RCA LP LSC 2314: HEIFETZ, violin Mendelssohn / Prokofiev - OOP SD 1959 USA 6s/4s

$

65

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Background on this eBay item -

This is an ORIGINAL, first issue RCA Shaded Dog LP pressing featuring Jascha Heifetz on the violin with Charles Munch conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

The stamped information on the dead wax around the rim of the record label indicate that this LP was made in the USA by RCA (Indianapolis Plant). The actual stamper numbers are: side 1 - 6s and side 2 - 4s.

The record labels indicate that this LP is a "shaded dog" vintage issue, made in 1959.

Superb performances on this mythical shaded dog title! One LP that should be in all classical music lovers collections.

Jascha Heifetz (February 2 [O.S. January 20] 1901 – December 10, 1987) was a violinist who was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential violinists of the twentieth century.

Heifetz and his family left Russia in 1917, traveling by rail to the Russian far east and thence by ship to the United States, arriving in San Francisco.

On October 27, 1917, Heifetz played for the first time in the United States, at Carnegie Hall in New York, and became an immediate sensation. Fellow violinist Mischa Elman in the audience asked "Do you think it's hot in here?", whereupon Leopold Godowsky, in the next seat, imperturbably replied, "Not for pianists." The reviews by the New York critics were rapturous.

In 1917, Heifetz was elected as an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the national fraternity for men in music, by the fraternity's Alpha chapter at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. As he was aged 16 at the time, he was perhaps the youngest person ever elected to membership in the organization. Heifetz remained in the country and became an American citizen in 1925. When he told admirer Groucho Marx he had been earning his living as a musician since the age of seven, Groucho answered, "And I suppose before that you were just a bum."

Heifetz is considered to be one of the finest violinists of all time. Heifetz's technical command of his instrument -- his physical ability to play the violin with stunning precision -- is regarded by many critics as unequaled. That physical control enabled Heifetz to produce a distinctive tone quality, intense and shimmering, that came to be regarded as his trademark. Yet, from time to time his near-perfect technique and conservative stage demeanor caused some critics to accuse him of being overly mechanical, even cold. Virgil Thomson called Heifetz's style of playing "silk underwear music", a term he did not intend as a compliment. Other critics argue that he infused his playing with feeling and reverence for the composers' intentions. His style of playing was highly influential in defining the way modern violinists approach the instrument. His use of rapid vibrato, emotionally charged portamento, fast tempos, and superb bow control coalesced to create a highly distinctive sound that make Heifetz's playing instantly recognizable to aficionados. The violinist Itzhak Perlman, who himself is noted for his rich warm tone and expressive use of portamento, describes Heifetz's tone as like "a tornado" because of its emotional intensity. Perlman also said that Heifetz preferred to be recorded relatively close to the microphone; as a result, one would perceive a somewhat different tone quality when listening to Heifetz during a concert hall performance as opposed to a recording.

In creating his sound, Heifetz was very particular about his choice of strings. He used a silver wound Tricolore gut g-string, plain gut unvarnished D and A strings, and a Goldbrokat steel E string medium including clear Hill brand rosin sparingly. Heifetz believed that playing on gut strings was important in rendering an individual sound.

• RCA Living Stereo RECORDS LP item - RED record labels with SILVER lettering. The labels have the famous "Shaded Dog" logo, indicating a very early vintage of the LP pressing.
  

• Record Made in: U.S.A. ("I" =  Indianapolis plant)
  

• Pressing is in STEREO

• Record Speed: 33 1/3 rpm

• Stampers on the dead wax are 6s (side 1) and 4s (side 2) - these are STAMPED into the dead wax, not hand written.
  

• Long out of print

• Record Made in 1959

• Record Catalog Number: LSC 2314

Featured Performers on this item:

Jascha Heifetz, violin

Charles Munch, conductor

The Boston Symphony Orchestra

Music on this LP:

Mendelssohn: Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64

Prokofieff: Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 63

CONDITION Details:

• The LP jacket is in Very Good plus condition!
  

• The jacket has a 5" seam split at the top seam and a 7" split along the bottom seam - the spine is fine with only a bit of weakening, but no further splits. The corners show a bit of shelf wear as well - see pictures with this listing of the actual item for more details. Although the jacket is less than perfect, it's still very nice but the LP vinyl is superb and certainly makes up for the jacket!!
  

• The jacket has NO drill holes or saw marks of any kind!

• There is NO hand writing on the front or back of the jacket! There is a "Miracle Surface" sticker on the front of the jacket placed there by the manufacturer.

• The cover has clean and sharp colors, with a bit of color foxing - see pictures with this listing for more detail. 

• The LP is in NEAR MINT minus condition - a better copy would be difficult to find!!
  

  The LP has most of it's original gloss and sheen. Other than a finger print, we could not see or hear any serious marks of any kind on this record - spectacular condition for a vintage LP! This is the copy you have always wanted for your collection as a better copy will be difficult to locate and not really needed as this one should make any picky audiophile happy - definitely in collectors grade condition! We play tested parts of the LP and it sounded superb throughout.
  

• The record labels have NO significant spindle marks.

  This LP may have a slight mark or two (spider marks) which are caused by sliding the LP in and out of the inner sleeve and are usually not audible on most audio systems - as for any record, even brand new ones, for best results we recommend a thorough record cleaning before playing!

A Short Note About LP GRADING -

• Mint = Only used for sealed items.
• Near Mint = Virtually flawless in every way.
• Near Mint Minus = Item has some minor imperfections, some audible.
• Excellent = Item obviously played and enjoyed with some noise.
• Very Good Plus = Many more imperfections which are noticeable and obtrusive.