Album Reviews

Through her early EMI recordings, among others, the late Hungarian violinist Johanna Martzy has achieved fame, notoriety and a cult following that escaped her during her lifetime.

When she died of cancer in 1979 at age 54 it didn't exactly make news. Her career took off in 1947 after she won the Geneva Competition. Thereafter she achieved great success as a soloist and chamber music performer, though in the late '50s she performed with Leonard Bernstein and The New York Philharmonic.

This particular three record set originally issued in 1956 by EMI's Columbia division (not related to the American label of the same name) was well received both in Europe and America but it was not a big seller at the time, perhaps in part because of sexism.

However, since then a cult has developed around her generally and this recording specifically. Because of its scarcity, clean examples of the three record set regularly sell for $5000 plus. You can verify this on Popsike.com.

Enter Pete Hutchinson and his UK-based start-up record label The Electric Co.

Mr. Hutchinson has gone to fanatical lengths to reissue this and an entire catalog of early EMI and other label classical recordings from the early LP days using licensed master tapes.

In order to accomplish this correctly he's invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in a restored mastering chain overseen by veteran engineer Sean Davies that duplicates the original down to what seems to be the last nut and bolt using 1950s era Danish Lyrec and EMI vacuum tube tape machines and Ortofon DS522 cutter heads. More details are available on the company's website. But Mr. Hutchinson didn't stop there. He's re-created the exact original handcrafted artwork and jackets. That includes re-creating the paper stock originally used as well as the brass letterpress print process used at the time as well as the EMI "fold over" jacket construction. I have heard from someone who has seen the original and reissue side by side and he says that other than that one appears newer than the other, they appear to be identical!

The LP in the jacket is a 180 gram pressing fitted with the original label. Fortunately Mr. Hutchinson's attention to detail did not include using the old style lead out groove "swing back" designed to insure the tripping of record changer mechanisms!

Each of the records includes an "OBI" slipped over the jacket with information written in English, Chinese, Japanese and Korean, which reflects where lies much of the enthusiasm and fanaticism surrounding these records.

Instead of costing $5000+ for the original, these reissues cost approximately $450 each. Yes, a great deal, but also a great deal less than the scarce original and here with barely a pop or tick. Wherever these are pressed, they are dead quiet.

About the music: I don't claim to be a chamber music or Bach expert but even if solo Hendrix is your favorite, I don't hear how you cannot be moved, even mesmerized by Martzy's playing. It is appropriately precise and austere given Bach's almost mathematical compositions, yet rich with vibrato, though its a vibrato that is almost clinical. That may seem like a contradiction in terms but that's how it sounds.

Her approach is technically stern yet emotionally generous without being self-indulgent. Perhaps her newfound popularity is a result of that combination, which resonates with a 21st Century musical sensibility, even as some of the more flowery and "schmaltzy" interpreter sound old-fashioned and fall out of favor. Or, maybe I'm just talking out of my ignorant hat.

But rather than dwelling on the technical that's beyond my meager musical abilities or intellect, let me say that the result of her technique is hypnotic. Once the side starts, Martzy holds you captive. If you don't think one person sawing away on a violin can manage that (for you), this might change your mind.

The mono sound brings you into the recording space, not the violinist into your room. There's a slight aura of natural room sound surrounding the violin. Played back at the appropriate volume, especially with a mono cartridge (or at least a mono switch), the results are eerily real, particularly in terms of instrumental textures and overall depth. No CD reissue can come close to achieving what these LPs manage.

Yes, the set is expensive but if you've got the scratch it is one you'll long treasure and I have every confidence it will also make a solid investment sure to appreciate in value over time.

So engrossing and hypnotic is the spell Martzy casts, when a side ends, you'll snap out of it wondering where you've been, and how you managed to find your way back.

The label has also re-issued another iconic set, originally issued by the French Pathé Marconi label Mozart a Paris, a seven LP box set of Mozart's Paris output originally issued in 1956. An original copy of this set sold for $11,300 in 2007.

Again the attention to detail is fanatical (as opposed to the usual "bordering on the"). The white jackets reproduce the original Pathé embossing. The inner sleeves are fold over glassine like the originals and the reproduction of the book is nothing short of astonishing. Too bad it's in French. Please, can we have an online translation?

I'm going through that one now and will review soon. You can visit the company's website for more details including the price of that one. Meanwhile for those lucky enough to be able to afford the three LP Martzy set, you will be rewarded repeatedly and find yourself doing so often. What a treat!