Re: My First Time......:)

[Bruce Cross <bcross@lara.on.ca>]

Dear Mr. Andrews and list,

I have five versions of BWV 1052/Gould in my collection.  All are MONO:

1.  Concertgebouw/Mitropoulos, live in Salzburg, August 10, 1958:  Fast,
manic, audible toe tapping, poor ensemble, on Nuova Era 013.6306  Timings:
6:48/6:01/6:33
2.  Toronto S.O./Sir Ernest MacMillan, live at Massey Hall, Toronto, March
29, 1955:   lots of strumming in the bass.  marred by the audible broadcast
of a hockey game in the background. Not the most coherent performance, but
gutsy. on CBC PSCD 2005.  Timings: 8:09/6:18/7:53
3.  Columbia S.O./Bernstein, studio, April 1957: ensemble sometimes shaky.
Reverb sounds phony.  on SonySM2K 52 591.  Timings:8:34/7:07/8:17
4.  Academic S.O. of Leningrad/Slovak, live in Leningrad, 1957: Error prone:
includes a real disaster towards the end of the last movement, when the
orchestra comes in on the wrong beat of the end of the cadenza. on CBS M2K
42270, and also now in the Sony series, I think. Timings:  8:35/7:18/8:13
5.  Ottawa Philharmonic/Mayer, Montreal, October 22, 1957: poor sound, but a
very deeply felt middle movement and an astonishingly long decrescendo
towards the end of the first movement.  on Sony Laserdisc. Timing:
9:13/7:18/8:56.

Mr. Andrews undoubtedly remembers #3 of my list, the Bernstein studio
version and I think the only one ever to be on commercial LP.  I always
found it interesting that when Columbia released a so called complete set of
the concerti on #4 of my list, in 1987,  they released the live version from
Leningrad and not the Bernstein version.  Nor did Gould's other
collaborations with Bernstein, Beethoven's concerti 2,3, and 4 appear on CD
until the GG Edition in 1992.  In 1985, the GG Legacy, Vol.2 was released on
CBS CDM3K 39036 with a live Leningrad version of Beethoven 2 instead of the
Bernstein studio version.  So, what happened between 1987 and 1992 to cause
the Bernstein/Gould collaborations to see CD?  Could it be the lamented
demise of the former?  You may draw your own conclusions.

Yours sincerely,
Bruce Cross,
somewhere near Toronto

P.S. for Mr. Andrews:
Send me your address and I'll send you the original LP, Columbia ML 5211, if
you want it.  I have 3 in my collection, as they seem plentiful here in
second hand shops.


na2 wrote:

> The first time I heard GG was on an old record my mother used to play of
> Bach's "Piano" Concerto No1 in D Minor. I am haunted to this day by what
> GG communicated to me on this performance.
> I have searched for years (pre-Internet) for a version of this
> recording. My main problem in not having the original in my possesion is
> that I can't be sure which version it was. I think it was on CBS, maybe
> with Bernstein(?), and I assume it was in mono.
>
> This recording has coloured my appreciation/enjoyement of all subsequent
> recordings I have heard and it is my task this year to track down that
> particular performance and to secure a copy so that I may be
> instrumental in spoiling my children's appreciation for anything but the
> real deal ..!!
>
> Many thanks,
>
> Nick Andrews
>
> Bondi Beach
> Sydney Australia