Rodzinski: Wagner Orchestral Excerpts (r. 1955) - Nixa WLP 20024, beautiful copy
$25.00 USD
Jacket NM / LP EX / UK pressing
This beautiful LP from Nixa (WLP 20024, English pressing, red/silver label, mono, laminated flipback jacket) features Artur Rodzinski and the Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of London (Beecham’s RPO) in a magnificent all-Wagner program, sumptuously recorded at Walthamstow Assembly Hall, London, on 14 April 1955.
Rodzinski was a great Wagnerian, a conductor who led the composer’s scores both in the opera house and in the concert hall. Reviewing EMI’s Artur Rodzinski volume in their “Great Conductors of the 20th Century” series, the critic John Quinn wrote for MusicWeb-International: “Equally successful is the Magic Fire music – there’s real grandeur here. Rodzinski packs great power and intensity into his account of Siegfried’s Funeral March.”
Their exact program is as follows:
Götterdämmerung
Dawn and Siegfried's Rhine Journey
Siegfried's Funeral March
Die Walküre
Magic Fire Music
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Overture
Suite (Prelude to Act III · Dance of the Apprentices · Entry of the Masters)
Incidentally, the outstanding cover art was designed by Harry Peck, and there are insightful liner notes on the reverse side fo the jacket by John Coombs, printed in English only. Notice that even the back side of the jacket is overlaid with artwork – a really nice album.
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. There is a slight ripple to the upper flipback portion of the jacket, but this is of factory origin. There is also very minor wear along the spine, but that is all. Otherwise, the album appears almost as new. There are no seamsplits, bends, owners’ markings, or other defects, and the jacket remains perfectly solid, bright, glossy, and highly attractive – overall, this rates as a lovely collector's copy.
The condition of the LP itself is EXCELLENT. Although the surfaces are not absolutely silent, this is a fine copy and the playback is quite superb. Those requiring flawless or NM surfaces are kindly advised to look elsewhere. Overall, this rates as an excellent collector's copy.
