Thanks to all the thoughtful Audiogon members who have already registered their impressions.
Being a "senior citizen" chronologically, I've had the opportunity to experience virtually the entire evolution of high fidelity recordings for home listening.
In terms of recording labels and engineers, starting with vinyl, my large collection was built on many excellent Columbia CS360's from the late '50s and early 60's, as well as RCA Living Stereo LSC categories. The pressings were far more reliable on Columbia than RCA, in terms of general surface noise, thumps, pops and the like. I too, loved the Mercury SR releases, especially because of the plethora of American composers, and particularly the work of Frederick Fennell and the Eastman Wind Ensemble.
Imported records were hard to find in those days of the '50s and early '60s, even in NYC where I lived and had access to big stores like Sam Goody, The Record Hunter and the like. But superlative EMI's and early DGG European pressings were occasionally very rewarding purchases (at the generally lofty price of $5.98, rather than $2.99 for domestic labels on frequent sale!) I agree that the Decca/Londons were often wonderful, as well. I have many fine recordings from Ernest Ansermet and the Suisse Romande Orchestra on that label. Later, the Phase 4 series emphasized somewhat "gimmicky" audio quality, but for their time, they were great demonstration records.
Philips came in the late '60s and early '70s, and perhaps produced the finest massed-produced disks in terms of superlative, noise-free pressings. Of course, having Sir Colin Davis, Bernard Haitink, with the London Symphony and Concertgebouw orchestras respectively made for some incredible listening, particularly Davis' beautiful intepretations of Berlioz works, that in my opinion, are yet to be exceeded.
Direct Disk recording- a brief entrance and exit from the audio arena, but I still think my Doug Sax-produced and engineered Sheffield recordings compete with the very best of my CD's. A very limited repertoire to be sure, but the revitalization of this pre-tape recording technique makes for some very special listening, particularly with a turntable/arm/cartridge combination worthy of these rarities (which I now own). Bert Whyte made a few amazing Direct Disk recordings on Crystal Clear records with Virgil Fox, after his pioneering engineering work on Everest Recordings.
In terms of recording engineers specifically, I agree with many readers in treasuring the following masters' work:
Lewis Layton- simply amazing RCA recordings, often done with just a few (two or three) Telefuken mikes. Beautiful balance and thrilling dynamics. Check out the following vinyl recordings- Alexander Nevsky- Reiner, and Chicago Symphony, as well as Daphnis and Chloe complete ballet with Munch/BSO (not issued on CD). His murder in the the Port Authority Bus Terminal in NYC was a tragedy for those who appreciated his unique skills. Thanks to Lew, long live analog, in my opinion!
Edward "Bud" Graham- a very versatile Columbia engineer, who could bounce from Broadway to Gabrieli, and delivered gorgeous Philadelphia Orchestra recordings, NOT in the acoustically dead Academy of Music which was home to this orchestra, but in other sonically kinder venues, including Manhattan Center. One of my favorites- works of Frederick Delius, from 1962, including Brigg Fair.
C. Robert Fine- A legend, period. Made Mercury an early audioiphile's dream label. Countless superb recordings, that live on, through the kindness of his late wife and producer, Wilma Cozart. Many fine engineers today consider Bob their adopted "father."
Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz- agree completely that their work, which propelled Nonesuch to greatness, stands as landmark efforts for a then-new niche budget priced label, Nonesuch.
Kenneth Wilkinson- Fabulous recordings made in Kingsway Hall in London. Did a masterful job on the Charles Gerhardt series of movie score recordings for RCA. Of course, his many wide range, highly musical recordings include the famous "Kingsway rumble" of the nearby London Underground trains, at no extra charge!
Enter the digital age, and the explosion of work from around the world available in the first music megastore- Tower Records, and later Virgin Records (pre-internet shopping was more physically demanding, but fun in its own way).
Telarc Records- founded by a professional musician, and audiophile giant- Jack Renner. Unlike some of the other commentators in this thread, I greatly admire and own dozens of his CD's- my particular favorite is "Uptown," with Andre Previn, Mundell Lowe, Ray Brown. It is as natural a sound as you can get, in my opinion. I am honored to have Jack now as a personal friend, and he has given his "thumbs up" to my system, as well! His wife, Ms. Barbara Pease, is a top piano technican (who cares for my own Bosendorfer), and prepared the pianos for many of Jack and Andre's recordings. Having also met Mr. Previn in person, he echoes my great respect for Jack and Barbara. Jack used the minimalist mike technique, wherever possible, and pioneered by Bob Fine, whom he admires greatly, and has won over 20 Grammy awards. Now in retirement, but still with one of the keenest set of ears on earth, and a warm, witty persona to boot. He has said simply that his goal was to make a recording that put the listener "in the best seat in the house," by no means easily accomplished in such a consistent fashion!
