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I know, this is gonna be old news to some of you guys (hell, maybe all of yous guys), but discoveries like this are what keep me coming back to old record hunting.

A local thrift store had about nine 12" 78s, mostly mid-20s stuff in original sleeves which got me interested. The original owner must have had either a Pathé or a Brunswick machine since there were some Pathé gray label classical records in there (including "La Donna e Mobile" by Lucien Muratore, a nice replacement for my cracked one). Two of the records, 12" gold-label Brunswicks, were by a violinist who I'd not heard of before, but they were in wonderful shape. I look for flashy violinists of this period anyway, and on a hunch I picked up both of them.

The first record (#50019, for those keeping score) had two Vieuxtemps compositions on it, with the "Polonaise" causing my jaw to drop momentarily. The real surprise awaited me on disc #50026, with a Paganini composition on side 2. That one would cause a lesser violinist's hands to cramp up. Need I say, this is the kind of thing I look for all the time these days, but usually from names I know on the Edison side such as Vasa Prihoda. Now I've got another name to look for.

I was going to sample this, but it turns out there's a whole site devoted to this guy and they already have a sample up. Here's a link to the page:

http://huberman.info/recordings/brunswicks/

Yes, I'm hooked.

Huberman was pretty hot, I have to say. I have read an unflattering anecdote about him attributed to Fritz Kreisler, and it's unusual for the genial Fritz to be quite that unkind.( Although both Kreisler and Rachmaninoff could be wittily sarcastic) . I think he might have been a tad jealous, which means that Huberman was an excellent player indeed. He was from what I have heard kind of drama personified: his style works really well in the big works like the Tschikovsky concerto and less well in some of the smaller pieces.

Jim

I love Huberman (the founder, incidentally, of the Palestine -- now Israel -- Philharmonic, in 1934). I have a few of his gold-label acoustic Brunswicks, including a coruscating and wonderfully recorded finale to Lalo's "Symphonie Espagnole". I should post a transfer some day...

Like octopusses, maybe: their most deadly fighting skills are only used against their own kind.

Very nice label scan, by the way. A British issue, from the London address near the center hole, one I've never seen before. Thanks for posting that.



That would be great if you get the time; thanks in advance. There was a CD reissue in the early 90s of the Brunswick sides, but that's largely unavailable now. One used copy at Amazon for $45.00 at the moment. Ouch.

I have that 2 disc set; it's on Biddulph, isn't it? Superb transfers, as I recall.

Yep, that's the one. Good to know the transfers were solid, thanks.

Yes, they were by Ward Marston.