The Record Collector CDs

Cloe Elmo excerpt from La Madre e il Figlio (cantata)

No less than eight of the twenty-two tracks on the 2008 CD have never been reissued on LP and CD. The superb bass voice of Hippolyte Belhomme is mighty of tone but with the coloratura technique of a soprano and a fine trill to boot. The beautiful voice of Thomas L. Thomas will delight those not familiar with his voice. Josefina Huguet has always been neglected by collectors but we have four discs designed to show her at her best: the tone utterly feminine and the technique formidable. The Danish soprano Johanne Brun was a phenomenon: an Isolde who could also sing coloratura roles. Agnes Nicholls, possessor of one of the most magnificent high Cs of her time, thrills with her superb soprano and we precede one of her recordings with those two doyens of collecting, P.G. Hurst and John Freestone, discussing her singing.

But by far the most interesting item on the CD is an ultra-rare cantata by the composer Soddu, sung with great beauty of tone by the ravishing mezzo Cloe Elmo. It is gorgeous music, beautifully sung and this is the first time this disc has appeared on any reissue. The CD ends with a hell-for-leather duet of two great voices. Cloe Elmo and Gina Cigna give an object lesson in the art of verismo in the show stopping duet from La Gioconda. It is one of the most thrilling duets ever to have been recorded!

George Thill J’aurais sur ma poitrine (Werther)

We are proud of our latest CD. It features a number of firsts and certainly several “first time on CD” items. Here are all four of George Thill’s acoustic 78s, which have never been issued before. The beautiful bass of Endré Koreh will be a revelation to many listeners. “First time” items include three Leonard Warren broadcast tracks, a live Hjördis Schymberg and, amazingly, a Pol Plançon take which seems to have eluded previous issues. There are also five tracks which our contributors have described as “favourite records”.

Beno Blachut Ha, kym to kouzlem (Dalibor)

This CD features the mighty bass voice of José Mardones in four selections, one of which is unpublished and two were available originally only in Spain. The Dutch soprano Engelen-Sewing will amaze listeners with her coloratura ability. There are four tracks of the amazing Russian mezzo Dolukhanova, with her hair-raising account of ‘O don fatale’. The thrilling, ringing tenor of Beno Blachut should not be missed, nor the wonderful baritone voice of the very underrated Richard Bonelli. All in all a CD full of little known, sometimes previously unavailable and superb selections of all these singers.

In this CD we are proud to bring you three excerpts from a previously unpublished concert with Panzéra, two of which he never recorded commercially. In addition there are three other excerpts which have never been on CD before: the great tenors Ulysses Lappas and Costa Milona both feature in beautiful Greek songs. The bass Alfred Kaufmann appears on reissues for the first time.

Highlights are the stylish and expressive singing of Vanni Marcoux and four excerpts with that great mezzo virtuoso Sigrid Onegin. There is an unpublished Johann Strauss song of Marion Talley and the beautiful voice of Miriam Licette, who has been iniquitously neglected on reissues. All in all a highly enjoyable issue.

Vanni Marcoux Voi dormite, Signora (Tosti)

Solomon Khromchenko Romance of the Young Gypsy (Aleko)

This is one of our most interesting CDs, featuring several ‘first time on CD’ issues. There are four tracks of the ravishing singing of the French tenor David Devriès, including the two rare Büsser songs (first time on reissue). For tenor lovers Solomon Khromchenko will be a revelation. He is still little known in the West; the voice like Kozlovsky in its beauty.

Many will remember the thundering bass of Nowakowski and the attractive sound of Lester Ferguson, both prominent just after the War. So too was Alfred Orda, arguably one of the most beautiful heroic baritone voices to emerge from Poland. Another wonderful heroic baritone was Umberto Urbano, whose contemporary was the dramatic soprano Barbara Kemp. These are just some of the singers on this CD. If you like fine voices, give this CD a try.

