Kurtz: Famous Marches (Tchaikovsky, Berlioz, et al) - Spanish HMV ASDL 780 (ED1)

Jacket: NM  /  Vinyl: EX  /  Spanish pressing

This handsome and outstanding LP from La Voz de su Amo (ASDL 780, Spanish pressing, cream/silver label – ED1, stereo) entitled “Famous Marches” features conductor Efren Kurtz and the Philharmonia Orchestra in marches – some well-known, others less so – by 10 different composers, each brought off with tremendous style and panache. Recorded at EMI Studio No. 1, Abbey Road, London, in July 1959, the sound is truly of demonstration quality.

The exact contents are as follows:

Giuseppe Verdi: Gran March, from Aida

Sergei Prokofiev: March, The Love for Three Oranges · Symphonic Suite Op. 33a

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: Wedding March, from The Golden Cockerel · Symphonic Suite

Giacomo Meyerbeer: Coronation March, from Act IV of The Prophet

Hector Berlioz: Rákóczy March, from La damnation de Faust Op. 24

Franz Schubert (arr. Ernest Guiraud): Marche Militaire No. 1 in D Major D. 733 (Op. 51)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Turkish March, from the Ruins of Athens Op. 113

Emmanuel Chabrier: Joyeuse marche "Marche française"

Johann Strauss I (arr. Aubrey Winter): Radetzky March Op. 228

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Marche Slave Op. 31

There are superb liner notes on the reverse side of the jacket by W.A. Chislett, printed in Spanish only. The striking cover art is uncredited.

These fine Spanish HMV pressings are quite rare, particularly as Spain's record industry was very much limited by the exigencies of life under the Franco dictatorship and most titles were pressed in smaller numbers than they were in the UK, France, or Germany. Moreover, these LPs (made in Barcelona) are every bit as fine as their Continental or American counterparts – an interesting acquisition for the intrepid collector, a remarkable disc in every way.