Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 4, No. 1 (1929-10)

October, 1929 The Phonograph Monthly Review 27 mendation of the “uniform speech” radio boards? I hope that it never gains general adoption. Columbia 1911-D (DIO, 75c) Wood: I Look into Your Garden, and Seitz: The World is Waiting for the Sunrise, sung by Charles Hackett with orchestral accompaniments Hackett gives these familiar salon songs frank, strong performances with a marked Irish flavor. The words come out very cleanly and there is none of the usual super- emotion. A commendable record of its type. Columbia 1910-D (DIO, 75c) II Trovatore—II balen del suo sorrise, and La Gioconda—Ah, Pescator, affonda I’esca, sung by Riccardo Stracciari with orchestral accompani- ments (plus chorus in the Gioconda aria). The arias are shrewdly chosen to exhibit contrasting merits ofl Stracciari’s singing. His performance of the Verdi “Tempest of the Heart” is smooth and effective, but contrary to one’s expectations, he fails to make the most of the spirited Ponchielli ballad. It is hurried, somewhat muffled in the recording, and decidedly short of equalling Stracciari’s best flights of bravura singing. This perfor- mance is quite eclipsed by Franci’s recent Victor version, although Stracciari is the better equipped singer of the two. But in these days even the most talented artists cannot relax their efforts for a moment if they wish to remain in the front recording ranks. The competition grows steadily keener—and the standards of achievement steadily higher. Columbia G-50170-D (D12, $1.25) Schubert: An die Musik and Sei mir gegruesst!, sung by Lotte Lehmann with instrumental accompaniments. The Columbia Company does well to enrichen its cata- logue with a disk like this, taken from the Parlophone- Odeon Schubert Centenary releases of last year. The songs are happily paired: the buoyant spirit of Sei mir gegriisst contrasting with the tenderness and breadth of An die Musik. Mme. Lehmann is in splendid voice— sweetness and purity of tone are all that we have come to expect from her. The only flaw to an otherwise notable record is the type of accompaniment. Why cannot the piano for which Schubert wrote so well be allowed to speak for itself? To be sure, the trio or small ensemble that accompanies here does so discreetly, but no matter how well played such accompaniments never approach the effect of the originals. Columbia 1932-D (DIO, 75c) MacMurrougK: Macushla, and d’Hardelot: Because, sung by James Melton with or- chestral accompaniments. Melton is or was a member of the Revelers and a popu- lar singer of some attainments. But his popular ballads are preferable to salon pieces sung with fatuous preten- tiousness. The incessant and meaningless crescendos on held notes are particularly distasteful. Odeon (German list) 85210 (D12, $1.25) Sab: An der Wolga, and Borganoff: Zigeunerweisen, sung by Richard Tauber with accompaniments by Dajos Bela’s Orchestra. It is a refreshing relief to turn from a performance like Melton’s inflated Because to Tauber’s almost invariable interpretative felicity. Not only does Tauber strike the exact note of feeling for his songs (and he usually makes them sound several times as effective as they really are), but he flavors the performances with the flexibility and color that so strongly characterize his musical personality. The selections here are character pieces: one Russian, with the inevitable balalaikas and echos of the Boatmen’s Song; the other Hungarian, with cymbalum and other Gypsy trimmings. But they are neat examples of their genre and they are magnificently sung in Tauber’s most characteristic vein. I have a fear that my almost unvarying praise of Tauber’s records may lead readers to pass lightly over my commendation of these disks, thinking that I am be- witched by his performances and see them only in the most rosy light. And yet curiously the songs that Tauber sings are usually of the type that tend to leave me cold if they do not actually repell me. Some of his manner- isms—such as his fortunately very occasional lapses into falsetto—strike .me as being in inexcusably bad taste. But International Records Agency Box Eleven N. Y. Electric Phonograph Pick-ups (Inquiries Solicited) one forgets all these things in sheer delight at the man’s superb musicianship and individuality. If you are not familiar with his disks it is only fair of you to hear at least one before condemning any apparent lack of rational judgment where his work is concerned. Incidentally. Tauber is reputed one of the very finest European singers for Mozart operatic roles. Is it not possible that we may have an example of this aspect of his talents? Odeon 5174 (D12, $1.50) La Traviata—Puro si come un angelo (Act II), sung by Gilda Dalla-Rizza (soprano) and Giulio Fregosi (baritone), accompanied by a symphony or- chestra under the direction of Maestro Albergoni. I presume that this is a re-pressing from the Fonotipia catalogue. I am not familiar wth the artists, but they give a bold and spirited performance that does not compare unfavorably with that in the recent Columbia Traviata album. The recording is powerful and the singing ener- getic without an excess of intensity. A record well worth hearing by all who care for characteristically Italianate operatic performances. Victor 1424 (DIO, $1.50) Little Pal (from "Say It With S ; ongs”), and Wood: I Love to Hear You Singing, sung by John McCormack with orchestral accompaniments. The Wood morceau is a typical movie vocal entr’acte, done in McCormack’s customary style for such pieces. Little Pal (for which responsibility is divided among Jol- son, De Sylva, Brown, and Henderson) is a second edi- tion of Sonny Boy with all the latter’s qualities intensified. Surely there are no lower depths of sentimentality and triteness to be sounded! McCormack’s excellent enuncia- tion is a fault here, for it makes the words unescapably clear. However, as the disk is obviously designed for other people than read this magazine, criticism is probably super- fluous. Victor 8159 (D12, $2.50) Samson et Dalila—Opening (Act I) Arretez, O mes Freres !. sung by Giovanni Marti- nelli, accompanied by the Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra under the direction of Giulio Setti. Another big work in the Victor-Metropolitan series which keeps up its invariably high standards of perfor- mance and recording in miraculous fashion. Martinelli is in fine vein here and Saint-Saens gives ample opportunity for both him and the chorus to lay on and spare not. The orchestra matches animation for animation and the sure guiding hand of Setti keeps even the most im- passioned moments from going beyond artistic limits. The broad spaciousness of tone and the exciting vigor of the performance make this disk no less worthy than its pre- decessors. Victor 8158 (D12, $2.50) La Forza del Destino—Male- dizione, and Norma—Ite sul colle, sung by Ezio Pinza, ac- companied by the Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Or- chestra under the direction of Giulio Setti. Another Metropolitan release of equal merit and per- haps this one is even more welcome, for Pinza is not too often heard in solo roles on disks. He is in noble voice here with no trace of heaviness to weigh down its breaths. Bellerose Novel Imported Records k