At last, a CD that pays tribute to one of the greatest baritones of the 20th Century. Arguably this was one of the most beautiful baritone voices before the public and it was used with an impeccable technique. This CD is a mixture of the best of his published Victor 78s and radio transcriptions. Much of it has never been transferred to CD. Transfers are by Roger Beardsley in superb sound. No wonder he was a favourite in the US for over thirty years!

Igor Gorin El vito (Nin)

This CD features examples of the singers who were the subjects of Volume 47. Here are many of the electrical recordings of Sir George Henschel, two of the loveliest discs of the young Heinrich Schlusnus, four examples of the superb dramatic tenor Nino Piccaluga, three of the suave French bass Marcel Journet and some of the most exciting soprano singing ever committed to disc, from the Hungarian soprano Anne Roselle.

César Vezzani Roi du ciel (Le Prophète)

At the beginning of the Twentieth Century the French school of singing produced some of the most exciting heroic tenors ever to tread the boards. The sound was unique from the dark but ringing baritonal quality of Agustarello Affre (said to be a rival to the great Francesco Tamagno) and the little known but equally impressive Georges Granal (the first time so many examples have appeared on CD) to the lirico-spinto, uniquely French sound of Luccioni, Verdière and Franz. The Record Collector bring for your interest the first issues of Louis Orliac and Georges Imbart de la Tour on CD, perhaps on reissues.

This CD features examples of the singers who were the subjects of Volume 46. Here are some wonderful examples of Russian singers who appeared on early electric Victor records, including the young Lemeshev in his beautiful Trilby aria. It also contains examples of the wonderful New Zealand bass Oscar Natzka, the first ever publication of two unpublished recordings of Nino Martini, including his Puritani ‘Credea si misera’ with a high F, the first ever reissues of Rafaelo Diaz and Caroline Hatchard and so much more.

Martha Angelici Cantu di Malincunia (Tomasi)

Simply, a collection of 24 tracks of great singing designed to appeal to the connoisseur, hence the title. The emphasis is on many less well-known names but each is an outstanding performance guaranteed to enhance any collectionof great voices.

Many of these are from rare discs in fine condition, mastered with astonishing quality and clarity by Roger Beardsley.

Examples of the artists who were the subjects of articles in Volume 45. Arias, duets and songs by Celestina Boninsegna (2), Amelia Pinto (9 sides of her incredibly rare Fonotipias), Margarethe Siems
 (“Swiss Echo Song” first ever reissue & Rosenkavalier aria), George Hamlin (3, one unpublished), Enzo De Muro Lomanto (3), Carlo Morelli (3), Joseph Schmidt (3)

A selection of her greatest Polydors. Mint copies from the Harold Wayne Collection and guaranteed the finest sound. These acoustic Polydors probably show the voice at it’s best: young, vibrant and of a rare beauty. They contain repertoire that she never again recorded, like arias from Don Carlos, Aida and Oberon. It was little surprise that she became one of the great singers of the twentieth century with performances of this quality.

Songs by Tosti and other favourite song composers, sung by Anna Case, Fernando De Lucia, Ferruccio Corradetti, Richard Bonelli, Jean François Delmas, Elizabeth Parkina, Charles Dalmores, Oscar Kamionsky, Maria Labia, Giuseppe Bellantoni, Juste Nivette, Antonio Magini Coletti, Augusto Scampini, Enriqueta Basavilbaso de Catelin, Cesare Formichi, Andre Labinsky, Giuseppe Anselmi, Ninì Frascani, Umberto Urbano, Angelo Minghetti, Gösta Björling, Stefan Islandi & Salomea Kruszelnicka.

Arias and Songs by Iris Adami Corradetti, Helena Arizmendi, Mario Ancona, Dan Beddoe, Celestina Boninsegna, Lucrezia Bori, Tom Burke, Louis Cazette, Antonio Cortis, Giuseppe De Luca, Fernando de Lucia, Giuseppe di Stefano and many more.