Berlioz - Harold in Italy; Overtures | Boston S.O. |Charles Münch | RCA Red Seal / 88697-08280-2 (2007) SACD rip via PS3 to iso (3.08GB) | 24bit/88.2kHz flac in 3ch (2.04GB) DR11 & 2ch (1.41GB) DR12 | Recorded in 1958 & 1959 | Classical First of all, the music itself is simple beautiful and amusing. It's light-hearted and fun to listen to. On the level of interpretation, I believe that Munch's approach to the music of this repertoire is second to none. He just handles the Boston Symphony Orchestra right and has a way of accenting the wonderful tempos and themes; the result is magical! In the "Harold in Italy", who better than Primrose? I felt that the overtures were just as enjoyable as the main item on this new recording in RCA's Living Stereo Hybrid-SACD collection. All together, the sound is simply spectacular and the level of musicianship is of the highest caliber. This recording is well worth your money! Berlioz biog here: http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/berlioz.php Allmusic review review by Blair Sanderson: In the 1950s, Charles Münch was closely associated with the orchestral music of Hector Berlioz, and his masterful recordings with the Boston Symphony Orchestra of the composer's best known works are widely considered as classics. The 1958 traversal of the intensely dramatic Harold in Italy, featuring violist William Primrose as soloist, is one of the extraordinary performances RCA recorded in its nascent three-track technology; though it has been familiar for many years in its Living Stereo mix, it sounds even bolder, richer, and deeper in the multichannel format. The combination of left, middle, and right channels creates a clear spatial relation between the orchestra and Primrose, and the viola's placement in the foreground gives it greater presence, particularly in the denser passages where the instrument's veiled tone requires a judicious instrumental balance. The four overtures, Béatrice et Bénédict, Le Corsaire, Bevenuto Cellini, and Roman Carnival, were also recorded in three-track between 1958 and 1959 and are sonic spectaculars that demonstrate how advanced RCA's systems were for their time. The flawless DSD remastering for this hybrid SACD brings these exceptional performances fully into the digital age, and the promise of RCA's early experiments in orthophonic reproduction has finally been met. Tracks: Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) 1.-4. Harold In Italy / Harold en Italie, Op. 16 5. Beatrice et Benedict Overture 6. The Corsair Overture / Le Corsaire, Op. 21 7. Benvenuto Cellini Overture, Op. 23 8. Roman Carnival Overture / Le Carnaval romain, Op. 9 Time: 72:12 ============================================================ foobar2000 1.1.13 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1 log date: 2012-06-13 20:14:53 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Analyzed: Charles Munch; B. S. O. / Berlioz: Harold in Italy -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track (2ch @ +4.58 gain) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR12 -0.97 dB -19.33 dB 12:13 01-Harold aux montagnes (Harold in the Mountains) DR13 -5.05 dB -25.24 dB 6:46 02-Marche des pelerins (March of the Pilgrims) DR14 -8.37 dB -29.18 dB 6:34 03-Serenade DR11 -1.07 dB -17.16 dB 12:38 04-Orgie des brigands (Orgy of the Brigands) DR11 -1.83 dB -18.55 dB 7:20 05-Beatrice et Benedict Overture DR12 -1.38 dB -18.25 dB 8:03 06-Le Corsaire Overture DR11 -0.53 dB -17.79 dB 10:29 07-Benvenuto Cellini Overture DR13 -0.01 dB -18.98 dB 8:07 08-Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of tracks: 4 Official DR value: DR12 Samplerate: 88200 Hz Channels: 2 Bits per sample: 24 Bitrate: 2508 kbps Codec: FLAC ============================================================= ============================================================ foobar2000 1.1.13 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1 log date: 2012-06-13 16:14:25 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Analyzed: Charles Munch, B. S. O. / Berlioz: Harold in Italy -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track (3ch @ +4.17dB gain) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR11 -1.60 dB -18.94 dB 12:13 01-Harold aux montagnes (Harold in the Mountains) DR12 -5.74 dB -24.89 dB 6:46 02-Marche des pelerins (March of the Pilgrims) DR14 -8.63 dB -29.03 dB 6:34 03-Serenade DR10 -1.39 dB -16.80 dB 12:38 04-Orgie des brigands (Orgy of the Brigands) DR10 -1.62 dB -18.55 dB 7:20 05-Beatrice et Benedict Overture DR10 -1.83 dB -18.54 dB 8:03 06-Le Corsaire Overture DR10 -0.01 dB -17.94 dB 10:29 07-Benvenuto Cellini Overture DR11 -0.47 dB -18.80 dB 8:07 08-Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of tracks: 4 Official DR value: DR11 Samplerate: 88200 Hz Channels: 3 Bits per sample: 24 Bitrate: 3759 kbps Codec: FLAC ============================================================= Checksum for iso: d52b1283e4d692f6a88d90f9281e5b6b *William Primrose, viola - Berlioz Harold in Italy.iso Checksum for 3ch flac: b4ae8bb3ca0dcb8c72ed8b6c64c67031 *William Primrose, viola - Berlioz Harold in Italy.cue 038010c2ebbafd5cceda089c7f2c9a92 *William Primrose, viola - Berlioz Harold in Italy.flac Checksum for 2ch flac: 4871372f6836459e375f0561abdf1f08 *William Primrose, viola - Berlioz Harold in Italy.cue 2b073acd2e21e8011f2f31a129fd6c8b *William Primrose, viola - Berlioz Harold in Italy.flac