Customer Reviews

Offenbach: Gaïte parisienne; Rossini-Respighi: La boutique fantasque [Hybrid SACD]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Anyone who knows the history of this recording knows it ranks as one of the best, most beloved recordings in the Classical genre. It was so well recorded in 1954 that even the 1993 CD reissue could do it no harm. The 2002 JVC XRCD2 definitely and dramatically bested the '93 reissue, and this SACD far surpasses the JVC undertaking. The effortlessness and naturalness of the sound contained on this SACD is astounding. The smoothness of the strings bounding in and out of the mix (not to mention the woodwinds and brass), the precisely placed percussion enhancing this lighthearted romp, the pacing and coherence of the entire score, and the refined and tight grip on the bass drums, bass viols and cellos, combine to make this far and away the best iteration of RCA Living Stereo's Offenbach: Gaîté Parisienne in the digital domain.

If you have either of the above reissue CDs, you will not be disappointed, or even pleasantly surprised, by this new SACD rendering of this monumental recording - you will be BLOWN AWAY!! This SACD reissue is a veritable time machine that transports you back to June 18, 1954, Symphony Hall in Boston, Orchestra Center, Row A, and leaves you wondering how your listening room grew so enormous (and how Arthur Fiedler still lives).

This is a revolutionary reissue of THE revolutionary Classical recording that will leave you, your ears and your mind spinning in utter disbelief at its impeccable quality, dramatic dynamics, scintillating percussion and orchestra, and matchless realism. This is Living Stereo at its MOST ALIVE! You certainly cannot spend your musical entertainment dollars on anything better.

Jacques Offenbach was the Andrew Lloyd Webber or Richard Rogers of his day. He was a composer who knew how to touch the public's heart and his works were successful as well. Yet after his death, he nearly went into obscurity, at least in comparison to the success he had in his lifetime. It seemed that only a few of his works survived but in the past few years there have been more discoveries of works believed to be lost and restaging of some of his works other than the operetta LE BELLE HELENE and his opera THE TALES OF HOFFMAN. In the past twenty or so years Offenbach has been taken a bit more seriously. While this happens to composers somewhat often, a renewed interest in Offenbach could be attributed to many things, but I wonder if it's due in no small part to the popularity of the score to GAITE PARISIENNE, based on music composed by Offenbach and arranged and orchestrated by Manuel Rosenthal. This score became so well known and introduced a new generation of the music of Offenbach, some may have wondered what else is out there? A theory maybe, but it's plausible.

When Arthur Fielder and the Boston Pops first recorded this work, it was considered the standard upon which other recordings of the work were based. None seem to match its excitement. The work was a staple with the Pops throughout the tenure of Fiedler and Fiedler's characteristic of sometimes upping the tempo works well with this recording. In just about every Fiedler recording, it's evident he enjoys the music he's conducting, taking it seriously but also having fun and in some ways, his conducting of GAITE PARISIENNE demonstrates this more than any other Fiedler rerecording. Fiedler gives the same attention to LA BOUTIQUE FANTASQUE, Ottorino Respighi's arrangement of music by Rossini. It's simply an enjoyable recording, perfect for those times you want something lighthearted in the CD player. I would also say that this recording is a good selection for introducing a young person to classical music. I was probably in the sixth or seventh grade when I first grabbed this recording as an LP from my parents record collection. I put it on the stereo just to hear how it sounded and loved it. When I taught seventh graders many years later and wanted to expose them to different styles of music, I put on the same LP and students loved the familiar melodies of the Can-Can and Barcarolle and found that the variety of instruments used in the score was a good way to introduce students to the instruments of an orchestra.

In 1957 or there-abouts I bought a monaural LP of Gaite. I played it on my cheap portable player for several years, then on my more expensive equipment beginning around 1964. Somewhere around 1985 I found a CD of the same LP. I didn't even have a CD player, but I bought it.

When I finally bought a CD player, I was amazed at the quality of the sound.

Sometime in the intervening years I chanced to read the original liner notes for the monaural LP. It appears that Columbia tried an experiment with this recording session and used multiple microphones throughout the orchestra and 30 inch-per-second tape recorders as an experiment in low noise, stereophonic recording. The current digital release would appear to be a remastering from these multiple track, low noise tapes.

