Trampler: Hindemith, Reger (solo viola works) - RCA LSC-2974 (orig pr, sealed)

$

53

<div style="text-align:center"><img src="http://ti2.auctiva.com/sw/java.gif" border="0"><br><table align="center"><tr><td><a style="text-decoration:none" href="http://emporium.auctiva.com/redgarnett" target="_blank"><img src="http://ti2.auctiva.com/sw/browse2.gif" border="0"></a></td><td height="21px" valign="middle" align="center"><font face="arial" size="2"><b><a href="http://emporium.auctiva.com/redgarnett" target="_blank">redgarnett</a> Store</b></font></td></tr></table></div> ITEM DESCRIPTION:

This beautiful LP – a still-sealed copy – from RCA (LSC-2974, US pressing, label iteration unknown, but certainly the earliest – ED1*, stereo) entitled "Music for Solo Viola" features the great Walter Trampler in rarely recorded works for solo viola by Hindemith, Stravinsky, and Reger, recorded circa 1968.

The exact contents are as follows:

Paul Hindemith: Sonata for Solo Viola Op. 25 No. 1 (1922)

Igor Stravinsky: Elégie for Viola (1944)

Max Reger: Suite No. 1 in G minor for Solo Viola Op. 131d (1915)

Max Reger: Suite No. 3 in E minor for Solo Viola Op. 131d (1915)

Wrote the eminent critic Lionel Salter in his March 1969 review for The Gramophone:

"If any artist is to corner the solo viola market—and though Trampler has behind him the Brahms and Hindemith sonatas, plus Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante, he still has a long way to go—I'd as soon it were he as anyone. For this is fine playing. marked by musicianship, a rich warm tone, assured technique, and intonation which comes near to being impeccable though leaving a few human frailties (as in the finale of the first Reger suite here, which for a permanent record by an artist of this stature might surely have been re-made?).

"The Reger suites—two out of a set of three written not long before his death in 1916—have none of the surprise modulations which we have come to expect from this composer, but reflect his deep love of Bach: they are very similar in structure, each with a broad opening movement, a scherzo (featuring writing in thirds) and trio, a slow movement with much double-stopping, and an animated finale with lots of semiquavers. Like Reger, Hindemith had a veneration for Bach and was regarded in his youth as a radical; but his Second Sonata for solo viola (1922) shows the latter facet more clearly than the first. After two thematically connected movements and a reflective Sehr langsam come a wild, barbaric movement (with the indication "Tonal beauty is of minor importance") and a slow expressive finale, which Trampler plays most beautifully. (There is, by the way, a curious aural effect in the first movement here—after the C sharp in the third chord, on each of its numerous appearances, an unwanted low C natural is distinctly to be heard.) Stravinsky's Elegie, written in 1944 to commemorate Alphonse Onnou, the founder of the Pro Arte Quartet, consists of a central fugato flanked on each side by a muted dirge which in spirit slightly recalls Falla's Homage to Debussy.

"The whole of this disc is warmly to be recommended to lovers of the viola and its literature; but viola players familiar with the first Reger suite will raise an eyebrow at three strange misreadings—a B flat instead of natural in bar 31 of the scherzo, a most unconvincing A flat instead of natural five bars before the end of the slow movement, and an F sharp instead of natural in bar 12 of the finale."

Incidentally, on the reverse side of the jacket are printed superb liner notes in English (by Oliver Daniel). The striking cover photo and design are uncredited.

*Although I cannot say with certainty which label is inside, I can guarantee that this is an early pressing, most certainly ED1. This is based on the weight of the album and its sturdiness (i.e., it does not have a light-weight “floppy” feel to it). I am a very experienced collector and seller and would not make a such a claim casually.

CONDITION:

The gradations of condition I use are as follows: MINT, Near-Mint, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor.

The condition of the jacket is near-MINT. Really, there are no flaws to speak of and the album appears almost as new. There are no seamsplits, bends, owners’ markings, or other faults, and the whole remains solid, bright, glossy, and highly attractive – overall, a truly fine collector's copy.

The condition of the LP is MINT. This is a still-sealed, unplayed copy – the ideal collector's copy.

PLEASE NOTE:
This LP has been carefully cleaned using a VPI cleaning machine. All LPs are provided with a new Nagaoka (or Nagaoka-style) inner sleeve. The images I've provided are of the actual item you are potentially bidding on - these are not stock images or images I've taken from other sites. Bid with confidence!

PAYMENT:
Payment by PayPal is greatly preferred. Payment should be made within 5 days.

SHIPPING:
Shipping is free to anywhere in the world; this is true regardless of the number of LPs you buy, be it 1 or a 100. All LPs will be sent via standard airmail (7-10 days delivery). Note: There is no tracking number provided with standard airmail. Should you wish to have your item(s) sent via certified airmail (i.e., with a tracking number), please contact me.

FEEDBACK:
I will promptly leave feedback for all buyers. Please do not leave negative, or even neutral, feedback without first giving me an opportunity to resolve any dissatisfaction you might have with an item or transaction. I do understand that, on occasion, a buyer might believe the item description to be inaccurate or that a buyer may be disappointed in some other way regarding the sale. I promise I will do my very best to resolve any unhappiness you've experienced in your buying experience with me to your complete satisfaction. Thank you.

REFUNDS:
Returns are honored, and any buyer you makes a return will be refunded in full. Please contact me before making a return.

Please see my other classical LP and CD auctions, and feel free to write with any questions, I'll be glad to help.