Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-05-31
TurntobIe Talk
A Schubert Bonanza
Recording Of the Full 'Rosomunde' Score
Reveals Some Delightful Music
By jones G. Deone

~ ~SSUS
more spirited than the Wen
nese, and the three play with
a great deal Of mastery; some
may prefer this to the earlier
issue, although I find the
choice difficult.
Then there is another CO.
lumbia disc with Joseph Szi-
geti playing Schubert's "Rondo
Brilliant" on one side and Bee
thoven's Sonata No. 10 on the
other. Szigeti, who Is apt to
be pretty tense, makes some
slightly jerky sounds once in
a while, but the performances
are deeply felt. and the music
is. Of course. splendid. The
piano accompaniment isn't
sighted, either:
London has also made two
contributions to the Schubert
list. An able cellist. Maurice
Gendron, plays the familiar
"Arpeggione" sonata and
Schumann's "Fantasiestuecke"
and three romances. producing
a smooth, rich tone. And the
Fourth Symphony, which has
very little about it that is
tragic despite its nickname. is
given a first-class performance
by Eduard Van Beinum and
the Amsterdam Concertgebouw
Orchestra on another very we'll
engineered disc.
A New Tosconini
Columbia has also revived q
performance of the great" c
major symphony by the VII
emma Philharmonic under Her
bert Won Karajan, which came
out originally a few years ago
on TBS. The recording has its
moments of impressive sonor.
itv, but on the whole 1t sounds
its age, and the performance
is not especially extraordinary.
Toscanini's latest record Is
interesting. It combines Bee
thoven's early E fiat septet.
Op. 20, with Cherubini's Sym
phony in D. The septet, as I
recall it, was the first Bee
thoven work Toscanini learned
he bought a copy when he
was in his teens, memorized it
then and there, and has been
one Of its few ardent opponents
ever since. Other people have
been inclined to look down
their noses at it, but the SPAR
king performance Toscanini
gives on this record ought to
change some minds. AS for
the symphony, it is a lively.
cheerful piece with a Haydn
esque air. quite charming and
of course also lustrously per-
formed. Victor's engineering
is superb.
Haydn by the Philadelphia
Orchestra somewhat rare
commodity-has just appeared
in a pairing of the quite early
Symphony No. 7 ole Midi")
and the more familiar 45th.
known as the Farewell" be-
cause of the gradual departure
of practically all the players
during its last movement
(Haydn's subtle hint to Patron
Prince Esterhazy that his mu-
SicianS needed a vacation).
If Haydn's men had sounded
like Eugene Ormandy's, he
probably would have kept them
at their desks: such aural
riches as this disc contains he
surely never encountered. Or
mandy turns out to be a flrst-
rate 18th centurian-Surprise.
surprise! Splendid playing.
splendid engineering.
Interesting Wagner
Urania seems to be devot-
ing considerable vinylite to
Wagner. A couple of practical
ly unknown overtures-to die
Feen" and "Das Liebesverbot."
his first two operas-make
rather interesting listening;
Franz Konwitschny and the
Munich State Opera orchestra
play them in a coupling with
the familiar ones from
"Rienzi" and Flying Dutch
man." The same orchestra
and conductor do the "Sieg-
fried Idyll' and some "Wal-
kuere" and "Rheingold" items
on another disc. and music
from "Siegfried," "Parsifal"
and "Goetterdaemmerung" on
a third. The playing is
Germanic (slow), the sound
adequately resonant. Some
"Tannhaeuser" and "Lohen-
grin" preludes on another issue
could really do with a bit more
life.