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Mussorgsky / Pictures At An Exhibition – A Good Record (Potentially), Not a Great One

More of the music of Modest Mussorgsky

More of the music of Benjamin Britten

This Chicago Symphony recording by RCA in 1968 has that BIG HALL SOUND we love here at Better Records.

Multi-miking is kept to a minimum, which allows the listener to visualize the orchestra from a more natural perspective than some of the other recordings of the work you may have heard. 

The sound is open and spacious, with lovely texture to the strings. The larger horns are especially well-captured here, Their dark and powerful sound, coupled with the fact that the recording is so dynamic and full-bodied, can really be quite moving. It might just send some shivers up your spine. (more…)

Britten / Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra

More of the Music of Benjamin Britten

  • Superb sound throughout this unboxed UK Decca stereo pressing, with both sides earning solid Double Plus (A++) grades
  • It’s also exceptionally quiet at the high end of Mint Minus Minus, a grade that even our most well-cared-for vintage classical titles have trouble playing at, and it should be noted that early Decca pressings rarely can be found in this condition
  • 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
  • We’ve learned from shootouts past (and were reminded again during our most recent) that the London pressing can also be quite good, but none of them can hold a candle to these early Deccas
  • For those who have never heard the work, check out The Young Person’s Guide on YouTube – it is a tour de force of orchestral excitement, especially the percussion section

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On Young Person’s Guide, Stick with the Unboxed Deccas

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.

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Britten / Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra

More of the music of Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

More Classical and Orchestral Recordings

  • An early UK Wideband London stereo pressing with excellent Double Plus (A++) sound or close to it on both sides
  • It’s also fairly quiet at Mint Minus Minus, a grade that even our most well-cared-for vintage classical titles have trouble playing at
  • The Young Person’s Guide is on side two of this album, and that is the better sounding side here
  • The early London pressings often do well in our shootouts, but the Unboxed Decca originals are a step up in class, when and if they can be found with quiet enough surfaces
  • For those who have never heard the work, check out The Young Person’s Guide on YouTube – it is a tour de force of orchestral excitement, especially the percussion section

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Britten / Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra / Ozawa

The sound of this White Hot Stamper side two is SUPER TRANSPARENT — you can hear all the way to the back of the hall and then some! There’s so much ambience on this pressing it forced us to reevaluate the other copies in light of the sound we were discovering here.

As if that wasn’t enough, it had energy and immediacy we simply did not expect to hear. The sound is big and bold during the loud passages, but sweet and delicate when, for example, the woodwinds are spotlighted in the composition. (more…)