN OF THE SIXTH HAPPINESS CMalcolm ArnoldI. Soun dtrack recordi ng The above preoccupation with the stars with the London Royal Phi lh armonic, Mal of the offering may lead you to believe that colm Arn ol d condo 20th Fox FOX·3011 $3.98 the songs are less than inspired. And you HI Musi cal In terest: The "Nick-Nack" score would be right. Albert Hague's music does Performance: Cinematic little to captnre the turn·of·the·century fla Recording: Tops for music portions. vor of the story, but even on its own terms Following up his o,vn lead of incorporat there is a dearth of melodic inventiveness Blnck wrought iron record cabinet "shows-o fT" over ing the Colonel Bogey March into the score or wit. Dorothy Fields' lyrical muse (a 200Fi LP record a lbumst. or numerous 7 8 RPM albums. Te n individual compartments to file your collection bv for The Bridge On the River Kwai, Mal· most cooperative one in tll e past) seems to symphonies, operas . ballets. jazz, folk. chamber and show music! Substantially constructed and fu llv as colm Arnold has done much the same thing have temporarily deserted her, except in sembled. it measul'Cs 25"x22"x10" with v inyl tippe d leg's. Ple;lse remit 89.95 with order. o r ehg'. Din e rs' by utilizing the ancien t children's marching the music hall turn 'ETbie Fitch's Twitch Acet. Sma1J express ehg'. collected on $ ~i ~~NXIL ~;&~fuY~'Nxc~eaGtA~~N~-m:~us 9.95 song, This Old Man, for the most dramatic or the fnnny piece of jumbled advice called © LESLIE CREATIONS. Dept. IlL. Lafayette Hill, Pa. Rush my Record Cabinet! I enclose $9.95 Ck. or M.O. moment in The Inn OJ the Sixth Ha.ppi Behave Yourself. Nanle •••• ••••••• ••••••• •••••••••.•••• •• •••• ness. The emotional impact of this song The score contains many patter num·bers, r r..AddTCS3 ______••••••••••••••••••••• •• •••• •••••• •• •~ easily transcends musical values, and is but such items as lust For Once and The City •••••• .••.•. ••• . ••• Zone . • .. State . .. . •• •• especially effective as the voices are first Uncle Sam Rag lack the gaiety implied in heard in the distance and then seem to their IYTics. Possibly tile most original come closer and closer. Otherwise, the idea, as well as the most atu·active melody, "BUCK STRETCHER" film 's main theme, which starts out with is to be found in She's lust Not Enough HI-FI VALUES! the first four notes of Almost Like Being Woman jor Me, in which Mr. Kiley, kidded Expand the buying power In Love, get's quite a workout, and there is along by Leonard Stone, reveals his true of your Hi-Fi dollar at the added attraction of transitional dia feelings for Miss Verdon while still pro· Sun Radio with substantial savings on new and fully logue inserted between musical sequences_ testing, "she's not enough woman for me." guaranteed name brand S. G. Later, with an affinnative litle, the same Hi-Fi components! tune is mated to an almost aggressively dac· Send for our special price quo fations and our Hi-Fi package • PORGY AND B.ESS (George Gersh tylic rhythm scheme, but Mr. Kiley's deliv· specials! Dept. W9 win>. Cootie Wi llia ms, Re x Stewart, Hilton ery makes it easy to forgive combining SUN Radio & EI. Why Don't They confuse the whole picture, a variety of new methods to achieve the stereophonic effect has been proposed by • Several members of my staff have recently spent the "Big Boys." Bell Telephone has tested a compatible considerable time working with stereo AM/FM tuners. system via AM/FM/TV that left listeners and viewers A part of their work is published on page 45. wondering what it was all about. RCA, meanwhile, car Getting so close to such a variety of stereo tuners, ries out mysterious AMIAM stereo broadcasts-not using we were all impressed by the occasional lack of "human their originally proposed single sideband technique-in engineering" that went into functional designs. While the wee hours of the morning. Practically all manufac ofttimes the electronic circuitry is superb, the manu turers with Crosby multiplex adapters are reluctant to facturer seemingly has given little thought to the possible sell them until the Federal Communications Commission use of his equipment. For example, we would earnestly decides on a standard-FM multiplex system. Meanwhile, recommend that all AM tuner manufacturers (stereo or sales of stereo AM/FM tuners scramble toward new mono) keep those ferrite rod antennas away from the heights. The .audiophile may well ask, -"Where will it vicinity of power transformers. One tuner-which we all end?" tested at considerable length-had a tunable hum due Those in the know, and capable of objective views, solely to the proximity of the ferrite AM antenna rod feel that stereo broadcasting is more desired by the and the power transformer. Also, more 'manufacturers listener than it is by the stations themselves. -This is should go in for mounting the ferrite rods on pivots. in sharp contrast to color TV, where the shoe has been Such AM antennas are directional and there is always on the other foot. Most broadcasting stations are still a good chance that your favorite AM station may be leery of stereo discs. Quality is a major problem. Discs off a null point of the antenna. seem to be okay in the home, but lack the quality For the past few months we have been agitating for reqUIred by broadcasting stations-of good ster.eo .tapes more constructive thinking relative to mounting the which are now in extremely short supply. primary hi-fi equipment off-on switch on the tuner. A FM multiplex enthusiasts privately admit that the FCC . surprising number of amplifiers still are turned off and has good reason for dragging its feet and not ma~ing a on by rotating the volume control. We think th~t the hasty decision. Rather than subject itself to possible volume control should