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Discussion: Holst: The Planets, St. Paul's Suite - RPO/Handley

Posts: 14
Page: 1 2 next

Post by Luukas September 28, 2014 (1 of 14)
Wow, this recording almost dropped me from my chair! Royal Philharmonic Orchestra plays powerfully, and sonics are awesome! What do you think?

Post by samayoeruorandajin September 28, 2014 (2 of 14)
Will wait until it comes available at a much cheaper price somewhere. Not going to pay the going rate at Amazon, etc. for it. Maybe I'll find it in Tokyo next week.

Post by Ubertrout September 28, 2014 (3 of 14)
I wonder why so many of these Membran upsamples from mid-90s 20-bit stereo sources have gotten so expensive. Many were well-engineered and sound good, but the MCH is fake and the source is essentially CD resolution.

Post by samayoeruorandajin September 28, 2014 (4 of 14)
Ubertrout said:

I wonder why so many of these Membran upsamples from mid-90s 20-bit stereo sources have gotten so expensive. Many were well-engineered and sound good, but the MCH is fake and the source is essentially CD resolution.

Perhaps, but the Handley/Holst was always the best one available and had the best sound compared to all the rest of them.

Post by Joseph Ponessa September 28, 2014 (5 of 14)
Luukas said:

Wow, this recording almost dropped me from my chair! Royal Philharmonic Orchestra plays powerfully, and sonics are awesome! What do you think?

Six years ago (October 6, 2008) I posted these remarks on Amazon:
I acquired this SACD only because the price was right and I liked other RPO releases in this series. First I heard it stereo in my car, played it through twice, and liked what I heard so much that I played it on the multi-channel home audio system. This leaves all my other recordings of the Planets in the dust, if not in the dustbin.
Vernon Hadley, who passed away only a month ago, draws from the RPO an amazing performance. Where other recordings are tepid and effete, this one sounds like a soundtrack. In fact, it became clear to me for the first time how much John Williams drew from Holst in creating the score to Star Wars. The opening scene with the big ship attacking the small one quotes extensively from the opening movement of the Planets, about Mars, god of war. The companion piece, the St Paul's Suite, was new to me, but has the same fine sonic value as the Planets. This disc is not going back out to the car, it's staying right here inside where it belongs.

Post by Epsilon September 29, 2014 (6 of 14)
When I dipped my toes into the mysterious waters of SACD 7 years ago, this was one of the first discs I bought. Actually, I chose this issue of The Planets because it was cheap but presented a reputable orchestra and conductor. And I loved it immediately. The performance is impressive, just as I remembered the suite from high school where I heard it for the first time (it was in the curriculum). The sound is huge. I don't care what the source was, it sounds great.
And yes, it makes you wonder how often film score writers reached back to this wonderful suite for inspiration. Apart from Star Wars mentioned above, I cannot help being reminded of the opening scene of Alien whenever I hear Saturn.

Post by Disbeliever September 29, 2014 (7 of 14)
Luukas said:

Wow, this recording almost dropped me from my chair! Royal Philharmonic Orchestra plays powerfully, and sonics are awesome! What do you think?

Review on Amazon 3 stars says road noise outside Church where recoding took place spoils quiet passages. BBC 3 CD review last Saturday compared many recordings verdict is best performance on Telarc Paavo Jarvi & Cincinnati Syp. Orch. However not a SACD

Post by samayoeruorandajin September 29, 2014 (8 of 14)
Disbeliever said:

Review on Amazon 3 stars says road noise outside Church where recoding took place spoils quiet passages. BBC 3 CD review last Saturday compared many recordings verdict is best performance on Telarc Paavo Jarvi & Cincinnati Syp. Orch. However not a SACD

Shows how little BBC 3 really knows.

Post by rammiepie September 29, 2014 (9 of 14)
Disbeliever said:

Review on Amazon 3 stars says road noise outside Church where recoding took place spoils quiet passages. BBC 3 CD review last Saturday compared many recordings verdict is best performance on Telarc Paavo Jarvi & Cincinnati Syp. Orch. However not a SACD

The other night, out of curiousity (of course) I fired up The Planets conducted by Yoel Levi and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra on a Telarc DTS RBCD and was simply amazed by the sonic envelopment especially when the Womens' Chorus of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (on Neptune...the Mystic) was floating around the soundscape. And the bass was typical of Telarc's recording team.......deep.....VERY deep!

Still available from Amazon but ONLY as a RBCD Dolby Surround encoded disc.

Post by toddao October 1, 2014 (10 of 14)
You can still hear the BBC review on their website for another 3 days. Interesting. No sacd's get a mention save the Elder stereo version.
On the subject of the Planets, I understand that the Sydney Symphony SACD version under David Robertson out later this year will have a vigorous use of the surround.

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