你好We’ve been wondering lately, what makes a recording legendary ? Take a spellbinding conductor at his most intense, one of the world great orchestras, a perfectly honed collection of 70 or 80 virtuosos, all playing their instruments phenomenally well, and a musical vehicle loaded to the brim with raw passion. And of course, great sound. What do you get? A benchmark, a revolutionary performance that turns classical music on its head.

There aren’t many recordings that reach these heights, but among them has to be Fritz Reiner’s 1954 recording of Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra and Ein Heldenleben with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra which has never gone out of the catalog. I’d originally heard it on a friend’s brand new stereo set and it quickly became the cornerstone of my early vinyl collection of precious 15 records. It’s amazing to think this stereo recording was made over 50 years ago and still sounds spectacular.

Although Reiner rerecorded these pieces in 1962 , the earlier recording has intensity and thrust raised to the next power. 1954 was only the conductor’s second year with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and yet already he was getting a gleaming sheen from the strings, and sheer brilliance from the legendary Chicago brass and woodwind sections.

These were the first stereo sessions to be arranged by the RCA engineers in Chicago’s Orchestra Hall and they were made using the simplest microphone techniques. But then or now, even with recordings that have taken advantage of digital sound, few can outclass with this warm, glorious Chicago Symphony Orchestra CD. And if you have the right equipment, the new SACD digital remastering is even more thrilling.

What’s in our player now: R. Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra, Ein Heldenleben, Chicago Symphony Orchestra/ Fritz Reiner, conductor - RCA 82876-61389-2

There are lots of performances that have all the ingredients of a legendary recording but never make it. It’s not for want of ambition or vision. Take Barbra Steisand, possibly the greatest singer-actress to come along since Maria Callas took the world by storm, give her some of the greatest arias and art songs ever written, and back her up with a good pick-up orchestra. Sounds like a fool-proof recipe for greatness, doesn’t it?

There are a million “what ifs” in music. What if Schubert had lived long enough to go back and finish writing his “Unifnished” symphony? What if Mozart had recovered enough to finish and possibly rewrite part of his Requiem? What if Beethoven had lived long enough to write a 10^th symphony? Long story short: some biggie at Columbia Records thought, what if we convinced a great voice like Streisand to sing classical music, we could sit back and count the cash.

The great Leonard Bernstein was supportive: “Barbra Streisand’s natural ability to make music takes her over to the classical field with extraordinary ease. It’s clear that she loves these songs. In her sensitive, straight-forward and enormously appealing performance, she has given us a very special musical experience.”

The problem is Streisand doesn’t love these songs. She doesn’t know these songs; if anytinng she’s intimidated by them. And even if she weren’t, her habit of bending notes and extending syllables, doesn’t make sense in the Debussy, or the Faure, where whatever note-bending is already there.

Streisand plods through one art-song after another, simply setting aside her unique powers of characterization, keeping no secrets and wearing no veils. She sings these arias like they are lounge songs, but unlike Renee Fleming (in her Haunted Heart Haunted Heart) album, she gives no thought to the appropriateness of the style. Her harsh, heavy sound destroys the easy melodic line. And did I mention, French, German, Italian, every song sounds the same?

Oy, what a shame. What could have been…..

What’s on our player now: Classical Barbra. Barbra Streisand, vocalist; Columbia Symphony Orchestra, Claus Ogerman, piano, arr., and cond. COLUMBIA M 33452