Schubert and Wolf from the Koeckert Quartet

The Koeckert Quartet was one of the leading chamber music ensembles of the postwar years, but not all of its recordings are easily available, nor is there much information on them presented in English.

This post, the results of a request on another forum, provides one work that is not otherwise in print, and another that has not been commercially available for many years. Both are exceptional performances.

The Koeckert Quartet

Some information on the quartet: the group dates back to 1939, but it only began performing under the Koeckert name in 1947, when its members were in the Bamberg Symphony. Two years later they moved to Munich and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The members at that time (and for many years to come) were: Rudolf Koeckert, first violin, Willi Buchner, second violin, Oskar Riedl, viola, and Josef Merz, cello. Koeckert would lead the group until 1982, when his son, Rudolf-Joachim, took over the leadership under the name of the Joachim-Koeckert Quartet. That second iteration continued until 1992. Rudolf Koeckert died in 2005.

The brief program on this disc includes the glorious Schubert Quartettsatz (Quartet Movement) in C minor, D 703, the first movement of a quartet from Schubert's early maturity that he did not complete. The performance has not been reissued, to my knowledge. Its disk mate is Hugo Wolf's delightful and droll Italian Serenade, here in a knowing performance that also is not commercially available.

The recordings, which date from February 1951, come from the Beethovensaal in Hannover, the home city of Deutsche Grammophon, which originally issued the performances. My transfer is from a 10-inch US pressing in Decca's budget 4000 series. The sound is quite good.

I had trouble locating a photo of the original Koeckert Quartet; I scanned the one above from a small image in a 1956 DG catalogue.

The Popular Gershwin / Gershwin on Holiday

A little over three years ago, I offered a 1955 Morton Gould collection called "The Serious Gershwin," which collated most of that composer's concert works. When that two-record set came out, RCA Victor issued a companion box called "The Popular Gershwin." Now my great friend Ernie has come up with the pop set and is presenting it here for us to enjoy.

But that's not all (as they say in the cheezy commercials). Ernie also has found a 1963 RCA collection called "Gershwin on Holiday," once again proferring the composer's popular songs as interpreted by the label's leading artists.

Let me give you the lineups for each set. "The Popular Gershwin" includes numbers by Eddie Fisher, the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra, the Melachrino Strings, Hugo Winterhalter, Jaye P. Morgan, Henri René, June Valli, Lou Monte, Frankie Carle, Glenn Miller and Dinah Shore. Neither Ernie nor I have had to motivation to check to see if any of these were newly recorded for the set, but we suspect they came from existing masters, collated for this purpose. Parenthetically, I believe the Glenn Miller songs come from the circa 1940 Chesterfield radio broadcasts that RCA were releasing at the time.

The singing ranges from superb (Dinah) to sub-optimal (Lou Monte, who should have stuck to the "Italian Jingle Bells" and the like). The instrumentalists are generally fine, although I can take or leave Frankie Carle.

Perhaps surprisingly, not too many of the 1955 RCA artists remained for the 1963 collection - just Carle and Winterhalter. They are joined by the always-welcome Morton Gould, Al Hirt, Norman Luboff, Peter Nero and the Three Suns - so a much heavier emphasis on instrumentals, with no solo vocalists represented. Unlike the 1955 set, the 1963 recordings are in stereo.

"The Popular Gershwin" has a much more attractive cover, although plopping the long-dead Gershwin down in a what is evidently a contemporary rehearsal seems a little odd. Not as odd as the hat he is wearing on the cover of "A Gershwin Holiday," though.

As always, Ernie coaxed good sound from these old items, and he is a demon for documentation, providing scans not only of the cover, but the record sleeves, labels, and the inside of the "Gershwin Holiday" gatefold. He did not scan all of the "Popular Gershwin" booklet, noting that it is the same as the one that I posted with "The Serious Gershwin." [Edit: Both Ernie and I mis-remembered. I didn't scan the booklet, so please don't go to the earlier post looking for it!]

Thanks once again to Ernie for his work on this. Ernie is a Christmas specialist, but lately he has been posting the occasional non-Christmas item on his blog, including a really good Henri René LP.

Mozart Sonatas with Shumsky and Mittman

The American violinist Oscar Shumsky (1917-2000) was a celebrated instrumentalist, but most of the acclaim came relatively late in his career - post 1977, when he returned to recordings and then concerts.

Much of his earlier activity had been confined to being the concertmaster of the NBC Symphony, chamber music with the Primrose Quartet, teaching, radio appearances (often with Earl Wild), and latterly some conducting.

