Dear Roger,
I can, I think, respond to one or two of your questions:
3) Legitimacy is an open question because the Soviet Union was not part of the international copyright convention, so in essence they could (and did) press any western-made record and sell it on Melodiya.
5) "Melodiya" as a label name was not used until 1964-early 1965. Before that, all records were listed as various forms of "USSR". Sometimes they'd have the word "Long-playing" (Dolgoigrayushche) or "International" (Mezhdunarodne) displayed on the top of the label, but they were essentially the same. As to whether they were identical to the pressings made for internal distribution, I don't know, but I tend to doubt it.
I hope this helps.
-Larry
-----Original Message-----
From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Roger Kulp
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2011 9:01 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] As long as I am asking about discographies
Most of us die hard classical vinyl freaks,have quite a number of Soviet records.Some of them I find the most fascinating,are the forgotten pieces,by forgotten composers,commissioned by the Soviet government.
I plan to buy the book sometime.There are a couple of copies for sale on the web,but they are not cheap.One I saw was 123.75 British Pounds.
A few comments/questions.
1)The export pressings,especially the MK ones from the 70s,are generally better,and in the 70s,much heavier than the ones made for domestic consumption.I have export pressings both on the CCCP lighthouse,and Aprelveskskiya Zavod labels,with English printing.I have one,I forget which,I just recall it's an early Rostropovich,that has the label entirely in French.I need to dig it out to see if it's an AZ,or a CCCP.It has a cover printed in France,and says Sovdisc on the cover.
2)I have a number of Latvian issues.Two that I find most interesting are both 10" Lps,the 1954 Rachmaninov Concerto #2,with Richter,on a label,with water and a sailboat on it.The other is on a multicolor Latvian "Melodija" label,that dates from the 60s,of a,no doubt pirated,recording of a Heifetz, Rubenstein,Piatigorsky recording.I think it's the Mendelssohn Trio #1.
3)Are those Melodiya opera records from the 70s,of EMI recordings,the ones with covers that look like copies of copies of copies,etc,legitimate?
4)There are Soviet pressed 78s given to visitors at the Soviet pavilion,at the 1939 World's Fair.I have an Oistrakh.I know there are others,but I don't know what they are.Can anybody tell me?
5)Were those 78s on the "USSR" label made just for export? They are pre WWII,right? Is there a list,or is it the same as the CCCP lighthouse 78s?
Roger
________________________________
From: Michael Biel <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2011 5:40 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] As long as I am asking about discographies
If you look at the flame on the torch you will see that it is made up of the two letters AZ, which stands for Aprelveskskiya Zavod, or Aprelvsk Factory. The same records also appeared with labels of the other pressing plants, sometimes Rigo from the Riga plant or Akkord from Leningrad, along with CCCP, USSR, and a bunch of other trademarks. That is why they are more properly called Pre-Melodiya since the label itself is only of collector interest, not discographically significant. The confusion ended when Melodiya was used by all the pressing plants starting in 1964, although the pressing plant name usually appears above the spindle hole.
The Bennett book covers the first 1500 or so microgroove issues, but I forget if it specifies the speed and/or the diameter of the records. Many of the first couple of hundred were 78 microgrooves, and the speed is indicated on the label but not initially in the catalog number. (The
33D prefix didn't start until the 1960s.) 10=inch discs have no leading zero, 12-inch discs have one leading zero, 8-inch have 2 leading zeros, and the 7-inch discs that began in the 1060s had 3 leading zeros. Those leading zeros are not place holders, but not all discographers know that! The letter and number prefixes are also quite important. And do not mistake roct 5289-56 etc as a record number. It is the GOST number indicating the State Manufacturing Standard number and the year of adoption of the modification. Not discographicalloy significant except to roughly date the pressing you are holding.
Other than the Bennett book, the only long-term catalog I know of is the hardbound Soviet Long Playing Records 1975-76 which was issued by the State Book Export Firm International Books, MK. Because MK was NOT the record company but was the export organization, it only lists the records that were considered
suitable for export. Thus there are practically no ephemeral pop, rock, or jazz records listed. So it is mostly classical, folk music of the Republics, childrens stories, and political. Jazz and Soviet pop didn't start to be exported till Peristrokiya days in the 80s. MK did publish annual catalogs, monthly release booklets, and the wonderful Music In The USSR magazine, and Melodiya itself published a magazine domestically called Melodiya. Finding these are wonderful.
Because there was nothing like a "back catalog" of permanently avaiable records -- even in the haredbound MK book -- when ever an edition is sold out it remained out-of-print unless the committee decides to press another edition. The magazines list them again, and collectors knew that if the saw a copy in their store they had to buy it NOW. If MK got some requests for some unavailable records they could prevail on the committee to press a
new edition, but there never was any predictability.
Collecting Soviet records is great fun. There are always great surprises around every corner.
Mike Biel [log in to unmask]
On 6/10/2011 8:20 AM, Punto wrote:
> Author Bennett, John Reginald.
> Title Melodiya : a Soviet Russian L.P. discography / compiled by John R. Bennett ; foreword by Boris Semeonoff and Anatoli Zhelezny.
> Imprint Westport Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1981.
> Description xxii, 832 p. ; 24 cm.
> Series Discographies, 0192-334X ; no. 6
> Note Includes index.
> Subject Melodi︠i︡a (Firm) -- Catalogs.
> Sound recordings -- Soviet Union -- Catalogs.
> Music -- Soviet Union -- Discography.
> LCCN 81004247 /MN
>
ISBN 0313225966 (lib. bdg.)
>
> On 6/9/2011 11:26 PM, Roger Kulp wrote:
>>
>> Torch label records are generally referred to as just "pre Melodiya".
>>
>> if there is a book about Soviet records,with a discography,I would be VERY interested in buying it
>>
>>
>> Roger
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: Punto<[log in to unmask]>
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Sent: Thursday, June 9, 2011 9:01 PM
>> Subject: [ARSCLIST] As long as I am asking about discographies
>>
>> Is there one for the Soviet label Torch (at least that is what I am pretty sure it was called, based on the torch that
appears on the label and some circumstantial evidence)? I've got a couple of interesting 10" discs in hand and am curious what else they released. Mike B., I'm sure you know something. I am aware of the extensive Melodiya volume, but do not know of anything that covers other labels from that era.
>>
>> Hopefully,
>>
>> Peter Hirsch
>>
>
>
-----
No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 10.0.1382 / Virus Database: 1513/3702 - Release Date: 06/13/11
|