bogdan101 Posted September 30, 2014 Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 A few day ago I got the big Toscanini box , the Complete RCA Collection, and, what can I say, it's quite irresistible. He had a way with everything he played that communicates on a visceral level. There is something that is the opposite of academic, a way in which he makes everything sound like popular music. A working class hero, trying to give the music back to the masses. The highlight so far: Mozart Basoon Concerto K.V. 191. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted September 30, 2014 Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bogdan101 Posted September 30, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 I rest my case Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted September 30, 2014 Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 Remind me to never let the Maestro handle any of my records! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted September 30, 2014 Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 Yeah ... but note how carefully he blows off the dust, after all! This is one one of OWI foreign propaganda movies, btw - just watched a fascinationg documentation about those and Robert Riskin, the Hollywood screenwriter in charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjzee Posted October 1, 2014 Report Share Posted October 1, 2014 How is the sound on the Toscanini box? I notice it uses 1992 masterings, and I wasn't thrilled by the sound quality of the Horowitz box from around the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted October 1, 2014 Report Share Posted October 1, 2014 Quoting an Amazon review: "In 1992 RCA/BMG released the first 82 CD Toscanini Collection. That is the template upon which the new Toscanini Collection was assembled. In 1999 RCA/BMG issued twelve 2 CD sets of Toscanini in new, 20-bit transfers. Most people thought these were an improvement over the 16-bit transfers of 1992. * In 2006 Toscanini's Philadelphia Orchestra recordings were issued in new transfers. Finally in 2008 Sony Japan issued 15 CDs worth of transfers on Japanese JVC XRCDs [most of this material overlapped with the 1999 20-bit transfers]. JVC XRCDs are highly valued by collectors - I could never afford them. If you're adding this up, approximately one third of the 1992 set was re-done in new and improved transfers. Of course, in an ideal world, someone would have re-mastered the remaining 2/3 using the latest technology, but this is not an ideal world. GOOD NEWS: Sony took the 1992 Collection as a template, and inserted the new and improved masterings onto the appropriate CDs. Can't complain about that." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjzee Posted October 1, 2014 Report Share Posted October 1, 2014 OK, thanks. I saw that Amazon review; was wondering about the sound quality on the 2/3 not subsequently remastered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted October 1, 2014 Report Share Posted October 1, 2014 If you are interested in the material, it is unlikely it will be done again in your lifetime. I have had much of this on lp since the '60s, bought some of the subsequent cds and now have the box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjzee Posted October 1, 2014 Report Share Posted October 1, 2014 I do see your point. It's currently at a crazy price: $70.54 direct from ImportCDs. And when these boxes start to get scarce, they do shoot up in price: the Rubinstein box is now $394.95 on Amazon. I think I bought it not that long ago for $90. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van Basten II Posted February 14, 2015 Report Share Posted February 14, 2015 (edited) Big box is now 60 loonies on Amazon.ca , it's being mentionned as out of stock but they still accept orders. Edited February 14, 2015 by Van Basten II Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarThrower Posted February 14, 2015 Report Share Posted February 14, 2015 Never heard any Toscanini recordings until last week, when Bill McGlaughlin did a week long program on him and Stokowski. Toscanini's Missa Solemnis was very moving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigshot Posted February 14, 2015 Report Share Posted February 14, 2015 If you have a 5.1 system, you can significantly improve the quality of a lot of the recordings in this box by using a DSP. Toscanini recorded in a dry shoebox of a recording studio. If your AV receiver has hall ambiences, try adding one and you'll be amazed at how much better these recordings sound with a little bit of life in the room. My Yamaha receiver has a DSP based on acoustic measurements taken from the Vienna Sofiensaal. When I use that, it sounds almost as good as stereo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papsrus Posted February 14, 2015 Report Share Posted February 14, 2015 If you have a 5.1 system, you can significantly improve the quality of a lot of the recordings in this box by using a DSP. Toscanini recorded in a dry shoebox of a recording studio. If your AV receiver has hall ambiences, try adding one and you'll be amazed at how much better these recordings sound with a little bit of life in the room. My Yamaha receiver has a DSP based on acoustic measurements taken from the Vienna Sofiensaal. When I use that, it sounds almost as good as stereo. I've never heard of this, which shouldn't be a surprise. What do the purists say? Are these sort of electronic overlays -- for lack of a better term -- considered a real enhancement, or a distortion? (Well, I guess I know what the purists would say, but nonetheless. ...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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