ICA Classics have earned my deepest gratitude for reissuing the BBC2 TV tapes of the RVW centenary concert in the RFH, LPO/ Boult in Symphony 8 and Job. It's a broadcast I recall very well. I had to miss the R3 broadcast of the live concert because I'd just gone up to Oxford and couldn't duck out of the Freshers' Dinner that night. A week or so later I managed to commandeer the Oxford Union's TV room to watch the TV broadcast - sadly minus one of the 3 works, Richard Lewis singing On Wenlock Edge in the composer's rewrite for orchestra. That sounds like a very big loss to posterity - does anyone remember this? Was any board-er in the RFH audience that night?
The DVD is IMHO brilliant even though the sound is the mono TV soundtrack - kinda hoped we'd get the R3 stereo tapes overdubbed. Superb performances and excellent playing - I especially enjoyed the trombones in the symphony's opening movement. Job is nicely treated by the TV broadcast, with the titles of the various sections given against the appropriate Blake print.
Was the LPO's leader Rodney Friend? Can anyone give the principals of the LPO of that vintage? The oboist seemed especially good but it's probably invidious to single just a few players for individual mention.
One annoyance though. My main DVD player refused to play the disc, putting up some message about incompatability. The DVD says it's Region 0 and should be playable on all modern machines. The player says it's Region 2, whatever that means, but this is the first DVD it's ever refused to handle. My old basic Philips player attached to the spare telly in another (much colder!) room then played it without problem. Can anyone explain this and suggest any cure?
The DVD is IMHO brilliant even though the sound is the mono TV soundtrack - kinda hoped we'd get the R3 stereo tapes overdubbed. Superb performances and excellent playing - I especially enjoyed the trombones in the symphony's opening movement. Job is nicely treated by the TV broadcast, with the titles of the various sections given against the appropriate Blake print.
Was the LPO's leader Rodney Friend? Can anyone give the principals of the LPO of that vintage? The oboist seemed especially good but it's probably invidious to single just a few players for individual mention.
One annoyance though. My main DVD player refused to play the disc, putting up some message about incompatability. The DVD says it's Region 0 and should be playable on all modern machines. The player says it's Region 2, whatever that means, but this is the first DVD it's ever refused to handle. My old basic Philips player attached to the spare telly in another (much colder!) room then played it without problem. Can anyone explain this and suggest any cure?
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