AAA 100% Analogue This LP was Remastered using Pure Analogue Components Only from the Master Tapes through to the Cutting Head
Speakers Corner / Mercury - SR90283 - 180 Gram Virgin Vinyl - AAA 100% Analogue
Limited Edition - Pure Analogue Audiophile Mastering - Pressed at Pallas Germany
Speakers Corner 25 Years Pure Analogue This LP is an Entirely Analogue Production
The Absolute Sound Super Disc List TAS Harry Pearson Super LP List
…one of the greatest recordings of the past century." HP's The Golden Dozen LPs, Harry Pearson, The Absolute Sound,
"Speakers Corner has given these recordings the respect they deserve. The packaging is gorgeous: a black album titled "The Living Presence of 20th Century Music" and displaying the Mercury logo holds the three records with their original covers and liner notes. In addition, there are informative annotations on the music and Dorati, and a history of Mercury Living Presence...They sound at least as good and in some ways better than the originals...There are no negatives and not enough superlatives to describe these magnificent reissues. It's rare that performance, sound, and musical value combine at this level in a recording." - Arthur B. Lintgen, The Absolute Sound,
Serge Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, op. 30 - Byron Janis (Piano) and the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Antal Dorati
Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto, fondly referred to as 'Rach 3' or even 'Rachi 3' in dealer circles, has enjoyed a constantly growing popularity over the last few years. One reason may well be that the market has been flooded with recordings of the work, many of which attempt to outshine their rivals with massive sound effects instead of winning over the listener with musical transparency. Well, as everyone knows only too well, a first-class recording not only demands a world-class soloist but also a top notch orchestra and conductor. That’s no surprise to anyone!
This early stereo LP with the pianist Byron Janis and conductor Antal Dorati was and still is an enormous success, as is proved by the fact that it is regarded as a work of reference even in this age of the silver disc. Janis performs with a controlled passion, like a fine mechanic who watches with the greatest of care over the structural elements which have been entrusted to him. His playing is precise and lucid down to the smallest detail, even in the minutest trill. Dorati has his ensemble enter gently with punctilious timing and allows the fullness and energy of this late-romantic score to unfold before us. How wonderful that this particular 'Rach 3' is available once again to eager audiophile listeners!
June 1961 in Watford Town Hall, London, with C.R. Fine and Robert Eberenz
Production: Wilma Cozart
Musicians:
London Symphony
Antal Dorati, conductor
Byron Janis, pianist
Selections:
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30
1. First Movement: Allegro non Tanto
2. Second Movement: Intermezzo / Adagio
3. Third Movement: Finale / Alla Breve
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Who cuts the records?
In order to obtain the most faithful reproduction of the original, we have the lacquers cut on the spot, by engineers who, on the whole, have been dealing with such tapes for many years. Some are even cut by the very same engineer who cut the original lacquers of the first release. Over the years the following engineers have been and still are working for us: Tony Hawkins, Willem Makkee, Kevin Gray, Maarten de Boer, Scott Hull, and Ray Staff, to name but a few.
At the beginning of the ‘90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the reissue policy was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC Compact Classics, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and others, including of course Speakers Corner, all maintained a mutual, unwritten code of ethics: we would manufacture records sourced only from analogue tapes.
Vinyl’s newfound popularity has led many other companies to jump on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source from which to master: CDs, LPs, digital files and even MP3s.
Even some who do use an analogue tape source employ a digital delay line, a misguided ’80s and ‘90s digital technology that replaces the analogue preview head originally used to “tell” the cutter head in advance what was about to happen musically, so it could adjust the groove “pitch” (the distance between the grooves) to make room for wide dynamic swings and large low frequency excursions. Over time analogue preview heads became more rare and thus expensive.
So while the low bit rate (less resolution than a 16 bit CD) digital delay line is less expensive and easier to use than an analogue “preview head”, its use, ironically, results in lacquers cut from the low bit rate digital signal instead of from the analogue source!
Speakers Corner wishes to make clear that it produces lacquers using only original master tapes and an entirely analogue cutting system. New metal stampers used to press records are produced from that lacquer. The only exceptions are when existing metal parts are superior to new ones that might be cut, which includes our release of “Elvis is Back”, which was cut by Stan Ricker or several titles from our Philips Classics series, where were cut in the 1990s using original master tapes by Willem Makkee at the Emil Berliner Studios. In those cases we used only the original “mother” to produce new stampers.
In addition, we admit to having one digital recording in our catalogue: Alan Parsons’ “Eye in the Sky”, which was recorded digitally but mixed to analogue tape that we used to cut lacquers.
In closing, we want to insure our loyal customers that, with but a few exceptions as noted, our releases are “AAA”— analogue tape, an all analogue cutting system, and newly cut lacquers.
60 Years Pallas
Audiophile Vinyl - Made in Germany For over 60 years the family business in the third generation of the special personal service and quality "Made by Pallas" is known worldwide. Our custom PVC formulation produces consistently high pressing quality with the lowest surface noise in the industry. Our PVC complies with 2015 European environmental standards and does not contain toxic materials such as Lead, Cadmium or Toluene. Our vinyl is both audiophile and eco-grade!