Reference Recordings- Keith Johnson. Another extraordinary figure in audio. You can't go wrong with virtually any of this label's 100+ recordings, ranging from Jazz to Classical, to brass ensembles and pipe organ recordings. Keith, like Jack, is a recording genius, and has pioneered major developments in the field, including the HDCD system, as well as a fine line of high end audio gear, named Spectral.
Hyperion Recordings- Antony Howell- amazing liturgical recordings, including pipe organ, from massive British cathedrals, with exemplary sound clarity, despite the challenges of a huge, reverberant recording space. Also, Tony Faulkner- many fine recordings for the same label. Admired greatly by Jack Renner, for whom Tony did special modifications of the Sony digital recorder that succeeded the Soundstream machine that launched the digital era.
Delos Recordings- John Eargle- was a master at recording pipe organs, but did many fine orchestral and solo piano recordings for this label. Also favored minimalist mike work. Check out this wonderful label. Sadly, one of its founders, Ms. Amelia Haygood, passed away recently. Her co-founder, Ms. Carol Rosenberger, has made many fine piano recordings for the label.
Gothic Recordings- for those who love the pipe organ, this label is a treasure trove of fine CD's. Eugene Kimball, Joe Bellamy and Harry Munz have made fine recordings of pipe organs from all over the USA, including Hawaii. You will be rewarded with beautiful performances and recordings to complement them.
Chandos Recordings- A nearly 30 year record of countless fine recordings, many engineered by Brian Couzens. The uncanny sense of space that many of these performances provide make it a very consistently rewarding listening experience. The sound is usually crystalline, without being harsh. Many lesser known British composers finally found a deserved place on modern recordings, thanks to this wonderful label.
DGG- A gigantic repository of memorable recordings, but with variable recording quality. Some will overwhelm you, in terms of sound quality. Rainer Mallard is a particularly fine recording engineer.
John Newton- an award-winning free lance engineer, who owns Soundmirror, here in Boston. He knows the acoustics of Symphony Hall intimately. Won the Best Recording Grammy for his Daphnis and Chloe recording with James Levine and the Boston Symphony. Has made many fine recordings elsewhere, for Philips, Naxos and other labels.
For now, that's what I can recall, but perhaps other participants will reawaken memories of other worthy people in the field to be recognized and remembered.
Enjoy your listening!
Jonathan Kleefield, MD
Being a "senior citizen" chronologically, I've had the opportunity to experience virtually the entire evolution of high fidelity recordings for home listening.
In terms of recording labels and engineers, starting with vinyl, my large collection was built on many excellent Columbia CS360's from the late '50s and early 60's, as well as RCA Living Stereo LSC categories. The pressings were far more reliable on Columbia than RCA, in terms of general surface noise, thumps, pops and the like. I too, loved the Mercury SR releases, especially because of the plethora of American composers, and particularly the work of Frederick Fennell and the Eastman Wind Ensemble.
Imported records were hard to find in those days of the '50s and early '60s, even in NYC where I lived and had access to big stores like Sam Goody, The Record Hunter and the like. But superlative EMI's and early DGG European pressings were occasionally very rewarding purchases (at the generally lofty price of $5.98, rather than $2.99 for domestic labels on frequent sale!) I agree that the Decca/Londons were often wonderful, as well. I have many fine recordings from Ernest Ansermet and the Suisse Romande Orchestra on that label. Later, the Phase 4 series emphasized somewhat "gimmicky" audio quality, but for their time, they were great demonstration records.
Philips came in the late '60s and early '70s, and perhaps produced the finest massed-produced disks in terms of superlative, noise-free pressings. Of course, having Sir Colin Davis, Bernard Haitink, with the London Symphony and Concertgebouw orchestras respectively made for some incredible listening, particularly Davis' beautiful intepretations of Berlioz works, that in my opinion, are yet to be exceeded.
Direct Disk recording- a brief entrance and exit from the audio arena, but I still think my Doug Sax-produced and engineered Sheffield recordings compete with the very best of my CD's. A very limited repertoire to be sure, but the revitalization of this pre-tape recording technique makes for some very special listening, particularly with a turntable/arm/cartridge combination worthy of these rarities (which I now own). Bert Whyte made a few amazing Direct Disk recordings on Crystal Clear records with Virgil Fox, after his pioneering engineering work on Everest Recordings.
In terms of recording engineers specifically, I agree with many readers in treasuring the following masters' work:
Lewis Layton- simply amazing RCA recordings, often done with just a few (two or three) Telefuken mikes. Beautiful balance and thrilling dynamics. Check out the following vinyl recordings- Alexander Nevsky- Reiner, and Chicago Symphony, as well as Daphnis and Chloe complete ballet with Munch/BSO (not issued on CD). His murder in the the Port Authority Bus Terminal in NYC was a tragedy for those who appreciated his unique skills. Thanks to Lew, long live analog, in my opinion!
