Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 3, No. 10 (1929-07)

326 The Phonograph Monthly Review class, Lover, Come Back to Me! and The Vaga- bond King Waltz sung by Jessica Dragonette, and the Anglo-Persians (under Louis Katzman) heard in vivacious performances of the Dance of the Paper Dolls and The Toymaker's Dream. There are also the inevitable extensive and ex- cellent dance and popular vocal lists. Two album sets top the Victor list, Gilbert and Sullivan's Trial By Jury, performed by the D'Oyly Carte Company, and Schumann's String Quartet in A minor, played by the Flonzaley Quartet. Both are highly meritous, and the latter is particularly significant in that the Flonzaley Quartet has now retired from the concert stage and henceforth can be heard only on records. There are two important orchestral works, each recorded on two disks: Tchaikowsky's complete Capriccio Italien, played in superb fashion by Dr. Stokowski and the Philadelphia Symphony, and the Second Peer Gynt Suite, given competent performance by Eugene Goossens and a Sym- phony Orchestra. The current release in the Met- ropolitan Opera House Series is Rosa Ponselle's Casta Diva aria from Norma, the performance of which created a sensation at the recent revival of this opera at the Metropolitan. Chaliapin has one of the best of his recent records in a two-part version of Leporello's aria from Don Giovanni, a masterpiece of dramatic interpretation. Richard Crooks sings two familiar Victor Herbert airs; and three young contest winners who were heard in Schubert Memorial Concerts last fall are each represented by a ten-inch disk. Muriel Kerr, pianist, plays Scriabin's Etudes in C sharp minor and D flat major; Sadah Shuchari, violinist, plays the Glazounow-Kochanski Melodie Arabe and Francoeur-Kreisler Sicilienne and Rigaudon; and Isabelle Yalkovsky plays Debussy's Prelude in A minor and Godowsky's Alt-Wien from “Triakon- tameron." All three show both exceptional tech- nical proficiency and genuine musical feeling. Among the popular records mention should be made of the Victor Salon Orchestra's smooth per- formance of Chinese Lullaby and Pearl O'Mine, and the Utica Institute Jubilee Singers' versions of two old Negro folksongs, Chicken and Peter on the Sea. Eddie Cantor, Van and Schenck, Mor- ton Downey and other stage stars are well rep- resented. There are a number of interesting “finds" in the foreign lists of the American companies. From Victor we have a two-part version of Johann Strauss' Danube Maiden Waltz, played by Knappertsbusch and the Berlin State Orchestra; a new Zenatello record of arias from Manon and Tosca; brisk light performances by the Marek Weber and Ferdy Kaufmann orchestras; and a series of unusually interesting Chinese records, sounding very odd and novel to western ears. Odeon features two new march couplings by the Grand Odeon Orchestra (Infantry and Grenadier Marches, and Einzug der Gladiatoren and Abs- chied der Gladiatoren) ; a new tango coupling by the Dajos Bela Orchestra (Tango Printemps and Roses and Women) ; two airs from Lehar's “Friederike" sung by Richard Tauber; and a fine July, 1929 J ISV choral record by the Erk'Scher Mannergesang- verein. Columbia offers a two-part Medley of In- ternational Airs played by the International Or- chestra, Mexicali Rose and Amalia waltzes by the Columbia Mexican Orchestra, long series of Irish and Porto Rican records, and a series of record- ings of the popular songs Christina and Coquette sung in several foreign languages. Brunswick's leaders are three disks of French songs by Louis Chartier, symphonic marches by the Banda Mar- ranzini, Italian songs by Gilda Mignonette, bril- liant marches by the Banda Municipal, and an unusually extensive Spanish-Mexican and Central American list. As all three of the leading American importers generally have the same works in stock about the same time, we are discontinuing our practice of giving credit to one specific firm in our reviews of imported records. Instead these reviews will be followed by a line stating that the works are available from the American importers. Pur- chasers should try for new works first with their regular importer; if he does not have the work in stock it is possible that the others will. In any case, the importers' advertisements should be re- ferred to in order to learn what they are featur- ing each month. This month we have received fewer important works than usual, but among them are the new complete Carmen set conducted by Coppola for the French H. M. V., Molajoli's version of Respighi's Pines of Rome, the Bach- Elgar Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, and the new Polydor recording of Scherazade conducted by Oskar Fried. The National Gramophonic Society in London has sent us their last two releases, Mozart's Quin- tet in E flat for piano, oboe, horn, clarinet, and bassoon; and Schubert String Quartet in B flat. An all-star ensemble plays the first work, and the International String Quartet the second. Both are reviewed elsewhere in this issue. In England as in this country the effects of midseason slackening are to be seen in the release lists of the leading companies. Two major works sets are featured by the British Columbia Com- pany, however,—Molajoli's version of The Pines of Rome and a six-disk recording of Cesar Franck's Quartet in D, played by the London String Quartet. There are three orchestral works, each in two parts: Finlandia played by Sir Henry Wood and the New Queen's Hall Orches- tra; Johann Strauss' Wienerblut Waltz by Bruno Walter and the Berlin State Orchestra; and Lalo's Norwegian Rhapsody by Pierre Chagnon and the Paris Symphony. (The last work was reviewed in these pages several months ago from the French pressing.) Also for Columbia, Edouard Commette plays a Scherzo of his own on the Lyons Cathedral Organ; Gentile, Granda, Stignani, and Galeffi are heard in the Prelude and Duke's Song and Quar- tet from Rigoletto; the Paris Opera House Chorus sings the Soldiers' Chorus and La Kermesse from Faust; Francis Russell sings English versions of Erik's Song and the Steerman's Song from The Flying Dutchman; and the London Theatre Or-