Oscar Shumsky

His first recordings (other than with the NBC orchestra), were as first violinist of the Primrose ensemble, a starry group that also boasted Josef Gingold, William Primrose and Harvey Shapiro. Victor engaged them for Haydn, Schumann and Smetana 78 sets in 1940-41. In 1947 he accompanied tenor James Melton in four Rachmaninoff songs; then in 1950 he backed soprano Erna Berger in two Mozart arias, both for RCA.

This present disc was a one-off effort for the small Allegro label in 1951, comprising splendid readings of Mozart's Violin Sonatas K. 454 and K. 526 with pianist Leopold Mittman. The two work beautifully together. Mittman was a well-known accompanist who also recorded with Mischa Elman and Nathan Milstein. Shumsky would go on to record the complete Mozart violin sonatas with Artur Balsam in 1977.

For those who enjoy such things, you can hear a car horn at 3:09 of the Andante of K. 526. Either that or Harpo Marx attended the session. Otherwise the sound is reasonably good from what was probably a bare-bones recording session.

I also have 1950s LPs containing Shumsky's Mozart Violin Concerto No. 5 with Thomas Scherman and the Ravel Sonata for Violin and Cello with Bernard Greenhouse, and will post them over time.

Richard Strauss's Four Last Songs with Flagstad and Söderström

Wilhelm Furtwängler and Kirsten Flagstad

This post was occasioned by nothing so much as my wanting to listen to Richard Strauss's set of Four Last Songs. In the event, I ended up transferring two performances: the premiere of 1950 with Kirsten Flagstad, Wilhelm Furtwängler and the Philharmonia Orchestra, and a 1982 recording from Elisabeth Söderström and the Orchestra of the Welsh National Opera, with Richard Armstrong conducting.

Strauss composed the group of songs in 1948, when he was 84, asking that Flagstad premiere them. He was to die the following year. This recording is a transcription of the first performance from the Royal Albert Hall in May 1950. It originates from a somewhat noisy set of acetates that cannot obscure the remarkable performance from Flagstad, the greatest Wagnerian soprano of her time; Furtwängler, whom many consider to be the finest conductor of the 20th century; and the Philharmonia, one of the premiere ensembles of the postwar era. Flagstad's voice is astonishing in its effortless power.

For contrast, I chose the superb singing actor Elisabeth Söderström in an all-Strauss program that as far as I know has not been reissued. Her version of the Four Last Songs is complemented by scenes from two Strauss operas - the Marschallin's monologue from Der Rosenkavalier and the closing scene from Capriccio. While Sir Richard Armstrong and his Welsh forces are hardly as celebrated as Furtwängler and the Philharmonia, they acquit themselves very well here, and Söderström is affecting throughout the program.

I cleaned up as much of the noise on the Flagstad performance as I could, while addressing the balance and pitch problems found on the Turnabout LP I used for the transfer. The final measures of "Im Abendrot" are missing, unfortunately. The sound from the Söderström LP is good.

Söderström follows the published sequence of the songs - "Frühling," "September," "Beim Schlafengehen" and "Im Abendrot." Flagstad and Furtwängler had performed "Beim Schlafengehen" first and "Frühling" third. The sequencing is somewhat arbitrary - Strauss's publisher Ernst Roth had determined the order and dubbed them the Four Last Songs. Roth's sequence did not follow the order of composition, nor was the set Strauss's final work. He composed the song "Malven" later in 1948.

The download includes complete scans of the Söderström LP's gatefold cover, which includes texts and translations.

Matty Matlock's Sports Parade

March is a particularly active sports month in the U.S. - college basketball's "March Madness," the waning regular seasons in pro basketball and hockey, and spring training in baseball. Even Tiger Woods has made a dramatic return to the golfing elite.

With this backdrop I was inspired to bring out this 1955 10-inch LP called Sports Parade. It features clarinetist Matty Matlock and His All-Stars, a quasi-Dixieland ensemble of West Coast studio musicians.

I suspect the concept and even the song titles were concocted by the record company, for the music itself has little or nothing to do with sports, except for the song titles, which were likely awarded ex post facto, and possibly at random. Case in point: the "Speedway March" is actually Julius Fučík's hoary "Entry of the Gladiators." And the "Hoopsters March" comes to us from Johann Strauss Sr., who knew it as his "Radetzky March." Naturally, "X" Records makes no mention of these details, and the tunes in question are attributed to V. Jirik and Dan Dorie, otherwise unknown to me.

Matty Matlock

That's not to say the record is displeasing. It could hardly be so with Matlock at the helm. He was one of the most experienced and accomplished instrumentalists and arrangers then active. Matlock, a clarinetist, was for many years a member of the Bob Crosby outfit, a big band that retained some elements of Dixieland jazz in its sound. Most of the musicians on this LP either were alumni of Crosby's working band, had appeared with him on the radio, or had been heard on his records roughly contemporary with this one. They include Charlie Teagarden on trumpet, Eddie Miller on tenor sax, Stan Wrightsman on piano and Nick Fatool on drums.

