{"product_id":"toscanini-conducts-brahms-1948-53-pasc678","title":"TOSCANINI conducts Brahms (1948-53) - PASC678","description":"overviewfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eAcademic Festival Overture\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eGesang der Parzen\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eHaydn Variations\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eHungarian Dances\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eTragic Overture\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003eLive and studio recordings, 1948-53\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003eTotal duration: 64:12\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eRobert Shaw Chorale\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eNBC Symphony Orchestra\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003econducted by \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eArturo Toscanini\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_titlefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_quotefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_bodyfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9main_samplefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fsamples\/PASC678.mp3578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fProducer's Note578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcontent578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\nThis release brings together five of Toscanini’s Brahms recordings with the\nNBC Symphony Orchestra outside of the symphonies and concertos which were\nofficially sanctioned for release by RCA during the conductor’s lifetime.\nThe recordings date from between 1948 and 1953 and were generally\nwell-recorded for their day. Nevertheless I found that considerable\nimprovements in sound quality were possible using Pristine’s Ambient Stereo\nXR remastering system, which brings with it a much fuller, warmer and\nrealistic sound to the NBC orchestra.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nI have presented the recordings in the order in which they were recorded,\nbeginning with the \u003cem\u003eAcademic Festival Overture\u003c\/em\u003e, the first of two\nrecordings here that were broadcast from NBC’s Studio 8H in 1948 as part of\na Brahms festival. This performance, the third of three given by Toscanini\nwith the orchestra, was issued on LP by RCA and later on CD, and has not\nfaired well with the critics – just possibly because, as Mortimer H. Frank\npoints out, “RCA’s CD transfer of that performance remains as painfully\nshrill and unmusical as its previous LP issue.” Having heard that CD issue\nI can only agree – and note that this recording perhaps above all others\nhas benefitted most from this XR remastering, demanding a full reappraisal\nof the performance from anyone who already knows it.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nThe rather little-known \u003cem\u003eGesang der Parzen\u003c\/em\u003e (‘Song of the Fates’)\nfor chorus and orchestra may well have been Toscanini’s only performance of\nthe work – certainly it was his only US performance. Described by Frank as\n“one of the most imaginative strokes of programming” Toscanini made in his\n1948 Brahms cycle – it was indeed a world première recording of the piece.\nHere the original RCA sound is better than the previous overture, but again\nhas a tendence towards a hard sound that lacks warmth and resonance, both\nof which I’ve endeavoured to correct. The Robert Shaw Chorale is in fine\nvoice!\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nThe three remaining recordings were made in Carnegie Hall, New York. From\n1952 a “studio” performance of the \u003cem\u003eHaydn Variations\u003c\/em\u003e was well\nrecorded by RCA for LP release – here the XR remastering opens out the\noccasionally somewhat restricted sound of the original. It was a piece\nToscanini conducted many times, with a pretty clear concept that remained\nlargely unchanging over the years. Frank writes: “every one of Toscanini’s\nperformances of this score has an expressive range, flair for drama, and\nprevailing unity unmatched in the surviving work of any of his peers.\nClearly this was a Toscanini specialty.”\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nFrom 1953 we have a “studio” recording of four \u003cem\u003eHungarian Dances\u003c\/em\u003e\nand a broadcast recording of the \u003cem\u003eTragic Overture\u003c\/em\u003e, which rounds off\nthis release. In its original release the \u003cem\u003eHungarian Dances\u003c\/em\u003e sound\nparticularly dry and quite harsh. It’s probably the least successful of the\nthree Carnegie Hall recordings here in its original release form, though it\nhas to be said that \u003cem\u003eboth\u003c\/em\u003e 1953 recordings represented a step down\nsonically from the success of the previous year’s \u003cem\u003eHaydn Variations\u003c\/em\u003e\n. I’m delighted to say the \u003cem\u003eDances\u003c\/em\u003e are transformed by XR here –\nperformances which matched closely those he broadcast with the NBC\norchestra of the only four he chose to conduct in the US – nos. 1, 17, 20\nand 21. To these ears they are far more enjoyable to listen to now than\npreviously!