Remastered recordings music to the ears

According to the song, "Love is better, the second time around." We could say the same thing for remastered recordings, because they are better than the originals, at least most of the time.

The three recordings listed below are definitely better - by which I mean the sound reproduction is better - than the original releases. This is due to advances in recording techniques that enables sound engineers to remaster original recordings, getting a higher quality of sound from original tapes.

And here are two examples from EMI Classic`s Great Recordings of the (20th) Century:

DELIUS: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring; Brigg Fair; Summer Night on the River; Irmelin Prelude; Dance Rhapsody No. 2; A song before Sunrise; Summer Evening. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Sir Thomas Beecham, conductor. EMI Classics 5 67553; stereo; ADD.

I should imagine that playing Delius is one of the great challenges a contemporary conductor would have to face. How could any conductor hope to match - let alone improve on - the recordings left us by Sir Thomas Beecham - unless, of course, he could evoke the spirt of the late baronet to guide his baton?

And, indeed, relatively few conductors have chosen to record, or even to play, Delius.

Sir Thomas made these recordings in 1958, 1960 and 1963. They have taken their place as treasures in the Delius discography. These remastered recordings only add to their value.

Sir Thomas was the great champion of the music of Frederick Delius (1862-1934), that enigmatic English composer of German parentage who followed no school of composition and left no disciples. He was an original. In that respect his music was like that of Mahler`s and, I would say (though I suppose some would disagree), Debussy`s.

This is a beautiful disc of recordings of Delius. The selections are broad enough to afford a good example of the composer`s works.

BEETHOVEN: Missa solemnis. Elizabeth Soderstrom, soprano; Marga Hoffgen, contralto; Waldemar Kmentt, tenor; Martti Talvela, bass. New Philharmonia Chorus and Orchestra. Otto Klemperer, conductor. EMI Classics 5 67547; stereo; ADD; text.

This recording dates from 1966. And it is not only technology that has made this a better recording, but the time that has passed since 1966 until now: Over this period of time, we have had the opportunity to re-evaluate the worth of Otto Klemperer`s effort, and my evaluation of it has increased greatly since I first heard it in the 33 1/3 format.

Indeed, as I hear this mighty performance today, I would rank it among the very best available. Klemperer was at his zenith as a conductor, the chorus and orchestra were splendid, and the four soloists prove, as I listen today, to be an excellent combination.

MAHLER: Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer); Kindertotenlieder (Songs on the Death of Children); 5 Ruckertlieder (Five songs from Ruckert); 5 Gesange aus "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" (Five Songs from "The Youth`s Magic Horn"). Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone; Philharmonia Orchestra, Wilhelm Furtwangler, conductor; Berlin Philharmonic, Rudolf Kempe, conductor; Daniel Barenboim, piano. EMI 67557; mono and stereo; ADD; texts.

Two great conductors, one great pianist/conductor and one great baritone, all newly presented through the magic of digital remastering, equal one great disc of music of Gustav Mahler.

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau recorded "Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen" and the five songs from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" with Wilhelm Furtwangler in 1952; "Kindertotenlieder" with Rudolf Kempe in 1955 and the five "Ruckertlieder" songs with Daniel Barenboim at the piano in 1978.

We hear the celebrated German baritone at the beginning of his career with Furtwangler when he was 26, three years later with Kempe when he was 29 and then in 1978 with Barenboim when he was 53 and had, by then, captured the entire world of music lovers with his outstanding baritone voice, both in opera and especially as a recitalist.

Those who love the music of Mahler will not want to be without this outstanding album, the selections culled from earlier recordings, each remastered in absolutely splendid sound, even the 1952 recordings with Furtwangler.

What a splendid opportunity to hear Fischer-Dieskau at the beginning of his career. His star shinned brightly then, and with each passing year it climbed even higher into the heavens. But it is the mature, experienced voice of the baritone as he sings the touching and tragic Kindertotenlieder that shows us a master artist of his craft.