So, while the sports content is low, the musical quality is high on this LP, and the sound is reasonably good.

The sports figures on the cover were probably not based on anyone in particular, but I couldn't help but see my own athletic heroes of the 50s when I looked at it - in particular Yogi Berra as the catcher at upper right and Carmen Basilio as the boxer in the upper left corner.

The Going Thing 1970

In the not too distant past, I've posted a few industrial musical productions, which celebrated a new Westinghouse appliance line and Ford's ill-fated Edsel automobile.

Both came from the 50s. By the late 60s, marketers were learning there were easier and cheaper ways to liven up sales meetings, promote the brand and even connect with young audiences.

Today's LP is one of the notable examples of that trend. It is the last of the three albums recorded by the Going Thing, a musical group founded by the Ford Motor Co. to promote its products. The LPs were apparently internal giveaways.

From reading various accounts on the web, it seems likely that The Going Thing was the creation of Ford's ad agency, J. Walter Thompson, who contracted with the young studio singers John and Tom Bahler to put the group together in 1967 or 1968.

The Bahler brothers put out three LPs as the Love Generation, a pop-rock ensemble whose music, not surprisingly, resembles that of the Going Thing. It's what today would be termed "sunshine pop" - optimistic lyrics, simple melodies and soaring harmonies.

Adapting that musical formula to industry was designed to appeal to young people. The agency used the Going Thing to promote such models as the sporty Mustang, which is front and center in this ad showing the group in performance. Thompson also used the phraseology as a tagline ("Ford Is the Going Thing") in addition to the existing "Ford Has a Better Idea" campaign. The ad weaves the two together, including both the "Going Thing" and "Better Idea" tunes.

The ad is contained on the LP at hand as the last cut, and it is certainly the best thing on the record. The other selections include what is very likely the opening song that the group used at sales presentations and other appearances - "Hey, You in the Crowd" - followed by a version of Sly Stone's "Dance to the Music," which allows the vocalist (I believe it is John Bahler) to introduce the members of the ensemble. Or at least the male members. The women are only identified by their first names.

The men are Mitch Gordon, drummer, Terry Shannon, guitar (a Love Generation alumnus), Tom Bahler, bass, Larry Carlton, guitar (he has become a well-known musician), and Steve Flanagan. The women are only identified as Susie, Jackie, Janis and Carolyn. Janis is Janis Hansen, who had been in Sergio Mendes and Brazil '66, and who sang lead on "The Look of Love." Susie and Jackie are probably Susan Teague and Jackie Berry.

The rest of the LP is largely composed of material the group may have performed to entertain at sales meetings and perhaps other promotional events - "Hey Jude," "For Once in My Life" and "The Sound of the Sixties," which pays tribute to everyone from the Beatles to Ray Charles.

Only one cut was apparently aimed directly at an internal sales and management audience - "Happiness Is," which I quote in full:

Happiness is selling a T-Bird, loaded with options
At the list price!

Happiness is "he wants a Mustang," "she wants a wagon" -
Selling 'em twice!

Happiness is no covered service on warranty
And stamping out those bugs from overseas.

Happiness is a 10-day report that gives Chevrolet a stroke!

Yes, happiness is on the day, the very day we learn
That GM went broke!

Vaughan Williams and Tansman with the Zimbler Sinfonietta and Joseph Fuchs

One final shot in my fusillade of Fuchs recordings: this recording of the Vaughan Williams Violin Concerto (usually called the "Concerto Accademico") with the Zimbler String Sinfonietta accompanying Joseph Fuchs.

Joseph Fuchs

The coupling is "Triptych" from the Russian-French composer Alexandre Tansman (1897-1986), a most attractive work that is well played by the Zimbler strings.

Alexandre Tansman

Such judgments are entirely subjective, but I have to say this is the best recording of the Vaughan Williams work I have heard, including the roughly contemporary Louis Kaufman edition I posted here three years ago.

The Zimbler ensemble was formed by Josef Zimbler, a Boston Symphony violinist. It consisted substantially or entirely of BSO members, including on this recording assistant concertmaster George Zazofsky, principal violist Joseph de Pasquale, and principal cellist Samuel Mayes. The notes to this LP say it worked without a conductor, but I believe there are later recordings that designate Lukas Foss as conductor for the occasion.

Speaking of Foss and his association with the Zimbler group, nine years ago I transferred the US Decca 10-inch LP of Hindemith's "The Four Temperaments" with that ensemble and Foss as pianist. I've now remastered the recording and it is newly available here.

