Serge Koussevitzky - Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 (1949) [2010]

Koussevitzky’s 1949 recording of the Tchaikovsky Fourth was the first made by the Boston Symphony using the new medium of magnetic tape. It was initially released on 78 and 45 rpm discs, the two formats favored by RCA Victor during the “speed wars”. After succumbing to the long playing format developed by Columbia, the performance was reissued on 33 1/3 rpm discs. However, as was the label’s custom at the time, its original “filler” side, the Serenade for Strings Waltz, was dropped from the LP release and not subsequently reissued.

Four months later, Koussevitzky and the BSO reassembled at Tanglewood to record the entire Serenade. Unlike the Symphony and the Waltz, which had previously been recorded by the conductor and ensemble in 1936, the Serenade was Koussevitzky’s first and only complete recording of the work. It is interesting to compare the drier, more detailed, but somewhat harsher sound RCA achieved here in comparison to the earlier Waltz recorded in Symphony Hall.

The sources for the transfer of the Symphony were the best portions of two late 1950s red “shaded dog” label pressings. The Waltz filler came from the 45 rpm set, and the Serenade was sourced from an early ‘50s plum “plain dog” LP. Longtime collectors may be familiar with several flaws in the original LP appearance of the Symphony, including a very noticeable join between the original Sides 1 and 2 in the first movement (RCA was still recording in four- to five-minute segments at this time), as well as sudden volume fluctuations in the first two movements. While I have been able to ameliorate these problems using digital editing techniques not available to the original engineers, I have been unable to undo the inherent compression that afflicts the louder passages of the performance.

Despite a HiFi/Stereo Review survey at the end of the 1950s that placed this recording of the Fourth Symphony at the top of an already-crowded field, RCA deleted the disc sometime around 1960, and has never reissued it in the subsequent half century. I am very pleased to be able to present it now for new generations to discover.

Mark Obert-Thorn, reissue producer




Tracks:

TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
TCHAIKOVSKY: Serenade for Strings in C - 2nd mvt. - Waltz: Moderato
TCHAIKOVSKY: Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48

Personnel:

Boston Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Serge Koussevitzky