Tom,
RCA had a joint venture with Decca,starting about 1958,roughly a year,after they had severed their ties to EMI.This was at one point covered in detail,in "The Absolute Sound" (My old issues,including these,are in storage.),and I think,in "Classic Record Collector",but am not sure.It lasted about ten years,and part of this joint venture,were those RCA pressed Londons,on unique RCA stampers, done for the RCA Record Club,in the "white dog" era,I have spoken of here.
All of these LSCs/Sorias were recorded for RCA,as joint ventures,as was the Von Karajan Soria box.
So was the "Treasury of Great Music " box set Chesky has reissued as single records/CDs.The book that came with the original 1963 box set is particularly enlightening,as it has photos from the sessions,some of which were reprinted in these magazines.
Photo number four,on the inside back cover,shows Kenneth Wilkinson.and RCA's Charles Gerhardt,with Malcolm Sargent,all standing around listening to a playback.Photo number one shows Sargent (Decca artist),with Earl Wild (RCA artist),in rehearsal,of the Chopin or Liszt Concerto,on record 11 of the set. Gerhardt is also seen in the photo on the sleeve of the rarely seen bonus record of this set*,which has one of the best pictures you will find of the famed "Decca trees".
There are a few of these records,that were issued as part of "mood music" box sets.
There are three such records in the "Mood Music For Listening and Relaxing" Record 3 is by Malcolm Sargent,including the only recording I am aware of of him doing Leroy Anderson.Record 5,is by Earl Wild,and Russell Stanger (Reissued by Chesky on CD.),and record 9 is by Josef Leo Gruber,and The VSOO,and is a Decca recording.
The box set "The Magical World of Melody",has two records,with The RPO,from the "Treasury" sessions.Strauss waltzes,conducted by Gerhardt(Record 8),and "Gaite Parisienne"/"Les Sylphides" (Anatole Fistoulari - Record 10).Then there is the RCA/RD Leibowitz record,with The "RCA Italiana" Orchestra.
For all these recordings,Gerhardt was producer,and Wilkinson,the engineer. Living stereo,and Reader's Digest,alike.Gerhardt openly thanks him,in the book in the companion Rachmaninoff box.
At one point,in the 70s,I think,ownership of these tapes reverted entirely to Decca/London,who have made a number of reissues from them.
All of these titles,both Living Stereo,and Reader's Digest,were first issued on RCA,as were a number of other RCA/Decca joint recordings,which trickled out throughout the 60s.There may be at least one or two unissued Reader's Digest recordings,that came out on Victrola.Could somebody clarify this?The latest RCA/Decca joint recording,I have is the Leonard Pennario/Rene Lebowitz Liszt, on LSC-2690,but I believe there are later ones.
*Beethoven "Egmont Overture" *Bach-Leibowitz "Passacagalia and Fugue in C Minor for Two Orchestras" *Weber "Die Freischutz Overture" *Schumann "Manfred Overture" (RD-4-15-13)
Roger
Tom Fine <tflists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: In the mid-90's, Classic Records reissued a bunch of albums RCA had issued in the U.S. in the late
50's and early 60's. Classic's catalog sheet, enclosed in the albums, stated these were made by
Decca "for RCA." I'm talking about albums like "Venice" by Solti (opera overtures and
act-introductions) and Ansermet's "Royal Ballet" with excerpts from several ballet scores. Also
"Witches Brew", which appears to be "show stopper" pieces.
My question -- were these re-packaged Decca records that were already out by Decca outside of the U.S. or were they commissioned and/or paid for by RCA? The masters apparently reverted to Decca because the Classic releases were licensed from both Polygram (presumably for the masters) and RCA/BMG (presumably for the distinctive packaging and liner notes).
I guess a related question is, why didn't Decca just release these works in the U.S. via London records?
-- Tom Fine
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