Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

this series of albums and the 50th anniversary of phonograph record- ing by RCA Victor, a special pres- entation of the "Treasury" collec- tion was made to the Library of Congress on February 20. In accepting the albums for the national archives from Rosa Pon- selle, operatic soprano, Dr. Luther H. Evans, Librarian of Congress, noted that, "It was gifts from the Victor Company in the mid-1920's which started the Library of Con- gress record collection." He went on to say, "Over the years, without interruption—under the old name and under the present name of Radio Corporation of America— the company has continued to be very generous in giving to the Library recordings by its outstand- ing artists." Among the celebrities attending the presentation cere- mony were Mrs. Enrico Caruso and Mrs. John McCormack, widows of the two artists whose legendary performances have been recaptured. Music Critics Selected Records The "Treasury" is the result of months of intensive research by RCA Victor's Record Department at Camden where more than 7,500 old copper master records are care- fully preserved in specially ventil- ated vaults. Several competent musi- cal authorities listened to more than 700 master discs and then chose by vote the records which they con- sidered most representative of a particular vocalist or musician. After the artistic decisions for the repertoire had been arrived at, RCA Victor technicians made the ulti- mate decision as to the suitability of each record for modern repro- duction. The earliest selection in the album series is from a 1904 acoustical recording of the "Death of Otello" by Francesco Tamagno and the inost recent was taken from Paderewski's 1937 electrical recording of his own "Minuet in G" and the first movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata." In transferring such memorable performances from original masters to the 45- and 33-1/3-rpm records, each of the discs was subjected to meticulous technical scrutiny and rehabilitation. During the fall of [10 RADIO AGE] 1950, six men under the direction of Albert Pulley, Chief Recording Engineer of the RCA Victor Record Department in New York City, went to work on this formidable task. Many of the old copper masters "showed their age." By laboring over each record groove with mi- croscope and engraving tools, RCA technicians skillfully restored the original waves and whorls of the spii-al tracks. Some of these men are so skillful in this specialized field that they are able to read music by observing fluctuations of the record grooves. Transferred to Magnetic Tapes All the "Treasury" performances were then transferred from the re- stored masters onto magnetic tape recordings, which permit retakes, editing, cutting and the removal of excess noise. Without affecting the music, the scratches and flaws in the primitive tone tracks were detected and erased by sensitive in- struments. In some instances, sev- eral masters of the same recording were available, making it possible to use one to fill in certain portions where another had blanked out. As the result of such engineering tech- niques, these matchless musical per- formances have been brought back to life on the new vinyl plastic records with remarkable fidelity. Among the selections by Caruso are some which were "revitalized" a decade or more after the tenor's death in 1921. This accomplish- ment was made possible by re- recording his voice against an improved orchestral background. These electrical reissues, which created a sensation at the time, have retained the magnificent tonal quality of Caruso's voice in roles from "Rigoletto" and Bizet's "Pearl Fishers," and others. In 1952. RCA Victor plans to issue a second "Treasury" series compiled from its musical gems of bygone years. VAULT OF PRICELESS MASTER RECORDINGS IN CAMDEN, N. J., FROM WHICH OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES OF 54 WORLD-FAMOUS ARTISTS WFJIE DIOSEN FOR THE "TREASURY" SERIES.