Beulah quoted

"If you have not yet made their acquaintance, Beulah regularly bring us reissues of historical recordings, from 78s to 1960s stereo, in  transfers as good as any that I have heard, removing as much surface noise as is feasible –practically all in the case of LPs, and even for most 78s –without impairing the tonal  quality." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

"The Beulah record label has always been one of the most idiosyncratic, and therefore perhaps most interesting, of reissue marques. While the basic character of Beulah remains the same as in its Compact Disc days, the range of its present catalogue, driven now by the ease of downloading, has been extended in remarkable fashion. Browsing the Beulah catalogue is now rather like being in a 78rpm record shop: there are plenty of recordings of short pieces available to whet your appetite for either repertoire or artist, while at the same time there are numerous full length works available if you wish to consolidate your collection with, for instance, major symphonies. All of Beulah's transfers, as might be expected of a distinguished reissue label, are of very high quality." David Patmore writing in Classical Recordings Quarterly

"Beulah releases are  available  from  other  suppliers  but  Qobuz  offer  them  in  lossless  sound  for  the  same  price  that others charge for mp3 –in some casesthat’sless than full bit-rate mp3." Brian Wilson at Music Web International 

New for March

Many music lovers miss the sound from vinyl pressings. Many others have yet to discover how great the sound can be. Most of our albums are mastered from vinyl LP pressings and earlier recordings (generally before 1953) from 78 rpm discs. It is our ability to recreate, in the digital age, the sound from the disc era that many of our customers find most enjoyable.

Unlike modern digital recordings tracks in our albums do contain some distortion, and the occasional surface noises, but for many listeners these "defects" are soon forgotten.

Our albums are available from many download and streaming sites.

We highly recommend downloading from where you can download or stream in high quality, for the same price as iTunes medium quality.

New albums

" I know there is a ready market for snippet recordings; much as I would like to think them a stepping stone to full symphonies, concertos or operas, that’s as far as many are prepared to go. Only the opening Samuel Barber Adagio  was composed as a stand-alone item. The cover doesn’t specify the provenance of any of these recordings, but this is the idiomatic recording made by the Philadelphia Orchestra and Eugene Ormandy – the information is in the codec if your player can display it. (The free MusicBee programme can.)

"The closing Aram Khachaturian Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia , from the Spartacus ballet, also developed a life of its own when it was used as the theme music for a TV programme about a shipping family, The Onedin Line. The music actually has nothing to do with a ship under full sail, but it seemed to fit perfectly, in this recording made by the composer with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, still available on the MVE label, download only, and short value with just 23 minutes from the ballet. Better to choose the Beulah.

"The slow movement of the Grieg Piano Concerto  in one of my favourite recordings, from Clifford Curzon, the LSO and Øivind Fjeldstad (1959), is another highlight of the collection, and who could fail to enjoy Sir Thomas Beecham’s special magic with the Adagio from the Faust ballet music on the next track "

"Another old favourite, Maurice Gendron and Pablo Casals in the slow movement of the Haydn Cello Concerto in D, now known as No.2 since the discovery of the concerto in C, also points to the complete recording on another Beulah release, Great Cello Concertos." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

" I suspect that most modern listeners would prefer the much livelier older Sargent recording, as well transferred as it is by Beulah. Among the virtues of the older recording are the occasional interventions, as if from the original audience." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

" The Essence of Samuel Barber contains some familiar music and some unfamiliar. The short opening Commando March comes from the Eastman Wind Ensemble and Frederick Fennell, whose recordings are to be found on several Beulah reissues.

" Knoxville – Summer of 1915 is much more familiar, though I don’t recall hearing this recording from Eleanor Steber (soprano), the Dumbarton Oaks Orchestra and William Strickland before. This beautiful 1947 evocation of small-town life before the US entered WWI was commissioned by Steber, and this recording, from US Columbia, apparently dates from 1950 – it has come up extremely well in this transfer. There are more recent performances with more beautiful solo singing, notably from Dawn Upshaw, and in better sound, but this performance by the soprano who commissioned the work is special.

" The Cello Concerto (1946) – Zara Nelsova (cello), New Symphony Orchestra of London conducted by the composer is also fairly familiar Barber territory, as is this recording, which also dates from 1950, this time for Decca and released on a 10” LP. With a soloist who was already associated with the work, the composer conducting, and a good transfer of the recording, this is the highlight of the reissue.

" The album is rounded off with a powerful performance of Andromache’s Farewell, Op.39 – Martina Arroyo (soprano), New York Philharmonic Orchestra and Thomas Schippers (1963, but not released in the UK at the time, perhaps a little too much like film music) – and the least familiar item (to me) the Souvenirs Suite, Op.28 (Philharmonia Orchestra/Efrem Kurtz). Like Knoxville, the original Souvenirs ballet inhabits a pre-WWI world, this time in grand society. There is no other current generally available recording, so this reissue of one side of a 1956 HMV 10” LP is welcome, though I can’t claim that this is music of the same quality as the two central works; it’s a bit like Ravel’s la Valse without the irony.

