Historical Recordings from the SODRE Archive on THE ALPHA OMEGA SOUND Label

Also on the Alpha Omega Sound label are a series of historical recordings remastered from the archives of SODRE (Servicio Oficial de Difusion Radiotelevision y Espectaculos), the official radio and television service of Montevideo, Uruguay, now issued on CD for the very first time. The first 3 CDs have been launched, including recitals by David Oistrakh, Jascha Heifetz and a sampler disc of highlights from the SODRE historical collection.

DAVID OISTRAKH, Violin with
VLADIMIR YAMPOLSKY, Piano
Recorded on 9 April 1954

LECLAIR Sonata No.3 in D minor
SIBELIUS Violin Concerto in D minor
CHAUSSON Poeme

This recital is unusual as it contains the only known recording of Oistrakh performing the Sibelius concerto with piano accompaniment. A rarity that deserves to be heard. 

JASCHA HEIFETZ, Violin with
BROOKS SMITH, Piano
Recorded on 12 May 1955

BEETHOVEN Sonata in A major, Op.47 "Kreutzer"
DEBUSSY Sonata in G minor
DVORAK-KREISLER Slavonic Dance Op.72 No.7
L.BOULANGER Cortege
R.STRAUSS- HEIFETZ An Eisamer Quelle Op.9 No.2
WIENIAWSKI Capriccio-Valse Op.7
RAVEL Tzigane

This well-filled sampler provides the listener with an idea of the musical riches in store. Besides Oistrakh and Heifetz, on this disc are excerpts from performances by Claudio Arrau, Friedrich Gulda, Walter Gieseking, Lili Kraus, Leonid Kogan, Mischa Elman, Andres Segovia and Marian Anderson. The full recital CDs will be issued serially and in due course.

All the CDs have been re-mastered at Abbey Road Studios and include an introduction by Vladimir Ashkenazy, Patron of the Chopin Society of Hong Kong.

The CDs may be purchased from various online retailers and at concerts and events presented by the Chopin Society of Hong Kong.

Review of DAVID OSTRAKH Recital CD on ALPHA OMEGA SOUND

Below is a short review of the David Oistrakh recital CD recording (from the SODRE Archive) on the Alpha Omega Sound label, published in The Straits Times (Singapore) on 10 January 2013.

THE SODRE COLLECTION

DAVID OISTRAKH, Violin

with VLADIMIR YAMPOLSKY, Piano

Alpha Omega Sound / ****1/2

This extremely rare “live” recording from 9 April 1954 was unearthed in the archives of SODRE, the official radio and television broadcasting service of Montevideo, Uruguay. It represents the Soviet-era Russian violinist David Oistrakh (1908-1974) at the height of his powers while on tour to the West. His programme was unusually eclectic despite offering no Russian music within. It opens with Jean-Marie Leclair’s Third Sonata, in the four-movement sonata da chiesa form that was popular during the Baroque era. Nowadays, it is rarely heard outside of the period instrument circle, but Oistrakh’s politically incorrect and vibrato-rich account makes no excuses for the music, which is charming and unpretentious.

The gem of this hour-long recital is a complete performance of the Sibelius Violin Concerto with the original piano accompaniment. This version is seldom ever recorded, although regularly played at conservatory and student recitals. Oistrakh performs it as if accompanied by an orchestra, with no punches pulled or half measures taken. It is a searing account, tender in the slow movement while the furious finale lives on a knife-edge throughout. The disc is completed by Belgian Ernest Chausson’s rhapsodic Poeme, also accompanied by pianist Vladimir Yampolsky. This invaluable addition to the Oistrakh discography may be purchased from various on-line retailers via the Internet.