moonchildhippy
Group: Members
Posts: 1807
Joined: Dec. 2004 |
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Posted: Mar. 07 2007, 18:46 |
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| Quote (Alan D @ Mar. 07 2007, 13:39) | | Quote (moonchildhippy @ Mar. 06 2007, 23:43) | | I often get a bit confused with buying classical recordings, about what would be of good quality. |
OK let me see if I can remember what I wrote (and accidentally deleted) earlier.
I think there are two over-riding issues - recording quality, and performance. These days it seems a rare thing to find actually poor recordings - I mean technically poor recording quality. Even the bottom line seems to be listenable. The situation is very different to how it was, say, in the 60s and 70s, when many older mono (and perfectly acceptable) classical recordings were reissued as 'reprocessed stereo' - and they sounded absolutely dire!
the works that was made possible through this bargain set.
What particular Wagner are you wanting, Galadriel? Orchestral highlights? The Ring? Tristan? If you're after a 'Ring' highlights CD, I might be able to help. |
That's so annoying typing then accidentally deleting all your work.
As for recording quality, I don't how much age has to do with it. I would say my oldest LP is "England's Newest Hitmakers" by the Rolling Stones (US pressing of their first album), also have a Vaughan Williams LP Fantasia on Greensleeves, English Folksong Suite, and Fantasia, Thomas Tallis dating from 1965 ,Vienna State Orhestra /Sir Adrian Boult, but recording quality is OK despite being monophonic.
Maybe I'm just a bit more fussy with my listening medium with classical music, as with rock I don't think hiss is as noticable. Maybe it's down to the quality of vinyl used, I've heard Hergest Ridge described as an "audio fry up" due to the poor quality vinyl, as an oil crisis was on rock and pop records were generally made from the sweepings from the floor. I've never played my LP of Hergest Ridge,as I dont have a turntable at present  , must be missing out on about 25%of my enitre music collection. I mainly play CDs, but sometimes enjoy a return to LPs from time to time. However I don't feel I could part with my LPs. I guess there's one song "Doin' Alright" by Smile which AFAIK was/is only available on a Japanese import LP called "Gettin' Smile" . For those of you not in the know Smile were formed by Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen along with bassist Tim Staffell. Doin(g) Allright would later resurface on Queen's debut LP Queen.
So for me I can't make up my mind if I prefer CDs to LPs, guess it depends upon my mood too. AS long as an LP is clean and not scratched or damaged they can come pretty close to CDs in terms of sound quality. I took my 1970 LP of Deep Purple In Rock for professional cleaning and it sounded almost immaculate. Alan that recording of Elgar's Symphony no.2 sounded so clean I couldn't beleive this was a 1927 recording. I've CDs of Robert Johnson, recordings from 1936/7 it's possible to hear plenty of background noise.
Re Wagner I guess what I've got is a compilation it starts with Ride Of The Valkeries , Lohengrin, Overture Tannhauser , Siegfreid Idyll, Dawn and Siegfreid's Rhine Journey and ther Deathmarch. This is followed by Die Meister Singers von Nurnburg ( Master Singers of Nuremburg.
So this sounds like it's the Ring Cycle, as the Rhine Journey and Death March are from Gotterdammerung (Twilight of The Gods), Here's me trying to think about rings in Norse Mythology. I did read that in Wagner's Ringcycle all the Gods perish at Ragnarok, but in the folk tales "The Eddas" the reality is somewhat different.
Apologies again for taking this topic off to another tangent, going via many different tangents  .
I guess with classical music I might seem a bit ignorant as I often know the piece, but not what it's called or who it's by
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I'm going slightly mad,
It finally happened, I'm slightly mad , just very slightly mad
If you feel a little glum to Hergest Ridge you should come.
I'm challenging taboos surrounding mental health
"Part time hippy"
I'M SUPPORTING OUR SOLDIERS
BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!!
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So I normally get those packages only when I feel the need to complete my collection of works by one particular composer, e.g. Dvorak: I bought an excellent edition of all his symphonies on an excellent label, Naxos. The performers are not well-known but the label is - as one of the best classical labels. 
. Sent off 3 job apps today, started writing a fourth. Sorry guess I'd better stop there before it turns into a rant about this Blair Government. It's just having to exist on JSA allows ya no little pleasures in life.
