Gilbert & Sullivan / D'Oyly Carte Opera Company: Gilbert & Sullivan: HMS Pinafore
Gilbert & Sullivan / D'Oyly Carte Opera Company: Gilbert & Sullivan: HMS Pinafore
Format: CD
Wanting to order from us over the holiday period but need some more information. We are here to help! Please see our Christmas Shipping page for more information.
On average, orders containing available-to-ship items are processed and dispatched within 1-2 business days, although this is not guaranteed.
Orders containing preorder items will ship as 1 fulfillment once all items in the order are available to ship.
Please note, Tower Records Merchandise and Exclusives are dispatched separately. On average, these items take 3-4 business days to dispatch, although this is not guaranteed.
The estimated shipping times that are displayed at checkout are from the point of dispatch.
See our shipping policy for more information.
We have a 30-day return policy, which means you have 30 days after receiving your item(s) to make a return.
For orders created between November 20th 2024 and December 31st 2024, we have extended our normal return period. For orders made between this period, customers have up to 60 days from the receipt of goods to return an item. Please see our Christmas Returns page for more information.
To be eligible for a return of an unwanted item, your item must be in the same condition that you received it and in its original packaging.
In the unfortunate situation that a product is damaged/faulty/incorrect, let us know and we will endeavor to correct any issue as soon as possible.
Please see our refund policy for more information.
Artist: Gilbert & Sullivan / D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
Label: Eloquence Australia
Product Type: COMPACT DISCS
UPC: 028948253579
Genre: Classical, Opera/Operetta
An atmospheric Decca Phase 4 stereo recording of a much-loved Savoy opera. The work of the Australian musician James Walker can be found on many Eloquence releases, but he appears here in an unfamiliar guise. He trained as a pianist both in his native Australia and at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and soon afterwards became assistant to the renowned director of ballet and film scores, Ernest Irving. From 1947 he was director of the International Ballet Company until it's disbanding in 1953, when he joined the fledgling Decca Records Company as a recording engineer. In that capacity he worked as a pioneering stereo engineer in London, Geneva, Belgrade and elsewhere on many recordings which would become staples of the Decca catalogue. But in 1968 he returned to the podium as the musical director of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company upon the retirement of it's long-standing conductor Isidore Godfrey, who had recorded the complete Savoy operas for Decca. It was in this capacity that Walker made this recording of HMS Pinafore in February 1971 with the D'Oyly Carte company and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The Decca recording team used the Phase 4 technology to bring the nautical air of Pinafore to life with all manner of inventive effects such as lapping water and cawing seagulls. More durable for followers of Gilbert and Sullivan are the performances of an outstanding cast, led by John Reed as Sir Joseph Porter, infusing every line with brilliantly-judged nuance and delicious wit. Valerie Masterson's beautifully sung, forthright yet vulnerable portrayal of Josephine is well matched by the elegant tenor of Ralph Mason as a delightfully matter-of-fact and personable Ralph Rackstraw. The supporting cast is no less strong, including company regulars such as Christine Palmer (Little Buttercup), Thomas Lawlor (Captain Corcoran) and John Ayldon (Dick Deadeye). In the rich history of HMS Pinafore on record, this Decca/James Walker production is an overlooked gem.
Tracks:
1.1 Sir Arthur Sullivan ; Sir William Schwenck Gilbert: H.M.S. Pinafore
