Select a month

Back to The Archives

Fritz Reiner Archive

Reiner conducts WAGNER = Orchestral Selections from Die Meistersinger; Parsifal; Die Walkuere; Tannhauser; Lohengrin; Siegfried – New York Philharmonic/ Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/ Fritz Reiner – Pristine Audio

Reiner conducts WAGNER = Orchestral Selections from Die Meistersinger; Parsifal; Die Walkuere; Tannhauser; Lohengrin; Siegfried – New York Philharmonic/ Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/ Fritz Reiner – Pristine Audio

by | Dec 26, 2017 | Classical Reissue Reviews

Reiner conducts WAGNER = Die Meistersinger von Nuernberg: Prelude to Act I (two performances); Prelude to Act III; Dance of the Apprentices; Procession of the Mastersingers; Parsifal: Prelude to Act I; Die Walkuere: Ride of the Valkyries; Tannhauser: Venusberg Music; Lohengrin: Prelude to Act I and Prelude to Act III; Siegfried: Forest Murmurs – New York Philharmonic/ Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/ Fritz Reiner – Pristine Audio PASC 517, 79:26 [www.pristineclassical.com] *****:    Fritz Reiner’s legacy of Wagner from shellac sources proves memorably striking, given a fine restoration by Pristine Audio.  Producer and Audio Restoration Engineer Mark Obert-Thorn here restores all of the Wagner repertory Fritz Reiner (1888-1963) left for posterity, 1938-1941. Reiner had a distinguished career in opera, having served at the Volksopera in Budapest and the Court Opera in Dresden.  Like fellow musicians Bruno Walter, George Szell, and Otto Klemperer, Reiner maintained strong ties to Richard Strauss. History tells us that Reiner’s experience in the recording studio long proved frustrating, and his early 1938 efforts left him un-named in releases by the New York Philharmonic, which also remained anonymous. This release contains all of Reiner’s issued recordings of works by Wagner from the 78 rpm era; that more of Wagner’s […]

Tribute to Piatagorsky = BRAHMS: Double Concerto; SAINT-SAËNS: Cello Concerto; BLOCH: Schelomo – Gregor Piatagorsky (cello) / Nathan Milstein (vln.) – Praga Digitals

Tribute to Piatagorsky = BRAHMS: Double Concerto; SAINT-SAËNS: Cello Concerto; BLOCH: Schelomo – Gregor Piatagorsky (cello) / Nathan Milstein (vln.) – Praga Digitals

by | Jun 8, 2017 | Classical Reissue Reviews

Tribute to Piatagorsky = BRAHMS: Double Concerto in a minor, Op. 102; SAINT-SAËNS: Cello Concerto No. 1 in a minor, Op. 33; BLOCH: Schelomo – Rhapsody – Gregor Piatagorsky, cello/ Nathan Milstein, violin/ Robin Hood Dell Orchestra  of Philadelphia/ Fritz Reiner/ Boston Symphony Orchestra/ Charles Munch (Bloch) – Praga Digitals PRD 250 368, 70:56 (6/9/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: The Old-World cello virtuoso Piatagorsky plies his glamorous trade in three repertory staples. This assemblage of classic performances, 1950-1967, of famed Russian cellist Gregor Piatagorsky (1903-1976) easily demonstrates his glorious tone and consummate technique, which found natural expression in his chosen repertory. Certainly, prior to the appearance of Mstislav Rostropovich on the international concert stage, Piatagorsky dominated as the leading representative of his ‘school’ of musicianship. While the document of the Brahms Double Concerto from Philadelphia (29 June1951) – incorrectly attributed to NYC and the RCA studio orchestra – allows us to hear his work with compatriot Nathan Milstein (1904-1992), we unfortunately possess no recordings of the piano trio that included Vladimir Horowitz. Despite Milstein’s often-cited dislike of the music of Brahms, he distinguishes himself consistently in performance, his having agreed to set down the Double Concerto in tribute to […]

MOZART: Piano Concerto No. 25 – Andre Tchaikowsky

MOZART: Piano Concerto No. 25 – Andre Tchaikowsky

by | Jun 15, 2016 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

HDTT restores Polish pianist Andre Tchaikowsky’s most famous concerto recording, but even in fine sound, it’s all alone. MOZART: Piano Concerto No. 25 in C Major, K. 503 – Andre Tchaikowsky, p./ Chicago Sym./ Fritz Reiner – HDTT, 33:00 [avail. in various formats from www.highdeftapetranfers.com] ***: Polish piano virtuoso Andre Tchaikowsky (nee Krauthammer), 1935-1982, made his reputation as a gifted pupil of Lazare-Levy, Stefan Ashkenase, and Annie Fischer. His friendships with Radu Lupu and Stephen Kovacevich earned him their respect, which they lavished both on his keyboard gifts and his talent as a composer. On 11 February 1958, Tchaikowsky replaced an indisposed Clara Haskil, who had been scheduled to perform with Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony works by Bach (f minor Concerto) and Mozart (C Major, K. 503).  Tchaikowsky, unfamiliar with both scores, bought copies of the music at local music store before appearing for Reiner at the first rehearsal. When Tchaikowsky admitted to Reiner that he had been sight-reading the music, Reiner became incensed. By the time of the performance, Tchaikowsky had memorized the scores, and he improvised his own cadenza for the Mozart’s first movement. The recording session occurred on 15 February, but Tchaikowsky would not authorize […]

RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade – The Philadelphia Orch./ Eugene Ormandy – RCA (1972)/ HDTT

RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade – The Philadelphia Orch./ Eugene Ormandy – RCA (1972)/ HDTT

by | Feb 11, 2016 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

An excellent four-channel surround version of this standard. RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade – The Philadelphia Orch./ Eugene Ormandy – RCA (1972)/transferred from an RCA quadraphonic open reel tape by HDTT – Pure Audio Blu-ray with choice of either 4.0 or 2.0 DTS-HD MA 24/192K *****: There is little more to be said about this music, and plenty of versions of it out there, include several in 5.0 hi-res surround on SACD, by Gergiev, Ponti, Macal and Barry Wordsworth. If you don’t have an SACD deck but do have a Blu-ray player, this would be an excellent choice. It is a better orchestra than most of the others, and the four-channel sonics do have a bit more impact and clarity than the three-front-channel version that is my personal favorite – that on an RCA SACD by Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony. It is definitely the most spectacular of all the versions and the three channels across the front are nothing to sneeze at. I only wish I had three exactly matched frontal speakers rather than a lesser one at the center (though it is the same Von Schweikert brand). HDTT squeeses the utmost hi-res fidelity out of the prerecorded open reel tapes […]

RODGERS: Slaughter on Tenth Avenue; Victory at Sea—Symphonic Scenario; The March of the Siamese Children; The Carousel Waltz; South Pacific—Symphonic Suite – NY Philharmonic/ Richard Rodgers/ Philadelphia Pops Orch./ Andre Kostelanetz/ Pittsburgh Sym. Orch./ Fritz Reiner – Pristine Audio

RODGERS: Slaughter on Tenth Avenue; Victory at Sea—Symphonic Scenario; The March of the Siamese Children; The Carousel Waltz; South Pacific—Symphonic Suite – NY Philharmonic/ Richard Rodgers/ Philadelphia Pops Orch./ Andre Kostelanetz/ Pittsburgh Sym. Orch./ Fritz Reiner – Pristine Audio

by | Oct 20, 2013 | Classical Reissue Reviews

An assemblage of suites and incidental music from his musical shows, television, and films, this collection of Richard Rodgers reminds us of his peerless mastery in his chosen medium.