SB 2075  ROSSINI: OVERTURES William Tell / The Barber of Seville / Il Signor Bruschino / La Gazza Ladra / La Scala di Seta / La Cenerentola    FRITZ REINER / CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

RCA  UK 1959     ORIGINAL DECCA PRESSED GROOVED 'Living Stereo'   FLIPBACK SLEEVE        NM / EX+

I must have listed around 10 different records of Rossini overtures, but none are comparable to this. Blessed with very immediate, punchy and full-ranging sound, its impact much enhanced by the superb Decca pressing, this performance of the William Tell overture is unsurpassed. It is uniquely exciting to hear the brass and percussion come storming in at the start of the famous 'galop' - no other recording that I know has the sheer impact of this Reiner / Chicago recording. Definitely a 'Desert Island Disc'.