Eugene Ormandy

[Dave2002]

I have recordings of him accompanying Francescatti, Heifetz, Kreisler, Oistrakh, Perlman, Rachmaninov, Rostropovitch and Stern. If they were happy to work with him, he can't have been too bad!
I have a few other good recordings of his too.

One mono recording I have of Oistrakh playing Mendelssohn's concerto with Ormandy is one of my all time favourites - though I listened to it many times before I noticed what sounds a bit like an owl hoot in the slow movement. I have long wondered what that additional sound effect was. My copy is a 10 inch disc - and I suppose there isn't a stereo recording available, which I would buy like a shot.

I have also much enjoyed Ormandy's Sibelius, and also the Bartók Concerto for Orchestra mentioned earlier - though I don't recall any problems with my vinyl copy. The comments about/from Rachmaninov are strange, as he recorded most of his concertos with Ormandy.

Some have suggested that Ormandy was better as an accompanist rather than in symphonic works. Even so I suspect that his Shostakovich and Prokofiev recordings should prove of some interest.

[richardfinegold]

One mono recording I have of Oistrakh playing Mendelssohn's concerto with Ormandy is one of my all time favourites - though I listened to it many times before I noticed what sounds a bit like an owl hoot in the slow movement. I have long wondered what that additional sound effect was. My copy is a 10 inch disc - and I suppose there isn't a stereo recording available, which I would buy like a shot.

I have also much enjoyed Ormandy's Sibelius, and also the Bartók Concerto for Orchestra mentioned earlier - though I don't recall any problems with my vinyl copy. The comments about/from Rachmaninov are strange, as he recorded most of his concertos with Ormandy.

Some have suggested that Ormandy was better as an accompanist rather than in symphonic works. Even so I suspect that his Shostakovich and Prokofiev recordings should prove of some interest.

I think Ormandy and Stern made a stereo version of the Mendelssohn but not sure about Oistrakh

[mikealdren]

Yes in mono on or around 24th Dec 1955. They recorded the Bach E major and Mozart K.218 at the same time. In Dec 1959 they recorded the Sibelius, Tchaikovsky and various Vivaldi double concertos with Stern, this time in Stereo.

There's a live version of the 2nd Shostakovich concerto with Oistrakh/Ormandy/LSO from 19/11/67 too

[richardfinegold]

Thanks to all for the views expressed and from them it's easy to see why I am somewhat confused about whether to consider buying the new box because these are exactly the opposing thoughts buzzing around in my own head.

The post that had me vigorously nodding my head most was the one from gradus in #12. The Shostakovich CDs I have of the Philadelphia and Ormandy are revelatory and better, in my view, than some more obvious names, the 4th and 15th symphonies in particular. Surely, other records must have at least been equally as good?

Looking at the vast number of recordings made by CBS from Szell, Bernstein, Walter, Ormandy and others from the 1960s they must have been making several records simultaneously every day! It's an awesome legacy.

I often wondered how Columbia decided who got to record what and when.
Epic was a label that was acquired by Columbia at some point, so some of the Szell material was originally recorded on Epic and subsequently re released on Columbia.
Ormandy was particularly good at Shostakovich and particularly the Fourth