Rachmaninoff and The Swan
Long ago my husband made me a special cassette tape of historical performances that we called the Melody Tape. I was a newcomer to these primitive recordings which were made early in the 20th century before the invention of the microphone. A modern listener might struggle to hear music through the hisses and pops of old technology though not for long. The delicious immediacy of a vibrant musical world envelops the listener and words can barely describe the connection we feel with the performer. We who spend our lives inside music recognize a place that we passionately wish to inhabit. Or so it has always been for me. Here is an offering from the Melody Tape, a recording from 1924: the magnificent Rachmaninoff bringing his lyricism to a song by Saint-Saëns. A bit of musical magic.