Our Summer BAL 45: Bartok Quartets

[Pulcinella]

Emerson (DG), Fine Arts (the old Saga LPs in the UK; now Music & Arts, but credited to Concert-Disc recordings, licensed from Countdown Media), and Juilliard 1963 (Sony) on the shelves here (can't remember where I bought the Juilliard set from); I haven't done the timing sums but it's annoying that the Juilliard set is split in the middle of number 4 (see Bryn's screen shot); the Emerson arrangement of 1, 3, and 5 (total 72'44') on CD1 and 2, 4, and 6 (total 76'21") on CD2 seems a better solution to me.

PS: Quick bit of arithmetic makes me think it might not have worked: 74'40" and 80'16" (E&OE!); is that pushing it?

[Beef Oven!]

By the way, there is definitely no 'Cage point' at 4'33" into the first movement of the 5th Quartet. All runs very smoothly. The one minor annoyance is that the 4th Quartet is split over the two discs. I ripped 3, 4 and 5 to burn to a separate CD-R which, in it's paper and film envelope, slips under the booklet clips of the jewel case.

Of course, the capital 'C' in cage made that obvious.

I have a few TDK C90s in der loft, so I can splice the dissected sections of no.4 together

[Bryn]

Emerson (DG), Fine Arts (the old Saga LPs in the UK; now Music & Arts, but credited to Concert-Disc recordings, licensed from Countdown Media), and Juilliard 1963 (Sony) on the shelves here (can't remember where I bought the Juilliard set from); I haven't done the timing sums but it's annoying that the Juilliard set is split in the middle of number 4 (see Bryn's screen shot); the Emerson arrangement of 1, 3, and 5 (total 72'44') on CD1 and 2, 4, and 6 (total 76'21") on CD2 seems a better solution to me.

PS: Quick bit of arithmetic makes me think it might not have worked: 74'40" and 80'16" (E&OE!); is that pushing it?

Re. your PS, maybe in 2007, but comonplace these days.

As to the Saga LPs, the late William H. Barrington-Coupe put out quite a few Concert-Disc recordings uncredited. Whether these played a part in his gaolling in 1966 for "blatant and impertinent frauds" I do not know.

[verismissimo]

Just listening to an inherited set by the Hagens - generally liked by others it seems. For me they capture the inner, even melancholy side of this music more than some others.

[DracoM]

Takacs?
Love the sheer driving energy in them.

[Beef Oven!]

Takacs?
Love the sheer driving energy in them.

I have 20 sets of the BBSqts and the one I play least is the Takacs. I have no idea why. At the moment my go-to is the Emersons. In fact they are my go-to quartet these days, fullstop.

I resolve to address my terrible Takacs omiision by listening to them for the next 20 listens!

[LeMartinPecheur]

As to the Saga LPs, the late William H. Barrington-Coupe put out quite a few Concert-Disc recordings uncredited. Whether these played a part in his gaolling in 1966 for "blatant and impertinent frauds" I do not know.

Barrington-Coupe's 1966 imprisonment seems to have been entirely for a very large VAT fraud, along with several co-defendants. Nothing to do with dodgy sourcing of his LP issues as far as I can see, though this was often highly questionable to say the least.

[Beef Oven!]

Thanks Bryn. I really didn't know that I probably paid at least £15 over the top for a roughed-up second-hand copy, and Sony will release a remastered 58 bit/4,000 version in two week's time: laugh:

Actually, it turned out to be in very good nick. For 1963, the sound quality is very good, not as good as the 1980 release which is one of those super-doper Watford releases.

[BBMmk2]

Beefy, I think I might try the Takacs, plus The Emersons soon.

[Beef Oven!]

Beefy, I think I might try the Takacs, plus The Emersons soon.

A splendid idea BBM.

Last night I listened to Bartok's string quartet #6 by the Takacs, prompted by DracoM's post. I will certainly be returning to it often in the coming days.

I first got into the Emerson String Quartet quite a few years ago with their recording of the late Schubert quartet compositions on Deutsche Grammophon. They are also the only major string quartet I've seen live in concert. The more I listen to them in any work, the more I seem to enjoy them.

[Richard Barrett]

Barrington-Coupe's 1966 imprisonment seems to have been entirely for a very large VAT fraud

But VAT was introduced in 1973...

[Bryn]

But VAT was introduced in 1973...

Indeed, it was purchase tax he, his associates and his company were found to have evaded.

[vinteuil]

Indeed, it was purchase tax he, his associates and his company were found to have evaded.

."Coupe's company went into liquidation. Desperate to make ends meet, he began importing radios from Hong Kong, which he sold in London markets and by mail order, but fell foul of the law when he failed to pay purchase tax.

On May 17, 1966, after what was then the longest-running and most expensive trial at the Old Bailey, costing the taxpayer £150,000. Coupe and four other defendants were found guilty of failing to pay £84,000 in purchase tax - more than £1million in today's money.

Coupe, then aged 34, was fined £3,600 and jailed for 12 months. His company W.H. Barrington-Coupe Ltd was fined £4,000 and finally wound up in 1971.

Summing up, Judge Alan King-Hamilton said: 'These were blatant and impertinent frauds, carried out in my opinion rather clumsily. But such was your conceit that you thought yourself smart enough to get away with it.' "
.

[Richard Barrett]

such was your conceit that you thought yourself smart enough to get away with it

Story of his life really.

[Bryn]

Story of his life really.

Well, he was from Llanelli, wasn't he?