There is nothing in all of music that touches me so deeply as do the songs in Mahler`s "Kindertotenlieder," "Songs on the Death of Children." When my children were very young, I simply couldn`t bear to listen to them. The experience repeated itself with the birth of my grandchildren. Mahler`s setting of the poetry of Friedrich Ruckert fits perfectly the anxiety, the heartbreak, the tragedy expressed in the poet`s words. It was Mahler`s wife, Alma, who suggested that he was "tempting fate" in writing such music. And, indeed, their daughter, Maria, died of diphtheria when she was but 4 years old.

It`s interesting that Ruckert`s poem was not published until after his death. I`ve always intended to try to learn if there was a reason for that. A splendid disc to add to your Mahler collection.AT THE MOVIES

Original motion picture soundtracks:

"The Man Who Cried," Salvatore Licitra, tenor; Iva Bittova, singer and violinist; Kronos Quartet; Katia & Marielle Labeque, duo pianists; Osvaldo Golijov, composer; Taraf De Haidouks, group of Romanian gypsy musicians; Sally Potter, composer/music producer, Sony Classical - Sony Soundtrack Recordings 61870.

A wealth of fine music that cuts across many musical art forms. Salvatore Licitra is a promising Italian tenor with a splendid voice, rich in color and rich in depth, who made his debut in "Un balla in maschera" in 1998. You`ll hear him sing works from Bizet`s "The Pearl Fishers," Verdi`s "Il trovatore" and Purcell`s "Dido and Aeneas."

It`s always good to hear the brilliant Kronos Quartet. Very exciting for me was the playing and singing (in appropriate form) of Taraf De Haidouks, the Romanian gypsy musicians.

As far as music goes, the score comes across even better on the CD than it does on the screen. Interesting film, with Johnny Depp and Cate Blanchett as the lovers and John Torturro acting the role of the tenor to Salvatore Licitra`s tenor voice. Nice score by Osvaldo Golijov.

"The Mummy," original music composed and conducted by Alan Silvestri. Decca 440 013 983.

The disc includes the song "Forever May Not be Long Enough," written by Ed Kowalczyk and Glen Ballard and performed by Live. Silvestri also wrote the score to "The Mummy," the 1999 box office hit. He is easily remembered for other recent excellent motion picture scores, including "Back to the Future," "Forrest Gump," "What Lies Beneath" and "The Mexican." Like scary music? You have it in this Brendan Fraser sequel.

"Bride of the Wind," music by Gustav and Alma Mahler; original music composed by Stephen Endelman, played by the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, Frantisek Preislar, conductor; excerpts from Mahler recordings by conductors Pierre Boulez and Claudio Abbado with the Vienna Philharmonic; Renee Flaming, soprano with Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano; Deutsche Grammophon 469 584.

This is a film about Alma Mahler, wife of the great composer Gustav Mahler. The film centers on Alma, played by Sarah Wynter. Jonathan Pryce plays the role of the composer. Stephen Endelman`s score is splendid. He has composed his music to fit well with the masterpieces of Mahler, not attempting to imitate his style, but creating a style that proves most appropriate as a partner to Mahler`s works.

On this disc, the works are presented in a story line with titles. Some of them are: "The Performance," "The Lovers," "Give Up Your Music" (Alma, too, was a composer but, when they married, Mahler insisted that she give up composing - and, truthfully, to take care of all his needs; such can be the demands of genius), "The Rehearsal," "Maria`s Death" (the 4-year-old child of Alma and Mahler), "The Letter," "Bride of the Wind," "I`m Pregnant," "Unrequited Love."

If you like this music of Mahler, but perhaps don`t really know his music, don`t let these snippets satisfy you. Buy the entire works, and you can`t do better than those on this CD, the recordings of Boulez and Abbado with the Vienna Philharmonic.

(c) Copley News Service,

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Author: King Durkee