Telarc recordings on vinyl- your favorites?

thedelihaus

thedelihaus

Nocturnal transmissions
I'm thinking this would be the best forum for this, but if any moderator thinks it belongs in a different forum, say the music forum, by all means, please move it.

I'm interested in picking up a Telarc record or two to hear what all the excitement is about.

Are these recordings only to be found on eBay or used record stores? Or does Telarc still ship new vinyl to music stores that sell records?

And most important, what are some of the more lively or powerful recordings they offer?
 
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I managed to wear out two copies of the "1812" on Telarc. Very impressive on vinyl...sounds like ass on CD. I figure downsampling to redbook is the reason why.
 
Mahler's 1st Symphony and the Saint-Saens Organ Symphony will give your woofers (and amp) a real workout.
 
I'll second the 1812 Overture LP. No fine system owner should be without one.
Also, seek out direct-to-disc LPs from Sheffield Labs. These were very limited production, and cut direct to disc on a lathe straight from the live recording.

Harry James Live (Big Band) and

Thelma Houston's "I've Got the Music In Me"

are two stand-outs.


best,

Franz
 
I forgot all about the Sheffield Labs albums. Since the "mother" and "stampers" had a rather limited life, they would cut two or three sessions direct-to-disc. In the case of the "Lincoln Mayorga and friends" it was fun to have two discs from different sessions and hear the subtle differences of phrasing or playing between the two.
 
Well, my brother and I only had a few from Sheffield. But I can tell you the quality of the vinyl, care with cutting, mastering and pressing was top notch as was the overall sound quality of the sessions. I'm sure there were some clunkers in the catalog, but I really don't know what they would have been. I seem to recall my brother had one by Amanda McBroom (who wrote "The Rose") that was quite nice.
 
My worst nightmare is to be forced to endure having to spend a night listening to audiophile recordings, most of which (there are some pretty good ones for sure) are mediocre performances at best! they may do the hifi glitz but it should always come down to the music ( and many fall short in the musical enjoyment category )!

i used to sell the stuff back then and had they been so good, i would have had a huge collection of these specialty records!
 
The Firebird on Telarc vinyl is one of my favorites. I also have it on CD from Telarc and it's just not the same. Pictures At An Exhibition and The Rite Of Spring are other Telarc LP's worth having. As already mentioned The 1812 should be in everyones collection. It snapped a cantilever on a Shure V15 on me. So it's something you should be careful with.:smoke:
 
Franz said:
I'll second the 1812 Overture LP. No fine system owner should be without one.
Also, seek out direct-to-disc LPs from Sheffield Labs. These were very limited production, and cut direct to disc on a lathe straight from the live recording.

Harry James Live (Big Band) and

Thelma Houston's "I've Got the Music In Me"

are two stand-outs.


best,

Franz
Click to expand...
To that list add "Growing up In Hollywood Town" & "West of Oz" with Amanda McBroom(she wrote "The Rose") and Lincoln Mayorga. Plus, let's not forget "The Sheffield Track Record". Hear Hear on Thelma Houstons' album! :banana:
 
Delihaus,

The Sheffield LPs from the 70s are the class of the high-end LPs in my opinion. Most of the other high end LPs all share the same qualities, that is, they carefully control the production of the vinyl, using virgin vinyl pellets as opposed to re-cycled; they limite the number of pressing so as to not wear out the "mother" or stamping master.
All but the Sheffields, however, used a taped source, albeit high-grade. The Telarc 1812 Overture may have been a direct recording, but I'm not sure.

The Sheffields recorded live-no overdubs-one shot-to-get-it-done while cutting the master platter on a direct lathe. The very first Lp they made, "Licoln Mayorga & Friends" is a sought-after classic. Used copies go for $50 & up on Ebay, when you can find one.

Granted, some of the material isn't everyone's favorite, but the L M & F, the Harry James and the Thelma Houston are sure to please anyone--especially when you hear the stunning dynamic range. One of these discs will do more to improve the sound of your system than if you spent $10K on amps and new speakers.

Just goes to show you how important a good source really is.....

Best,
Franz
 
I was fortunate, in a previous life, to have been invited by Telarc to be their guest for the recording sessions of "Puttin' On The Ritz" My wife and I flew from Sydney, and when we arrived in the USA, were flown to Cinncinnati, put up in a hotel, wined and dined, and I had breakfast with Erich Kunzel!
The sessions were fascinating, and quite dramatic, in their way. The orchestra members were fantastic, as was Erich and Jack Renner and Bob Woods. They were very interested in what I thought was their best release, but I told them I had to go with my heart, and chose "Roundup" At the time, 1994, "Roundup" had been out for seven years, and was still selling extremely well.
When we returned home, a Gold-plated CD of "Puttin' On The Ritz, signed by Erich arrived in the post. I was truly saddened to hear of his early and untimely death.
I agree about Sheffield Labs, "Lincoln Mayorga and Distinguished Colleagues". Thelma Houston "I've Got The Music In Me", and "Dave Grusin: Discovered Again" are my favourites, which I have on both vinyl and CD.
 
Wow, @clarkjw, that was a fabulous story! Few are so fortunate to "rub shoulders" with such giants of the recording industry! I wish I'd gotten back into spinning records again earlier than I did because I'm pretty sure I would have found some of the Telarc gems that are now long gone.....

I'm given to echo your comments about Sheffield Labs as I find they are truly exceptional sonically. The Thelma Houston (on the PX-3 as I type this) and the Dave Grusin are what I consider monstrous accomplishments and a fantastic "audio trip" every time I put them on the turntable. The Charlie Byrd on Crystal Clear is another of those that really make me sit up and listen!! The only one I'm not that excited about is the Harry James, but that's perhaps because the music is not something I find as appealing, but the sonics are definitely still amazing! Thanks for your personal account of the Telarc experience!

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Now here's one that I'll put right up there with the best of them:

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This is JVC's High Quality Recordings Direct Disk product and is stunning in every way! I've only seen this record from them and am not aware of what others they might have done......

PS - Sorry to stray a bit off the OP's original topic......but since it's been 19 years perhaps I'll be forgiven? ;)
 
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I have a replacement 1812 coming to me from Acoustic Sounds and has been shipped. There are a few Kunzel LP's, a Holst LP or Two, and a Sousa live concert using todays better classical musicians at Interlockan . A Sam Pilfion Tuba LP, and 5 Beethoven Piano Concerto LP's. There is a Strauss Waltz LP, too. A Cleveland Winds Lp I really like, But the 1812 is the one to have if you can only have one Telarc LP., But your better have a Shure V-15 V MR to get through the grooves properly and have a system with a lot of dynamic range. The CD version has way over 60 db dynamic range. Thats a lot for an LP. If I turn up the level just enough to hear the intro by the end the cannons and bells are almost pegging the meters and turning on the power guard on the amps at over 700 watts each. The first two cannon blasts are the worst. From then on it seems when mastering the CD they backed off the level of te cannons 3 or 4 db. It will be interesting to see if they did the same thing for the LP release of the 1812 Overture.

I guess I will find out how well my Dynavector XX-2 MK II tracks. The 20 X2 did OK but it was perfect by a long shot. Sounded almost like your could almost get the feeling a compressor/limiter was being used. You know when a limiter is being used as the back ground instruments and the acoustic reverberant field sort of disappears or collapses briefly.
 
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