\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nFinally the \u003cem\u003eTragic Overture\u003c\/em\u003e, his final performance of a work\nToscanini first conducted during the composer’s lifetime, yet one which is\nunique in his approach after many previous outings. Says Frank: “Toscanini\ndirected a reading in which the composer’s crabbed polyphony emerged in\nsharply focused texture, generating an austere tension. It is as if the\nconductor had completely rethought the work…” As with the previous\nrecording, this new remastering brings out the rich sonority of the NBC\norchestra that was somewhat lacking in the RCA issues, as well as\nrecreating a real sense of the acoustic space of Carnegie Hall that was\nlargely lost in the original broadcast.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAndrew Rose\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fFull Track Listing578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5ftrack_listing578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 24px;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eTOSCANINI \u003c\/b\u003econducts Brahms\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e1. \u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eAcademic Festival Overture, Op.80\u003c\/span\u003e  (10:29)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003erecorded 6 November 1948\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e2. \u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eGesang der Parzen*, Op.89\u003c\/span\u003e  (14:02)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003erecorded 27 November 1948\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eVariations on a Theme by Haydn, Op.56\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e3. Theme. Andante  (1:57)\u003cbr\u003e4. Variation 1. Poco più animato  (1:10)\u003cbr\u003e5. Variation 2. Più vivace  (0:56)\u003cbr\u003e6. Variation 3. Con moto  (1:47)\u003cbr\u003e7. Variation 4. Andante con moto  (2:06)\u003cbr\u003e8. Variation 5. Vivace  (0:51)\u003cbr\u003e9. Variation 6. Vivace  (1:09)\u003cbr\u003e10. Variation 7. Grazioso  (2:05)\u003cbr\u003e11. Variation 8. Presto non troppo  (0:55)\u003cbr\u003e12. Finale. Andante  (3:38)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003erecorded 4 February 1952\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eHungarian Dances, WoO 1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e13. Dance No. 1 In G Minor  (2:50)\u003cbr\u003e14. Dance No. 17 In F Sharp Minor  (3:05)\u003cbr\u003e15. Dance No. 20 In E Minor  (1:43)\u003cbr\u003e16. Dance No. 21 In E Minor  (1:35)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003erecorded 17 February 1953\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003e17. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eBRAHMS \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eTragic Overture, Op.81\u003c\/span\u003e  (13:54)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003erecorded 22 November 1953\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eNBC Symphony Orchestra\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003econducted by \u003cb\u003eArturo Toscanini \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e*Robert Shaw Chorale\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDirected by \u003cb\u003eRobert Shaw\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eXR Remastered by  Andrew Rose\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCover artwork based on a photograph of Toscanini\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eRecording locations:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1-2: Studio 8H, Radio City, New York\u003cbr\u003e3-17: Carnegie Hall, New York\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHungarian Dances: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1. Arr. Brahms\u003cbr\u003e17, 20, 21: Arr. Dvořák  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTotal duration:  64:12  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fCover Art578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcover_art578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcovers\/thumbs\/PASC678.jpg578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcovers\/PASC678.pdf578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f","brand":"Pristine Classical","offers":[{"title":"Ambient Stereo 24-bit FLAC","offer_id":55010093957486,"sku":"kap1789306651221","price":13.92,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Ambient Stereo 16-bit FLAC","offer_id":55010093990254,"sku":"cjr1789306651222","price":8.55,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"320kbps Ambient Stereo MP3","offer_id":55010094023022,"sku":"fjy1789306651223","price":6.58,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0915\/3986\/5966\/files\/toscanini-conducts-brahms-1948-53---pasc678_1.jpg?v=1789306658","url":"https:\/\/www.harborviewgoods.shop\/products\/toscanini-conducts-brahms-1948-53-pasc678","provider":"My Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}