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Despite the encouragement for contemporary music expressed in the editorial of the January edition (page 1286) I feel that t,he musical public and the record companies sometimes have good reason to be less than enthusiastic about certain contemporary music.
Your question is rhetorical and forms an introduction to your survey of recent releases of music of our time. Nevertheless, the question is still valid, and resurrects the perennial and vexed question of musical values. Clearly, new styles and techniques need time to make an impression, and early...
Mr Tom Borer's amusing letter (January, page 1283) on the subject of buried Fricsay treasures struck a chord. Here is one conductor whose recorded work I return to often, however poor and scratchy the sound may have become by comparison with modern CDs.
Life is full of surprises for the collector of virtuoso piano recordings. The first surprise was to see in your December issue an advertisement from Pickwick for a recording of the 1838 version of Liszt's Transcendental Studies played by Janice Weber ((I) MCD10). It has always been believed by...
I feel I must make some comments on Christopher D. Walley's views on Gardiner's rendering of Bach's St Matthew Passion and related matters, as expressed in his letter (January, page 1283). Whereas I entirely share Mr Walley's views concerning the 'translations' of the German text, I vigorously...
I support Donald Hagger's plea (January, page 1284) for more of Solomon's recordings to be reissued on Compact Disc, and I am delighted to learn from Stefan Bown of EMI that Solomon's recording of the Arthur Bliss Piano Concerto is to appear on CD. Let us hope that room will be found on the same...
The National Federation of Gramophone Societies are holding a Recorded Music Weekend at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, between Friday April 6th and Monday April 9th. Speakers include GRAMOPHONE contributors Alan Blyth (who will be in conversation with Sir John Tooley, former General Director of...


