- With a Triple Plus (A+++) Shootout Winning side one and a side two that’s not far behind, the orchestral power of display here is positively PHENOMENAL
- This Decca Tree recording is overflowing with the kind of rich, spacious, Tubey Magical sound that can only be found on vintage vinyl
- Performances and sound like no other – Maag’s William Tell is in a league of its own
- “You’d think Maag would approach the scores the way most conductors do: gung-ho and hell bent for leather. He doesn’t. In fact, Maag displays a good deal of reserve, calculating his interpretations for the biggest payoff. For instance, in William Tell he keeps the opening sections in check, and then he builds the final segment into a most-exciting whirlwind, the conclusion carrying you away.”
_Conductors – Maag
It’s Records Like This that Give Reissues a Bad Reputation
Apparently mastered with no regard to sound quality, this Decca SPA reissue is muddy, dull and smeary.
How do we know that? We go out of our way to play every pressing we can get our hands on, even cheap reissues such as this. That’s our job. We play everything so you don’t have to.
Some of them are good, some of them are mediocre, and some, like this one, are ridiculously bad.
We know this music well, having done shootouts for all four of these works. They are Demonstration Quality recordings if you have the right import pressings on Decca or London, and the performances are second to none.
More reviews of the recordings of Rossini
More reviews of the recordings of Mendelssohn
Mozart’s Wonderful Clarinet Concerto on Speakers Corner Heavy Vinyl
Sonic Grade: B?
A fairly good Speakers Corner Decca reissue.
Not sure if we would still agree with what we wrote back in the ’90 when this record came out, but here it is anyway.
One of the best of the Deccas. I raved about this one years ago when it came out. If I had to pick a record to demonstrate how wonderful Decca recordings are, musically and sonically, this would be an easy choice. (more…)
Chopin and Delibes / Les Sylphides / Maag / PCO – Reviewed in 2005
A distinguished member of the Better Records Orchestral Music Hall of Fame.
A dynamic and excellent pressing. This record has lovely string tone. Lots of tubey magic. Not one of the rarest Londons, but certainly one of the most enjoyable.
[This is a very old commentary so take it for what it’s worth.]
Rossini Overtures with Maag and the PCO
The London and Decca original pressings are the best, right?
Not in our experience. We think that’s just another Record Myth.
Bad vinyl, bad mastering, who knows why so many copies sound so thick, dull and veiled?
This Stereo Treasury pressing of Maag’s 1958 recording is shockingly good in many ways. It sure doesn’t sound like a budget reissue. If anything it sounds more original than the originals we played against it! (more…)
Mendelssohn / Scotch Symphony / Maag – Reviewed in 2011
More of the music of Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Scotch Symphony / Maag
A distinguished member of the Better Records Orchestral Music Hall of Fame.
Both sides of this record have that classic Decca chocolatey, rich, sweet sound. It”s not for everybody, it”s probably not the sound one would hear in a concert hall, but we love it and so do many audiophiles.
The performance here by Maag is legendary and definitive. The sound is perfectly suited for this music, with massed strings to die for. This is classic Tubey Magical Decca orchestral sound. If you want immediacy, buy a Mercury. If you want luscious, rich string tone, this London should be right up your alley.
Side two had less smear and less distortion and congestion than we heard on side one. It’s also even RICHER sounding, if such a thing is possible. More transparent too. A good balance of clarity and richness. A++ all the way. (more…)
Mozart / Notturno in D Major For 4 Orchestras / Maag – Our Shootout Winner from 2011
More of the music of Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Notturno in D Major For 4 Orchestras / Maag
A distinguished member of the Better Records Orchestral Music Hall of Fame.
This London title has long been a favorite of ours here at Better Records, and this Blueback copy does not disappoint (except in the area of condition, see the notes below). Side one, much like the amazing Mozart record we listed today, is spacious and three-dimensional like you will not believe. I would rank it in the Top Five Per Cent of all classical recordings in respect of those qualities. You can hear into the soundstage on this pressing like few recordings you own, we guarantee it.
It’s another London winner. You may get tired of me saying it, but it has DEMO QUALITY SOUND as regards its imaging and soundstaing. (more…)