I can't offer the same level of insight as the other reviewers, who clearly understand both the technical nature of the recording and the history of the composer and performer, but I can say that this album is thoroughly enjoyable and beautiful. The whole series of Living Stereo reissues on SACD is fantastic, not only because they are amazing recordings and very reasonably priced, but also because they are presented in both SACD and CD hybrid formats, meaning you can enjoy the music however you choose, and if you're fortunate enough to have a SACD player, you can truly appreciate the fantastic job the recording engineers did over 50 years ago. Both the quality of recording and the performance itself is truly phenomenal, and as someone who doesn't have a classical music background of any sort, I can highly recommend this to others seeking to expand their horizons, or even enjoy a familiar piece.

I am simply in heaven when listening to this SACD. I really love that it is in plain stereo and the sound is warm and so alive! Rossini-Respighi part really rocks. Best classical performance I have ever heard.

Not much to add to the other reviews. I am impressed how close this SACD comes to the original "Living Stereo" release.

Let's go back to 1950: RCA-Victor released the "78rpm" version of this piece on vinyl with the BPO under Fiedler as the LM-1001 in as well as the EPA-1001 in the "45RPM" boxed set release (we have to remember that Victor didn't want to be outdone by Columbia with their introduction of the 12inch "LP" record in 1948. Thus, Victor pulled a sneaky with the introduction of the "45RPM' - 7inch vinyl. But, it didn't take too long for Victor realize that their "45RPM Golden Child" would have to take 2nd place to the 12 inch LP and finally gave in to the world of the "LP) and that album set the world ablaze with this recording.

1954: That previous spring, RCA recorded at Orchestra Hall in Chicago under Reiner the two Strauss pieces of "Zarathustra" and "Ein Heldenleben" - both in stereo and both have now become the ultimate audiophile's dream collection being of the LSC-1806 for the "Zarathrustra". Thus, RCA took their 2track tape equipment to Boston to record again, the "Gaite" under Fiedler in June of 1954 to be released 4 years later in stereo as the LSC-1817.

Suddenly, a year later, RCA improved on their recording techniques, included 3 track tape recorders and added mikes to once again to head to Boston to record the "Gaite" under Fiedler to be released as the LSC-2367...

..yet, on the vinyl, the LSC-1817 just sounds better with being just the two mike, Neumann U-47 setup. I don't have the SACD of this release, but entrust that the transfer from the orignal 2 track masters were totally captured on this CD release.

How do you find superlatives for a CD I owned 50 years ago as an RCA Red Seal vinyl, now hearing passages I never heard on the record? A must for us Fiedler aficionados still breathing

I already have recordings of both of these works but have been so intrigued by RCA's significant efforts in remastering these older recordings I decided to add this one to my collection. This is one of their two channel efforts that use only the front left and front right main speakers.

The soundstage on the SACD version is impressively smooth and wide; I actually went up to the center speaker at one point just to make sure there was nothing being reproduced on the center channel and it was silent. There is unbroken orchestral sound from an area wider than the speakers; I call that a really great soundstage.

The music is performed crisply and cleanly with a detailed presence that places the listener front and center. The Boston Pops under Fiedler's direction offers a brisk, sparkling interpretation of both selections.

I was intrigued by the length of Fiedler's La boutique fantasque; the recorded length is 27:23 which is considerably shorter than other performances which can range from 42 to 47 minutes more or less. This is evidently a concert version which has omitted certain sections found in the complete ballet which usually runs something over 40 minutes.

In summary, my hat's off to the RCA engineers who had the foresight to record these excellent performances with such care. I'm particularly impressed with their interest in the three channel recordings which play back so well with the SACD medium. These have much better sound than one would expect from recordings made in 1954 and 1956.

I used to sell this Offenbach record with the Boston Pops back in the fifties at the little record shop I worked at; it was a huge seller on LP and in mono only. The sound today on this SACD in stereo is simply phenomenal. Incredible punch and clarity with the trumpets sounding state of the art. It's as though you are listening directly to the original 30-inch-per-second tapes. And Arthur Fiedler's famous energy comes through with every note. The only weakness is the lack of the lower bass where tubas and bass drum comes through poorly.

The Rossini/Respighi is less satisfying, perhaps because I so love the London recording with Ansermet conducting. Here Fiedler doesn't make the most of the brilliant orchestration. The sound is excellent.