Favorite EMI ASDs
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Sorry, but what is an ASD?
Just like there are different types of RCA recordings (Shaded Dogs, White Dogs, Dynaflex, etc), there are also different types of EMI recordings (ASD, OASD, ESD, CSD, SLS, SAX, SP, HMV, Angels, etc.). Several EMI ASDs appear on HP's Super Vinyl List.
There appear to be six sub-groups of EMI ASDs with different labels on the vinyl from the 1st "creamy-white with a gold rim" label to the semi-circle with the dog, to various postage stamp dogs, to the 6th label introduced in the 1980s (large dog).
Some of these sound MUCH better than others.
The recent EMI ASD reissues from people like Testament and Alto also sound quite good.
Jim
There are many great-sounding EMI ASDs, several of which are on HP's SuperDisc List. If I were just starting out as an EMI LP collector, I think I'd begin with Elgar's "Sea Pictures" with Janet Baker and Sir John Barbirolli [ASD 655]. The music is gorgeous and so is the recording.
EMI typically used a Blumlein miking setup for its classical discs (a single pair of crossed figure-eight microphones)--a very simple, minimalist miking scheme that produces wonderful results, with particularly good sounstaging and ambience retrieval, precise imaging (no "swimminess"), often beautiful timbres and superior deep bass.
Another EMI you might consider as a starter (not on HP's list) is the Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 2 with John Ogdon [ASD 2709], which, like the Elgar, is gorgeous music, gorgeously recorded.
Is there any way to tell from the label on the album cover or the label on the vinyl which ones are the better EMI ASDs? (I'm thinking if one is looking thru the used record bins).
For example, I've heard that the postage stamp EMI ASDs are not as good sonically (as well as the German and French EMIs, but I don't think any of the non-English pressings are ASDs?).
Thanks for the recommendations on the Shostakovich and the Elgar.
I don't have them in my collection.
Jim
One of my favorites is Britten's Four Sea Interludes and Passacaglia from Peter Grimes: LSO/Previn ASD 3154. this one was prduced by the two "Christophers"-Bishop and Parker. The sound is gorgeous and dynamic with terrific bass. I believe it was on HP's SuperDisc list at one time.
NAG
Neil Gader Associate Editor The Absolute Sound
The four "Sea Interludes" from Peter Britten's Peter Grimes with Previn conducting are, indeed, beautiful and beautifully recorded. (So, BTW, is the Decca/London recording of the entire opera, which, of course, includes the "Sea Interludes," conducted by Benjamin Britten, no less.)
As for EMI varietals...as is the case with every label's LPs it is generally true that earlier pressings sound better than later ones (because the work parts, metal mothers, and stampers have seen less wear and because the quality of the vinyl is generally better). But that isn't always the case. I have several relatively late pressings of RCAs that sound better than earlier pressings. Here's the problem in a nutshell: To use RCA as an example, the earliest Living Stereo pressings of classical LPs are generally engraved 1s/A1 in the runout grooves, meaning that the record was pressed with the first stamper pulled from the metal mother (1s), and the metal mother (A1) was the first made from the work parts (the edited mastertapes). The trouble is that you don't know--and you can't know--whether this particular 1s side was the first or the 500th of the 500 or so LP sides pressed with the 1s stamper. Is the 400th pressing of a 1s stamper as good as the first pressing of a fresh new 2s stamper? In my experience, sometimes not.
Here's a little tip garnered from years of LP collecting: If you have a choice between two pressings of the same disc, LOOK AT THE RUNOUT GROOVES and the heavily modulated passages (the areas of the disc where the grooves are most widely spaced, which include passages with deep bass and large-scale dynamics). The disc with less of a runout groove and wider spacing on heavily modulated passages is very likely to sound better, no matter when it was pressed.
In any event, I wouldn't pass by any EMIs of any vintage that have a reputation for good sonics and good performances, although I must say that late 80s EMI ASDs often had very poor quality control, with lots of surface noise and warpage. But then this was true for virtually all labels at that time, save for the Decca group (Decca/London, London STS, Decca Headline, Argo, L'Oiseau Lyre, etc.).
Another I especially enjoy are these Issac Perlman/Previn/LSO performances. I know these encore pieces are kind of smaltzy but man, this guy really lets the rosin dust fly! Inspiring.
Neil Gader
TAS
Neil Gader Associate Editor The Absolute Sound
>> What are some of the best classical EMI ASDs? <<
Jim,
A personal favorite is ASD 2538 containing RVW's Symphony No. 5 and Serenade to Music; London Philharmonic, Boult. Truly atmospheric! The stamper numbers are 2YEA-3912-5 (Side 1) and 2YEA-3913-4 (Side 2). Somehow, I think I remember you having this material in some form. :wink:
Bob Bubeck
Yes, I have the EMI Boult collection of the nine Vaughn Williams Symphonies (SLS 1547083). While these are transfers, the original engineering team EMI did them. I compared the original Sinfonia Antartica (ASD 2631) with the one in the collection and they were so close I don't think I could tell the difference in a blind test.
Thanks for reminding me about the 5th. I just listened to it again and it is indeed "atmospheric." I also have it on EMI HMV Greensleeve ED 29 0418 1 but it is still sealed. Guess I'll have to break it out and do a comparison.
In general EMI did a great job with both Vaughn Williams and Edward Elgar which are both well represented on HP's list. (Luckily, I have most of them and/or the reissues). The EMI SLS collection of choral works by Vaughn Williams is not to be missed (come to think of it, there are a lot of excellent SLS collections)
I'm hopeful some folks will also recommend other EMIs in addition to those on the list. I'll compile my list, too.
Wish I could hear the Berlioz Requiem (Fremaux, et. al. EMI SLS-982) sometime, but I've never been able to lay my hands on one.
OK, Jim. I'll give you one that I do not recall ever making the HP Super Disk list -- probably because it is a bit more obscure than many ASDs. "Constrasts - The Lighter Elgar" with Neville Marriner conducting the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra; ASD 2638. This was recorded by "the two Chistophers" away from their usual haunt in The Old Banqueting Hall, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. My pressing is an British Odeon/EMI (1970). Delightful music, beautifully played, and just perfect for the end of a long day.
Bob Bubeck
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'A personal favorite is ASD 2538 containing RVW's Symphony No. 5 and Serenade to Music; London Philharmonic, Boult. Truly atmospheric! The stamper numbers are 2YEA-3912-5 (Side 1) and 2YEA-3913-4 (Side 2).'
Interesting. My copy is 2YEA 3912-4G (side 1) and 2YEA 3913-3G (side 2). Do the final two characters indicate the lacquer and stamper number, i.e. side 1 would be the seventh stamper derived from the fourth lacquer-mother to be cut from the final, edited tape?
I'm not particularly impressed with the sound quality on my copy. The surface noise is quite high for an early-1970s EMI, and is quite distracting in the quiet passages of the third movement. The higher frequencies also sound muddy and indistinct, all of which seems consistent with my copy having been pressed from a stamper that had been made from a worn-out mother. In fact, I'd say that this record is about the poorest (in technical terms) of the 1970s EMIs in my collection, of which I have around 50.
Belshazzar's Feast! Not sure of composer or ASD #, but a great recording. Is/was on the TAS list.
Mark