The sound is very good on both LPs.

Debussy and Roussel with Julius Baker, Lillian and Harry Fuchs, and Laura Newell

Having recently showcased the sibling duo of Joseph and Lillian Fuchs, I thought that brother Harry might be feeling left out, so I transferred this US Decca LP that features his cello playing.

Of course, the spotlight here is not on the cello; rather it is on the splendid flute playing of Julius Baker. He is heard throughout this program, which includes Debussy's Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp (1915); his Syrinx for Unaccompanied Flute; and Roussel's Trio for Flute, Viola and Cello, Op. 40. Laura Newell is the harpist.

This a exceptionally good record with four of New York's leading mid-century virtuosi performing gorgeous French music from earlier in the century. Decca, as was its pattern in classical works, provides a close recording, although it has added some reverberation to leaven any harshness. Michael Gray's discography has Syrinx coming from February 1953 and the Sonata from July 1954. He does not provide a date for the Roussel Trio, but presumably it was from the same time frame.

Joseph and Lillian Fuchs in Mozart

As a follow-up to my recent post involving Joseph and Lillian Fuchs, here is a 1961 LP of the siblings in Mozart's sublime Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat Major, with a substantial bonus of Joseph in less-often-heard works.

Joseph and Lillian Fuchs

The album is presented under the aegis of "Musica Æterna," which I believe was a concert series at the Metropolitan Museum and Carnegie Hall led by conductor Frederic Waldman. On this LP, Waldman directs the Æterna Chamber Orchestra, which on its other recorded outings is usually called the Musica Æterna Orchestra.

Waldman has appeared on this blog before as conductor of a very early record devoted to Edgard Varèse, although I didn't even mention him in my comments, which seems thoughtless on my part. As I recall, Waldman's recorded output for US Decca was more conventional, by and large, but apparently the Musica Æterna concert programs were more adventurous.

Frederic Waldman

This present LP is a good one, although perhaps missing the exhilaration that marks the best performances. This may be accentuated because of the close recording. Regardless, the Fuchs duo displays a unanimity of phrasing that is its own source of wonder.

In addition to the Sinfonia Concertante, Joseph assays the Adagio in E Major and the Rondo in C Major. Both are impeccable performances.

A Beethoven Serenade with Joseph and Lillian Fuchs and Leonard Rose

This post is the result of a request on another forum, but I hope some readers here will enjoy it. Here we have a US Decca 10-inch LP containing Beethoven's early and genial Serenade in D Major, with some of the best chamber music players of the mid-century era.

Joseph Fuchs

Joseph and Lillian Fuchs, violin and viola, were siblings who both achieved renown as instrumentalists, and who recorded extensively as soloists and in chamber music.

Lillian Fuchs

At the time this recording was made (June 1950), Leonard Rose was the principal cello of the New York Philharmonic. He would soon embark on a career as soloist, making many records in the process.

They make a fine trio, with a forthright presentation of the Serenade, in excellent sound. This may be the only time Rose recorded with one or the other Fuchs sibling; there is no other instance in Michael Gray's A Classical Discography database.

Leonard Rose

Rose and Joseph Fuchs were connected by both having served as principals in the Cleveland Orchestra under Artur Rodziński.

The cover art is by Erik Nitsche, a superb graphic designer who did many covers for Decca. You can find more information on him here.

Ahronovitch Conducts Taneyev

A few months ago I offered a performance of Nielsen's Third Symphony led by the late Russian-Israeli conductor Yuri Ahronovitch in one of his few commercial recordings.

At that time I promised a transfer of Ahronovitch's reading of the Symphony No. 4 by the Russian composer Sergei Taneyev, pupil of Tchaikovsky and teacher of Rachmaninoff. I'm pleased to provide it here, with a recommendation for all who are unfamiliar with Taneyev or who just want a committed, well recorded version of his best-known composition.

Yuri Ahronovitch

This is powerful, impressive, even memorable music that is not often heard or recorded, unaccountably. Ahronovitch had the measure of the work, and the London Symphony performs it beautifully. The late analogue recording, dating from May 1979, is recessed but well-balanced. It marked a relatively rare foray into romantic repertoire for producer Wolf Erichson, a specialist in early music productions for the Das Alte Werk, SEON and Sony Vivarte imprints. My transfer is from the US Arabesque pressing.

The striking cover painting (which has little or nothing to do with the music) is Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin's "Bathing of a Red Horse," from 1912.

Ahronovitch also recorded another Taneyev composition for Erichson - the "Suite de Concert" with violinist Christian Altenburger - which I can transfer if there is interest.

LINK to Symphony No. 4