EMI HMV ASD 443: English Ballet Music

EMI HMV ASD 443
English Ballet Music
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Sir Malcolm Sargent, conductor

Pressing: UK, ED1

Date first published: 1961

Matrix numbers: 2YEA 527-3, 2YEA 528-4

Performance: 9/10

Sound: 9/10

Price range: $25-74 (mean $42) on popsike.com

Comments: One of the very first gold and cream ASDs I ever purchased back in 2004 and one of my favorite in terms of repertoire and sound.  This is a charming program of British ballet music, with works by Holst, Walton, and Britten (never knew that Britten's Simple Symphony was considered ballet music until I read in the liner notes that it was used in 1944 by Walter Gore "as the basis of a light-hearted, gently sentimental one-act ballet about the pleasures of the seaside").  Plenty of tube-y goodness here, with a beautiful midrange, sweet and extended treble, and good bass depth.  String tone is rich, and the pizzicati in the second movement of the Simple Symphony are crisp with a nice resonance.  Great ambience retrieval and a wide and deep soundstage give you the feeling that you're sitting mid-hall.  Contemporary competition in terms of recordings for the Walton Facade include the famous Decca-recorded and audiophile favorite RCA Living Stereo LSC-2285 (or UK RCA SB-2039).  Not one of the pricier ASDs but don't let that fool you -- it's a gem.