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The Golden Age of Light Music – Continental Flavour - Volume 2
See track-listing below
rec.1930-61
GUILD LIGHT MUSIC GLCD 5190 [79:19]
Volume 2 of Guild’s Continental Flavour marquee changes emphasis by giving us music wholly performed by European orchestras, whereas the first volume had served up picture postcard evocations. The recordings range in date from 1930 to 1961. The earliest is The Little Goblin performed by Frederick Hippmann and his Künstler Orchestra on a 1930 Odeon whilst Roger Roger, omnipresent in this series and indeed the genre, presents City Movement in 1961. In between there are some interesting and even intriguing items. Whilst I didn’t find the average level of excellence, both instrumentally and melodically, as high as it often is, the relative rarity of some of these items should make up for that particular, and rather personal, disappointment.
Roger Roger’s piece, composed by himself and played by his crack Champs Elysées Orchestra on Chappell, is zippy but suffers from a surfeit of Gershwinisms. Rather better is Hans Georg Arlt’s evocative performance of So wird's nie wieder sein (Now It's Never Going to Be) on a 1959 Ariola LP. We can appreciate the circus-styled flair of Gérard Calvi’s La polka des menottes (Polka of the Handcuffed Men) and the out-of-kilter carousel presented by the witty Arlt in Das Karussell, das dreht sich immer rundherum. If you wanted to experience Helmut Zacharias at full force (not everyone does) then there’s some meaty-toned solo violin (read: queasy) in Paris Palace Hotel. For a better example of solo violin playing turn to Sixten Stromvall’s work on Till Margareta on an HMV. The orchestra is that of Ake Jelving, himself a fine fiddler. Cedric Dumont turns out a very nice performance of Ferry Boat Serenade, and then we have a sequence of pre-war recordings amongst which we can admire von Geczy’s exciting Tango Bolero and one of Marek Weber’s London sides in his Johann Strauss II waltz.
The notes and transfers are very good. So there is variety from either side of the war, in good performances. Some, as previously admitted, I found rather lackadaisical and lacking fire. You need to pick and choose in this compilation.
Jonathan Woolf
You need to pick and choose in this compilation.
Track-Listing
Roger Roger - City Movement 2:37
Roger Roger and His Champs Elysees Orchestra
Belle Fenstock – Simonetta 2:28
Werner Müller and his orchestra
Gerhard Winkler - So wird's nie wieder sein (Now It's Never Going to Be) 2:53
Hans Georg Arlt and his orchestra
Gérard Calvi - La polka des menottes (Polka of the Handcuffed Men) 2:29
Gérard Calvi and his orchestra
Michael Jary - Das Karussell, das dreht sich immer rundherum (The Carousel Goes Round and Round) 2:18
Hans Georg Arlt and his orchestra
Franck Pourcel – Champagne 3:09
Franck Pourcel and his orchestra
Paul Durand - Paris Palace Hotel 2:46
Helmut Zacharias and his Magic Violins
André Varel - Tu t' fous de moi? (Are You Kidding Me?) 2:39
Emile Noblot and his orchestra
Raymond Scott - The Toy Trumpet 2:34
Egon Kjerrman and his orchestra
Kurt Noack -Heinzelmännchens Wachtparade (Parade of the Elves), (Swedish title: "Tomtarnas vaktparad") 3:58
Egon Kjerrman and his orchestra
John W. Bratton - Teddy Bears' Picnic 3:01
Teddy Petersen and his orchestra
Gérard Calvi - Les demons de la nuit (The Devils of the Night) 3:18
Gérard Calvi and his orchestra
Kurt Larsson - Till Margareta (To Margareta) 4:07
Ake Jelving and his orchestra
William H. Myddleton -The Phantom Brigade 3:32
Egon Kjerrman and his orchestra
Arthur Pryor - The Whistler and His Dog 2:36
Teddy Petersen and his orchestra
Kurt Larsson - Hem fran slattern (Home from the Plains) 2:29
Ake Jelving and his orchestra
Tom Wyler -Happy Time 2:08
Toni Leutwiler and his orchestra
Einar Hylin - Cupido dansar (Cupid Dances) 3:26
Ake Jelving and his orchestra
Pierre Leemans - The Extravagant Polka 3:09
Emile Deltour and his orchestra
Dolf van der Linden - Dance of the Millions 2:35
Dolf van der Linden and his Metropole Orchestra
Eldo di Lazzaro - La Piccinina (The Darling Little Girl), song (a.k.a. "Ferryboat Serenade") 2:33
Cedric Dumont and his orchestra
André Popp - Military Tango 2:53
André Popp and his orchestra
Walter Borchert - Amphitryon Waltz 2:45
Orchestre Mascotte
Juan Llossas - Tango bolero 3:12
Barnabas von Geczy and his orchestra
Willi Samariter - Der kleine Kobold (The Little Goblin) 2:33
Frederick Hippmann and his Künstler Orchestra
Johann Strauss II - Märchen aus dem Orient (Tales from the Orient), waltz for orchestra, Op. 444 [4:09]
Marek Weber and his orchestra
Ernst Fischer - Gib obacht! (Watch Out!) 2:44
Otto Dobrindt and his Piano Symphonists