Happy new year! Thanks to everyone who supported this project in 2014. Special thanks to Chris Hite of Clarion Records, who generously donated another batch of perfectly photographed covers for the discography. I’m still processing most of these, but I was able to add the following two blockbuster records today:

• LSC-2421 – Henryk Szeryng In Recital
• LSC-2553 – Shostakovich – Cello Sonata – Schubert – “Arpeggione” Sonata ~ Shafran

A labelography page was added to the website today. It includes all the major label variations for RCA Living Stereo classical records pressed in the United States, from their first release in 1958 until the late ’60s. Dates are approximate and were sourced from Ron Penndorf’s excellent RCA Victor Red Seal Labelography.

By the way, there is a comments area at the bottom of the new labelography page. If you have any questions or corrections, please let us know.

A new page was added to the the Discography today. It’s dedicated to the original RCA pre-recorded 2-track stereo open reel tapes. At least 50 79 such tapes were released (If there are more, please let us know!).

Check out the 2-Track Stereo Tapes page now!

Thanks to Chris Hite of Clarion Records for the photos, and thanks to Michael Kaplan and the ReelToReel Yahoo Group for the list.

P.S. Although the early Munch/BSO Symphonie Fantastique wasn’t released by RCA as part of the original Living Stereo LPs, they did release it on 2-track stereo tape shortly after it was recorded in the ’50s (see it here). At a retail price of $18.95 — roughly $150 in today’s dollars — there probably weren’t a whole lot sold!

Absolute Sound posted a preview of the upcoming series of Living Stereo LP and SACD reissues from Acoustic Sounds written by longtime TAS writer and RCA Bible author, Jonathan Valin. Lots of great background info, as well as listening notes for a handful of titles. Check it out!

Sneak Preview: Acoustic Sounds’ RCA Reissues

HDTracks added four more titles to their Living Stereo catalog. See details below, and check out my previous post to get details on the other eight titles already added.

Chopin: Piano Concertos / Arthur Rubinstein
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2575 – Chopin – Concerto No. 1 ~ Rubinstein – Skrowaczewski – New Symphony Orchestra Of London
Original (Andante Omitted): LSC-2265 – Chopin – Concerto No. 2 – Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise ~ Rubinstein – Wallenstein – Symphony Of The Air

Dvorak: New World Symphony / Chicago Symphony Orchestra | Fritz Reiner
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2575 – Dvorak – “New World” Symphony ~ Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner
Original: (Carnival Overture, The Bartered Bride, Schwanda Only): VICS-1424 – Overtures and Dances ~ Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner

Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue, Concerto in F, An American in Paris, Variations on “I Got Rhythm” / Arthur Fiedler
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2367 – Gershwin – Rhapsody In Blue – An American In Paris ~ Wild – Boston Pops Orchestra, Fiedler
Original: LSC-2586 – Gershwin – Concerto In F – Cuban Overture ~ Wild – Boston Pops Orchestra, Fiedler

Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe / Boston Symphony Orchestra | Charles Munch
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-1893 – Ravel – Daphnis and Chloe ~ Boston Symphony Orchestra, Munch

Acoustic Sounds will be selling a new series of RCA Living Stereo reissues starting in September, 2013. The series will consist of 25 titles and will be released in both 200-gram 33 1/3 RPM LP and hybrid multichannel SACD formats. The titles were sourced from the original analog tapes and mastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound.

Read the announcement

Note: I guess the Acoustic Sounds folks are fans of this website. They are using our cover photos!

HDTracks, the leading source of hi-rez digital music downloads, has added eight RCA Living Stereo classical titles to its growing list of essential golden age stereo classical recordings. These retail for $18-25 each — roughly double the cost of the SACDs from which they are presumably sourced. Each title is available in AIFF, ALAC, FLAC, or WAV formats, as either 88kHz/24bit or 176kHz/24bit files. See their “How to choose” page for help with formats. Check out the list of titles and LSC equivalents below:

Brahms & Tchaikovsky: Violin Concertos / Jascha Heifetz
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-1903 – Brahms – Violin Concerto ~ Heifetz – Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner
Original: LSC-2129 – Tschaikowsky – Concerto In D, Op. 35 ~ Heifetz – Chicago Symphony, Reiner

Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta; Hungarian Sketches / Fritz Reiner
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-1934 – Bartok – Concerto For Orchestra ~ Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner
Original: LSC-2374 – Bartok – Music For Strings, Percussion, And Celesta – Hungarian Sketches ~ Chicago Symph., Reiner

Beethoven & Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos / Jascha Heifetz
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-1992 – Beethoven – Violin Concerto, Op. 61 ~ Heifetz; Boston Symphony Orchestra, Munch
Original (Mendelssohn only): LSC-2314 – Mendelssohn – Concerto In E Minor – Prokofieff – Concerto In G Minor ~ Heifetz – Munch, Boston Symphony

Chopin: Ballades & Scherzos / Arthur Rubinstein
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2368 – The Chopin Scherzos ~ Rubinstein
Original: LSC-2370 – The Chopin Ballades ~ Rubinstein

Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition / Chicago Symphony Orchestra | Fritz Reiner
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2201 – Moussorgsky-Ravel – Pictures At An Exhibition ~ Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner
Original: LSC-2423 – Festival ~ Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Reiner

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade / Fritz Reiner
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2446 – Rimsky-Korsakoff – Scheherazade ~ Reiner, Chicago Symphony
Original (Stravinsky only): LSC-2150 – Prokofieff – Lieutenant Kije – Stravinsky – Song Of The Nightingale ~ Chicago Symphony, Reiner

Saint-Saens: Symphony No. 3 – Debussy: La Mer – Ibert: Escales / Charles Munch
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2341 – Saint-Saens – Symphony No. 3 In C Minor, Op. 78 ~ Boston Symphony Orchestra, Munch
Original: LSC-2111 – The Sea – Debussy – Ibert ~ Boston Symphony Orchestra, Munch

Sibelius, Prokofiev, Glazunov: Violin Concertos / Jascha Heifetz
HDTracks: 88kHz/24bit, 176kHz/24bit
Original: LSC-2435 – Sibelius – Violin Concerto ~ Heifetz – Chicago Symphony, Hendl
Original (Prokofiev only): LSC-2314 – Mendelssohn – Concerto In E Minor – Prokofieff – Concerto In G Minor ~ Heifetz – Munch, Boston Symphony
Original (Glazunov only): LSC-2734 – Glazunov – Violin Concerto – Mozart – Symphonie Concertante In E-Flat ~ Heifetz – Hendl – Solomon

A new Shop page was added to the site today. Over time it will include a variety of RCA Living Stereo original and reissue LPs, as well as digital downloads. At present it includes listings for all 54 Living Stereo hybrid SACDs released by BMG Classics between 2004 and 2007.

At roughly $12 each, these discs are a terrific bargain, especially since many actually include two complete Living Stereo LPs. Nearly 100 complete or partial RCA Living Stereo LPs are represented, as well as a handful of titles never released as part of the Living Stereo series (eventually released as either Victrola or reissue LPs).

The majority of these amazingly inexpensive and gorgeous sounding discs are still available, but it appears some have indeed gone out of print. Now might be a good time to order the titles you want before it’s too late.

View the Shop

Two useful links were added to each record page today. These include a link to all current eBay auctions for a record, as well as a link to past auction prices for a record. These links are intended to help collectors conveniently find records to buy, as well as to answer the question: How much is my Shaded Dog record worth? Check out these new links now by going to any record page in the discography.

P.S. These links were added in response to reader feedback. Please keep your suggestions coming, and thanks again for visiting!

Well, it’s taken a little over a year since we launched to get photos for some of the rarest titles into the discography, but it finally happened. Thanks to Chris Hite of Clarion Records, the following four rare and highly sought-after records were added today:

• LSC-1893 – Ravel – Daphnis and Chloe ~ Boston Symphony Orchestra, Munch
• LSC-2225 – Witches’ Brew ~ The New Symphony Orchestra Of London, Gibson
• LSC-2449 – “Faust” Ballet Music – “Carmen” Suite ~ Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden – Gibson
• LSC-2646 – Liliane Garnier Recital

With the addition of these four records, the only two blockbusters that remain absent from the discography are:

• LSC-2421 – Henryk Szeryng In Recital
• LSC-2553 – Shostakovich – Cello Sonata – Schubert – “Arpeggione” Sonata ~ Shafran

Look for these to be added in the coming months.

Happy listening,

Mark Wieman
mark@shadeddog.com