Credits:

Bruno Walter, BBC Symphony Orchestra

Description:

Richard Itter (1928-2014), founder of the Lyrita Recorded Edition label, actively recorded British music and contributed to the discovery of unknown composers. This is the fourth in a series of CDs from a rare collection of BBC broadcasts that he has been air-checking since 1952, using the most advanced professional equipment available at the time. This is the first appearance of a series of live recordings of Walter conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra in May 1955. The "Faust Overture" was previously recorded in a studio in 1923 and live with the NBC Symphony Orchestra in 1939, but this recording is a welcome addition in terms of both sound quality and depth of interpretation.Haydn No. 96 is a favorite repertoire of Walter's. There are two studio recordings of Haydn No. 96, one with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937 and the other with the New York Philharmonic in 1954, as well as a live recording with the New York Philharmonic in 1954 and a live recording with the Orchestre National de Radio France in 1955, just before the live performance released for the first time here. There is also a live performance with the Orchestre National de Radio France in 1955, just before the first release of this album. The Ode to Fate" is another work with which Walther is closely associated, recorded with the New York Philharmonic in 1941 and with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra in Los Angeles the day after Walther's last public performance in 1960. There are two studio recordings and several live recordings of Mahler's Symphony No. 1 performed by Walter, but this recording is significant in that it is the first appearance of the work together with "Where the Trumpets Sound Beautifully" with Seefried.The sources were taken from magnetic tapes and acetate discs that Mr. Itter re-edited and re-recorded. The sound has been carefully remastered and is in very good condition for an aircheck from the 1950s. Naxos Japan