be left fixed and that either a avenues of criticism, the FCC may wen let 1959 go by push-button off-on switch can be installed in the ampli without okaying FM multiplex. Simultaneousl'}', it is ' fier (or a rotary switch) or that the equipment be turned even more doubtful that it will approve 'various "com on from the tuner. A possible solution to this dilemma patible" AM methods now being offered to the .public might be putting in a two-way, three-position a.c. switch as being as good as straight FM multiplex. on the tuner panel. In one position, the tuner and amplifier can be turned on simultaneously. In the second position the amplifier can be turned on but the tuner . And Now Stereo Cartridges and Tone Arms stays off-permitting the amplifier to be used for playing records while not using up electricity to heat up the • CU's man in. the white coat recently introduced some tuner. In the third position, the whole hi-fi rig would new terms ( t" sha~ter ; '" motional impedance, etc.) into be turned off. the lexi~on of- the ' hi~ fi 'enthusiast. In the March issue of Stereo tuner manufacturers should also realize that "Consumer Reports" he ciaims to have thoroughly tested such equipment will ·often be used to listen to straight stereo cal'triciges and tone arms. Once again he went out AM or FM broadcasts. Thus, the audiophile needs a on a limb, :r:ecommending certain units and damning visual indicator to tell him quickly whether he is listen others. Fortunately-at least on this occasion-there ap ing to AM or FM. Practically every stereo tuner that pears to have been a somewha"t greater sampling of we have tested to date seems to be predicated upon the available consumer items. Few knowledgeable audio assumption that all audiophiles have a long memory. philes question the "check-rated" Shure cartridge/ESL Bull's-eye lamps or an additional tuning indicator could tone arm combination and much to my surprise, there be used to signify AM versus FM inputs. Certainly the was no touting of a "bargain" stereo cartridge and tone solution is not as difficult as a few manufacturers make arm. Oddly enough, some six samples of the Shure it appear. cartridge were tested but as far as we can determine, only one sample of each of the remaining 21 cartridges Multiplex-How Soon, If Ever? was evaluated. The purpose of this shenanigan remains a mystery as does CU's continued iecommendation of • Proponents of stereo broadcasting-especially those equipment long since discontinued-D&R turntables, using AM/FM or AMI AM equipment-refuse to roll Bogen DB130 amplifiers, etc. Also, I cannot help but -over ~n:Q play dead now .that FM multiplex is on the wonder why C'onsumers Union refuses to test hi·fi equip. horizon. In fact, the first optimistic estimates regarding ment in the same manner. as most manufacturers-in multiplex are rapidly being re-evaluated, as storm clouds this case, measuring frequency response of the individual press in on the supposedly bright future of FM multiplex channels vs. channel-to-channel separation. If Consumers from all sides. ' Union would recognize that the hi-fi component manu· At this writing, there are at least nine mutations of facturers are .little people, not multi-million-dollar con the FM sub-carrier multiplex idea-all slightly different cerns ready and eager to bilk the public, I could per and all claiming to be superior to any other system. To sonally have more credence in their test procedures. 90 PRINTED IN U.S.A. HIFI REVIEW Ralph Bellamy, starring in "Sunrise At Campobello", listens to stereo on his Collaro changer and Goodmans Triaxonal Speaker System. CollarO-yoUr silent partner for Stereo Listen to stereo records and discover the most exciting way of c. Spindle assemhly: Typical of Collaro precision quality listening to music in your home. Listen to the new Collaro is the spindle shaft which is micro-polished to .000006 (6 stereo changer and discover the changer which provides truly millionths of an inch) for smoothness - insuring no injury silent performance to meet the rigid quality demands of to records. stereo. Here's why Collaro is your best buy: There are three Collaro changers priced from $38.S0 to $49.S0. A. Five-terminal plug-in head: Exclusive with Collaro. The changer illustrated here is the new Continental, Model Provides two completely independent circuits thus guaran· TSC-840. teeing the ultimate in noise·reduction circuitry. For full information write to Dept. MRS Rockbar Corporation, Mamaroneck, N. Y. B. Transcription-type tone arm: As records pile up on a changer, tracking pressure tends to increase. Result may be damage to records or sensitive stereo cartridge. This can't happen with the Collaro counter·balanced arm which varies less than 1 gram in pressure between the top and bottom of a stack of records. Arm accepts any standard stereo or mon aural cartridge. R~ American sales representative for Collaro Ltd. & other fine companies. Rce COMPARE ALL FIVE LOUDSPEAKERS WOLVE RINE SP EAKER SP EAK ER SPEAK ER A • C Die Ca sl Frome Ve. No No No Y•• Rodo x Cone Ve. No No Ye. No Ed gewise·Wound Voice Coit Ve. No No No Ve. G lass Coil Fo rm Ve. No No No No low-Silhouette No Frome Ve. No No Ve. l one -Throw Ve. Ve. Ve. Ve. No Voice Coil Slug -Type Magnet Ve. Ve. Ve. No Yr.s lS 12 $19.50 NET PRICE lS 8 $18.00 $23.75 $19.50 $33.00 Fo r along the wall •• THE LANCASTER Handsom e and func tional direct Direct rad iator en cl osure for 8" radiator en closure for 12 " spea kers. spea ke rs. Excel lent for use in Has pre-cut ports for HFl and stereo pa irs. Has pre-cut port for MFI Ste p·Up· Ki ts. Fin is hed addition of HFI Step·Up ·Kit. on four si des fo r high -boy HWD , 11 " X 23';''' X 10 " or low-boy use, Aud ioph ile Ne t HWD, 25" X 20" X 14 " $34.50 Audiophile Ne t $48.00 I