@willemj
And yet sometimes the old recordings are just magically better. I'm thinking of the first complete major piece recorded in stereo, Beethoven's Emperor, performed by Gieseking in 1944 (sic, 1944), released by Varese.
The performance is just qualitatively superior to any other, including subsequent recordings by Gieseking himself. There's something about hearing anti-aircraft cannon as a counterpoint, that brings the whole Emperor thing into perspective.
And yet sometimes the old recordings are just magically better. I'm thinking of the first complete major piece recorded in stereo, Beethoven's Emperor, performed by Gieseking in 1944 (sic, 1944), released by Varese.
The performance is just qualitatively superior to any other, including subsequent recordings by Gieseking himself. There's something about hearing anti-aircraft cannon as a counterpoint, that brings the whole Emperor thing into perspective.