These two 1944 recordings continue to astound us weeks after we first heard them. Culled from the same source which provided us with Stokowski's 1942 Shostakovich "Leningrad" Symphony (PASC527) they again confound expectations as to what a recording of this vintage should sound like.
Here we find Stokowski conducting the brilliant NBC Symphony Orchestra in stunning renditions of Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony and Romeo and Juliet fantasy overture - made all the more so by the frankly incredible sound quality of the recordings. At times, stereo aside, one might be forgiven for thinking some of these recordings had been made last week, rather than nearly three-quarters of a century ago.
With a full frequency range, exceptionally quiet sides allowing an extraordinarily wide dynamic range, and very little in the way of other flaws or audience noise to get in the way of the listening experience, one is almost immediately drawn into the performances - and they are white hot!