Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 3, No. 3 (1928-12)

74 The Phonograph Monthly Review December, 1928 yat ..-ILL- -- — - ■ - • -- ■— General Review P ERHAPS the most important news from abroad this month is that of a new recorded Symphony, Dvorak’s No. 4, in G major, played by Basil Cameron and a Symphony or- chestra for the English Brunswick Company. Also on the Brunswick list are the re-pressed version of Oskar Fried’s famous Polydor record- ing of Eine kleine Nachtmusik and a four-part version of de Falla’s El amor brujo played by Anthony Bernard and the London Chamber Or- chestra, a new recording organization. The H. M. V. list is as always a significant one, although this month the leading orchestral works are re-pressings from this country. Works new to us are Goossens’ two records of the Second Peer Gynt Suite, and a La Scala record of Napravnik’s Song of the Nightingale and the Overture to Wolf-Ferrari’s Secret of Susanna, conducted by Ettore Panizza. The D’Oyly Carte Company continues it Gilbert and Sullivan series with the hitherto unrecorded Trial By Jury, done in four records. John Amadio plays a Mozart Flute Concerto; and to swell the ranks of Schubert recordings are the Mass in G by the Philhar- monic Choir under C. K. Scott (three records), the Forellen Quintet played by Bachaus and the International String Quartet (four records), and songs by Chaliapin and John Goss. Florence Austral sings a two-part version of Weber’s aria, Ocean Thou Mighty Monster, and Mark Ham- bourg plays Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata. On the English Columbia list, in addition to the Centennial works issued also in this country, is a re-recording of Weingartner’s performance of Brahms’ First Symphony. Other orchestrals are Massenet’s Scenes Pittoresques, played by the Paris Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Chagnon, a Tchaikowskiana played by Paul Whiteman, and Mascagni’s Maschere Overture by Molajoli and the Milan Symphony. Arangi- Lombardi and Galeffi have a two-part duet from Act IV of II Trovatore; Edouard Commette plays two Toccatas on the organ of the St. Jean Cathe- dral of Lyons, France; Harriet Cohen plays a two- part version of Chopin’s C sharp minor etude 25, No. 7) ; Murdoch plays Chopin’s Berceuse and Schumann’s F sharp major Romanze; and there is the usual miscellany of vocal and instru- mental disks. For novelty are three unusual re- leases: a short story (The Man in the Ditch) written and recited by noted author of mystery stories, Edgar Wallace; a disk of sermonettes and songs by Aimee Semple McPherson; and a lesson in Correct Breathing by Tromp van Diggelen known as “the man with the perfect chest.” There are also eight new additions to the International Educational Society’s lecture series, including one on Boy Scout Training by Sir Robert Baden-Powell, and one on the Covenant of the League of Nations by Viscount Cecil. First on the Parlophone list is a three-part Flying Dutchman Overture (with the Introduc- tion to Act III on the fourth side) by Morike and the Berlin State Opera House Orchestra. Cloez and the Opera Comique Orchestra play a two- part version of the Prince Igor Dances, the Cavalleria Rusticana Intermezzo, and the Gavotte and Menuet from Pagliacci. Dajos Bela plays a Pagliacci Selection, and the Vienna Bon Bons and Marienklange waltzes of Strauss; Karol Szreter plays piano versions of Strauss’ Artist’s Life and Fledermaus waltzes; the Platoff Don Cossack Choir sings two Russian folksongs; Pistor sings two Parsival excerpts; and Dr. Weissmann conducts orchestral versions of Cho- pin’s Military Polonaise and the Fifth and Sixth Hungarian Dances of Brahms. In the Parlo- phone-Odeon series, Pierne and the orchestra of the Concerts Colonne play three movements of Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite (Nos. 2, 3, and 5) and the Berceuse from the Firebird; and Ninon Vallin sings Reynaldo Hahn’s best known songs, L’heure exquise and Si mes vers avaient des ailes. A interview with Wilhelm Bachaus, in our British Contemporary, is authority for the an- nouncement that he has recorded the second set of Chopin etudes (Op. 25) and that it is soon to be released by H. M. V. In Germany, the Parlophone Company re- records Dr. Morike’s performance of Smetana’s Libussa Overture, and Edith Lorand’s violin solos of de Falla’s Jota and the Granados-Kreisler Spanish Dance. From France comes the most interesting news of all, French Columbia’s release of a complete Carmen set in fifteen records, by artists and or- chestra of the Opera-Comique, conducted by Elie Cohen. The title part is taken by Mile. Ray- monde Visconti, and that of Don Jose by Georges Thill. From the same company come also two # interesting additions to the rapidly growing list of de Falla works: one contains three Chansons Espagnoles (El pano morino; Seguidilla mur- ciana; Asturiana) sung by Maria Barrientos and accompanied by the composer himself, and the other contains nos. 2, 4, 5, and 6 of the Suite Populaire Espagnole (arr. for violin by Kochan- ski), played by Rene Benedetti. Continuing the excellent series of modern French works comes a disk containing Poulenc’s amusing Trois Mouvements Perpetuels, for piano, played by the composer. A word of appreciation should be given here for the excellent service we enjoy from the af- filiated Columbia Companies, all of which are now sending us their full supplements and re- lease lists promptly each month. We are indebted to the courtesy and good offices of Mr. George C. Jell of the American Columbia Company for this service which enables us to keep abreast of the current European Columbia releases and to pass them on to our readers. Turning to the domestic releases, we find the Victor Company represented by no less than