The best recording of Bizet's masterpiece ever,imho! The sound quality of this 1911/12 complete opera recording,the first to include the dialogue (or the version with dialogue) before 1950,might be a problem for some,however. A great cast,though,who perform this masterpiece with great enthusiasm,considering the 'technology' that was afforded them. All it needed was that little bird in Wilma Flinstone's washing machine in the cartoon. It's just so strange to imagine the world outside the studio while they were recording. No horseless carriages (or at least,hardly any) just the sound of hooves,the whinnying of a horse,street vendors advertising their wares,no mobile phones or loud thudding beats from passing vehicles! Ah,bliss! :) :) :) Spare a thought for the music fan who had to get through the pile of cylinder's! Allot of hand cranking & one arm with a bicep like Popeye!! The transfer's,on this 2 cd set,by the world leading expert Ward Marston are superb! The booklet notes & photos,provided with this set are a delight & model of their kind.
NB: In case anyone reading this is thinking of ditching their stereo recordings in favour of this. It's been deleted & sellers are asking eye watering prices. Just so you know! ;D
I'm not so old that I actually remember cylinders but there are certain pieces which I first heard on 78 RPM shellac recordings and which I can never hear even now without anticipating the side breaks. One such that springs immediately to mind is Saint-Saëns' Danse Macabre which I got to know through a Decca 78 of the Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Charles Münch and where the side break came at letter G in the score!
However, not wishing to get slapped down for going off on a tangent, on the subject of Carmen my go-to recording is Beecham with Victoria de los Angeles, Nicolai Gedda and Ernest Blanc and I know I am not alone in this. All right, 1959 is not 1911 but who's complaining? ;D