" Though mostly of somewhat venerable origin, these transfers really are worth purchasing from Qobuz in lossless sound" Brian Wilson at Music Web International

" An anthology entitled Classical Guitar just had to include the Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez, here offered in one of the classic recordings, by Narciso Yepes, Orquesta Nacional de España and Ataulfo Argenta. That’s a recording which has stood the test of time well – it’s still one of my versions of choice. Here it sits well in the company of solo guitar music recorded by John Williams in 1958: Albeniz, Ponce, Villa-Lobos, Sor, Segovia, Granados and others. This recording of Aranjuez has also appeared on an earlier Beulah release, Guitar Concerto. Choose the coupling according to your preference." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

" There’s a good deal of Kathleen Ferrier on an album of Handel Arias, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Sir Adrian Boult. This is plain singing, without any of the modern attempts to reproduce the ornamentation of Handel’s day, the Messiah just as printed in the old Ebenezer Prout edition. I don’t normally warm to Ferrier’s voice, but this was one of the recordings where the engineers caught her at her best, so popular on LP that Decca later re-recorded the accompaniment in stereo, but this (1952, mono) original is preferable. For all that I find this a better representation of Ferrier.

"The opening track, the aria from Giulio Cesare – ‘Piangero la sorte mia’, sung by Teresa Berganza (rec. c.1960, stereo) , is more impressive.

"The rest of the recital concentrates on Kenneth McKellar, with Boult again conducting. A fine voice, not helped by its employment in the more popular repertoire with which McKellar was associated, which perhaps explains some of the occasional strain on the longer-held top notes. These recordings date from 1959 or 1960 and are in decent stereo." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

" As well as the title work, the collection includes He’s got the whole World in His Hands, When the Saints go marching in (even livelier than Louis Armstrong), What a Friend we have in Jesus, Amazing Grace and Joshua fit the Battle of Jericho. Recorded between 1937 and 1959, mostly live, the sound is inevitably variable, but the vivid Beulah transfers make it all eminently listenable.

"The spiritual power of this Mahaliah Jackson collection could easily merit a place in my next project is an article on recordings for Passiontide and Easter." Brian Wilson at Music Web International

What The Critics Say

"For me, as I am sure it will be for many readers, listening to these sparkling new transfers from Beulah was a trip down memory lane.

"My ears kept telling me that this was great performing."

"There is a risk, in listening to these recordings, of viewing them exclusively as products of the artist in embryo. Instead of treating them as interpretations in their own right, they are seen as somehow student works. My experience, reviewing the Liszt concertos, has been that they are anything but. They stand comparison with the very best recordings, including the Richter ... and Brendel’s own later account."

"The conductor always has a surprising amount to do with the success or failure of performances of the Liszt concertos. Gielen (only in his 30s at the time himself) is a very positive presence here from the first bar of the first concerto."

"Beulah’s engineers deserve considerable credit: the sound is bright and clear but still warm and resonant. Remarkably, the sound achieved on this release does not need to yield too much compared to the extremely good sound produced by the Philips engineers for Brendel in 1972.

"What really sets these Liszt interpretations apart from the later Brendel is a freedom and fantasy for which no amount of wisdom and experience can compensate." David McDade at Music Web International

"The arresting opening of Brendel’s account of the Emperor concerto sets the tone for the entire movement. The robust and energetic nature of his performance of the brilliant semiquaver passages in the introduction did come as rather a surprise. This is probably the effect that Beethoven intended and must have come as a bit of a shock to the listeners at the time. The forward thrust of Brendel’s pianism leads to an equally dynamic performance of the first subject from the young Zubin Mehta and the Vienna Pro Musica Orchestra. In spite of the superb transfers, these recordings from the late 1950s can sound a little dated and the orchestra does suffer from rather suspicious intonation from time to time.

" However, none of this detracts from the overall impression of truly great music-making here. Brendel’s piano sound is always beautiful even in faster passages. Very classical sounding with no over-romanticising. The first movement is bursting with vitality and rhythmic energy, but the pianist also treats us to passages of great delicacy and beauty.

" The key change for the Adagio always sounds so beautiful and unexpected, and even though I have heard it so many times, this is always a moment I wait for with bated breath. The Pro Arte Orchestra, Zubin Mehta and the sound engineers capture this moment superbly. We are treated to a better string tone here and Brendel and Mehta keeping the whole thing moving forward.

" Following a suspenseful transition, Brendel’s entry into the ensuing ‘Rondo’ seems positively explosive, but his initial statement of the main, syncopated theme is in measured tempo allowing for great clarity of texture. Mehta is suitably vigorous in the orchestral response though, again, I feel that the string department tone is rather thin, sparse and top-heavy. Then Brendel’s crystal clear semiquaver triplets which follow, leading to the beautifully phrased second main theme, remind us both of Brendel’s prodigious technique and his barely rivalled musicality.

" This is a truly great performance from Alfred Brendel, and Mehta is a sympathetic partner. Beulah have done wonders with the transfer, especially with the piano part. As well as the grandeur and magnificence of the pianist’s playing, we can appreciate every subtle detail of nuance and expressiveness at all dynamic levels.

