I agree with you, MasterJaques. The continual move towards precision, which characterised 20th-century performance, was not all gain. As early as 1948 critics were noting that something was being lost. A good example , I think, is the 1967 Klemperer EMI recording of Petrushka, which was not issued by EMI at the time because of imprecisions in the playing. Since then Testament editors have re-examined all the takes of it and produced a CD which is , to my ears, closer to the spirit of the work than some of the needle-sharp renditions I've heard, impressive though they may be. And let's not forget that Stravinsky publicly praised the early recordings of the work by Monteux and himself as being examples of how he wanted his music played, even though, to modern ears, they are very slack in ensemble.
My choice this mornig: Debussy: La Demoiselle elue
Berlioz: Les Nuits d'ete.
Victoria de los Angeles, the Boston Symphony, Charles Munch, 1955 RCA Victor.
These are very beautiful performances which so far as I am aware have had very little circulatuon since their first issue in the USA.
My choice this mornig: Debussy: La Demoiselle elue
Berlioz: Les Nuits d'ete.
Victoria de los Angeles, the Boston Symphony, Charles Munch, 1955 RCA Victor.
These are very beautiful performances which so far as I am aware have had very little circulatuon since their first issue in the USA.
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