Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 3, No. 1 (1928-10)

The Phonograph Monthly Review October, 1928 8 ven (and Beethovenish, if you question the “Jener’s” authenticity) works. His acoustical Second, “Eroica”, and Fourth were also excellent and deserve the new process; while they could hardly hope to surpass the best existing versions, they would surely be worthy of nearly equal con- sideration. The remaining symphonies provide graver problems. Stokowski’s Seventh towers about the other versions of the great “Dance Symphony”, although Strauss’ set is not without less conspicu- ous merits and Weingartner’s sober orthodoxy continues to find defenders (cf. Dr. Britzius’ comparative study of Weingartner and Stokow- ski in' The Phonograph Monthly Review for January, 1928.) The Eighth is available electri- cally by Weingartner and Klemperer. I am unfamiliar with the latter’s set; it is probably sound in conception but too leaden footed in exe- cution. Weingartner’s and the several acoustical versions have never (to the best of my know- ledge) satisfied a single admirer of Beethoven’s “Little” and “friendliest” symphony. Beyond a doubt this work is the most flagrant failure chalked up against the phonograph. When the present Schubert, Brahms, and Wagner pre- dominance wanes a little, I hope that the Eighth will be among the first Beethoven works to be tackled again. Mengelberg’s astonishingly full- blooded and brusque recording of the Allegretto and the memory of his wholly delightful concert performance give him first right to fill an ugly gap in recorded literature. Harty is about the only other man one would dare entrust it to, al- ways excepting (it goes without saying) Tos- canini, who might easily surpass any and all of the present Beethoven works. I should particu- larly like to hear him record the gracious perfec- tion of his performance of the First , but I sup- pose the Eighth and above all the Ninth demand his talents most strongly. For various non-musi- cal reasons the appearance of these works from him is extremely unlikely. The Coates and Wein- gartner versions of the Ninth are both good—that is, as good as may be; neither is by any means ful- ly representative of the greatness of the work. It has ben claimed that its true greatness can never be caught on records, but the phonograph has performed greater miracles than this. The right man will come along one of these days, and if not Toscanini, Koussevitzky may be he. Coming to the “Eroica” we find that there is little competition for Coates’ sturdy, masculine reading. Henry Wood strikes most music lovers as an odd choice indeed to supply the only other electrical set, and indeed the reason must have been one of sentiment. His three-disk acoustical cut version was one of the pioneer recorded sym- phonies (at least to be issued in England and America; Nikisch’s Fifth antedated it by some time.) These old records meant so much ijn the early days of the phonograph that no veteran collector has the heart to censure Columbia for giving Wood the privilege of re-recording his performance under modern conditions. Coates’ version, competent as it is, obviously does not completety satisfy the recorded need, which in the case of a work like the “Eroica” asks for other and contrasting readings, those of Toscanini, Beecham, Stokowski, Blech, or Koussevitzky, for instance. The Fifth is sufficiently represented, I think, to satisfy our needs for some years to come. Landon Ronald’s flashing virtuosity, Furtwangler’s closer-grained and more originally conceived reading, Weingartner’s pedestrian or- thodoxy, and Nikisch’s historical “first edition” cover all aspects of the work, and in addition there is a wide variety of acoustical sets, for the most part now filed away in antique libraries or ash-cans, but all of historical value and most of them of musical interest as well. Summing up the Nine satisfactory recordings of the First and Eighth are badly needed; new and greater sets of the “ Eroica ” and Ninth should be made available eventually. {To he continued) The Development of a Music Appreciation Class By ALICE B. TALBOT Editor’s Note: Mrs. Alice B. Talbot needs no introduction to readers of The Phonograph Monthly Review, for from the first days of the magazine we have had the privilege of publishing from time to time reports and programs of her phonographic concerts from her music appreciation classes. Mrs. Talbot will also be remembered for her able review of the complete Messiah albums in our May number. We have long pressed Mrs. Talbot to favor us with a descrip- tion of the founding and development of her classes in “Phonographic Listening” and now having overcome her modest scruples against “publicity”, we have the very great pleasure of printing the story in her own words, accom- panied by her photograph, those of several of the members of her girls’ class, and a snapshot of the music room of her home in East Machias, Maine, where her classes meet. A true musical paradise, by the evidence of its appropriate setting and of the splendid programs which Mrs. Talbot presents, many of which have been reprinted in these pages. For many years Mrs. Talbot lived in Philadelphia and other musical centers where there was every opportunity for hearing music. When she moved to East Machias one might think it was like going out into a musical wilderness, but Mrs. Talbot with the aid of the phonograph brought her musical culture with her and not content with enjoying it as a per- sonal pleasure, she has worked miracles in bringing it to others. The significance of such organizations as her classes to a small community, cut off from metropolitan musical ad- vantages, can hardly be estimated. As a manifestation of the powers of the phonograph societies it is particularly note- worthy. It is a lasting tribute to the phonograph and to recorded music, but most of all it is a proof of the wide- spread good one idealistic and untiring person like Mrs. Tal- bot can do in raising the artistic standards of an entire com- munity and setting a shining example that sincere music lovers in other towns may do well to emulate.