Paul Kletzki & Philharmonia Orchestra Sibelius Symphony No.2 In D Major XRCD24

Audiophile XRCD24 Mastered from the Original Analogue EMI Master Tapes!
Can Be Enjoyed On Any CD Player!
Paul Kletzki conducts the Philharmonia Orchestra performing Sibelius' Symphony No.2 in D Major.
Paul Kletzki is best known for his work as a conductor of various major orchestras. However, the Polish-born musician began his career at the age of 15 as a violinist in the orchestra of his hometown of Lodz. Later he studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin and composed works that were included in their program by Arturo Toscanini and Wilhelm Furtwängler. In 1947 he became a Swiss citizen and devoted himself to conducting the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, among others.
In the 1950s, Walter Legge of EMI invited Kletzki to conduct the newly formed Philharmonia Orchestra for various recordings. Kletzki recorded Symphony No.2 in D major on 15 and 16 July 1955 at Kingsway Hall in London, with Douglas Larter and Neville Boyling as sound engineers. The XRCD remastering of the stereo recording was done by Tohru Kotetsu, supported by Shizuo Nomiyama and Combak mastermind Kazuo Kiuchi at JVC Mastering Studios in Yokohama.
Paul Kletzki is best remembered for his conducting career but less well known as a composer. Born in Poland in 1900, he joined its Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 15 and after serving in the First World War, studied philosophy at the University of Warsaw. During the 1920s, his compositions were championed by Arturo Toscanini. Because he was Jewish, he left Nazi Germany in 1933 and moved to Italy. Due to the anti-semitism of the Italian Fascist regime he moved to the Soviet Union in 1936 and later to Switzerland. From 1942 onwards, Kletzki wrote no more compositions. Having lost much of his family in the holocaust, Nazism had destroyed his spirit and his will to compose. His conducting skills then came to the fore. Kletzki was invited by EMI's Walter Legge to conduct the newly-formed Philharmonia Orchestra in London and many fine recordings were made. In 1954, he was appointed chief conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and between 1958 and 1961, he was principal conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. From 1966 until 1970, he was the General Music Director of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. He died in 1974.
In the original June 1956 review, M. M. of the Gramophone wrote: "Kletzki makes an impetuous attack on the music which is virtually completely successful, carried along by a marvellous quality of both orchestral playing and recording... Whether it is a sweep of full-bodied tone, a biting attack, a resonant pizzicato, or a sensitive solo that is called for, it is always there; even to tunes from the basses with a distinctly above-average proportion of note to rumble. And all of it set off by a brilliant quality of recording with fine internal balance..."
"It's so good, in fact, it keeps you wondering how the sound could be this good for such a vintage...Indeed, the sound here is almost as good as many things recorded today...The sound Hi-Q (JVC XRCD24 remastered) afforded Kletzki on this disc is big, open, resonant, dimensional, and, in short, realistic." - John J. Puccio, Classical Candor
"The sonics are absolutely terrific on this carefully-processed xrcd..." - Audiophile Audition, rated 5 stars

Features:

• Mastered from the Original Analogue EMI Master Tapes!
• Superior Audiophile XRCD24
• XRCD24 is a standard "Red Book" CD and can be enjoyed on any CD player

Musicians:

• Philharmonia Orchestra
• Paul Kletzki, conductor
  

Selections:

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Symphony No.2 In D Major, Op.43
1. I. Allegretto
2. II. Tempo Andante, ma rubato
3. III. Vivacissimo
4. IV. Finale (Allegro moderato)

Recorded in stereo on 15 & 16 July 1955 at the Kingsway Hall, London