Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
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Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
It is finally about to appear. I always said that, before I kick the famous "bucket," I want to own those American Decca recordings made by Benno Moiseiwitsch on compact discs. [I have long treasured all those mono and stereo LPs, however, Decca's pressings were not always first-class.] It is about to happen! But, I'm not ready to kick the "bucket" yet if there is any way around it. It's a wonderful 10-CD set filled with performances by Lewenthal, Arrau, de Larrocha, and others. Some of this material should have been available within the Philips "Great Pianists of the Twentieth Century" CD series. I know for a fact that the Moiseiwitsch WAS scheduled (as Volume 2) in his honour. It never made it. [It would have made a good choice in place of the André Previn set, though I have nothing against Mr Previn.] Now, with Philips past recordings under the Universal umbrella, we can hope for more treasures inasmuch as Universal/DGG holds the rights to all the American Decca/MGM/Westminster original recordings.
Lance G. Hill
Editor-in-Chief
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When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
That Shakespeherian rag...
(Couldn't resist.)
(Couldn't resist.)
John Francis
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Lance, I have been following the fluctuation of price for this eagerly sought box quite avidly. The cost has bounced around from an orginal $75 to $119 and prices in between on Amazon. I think the price will eventually be well uner $100 and then I will obtain this collection of 'golden oldies', my friend. Liszt done in exciting keyboard renditions from artists who really know Liszt.
Regards,
Mel

Regards,
Mel


Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
No need to wait. Just order it from overseas. It's 40.21 British pounds at MDT including shipping to America. At today's exchange rate that comes to $62.
Farhan
Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Done! Thanks, Farhan. Will report on arrival......
Last edited by maestrob on Wed Oct 05, 2011 11:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
fmnewyork wrote:No need to wait. Just order it from overseas. It's 40.21 British pounds at MDT including shipping to America. At today's exchange rate that comes to $62.
Wow!.........Thank you, m8.





Regards,
Mel


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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
My copy arrived ... and am thrilled to have it. First listening was to the Moiseiwitsch/Schumann disc. A digital flaw appears on track 21 and there is no visible blemish on the disc. [This has been happening to me with Universal-produced budget-boxed CDs, though this isn't the traditional budget box.] Also the sound of Moiseiwitsch's Baldwin concert grand piano has a thinness and rather hollow sound, which the LP issues did not have. Nonetheless these are all the 1961 American Decca recordings made by Moiseiwitsch and the first time they have appeared on CD taken from the original masters.
Lance G. Hill
Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Got my set today and put on the Moiseiwitsch Schumann CD. I didn't notice any digital flaw on track 21 (finale of Carnaval). Is the flaw something subtle one could easily miss? Perhaps the flaw is not present on all copies.
Farhan
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
It's $8 cheaper from Presto Classical: http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/DG/4779527fmnewyork wrote:No need to wait. Just order it from overseas. It's 40.21 British pounds at MDT including shipping to America. At today's exchange rate that comes to $62.
I've ordered mine but it hasn't arrived yet. Should be in early this week. Hope my copy doesn't have the defect that Lance mentioned.
George
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
When does the digital flaw occur? I got my copy of this set today.Lance wrote:My copy arrived ... and am thrilled to have it. First listening was to the Moiseiwitsch/Schumann disc. A digital flaw appears on track 21 and there is no visible blemish on the disc.
George
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
So ... what's the consensus on this set, for those who have acquired it? Anybody find any other flaws in the discs ... first off? And what about this collection? Is it everything you expected it to be and well processed. I, of course, am delighted to have the entire set. More thoughts from yours truly on this set as we go along. Listening and re-listening has been great fun!
Lance G. Hill
Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Hi Lance!
I think you missed my question:
I think you missed my question:
When does the digital flaw occur? I got my copy of this set today. I listened to that track a few times and it sounds fine to me.Lance wrote:My copy arrived ... and am thrilled to have it. First listening was to the Moiseiwitsch/Schumann disc. A digital flaw appears on track 21 and there is no visible blemish on the disc.
George
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Hi George ... Yes, sorry I missed your question. The flaw appears on Track 21, the final movement of Schumann's Carnaval (Disk 7). It occurs at 0:16 into 0:17, actually a skip. I have written to see if I can simply obtain a replacement for the one disc rather than sending the whole set back to England. This occurs for me on three different CD players.
The Egon Petri Bach disc I have been listening to closely comparing it to the original Westminster mono LP. Good job in transferring to digital especially maintaining the wonderful bass on Petri's gorgeous Steinway. I have also discovered a more natural sound by reducing the treble on the graphic equalizer or tone control for some folks. One thing DGG consistently does in their remastering is to brighten the high end of the sound spectrum too much, sometimes to the point of hurting the ears.
The Egon Petri Bach disc I have been listening to closely comparing it to the original Westminster mono LP. Good job in transferring to digital especially maintaining the wonderful bass on Petri's gorgeous Steinway. I have also discovered a more natural sound by reducing the treble on the graphic equalizer or tone control for some folks. One thing DGG consistently does in their remastering is to brighten the high end of the sound spectrum too much, sometimes to the point of hurting the ears.
gperkins151 wrote:Hi Lance!
I think you missed my question:
When does the digital flaw occur? I got my copy of this set today. I listened to that track a few times and it sounds fine to me.Lance wrote:My copy arrived ... and am thrilled to have it. First listening was to the Moiseiwitsch/Schumann disc. A digital flaw appears on track 21 and there is no visible blemish on the disc.
Lance G. Hill
Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

Editor-in-Chief
______________________________________________________
When she started to play, Mr. Steinway came down and personally
rubbed his name off the piano. [Speaking about pianist &*$#@+#]

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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
Sorry to hear that, Lance. I checked my copy again and do not hear a defect on mine.Lance wrote:Hi George ... Yes, sorry I missed your question. The flaw appears on Track 21, the final movement of Schumann's Carnaval (Disk 7). It occurs at 0:16 into 0:17, actually a skip. I have written to see if I can simply obtain a replacement for the one disc rather than sending the whole set back to England. This occurs for me on three different CD players.
Interesting. EMI seems to do the opposite in their remasterings.The Egon Petri Bach disc I have been listening to closely comparing it to the original Westminster mono LP. Good job in transferring to digital especially maintaining the wonderful bass on Petri's gorgeous Steinway. I have also discovered a more natural sound by reducing the treble on the graphic equalizer or tone control for some folks. One thing DGG consistently does in their remastering is to brighten the high end of the sound spectrum too much, sometimes to the point of hurting the ears.
George
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
EMI simply does not bother with Remasterings... 

Sent via Twitter by @chalkperson
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
It is interesting that when they have several digital masterings to choose from for a particular recording, they do not always choose the most recent one.Chalkperson wrote:EMI simply does not bother with Remasterings...
Some of their earliest historical CDs were very bright and harsh. It was clear that the mastering work was not being done by the transfer engineer (in many cases this was Keith Hardwick).
John
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Re: Oh, oh, oh! That new DGG/Westminster 10-CD piano set ...
I wish they wouldn't, as the earlier ones seem to preserve a bit more of the piano tone than the later ones.Chalkperson wrote:EMI simply does not bother with Remasterings...
George
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