Whats on your turntable tonight?

Some of the great Decca recordings! Fellow AudiogoN'r Texasdave got me started on this through an email conversation we've been having about the great recording engineers who worked for Decca and who were responsible for some of the best recordings ever made: Roy Wallace, Kenneth Wilkinson, John Dunkerley... Turns out that Dave and I share in a common a passionate respect for these recording engineers and the great recordings they made from the 1950s on. So, back to the archives to pull out some great music!

Britten: War Requiem, Britten/LSO, Melos Qt, London OSA 1255 (K. Wilkinson -eng) A truly superb recording. When Peter Pears opens with his first tenor solo, the verisimilitude of Pears being right on stage in front of you is just phenomenal.

Stravinsky: Petrouchka, Ansermet/OSR, Decca SXL 2011 (Athena reissue ALSS 10004) (Roy Wallace -eng) - Dave and I may disagree on this one, but on vinyl this is one of my all time favorite Roy Wallace recordings.

Falla: Three Cornered Hat (complete), Ansermet/OSR, Decca SXL 2296 (Speakers Corner reissue) (Roy Wallace -eng) A magical recording from 1960.

Ravel: Alborada del gracioso, Ansermet/OSR, Decca (Roy Wallace -eng) As Dave commented in his email to me: "It is truly spectacular. Neophytes are always amazed, after I play it, to hear it was recorded in 1960. I’ve challenged audiophile friends to come up with another version of this piece that can rival this Wallace recording... [none of the other modern contenders] can rival the old Wallace recording for vividness, immediacy, impact. I think it is a paragon of analog, tube-era recording." I couldn't agree more.
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Rush, I have some of these but not the Britten. Is it being re pressed by Speaker Corner or anyone else?

Albert, I've not seen a reissue of the Britten War Requiem and have not heard of one coming. My copy is a late English pressing on the London label (-4E in the deadwax), but it is superb.
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Tonight, more Roy Wallace engineered Decca marvels from the 1950s until about 1964:

Borodin: Sym 2 & 3, Ansermet/OSR, London CS 6126 (Speakers Corner reissue). OK, this one has a touch of upper mid-range brightness, probably some resonance frequency in the microphones - but this is an INCREDIBLE recording from 1954! Full, rich, detailed sound with marvelous soundstaging. Excellent performances, too.

Albeniz: Iberia, Ansermet/OSR, Decca SXL 2243 (Speakers Corner reissue) - recorded in 1960, this 40+ year old recording puts so many of the last 20 years to shame. Coupled with the Turina: Danzas fantasticas, this is a very special record. The dynamics on this LP are phenomenal.

Slipknot -- note that the wonderful Rossini Overtures recording you and I like so much is a Roy Wallace creation.
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Rush,
That is a wonderful recording. It seems as though Decca cornered the market on the truly gifted engineers of that era. The Maag/LSO Mendelssohn you introduced me to never ceases to amaze both in sonics and performance as well.

Reading the exchange between you and Albert has made me want to fire up my TT despite the fact that I cannot tear myself away from watching my beloved Red Sox....;)