Leo CARDONA/piano: 5 ACETATE LP/FALLA/CHOPIN/DEBUSSY/CARDONA/ SIGNED by CASALS ?

$

200

( LOT OF 5 x 12" / acetate test pressing / 33 rpm )
no commercial label or number, not for sale.
3 records have labels of Circuito RPC, Panama - Unica Cadena Nacional de Radiodiffusion,
the 2 others are without name.

Leo CARDONA, piano

RECORD 1
SHORT SPOKEN INTRODUCTION BY LEO CARDONA HIMSELF
CARDONA : Snake Charmer (from the ballet "Attila's horse")
FALLA : Fire Dance
LARREGIA : Jota Navarra
CARDONA : Moonlight on the sea
CARDONA : Dreaming of Santa Claus
CARDONA : En las Cuevas de Sacro Monte

CONDITION : Rare scuffs and very tiny accidents, 3 scratches described below /// the side with Cardona's works has some hiss noise passing, the soft musical moments are not easily audible — 1st track has few occasional light single cracks ; 2nd track has frying noise and few average cracks (few scratches are visible on this side, and locally feelable with the finger, but still smooth and not often sounding) ; 3rd track has light hiss /// The other side plays quite nicely, with regards to the acetate condition. The listening of this LP is most of the time clear, despite local surface noise, and enjoyable.

RECORD 2
CHOPIN : Fantasia impromptu — Ballade in G minor
GRANADOS : Playera (Danza N°5)
CHOPIN : Valse in C# minor
ALBENIZ : Sevilla

CONDITION : light scuffs and 1 long perpendicular scratch, lightly feelable but not sounding /// on the side with CHOPIN's Fantasia and Ballade plays most of the time with frying noise, and saturation by places, but the listening is possible, somewhat as a record in poor condition. On the other side (GRANADOS...) the surface noise is mostly stronger than music : for document.

RECORD 3
(probably) CARDONA : A Stormswept Isle
(no title on the other side : probably the first side continued)

CONDITION : light scuffs, some "bad wax" surface defects /// this LP is hard or reasonably impossible to play, for document only (can possibly be played by a technician with special pick up, and treated numerically, but we are not sure of the result).

RECORD 4
CHOPIN : Nocturne in E flat
CHOPIN : Etude N° 5, op. 101 (on black keys)
CHOPIN : Etude N° 3 op. 10
CHOPIN : Polonaise in A flat
DEBUSSY : Clair de lune

CONDITION : rare light scuffs but this LP is mostly whitened and plays with high hiss : bad listening but still good as document by places, with our normal picking conditions.

RECORD 5
CARDONA : Baille (Baile ?) a Orillas del Guadalquivir. Noche de Reyes (Dreams of Santa Claus)
CARDONA : Andalusian Water Colors ("Acuarellas andaluzias", piano reduction of the orchestral score)

CONDITION : Many superficial dust scratches and light scuffs. Andalusian Watercolours (3 tracks, 1 side) plays mostly VG, enjoyable despite some local cracks and light frying. The other side has more frying but is still enjoyable.

UNIQUE ACETATE SET
OF — VERY PROBABLY UNISSUED — LIVE (AND STUDIO ?) RECORDINGS BY LEO CARDONA (1911-1982)
(also known as Cardona de Bergerac), maybe pressed circa 1955-1960.

ON THE FIRST LP ARE STUCK PIECES OF PAPER SHOWING A VERY PROBABLY AUTOGRAPH SIGNED PRAISE BY PABLO CASALS  :
""Recomano el notable pianista espanyol
Leopold Cardona a toto el Impresaris y Agents d'Europa i America.
Pau Casals". El saludo cordialmient ( + 2 unreadable words ).
Pau Casals, Grand Hotel, Prades (Pyr. Or.)"

The first name "Pau" is "Pablo" in catalan language. It happens to find this form on autographs, but most often it is "Pablo". Also it happens to find the C of Casals drawn without round-off, as here.

The writing is in 2 parts, on top and bottom. We cannot product a formal expertise about this writing but it looks like handwriting, even with a lens. It matches with other known written pieces and signatures of the master, and the cutting of the pieces is not regular, as if taken in a personal paper. However we cannot totally exclude the case of a duplicata, made by CARDONA for several occasions.

THE SIDE WEARING THE CASAL'S PRAISE BEGINS WITH A SHORT SPOKEN INTRODUCTION BY HIMSELF

Most of the tracks are played live, with applause of a numerous audience at the end. We have not tried to listen completely all sides, but have done enough to say that the composer's works are remarkable, very poetic, with delicate spanish spirit but no easy folklore, and often moving, like the so nice Andalusian Watercolors — and also that his own playing of CHOPIN, etc. is of great interest.

This set contains probably an important part of the recorded material of this spanish composer and pianist, a pupil of Blanche SELVA, Maria CANALS and Frank MARSHAL, who was advised by CASALS. First prize in Barcelona Conservatory, he teached there at first (1930-34). He emigrated in America in 1940, played in many countries and teached in the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica of Panama, then in USA universities. He composed also chamber, vocal, symphonic, movies scores, and has written books as musicologist. We have not located any record of this pianist, even in world libraries.

SLEEVES CONDITION : common modern sleeves.

THESE 5 RECORDS ARE TEST PRESSINGS MADE OF ACETATE ON ALUMINUM SHEET, ONLY FOR FACTORY WORK IN PROGRESS.
Acetate pressings are known to be most often made in only 1 copy or very few, very fragile, and not for many listenings. After more than 60 years it is very rare to find such records beeing still playable : the acetate does not support heat, moisture, air, years of bad storage. When the surface is less or more whitened the listening is still possible but often problematic. When the surface shows crackling or lacks they are definitively not playable.
These 5 lp are less or more whitened, but the surface is not crakled : in our opinion only one of them is unplayable (its wax beeing of bad quality). They are not often played records, with only few superficial marks not or rarely sounding themselves, very few significative scratches, few very tiny lacks of wax at edges on all the set (with no incidence, please see one on photo), handling marks as fingers traces — and by places the usual whitening on acetates. We have not tried any special cleaning because we have experience that it will not improve significantly the listening, but can affect the record : only library specialists know the products compatible with acetate (we can give our informations about it). 

Such documents can be treated numerically, in order to possibly eliminate part of unwanted noise.
YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE : this special set is sold as described, and only as an historical document, not as common factory records. As shown in our descriptions the listening of the records is in some places average — enough to be enjoyable —, in many places difficult, and nearly impossible for 1 LP. Please, if necessary, search other informations about acetates, then admit the special nature and conditions of that wax.

Buyers are supposed having read our complete description before buying (we can help for translation in french and, with online help, in spanish and italian).

revised : the price, lowered

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