Richard Itter collection on ICA Classics

[Barbirollians]

Anyone bought any of these ?

I have just taken delivery of the Bruno Walter Mahler 1 and other pieces with the BBCSO recorded live in 1955 and a box of Monteux recordings including albeit somewhat struggling with the Festival Hall acoustics a lovely immensely characterful recording of Debussy's Images and a live recording of Chausson's symphony which knocks my two recordings by Ansermet and Y-P Tortelier into a cocked hat . Absolutely thrilling and very Wagnerian !

Can't wait to listen to the rest of the set.

[gradus]

I hope there is more Monteux/LSO to come, his time with them coincided with my first attendance at RFH concerts and they remain vivid in my memory.

[Barbirollians]

The second CD of that set is also excellent a strongly propulsive yet heartfelt Brahms 3 - a buoyant account of Franck's Symphonic Variations with a young Valerie Tryon at the piano and a zippy Haydn 102 from Charles Munch making a guest appearance in the box . The third CD contains a performance of the Brahms Double which is rather let down by a remote recording which also gives an edge to Zino Francescatti's tone ( Fournier sounds wonderful as ever) and oddly a performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto with Francescatti from two days earlier or later I cannot remember without the box in front of me is better recorded and with no such edge on the tone . It's a very good performance but the recording is very live 1950s so not a library choice .