Vesuvius erupted in
A.D 79 burying Pompeii in lava and pyroclastic
flows. In the case of small to medium
scale eruptions the scene of potential
devastation can span as much as four
miles but the Vesuvian eruption of that
year was catastrophic. But not as catastrophic
as this release from Walhall.
This is a broadcast
of a 1950 production – I use the word
loosely – of Handel’s operatic masterpiece
Giulio Cesare given in the Teatro
Grande, Pompeii in 1950. It might, however,
have been A.D.79 given the appalling
splinter of noise that masquerades as
music. It’s unquestionably the case
that 1901 Zonophones from the dawn of
recording history sound immeasurably
better. So I’m afraid there’s no point
discussing this performance, which sounds
awful anyway, what little one can hear
of it. Somewhere there is Tebaldi and
also Cesare Siepi, a fine singer. One
can hear that the opera has been cut,
mauled, re-ordered, shorn of numerous
recitatives and da capo arias and presented
as butch verismo. The sound is
unbelievably bad: constricted, distorted,
full of rumble, radio station and static
interference and utterly intolerable.
Beyond the jokes there
are serious points to be made:-
1. Potential purchasers
will be drawn to the full-length photograph
of Tebaldi on the booklet cover.
2. First Time on
CD, Walhall announces, enticingly,
on the front cover.
3. They claim 24 Bit
96 KHz remastering.
I have no objection
to material even as awful as this being
released but:-
1. Walhall should note
exactly where its source material comes
from.
2. Notes should be
provided.
3. If Walhall is going
to dangle Tebaldi as bait and claim
24 Bit 96 KHz remastering then they
have a duty and a responsibility to
alert potential purchasers as to the
dreadful state of the tapes. It’s highly
likely that purchasers will be misled
by talk of 24 Bit 96 KHz into thinking
that these tapes are presented in a
reasonable state of preservation. The
complete opposite is the case. They’re
effectively unlistenable.
4. All reputable companies
dealing in historical material carry
warnings as to preserved sound. I think
of Arbiter, Music & Arts and Tahra,
for instance, who routinely and minutely
detail sonic imperfections, often when
they are slight.
In short this is an
unforgivably appalling release. It’s
too much, I suppose, to expect that
the producers, company and distributors
will feel ashamed of themselves – but
they should. I strongly suggest to them
that this disc is either withdrawn or
repackaged responsibly, in the way I
have described. Nothing less will do.
Jonathan Woolf
Chorus and Orchestra of the Theatre of San
Carlo, Naples/Herbert Albert 
