Our guide to the life and recordings of a soprano who exercised an almost mystical hold on the imaginations of those who heard her, the great Lilli Lehmann. Though not perhaps among the immortals, mezzo-soprano Susan Metcalfe Casals is certainly worthy of remembrance. First wife of the great Catalan cellist, conductor and composer, she was for some years a much-admired artist in her own right. Contributor Richard W. Hornbeck provides a fascinating re-assessment of her musical legacy.
Staying with the vocal arts, this quarter’s Curiosity Shop examines a peculiar 1930s ad campaign launched by the day’s leading writing implement maker, the Parker Pen Company, that involved the posthumous endorsement of composer Giacomo Puccini. Another intriguing footnote in American musical history concerns 1930s/40s entrepreneur Jack L. Caidin, the focus of this quarter’s Soundings. Selling 78s by mail order, a NYC brick-and-mortar shop, collectible discs, independent label founder and Caruso discographer, Caidin was a harbinger of numerous trends that would become commonplace during the post-war years.
Contributor Jonathan Woolf helms our Rarissima column, revealing the true stature of Czech violinist Ivan Kawaciuk’s brilliant Supraphon 1959 recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices, a somewhat forgotten gem in the Italian composer’s discography. An intriguing recording by another violinist – Arthur Grumiaux – is also examined this quarter, in which he is both soloist and accompanist. This one-off disc, pairing violin sonatas by Mozart and Brahms, involved dubbing, but here the studio “gimmickry” is quite convincing.
As some of the most memorable scores of the last 90 years were written for film, our Label Focus turns to Chelsea Rialto Studios and founder Ray Faiola’s stunning series of soundtrack restorations from the “Golden Age” of Hollywood. From California we travel west, returning once again to Tokyo where physical products (i.e., LPs and CDs) still outsell digital downloads. CDs Vinyl Japan Store offers what it says and is a delight for the classical collector. Speaking of which, with this quarter we introduce two new departments. In New Historical Releases we highlight interesting new titles from a variety of labels. Also new is our Discographies section. Here, we will try to introduce less prominently visible ones, beginning with Fritz Busch.
The fifth in our ongoing series, we screen filmmaker Peter Rosen’s 1985 documentary Toscanini: The Maestro. Another facet of great Italian conductor’s artistry is documented in this quarter’s The Performer as Composer. In addition, Toscanini – along with Grumiaux – are featured in Desert Island Discs.
In The Art of Cover Art we meet Italian architect and urban planner Silvano Tintori who designed a slew of captivating album covers for Vox Records during the 1950s. All the usual suspects – Anecdotes, Books, etc. – all return as well.
I hope this finds you well. Thank you for staying with us.
Best wishes, Joe Moore