Hot Stamper Pressings of Classical and Orchestral Music Available Now
This is our favorite recording of the work. Those of you looking for a Young Person’s Guide can stop looking, this is the one.
For those who have never heard it, check out The Young Person’s Guide on YouTube – it is a tour de force of orchestral excitement, especially from the percussion section.
We’ve learned from shootouts past (and were reminded again during our most recent) that the London pressings can also be quite good, but none of them can hold a candle to the early Deccas.
However, the later Boxed Label Deccas leave a lot to be desired and should be avoided by those looking for top quality sound.
Side one of this copy was dry and hot. Side two thin and very small.
This is an amazing recording, but you’d never know it from playing the reissues.
There are about 150 orchestral recordings we think offer the best performances with the highest quality sound. This record is certainly deserving of a place on that list.
A Must Own Record
We consider this album a Masterpiece. It’s a recording that belongs in any serious classical collection.
Others that belong in that category can be found here.
Side One
Serenade For Tenor Solo, Horn And Strings
Side Two
Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra
One of Britten’s best known works is The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra (1946), which was composed to accompany Instruments of the Orchestra, an educational film produced by the British government, narrated and conducted by Malcolm Sargent. Its subtitle is Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell, the theme is a melody from Henry Purcell’s Abdelazar.
Britten gives individual variations to each of the sections of the orchestra, starting with the woodwind, then the string instruments, the brass instruments and finally the percussion. He then brings the whole orchestra together again in a fugue before restating the theme to close the work. The original film’s spoken commentary is often omitted in concert performances and recordings.
Wikipedia
Further Reading