Great conductors: William Steinberg

After last weekends adventure, we take a look at a new box set of cds.

This week a special four compact disc set was issued.

William Steinberg was one of America's finest conductors, making recordings for Capitol-Emi,Command and RCA Victor but whose career co-incided with a drop in record label interest in recording American orchestras so were overlooked at the time.

Including 'vital and inspiring performances', this set features William Steinberg conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which includes some of his 'best entries in his discography, and the finest recordings of the works'. 

Mendelssohn's own orchestration of the 'Scherzo' from his 'Octet' and Stravinsky's 'Scherzo fantastique' and 'Scherzo à la russe', coupled on CD 3 with formidable virtuoso renderings of orchestral showpieces by Dukas, Richard Strauss and Saint-Saëns, were originally prepared for release on LP LSC-3155 but remained unpublished - until now. 

All recordings in the set have been newly transferred and remastered.

After these were recorded, the orchestra signed a contract to record for DG, one of Europes leading classical labels and made a serie sof well respected performances that I do own on compact disc.

Drama

 I won't be around that much this weekend which is why things are just a little rushed as things involve a very early by my standards start and we have eaten all the eggs here, a slow process given the need to be mindful of miagraines and an intake of higher than normal sugar levels.

Looking over one site which I won't name, the attempt to assist a girl to rejoin a site was frustrating for their inability to comprehend that when a site makes itself practically invisable to all be registered, logged in members then you can't google to see how it looks and that an instruction to email the site at ----@-----.com and include some detail about you and preferred username means you cannot register via anything on site.

Is that the best way to balence keeping people clear of trolls and unwarrented attention on the one hand and get new members?

Probably not as some sites manage a overview of the forum that does't allow you to see posts on sub forums so things are kept confidential and equally while the site colour scheme isn't disablity friendly for having small text and white backrounds, there's nothing I can do about that.

Just somebody decided to make the layout appear uber pretty rather than accessible to all in the way one music site at least allows me to change text backrground colour and size to make it easy for me to read.

They were just getting snarkier and snarkier so when they said it had been settled for them, I just left them pretty much with it.

I like to be friendly, I'm that kind of a boy but I really don't need that grief any more than those who don't see past reminsciences as being a part of the regressive experience even if you don't just want to see only that on a site.

Good Friday edition

 Gawd almighty, does it ever stop raining here?

Yes, the rain rather woke me up this morning so I'll need to get a nap in later on I guess but we are entering Easter which for me at least does bring back memories of things like making easter bonnets and cards.

For reasons best known to them in charge we didn't do Easter Egg hunts when armed with a set of clues you run around like a maniac trying to hind said eggs hiding, in, under or over things and you get to keep them!

There is a box of chocolates from my Aunt here I can chomp through and a couple of eggs although being me I do have to be mindful that dark chocolate is a maigraine trigger having had sadly some bad childhood memories of eating them and being out of commission for a few days.

Happy Easter

R.I.P. Steve Harley

Last weekend it was announced one Steve Harley, a musician whose wongs I grew up with died aged 73.

Steve had been activity musically be it recording or performing live from the start and ineed up to November last year had been touring when it was announced he was putting that on hold while he was being treated for cancer.

While some starts have brief period of fame followed by a greater period outside of the business or moving elsewhere in the entertainment industry, that wasn't him.

I was buying new recordings by him in the 80's as much as the likes of Radio One treated him as a has been.

Stephen Malcolm Ronald Nice, known by his stage name Steve Harley, was an English singer-songwriter and frontman of the glam rock group Cockney Rebel. He had six UK hit singles with the band in the mid-1970s, including "Judy Teen", "Mr. Soft", and the number one "Make Me Smile".

That album, originally issued in 1980 and compiled under the great Colin Milesremains the perfect compilation covering all three periods of Cockney Rebel the band that backed him and to which famously he was something of a perfectionist of when it came to their backing.

It covered everything from the earliest singles like the other worldy Sebastian from 1973 to his last single of 1979 taking in the big sellers like Mr. Soft, Judy Teen here in its singles version, and his inspired remake of Here Comes The Sun from 1976 which was an early EMI 12" single.

That was reissued in EMI Records Fame mid price series in 1982 but keeping the original vinyl cutting by Harry T Moss at Abbey Road, one of the finest in the business of cutting records and that is my copy.

I played this on Wednesday thinking about that music, part of the great soundtrack of the mid 70's childhood we had.

Junior music lessons

For some us, a abiding memory of  primary education was music and especially that of boys (and girls) practising their discant recorder scales whenever they had the opportunity before attempting to give a performance either at assembly or for some school event parents were expected to attend.

There is nothing like the sound a group of children attempting play in unison, not even the UK's secret weapon, the Bagpipe, comes close to installing a response either appreciative or "not that "beeping" thing.

Of course the key to playing is knowing where and how to form all the notes so you aren't having to hunt for them and judging just what is sufficent blowing without overdriving it so you have that pleasant airey sound.

They just left me to the triangle and Xylophone for some strange reason that rather escapes me now although I most certainly could keep good time, coming in at the right moment.

 

The things that happen...

Well it is two days on from the main event which'll be on the other blog on Monday but it's also two and bit days on from something else that is affecting me presently.

For as many years I can remember I have had, some might say suffered from, severe miagraines which are sadly nothing like headaches, much more intense and don't just go away with with a tablet.

They have a tendency to cut into everything you might of being planning to do often with little warning from things you might of wanted an excuse  from like games class to things you were really looking forward to such as a trip out, a play date or a party.

They also have before now cut into birthdays too which is really rotten taken the shine of it even if you have managed to be up  having had a number I've been in bed instead and that sadly is what happened this time around just like a bolt out of the blue.

I made being up and just about managing a birthday meal but really way way out of things with perhap the best consolation being I was properly dressed in smart schoolboy uniform and that point of view being a bit more me that things were at times in the past where internal feelings and external presentations didn't align.

Plus this year there was space for the cards in the front window and presents including chocolate were out more.

All being well I'll catch up on my comic reading by later on today and mark Mothering Sunday in some way as obviously she's no longer physically there.

Bearable times move forward

Week started off with the much needed repairing of our pavements which of necessity did place restrictions on going with tape in front of all the houses which now have less twists and turns and much improved grip having tested them making my way out towards the playground.

Much has started to come out such as cherry blossoms, daffidils while towards the woods you can see many birds such as magpies about and if you really lucky the squirrels out exploring. 

Preporations, not least the odd thing for next Wednesday are starting to come together given that with everything that happened last year there was scant interest in marking ones birthday with the house feestooned still with funeral cards and arrangements being made so in a number of ways it was unbirthday with nothing special happening.

While that loss is still keenly felt, all being well something should happen this year and one hopes for another in the 70's Now Yearbooks to announced for end March, early April as that series progresses capturing whole years well.