Edward "Bud" Graham- a very versatile Columbia engineer, who could bounce from Broadway to Gabrieli, and delivered gorgeous Philadelphia Orchestra recordings, NOT in the acoustically dead Academy of Music which was home to this orchestra, but in other sonically kinder venues, including Manhattan Center. One of my favorites- works of Frederick Delius, from 1962, including Brigg Fair.
C. Robert Fine- A legend, period. Made Mercury an early audioiphile's dream label. Countless superb recordings, that live on, through the kindness of his late wife and producer, Wilma Cozart. Many fine engineers today consider Bob their adopted "father."
Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz- agree completely that their work, which propelled Nonesuch to greatness, stands as landmark efforts for a then-new niche budget priced label, Nonesuch.
Kenneth Wilkinson- Fabulous recordings made in Kingsway Hall in London. Did a masterful job on the Charles Gerhardt series of movie score recordings for RCA. Of course, his many wide range, highly musical recordings include the famous "Kingsway rumble" of the nearby London Underground trains, at no extra charge!
Enter the digital age, and the explosion of work from around the world available in the first music megastore- Tower Records, and later Virgin Records (pre-internet shopping was more physically demanding, but fun in its own way).
Telarc Records- founded by a professional musician, and audiophile giant- Jack Renner. Unlike some of the other commentators in this thread, I greatly admire and own dozens of his CD's- my particular favorite is "Uptown," with Andre Previn, Mundell Lowe, Ray Brown. It is as natural a sound as you can get, in my opinion. I am honored to have Jack now as a personal friend, and he has given his "thumbs up" to my system, as well! His wife, Ms. Barbara Pease, is a top piano technican (who cares for my own Bosendorfer), and prepared the pianos for many of Jack and Andre's recordings. Having also met Mr. Previn in person, he echoes my great respect for Jack and Barbara. Jack used the minimalist mike technique, wherever possible, and pioneered by Bob Fine, whom he admires greatly, and has won over 20 Grammy awards. Now in retirement, but still with one of the keenest set of ears on earth, and a warm, witty persona to boot. He has said simply that his goal was to make a recording that put the listener "in the best seat in the house," by no means easily accomplished in such a consistent fashion!
Reference Recordings- Keith Johnson. Another extraordinary figure in audio. You can't go wrong with virtually any of this label's 100+ recordings, ranging from Jazz to Classical, to brass ensembles and pipe organ recordings. Keith, like Jack, is a recording genius, and has pioneered major developments in the field, including the HDCD system, as well as a fine line of high end audio gear, named Spectral.
Hyperion Recordings- Antony Howell- amazing liturgical recordings, including pipe organ, from massive British cathedrals, with exemplary sound clarity, despite the challenges of a huge, reverberant recording space. Also, Tony Faulkner- many fine recordings for the same label. Admired greatly by Jack Renner, for whom Tony did special modifications of the Sony digital recorder that succeeded the Soundstream machine that launched the digital era.
Delos Recordings- John Eargle- was a master at recording pipe organs, but did many fine orchestral and solo piano recordings for this label. Also favored minimalist mike work. Check out this wonderful label. Sadly, one of its founders, Ms. Amelia Haygood, passed away recently. Her co-founder, Ms. Carol Rosenberger, has made many fine piano recordings for the label.
Gothic Recordings- for those who love the pipe organ, this label is a treasure trove of fine CD's. Eugene Kimball, Joe Bellamy and Harry Munz have made fine recordings of pipe organs from all over the USA, including Hawaii. You will be rewarded with beautiful performances and recordings to complement them.
Chandos Recordings- A nearly 30 year record of countless fine recordings, many engineered by Brian Couzens. The uncanny sense of space that many of these performances provide make it a very consistently rewarding listening experience. The sound is usually crystalline, without being harsh. Many lesser known British composers finally found a deserved place on modern recordings, thanks to this wonderful label.
DGG- A gigantic repository of memorable recordings, but with variable recording quality. Some will overwhelm you, in terms of sound quality. Rainer Mallard is a particularly fine recording engineer.
John Newton- an award-winning free lance engineer, who owns Soundmirror, here in Boston. He knows the acoustics of Symphony Hall intimately. Won the Best Recording Grammy for his Daphnis and Chloe recording with James Levine and the Boston Symphony. Has made many fine recordings elsewhere, for Philips, Naxos and other labels.
For now, that's what I can recall, but perhaps other participants will reawaken memories of other worthy people in the field to be recognized and remembered.
Enjoy your listening!
Jonathan Kleefield, MD