" Brendel and Klien seem to play as one in the Mozart Concerto No 10 for 2 pianos and orchestra. This performance shows how so-called ‘authentic’ performance, with its regularity of tempo, never too slow, can be imbued with so much expressiveness and feeling without sounding over romantic or nostalgic. All those interested in classical style performance should definitely listen to this.

" For me, the Liszt Cantique d’amour has to be the highlight of the disc. Brendel imbues the poetry of the melodic line with a sense of sublime serenity. The melody is always pre-eminent, whatever may be the elaboration or decoration of the accompanying figures. Brendel pays great attention to every detail. This performance reminds us what a great pianist Alfred Brendel was, even as a young man. The recording engineers have done marvels here and the results can only be praised. I can’t imagine a better performance of this piece.

" These recordings come highly recommended." Geoffrey Molyneux at Music Web International

"Beulah recording of popular classics and middle-of-the-road music made between 1935 and 1961, is real trip down memory lane " Brian Wilson at Music Web International

Thurston (Bob) Dart 1921-1971

Saturday 6 March marks the 50th  anniversary of the death of Thurston Dart.

Robert Thruston Dart(known as Bob) was born in Surbiton on 3 September 1921. He studied keyboard instruments at the Royal College of Music. In 1944 while convalesing from an air crash he met Neville Marriner. After leaving the services, he studied for a year with Belgian musicologist Charles Van den Borren, returning to England in 1946 as research assistant to Henry Moule, a music lecturer at Cambridge University.

In 1947 he was appointed assistant lecturer in music in the University of Cambridge, subsequently lecturer (1952) and professor (1962). During this time, Dart was the most effective British supporter of the modern early music revival, in part through his influence on those who ultimately formed such groups as the Early Music Consort of London. In 1964 he was appointed King Edward Professor of Music in the University of London (King's College).

As a continuo player, Dart made numerous appearances on the harpsichord and made many harpsichord, clavichord and organ recordings, especially for the L'Oiseau-Lyre label.

During the 1950s he participated in annual concerts featuring four harpsichordists, the three others being George Malcolm, Denis Vaughan and Eileen Joyce. In 1957 this group also recorded Bach's Concerto for Four Harpsichords, an arrangement after Vivaldi, with the Pro Arte Orchestra under Boris Ord, released on HMV CLP 1120. They also recorded Malcolm's Variations on a Theme of Mozart.

Dart later worked with Neville Marriner on a recording of both the Brandenburg Concerti and the four Orchestral suites though Dart died from stomach cancer on 6 March 1971 before this was complete.

Beulah has released Dart's recordings of keyboard music by Handel and Purcell.

The Music of Richard Stanbrook

Beulah is proud to release the first album of music by Richard Stanbrook.

Richard Stanbrook was born in Newbury, Berkshire in 1954. Upon leaving school he enlisted in the Army and served with the Royal Corps of Transport Staff Band. In October 1977, he transferred to the Royal Military Academy Band Corps, Sandhurst and was its music arranger until July 1981. Stylistically, Stanbrook does not belong to any school of ‘ism’ and eschews modernity for its own sake.

Richard writes:-

Sinfonietta No. 2 for Orchestra.
This was composed during 2016 was planned to have been a light, even frivolous work took on a far more serious mood following that year's European Union membership referendum.

Nocturne for Violoncello and Strings.
Originally for Heckelphone, the Nocturne was composed in Autumn 2016 and is more a "song of the night" rather than "things that go bump in the night."

Thorncombe Beacon for 2 Horns and Strings.
Although overshadowed by its loftier neighbour, "Golden Cap," the view from Thorncombe Beacon (on the "Jurassic Coast" in West Dorset), sweeping Lyme Bay in its entirety - from Portland Bill to Start Point - is one of the finest seascapes in Britain.This piece was composed in 2013.

Three Pastorales for Orchestra.
These do not relate to any specific locations. Listeners may say they evoke their favourite landscapes but, of course, personal choices vary.

Fragment for Wind.
The remains of an orchestral piece written in 1986. Short and, maybe, sweet?

Pilsdon Pen for Oboe and Strings.
At 909 feet. Pilsdon Pen is the second highest hill in Dorset, with wide, airy views encompassing four counties. Composed in 2013.

Concertino for Oboe and Strings. Written during 2018, this, in the composer's words, "is my farewell to the England I once knew and revered."

Read Brian Wilson's review at Music Web International in which he writes "On the basis of the Beulah album, do I want to hear more? Given that Stanbrook describes himself as not belonging to any school of ‘ism’ and eschewing modernism for its own sake, I could almost have answered that in the affirmative before hearing a note of music, and the experience proved most rewarding.

"All concerned, composer, performers, and recording engineers deserve credit, as does Beulah for bringing it all to us. I hope that the experiment will be successful and that we have not heard the last of this enterprising partnership, which has brought us some very worthwhile first recordings."

Listen to extracts from Richard Stanbrook's album.

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