Schubert Melodies John McCormack and the Victor Salon Orchestra 1931 (Program Transcription)

Schubert Melodies by John McCormack and the Victor Salon Orchestra 1931 (Program Transcription)

Part 1 00:00
Serenade
Ave Maria

Part 2 07:46
The Hurdy-Gurdy Man
Impatience
Farewell (Adieu)
Moment Musicals (Op. 94, Nos. 5, 2 and 3)

Part 3 16:46
Vienna Waltzes (Soireses des Vienne)
Rosamunde (Ballet Music and Entre’acte)

Part 4 26:06
Melody of Waltzes
Menuetto in B Minor
Marche Militaire

Direction of Nathanial Shilkret

This record is missing from the DAHR database for some reason. Other Program Transcriptions do show there, but not this one.

This is a two 10 inch 33 1/3 RPM record set from 1931 with 4 sides. The first two sides contain 4 songs sung by John McCormack. All are German songs but are presented here in an English translation. The remaining pieces are all instrumental.

To me, the most successful side is side 4. Sides 1, 2, and 3 are fairly worn especially at the start. But, they all sound fairly good once they get going. The piano on side 3 does not come off well at all. Sounds like there is a lot of wow and flutter involved rather like early acoustic recordings of pianos. The 78 RPM records of the same era sound terrific by comparison.

I find this early attempt at Long Playing records really interesting. I can’t say this is a fantastic recording. It is not. But, getting this much music on 4 10 inch sides in 1931 is amazing. There are just a bit more than 34 minutes on this set. Compare that to LPs from the 50s through the 80s that held 30 to 45 minutes on two sides of a twelve inch record.

From ARSC Article: “Pre-LP Recordings of RCA at 33 1/3 rpm. through 1931 to 1934”

By 1930 the engineers had discovered that a recording speed of 33 1/3 revolutions per minute could be controlled, relied upon and to a large extent, avoided the distortion that usually spoiled the sound when the grooves get closer to the central spindle. In 1931, the company issued brochures and catalogues that announced the advent of a new technique which permitted recordings at this slower speed.

One of these catalogues is quoted extensively in Oliver Read and Walter Welch's book From Tin-foil to Stereo (pp. 292 et seq). The crucial portion of the announcement reads:

" ••• now the Long Playing Record takes its place in the Victor Catalogue. A policy of recording all major works on both standard and 33 1/3 rpm. records has been adopted. The playing time has been fixed at such length that no sacrifice of musical quality - inevitable if the grooves are carried too near the center of the record - need be made ••• "

Commercially, however, the slower playing records were not a great success. Although they could be played with the standard head, very few machines then in peoples' homes could reduce their turn-table speed to 33 1/3 rpm, and since the Depression was at its worst, few were ready to go out and spend good money to purchase new machines.

It must also be admitted that the claims for equal, if not superior, quality were not met. Volume, resonance and other elements that go to make up what we know today as 'fidelity' were lost, and although a few major works WERE in fact recorded directly on to discs at the new speed, the major portion of the records made simply turned out to be electrical transcriptions of two or more 78's.


This record appears to have been recorded directly to the 33 1/3 format.

LBVE-69735- -1 L-4509 J. McCORMACK; VICTOR SALON ORCH: Schubert Melodies - Part 1 {rr.fr. 6927 A/B) · 13 July ’31

LBVE-69736- -1 ditto - ditto - Part 2 {rr.fr. 6927 A/B)

LBVE-69737- -1 L-4510 VICTOR SALON ORCH. Schubert Melodies - Part 3 {rr.fr. 9307 A/B) 13 July ’31

LBVE-69738- -1 ditto - ditto - Part 4 (rr.fr. 9308 A/B)