Toscanini's 1950 trans-continental tour was the only time he went out with the NBC Symphony Orchestra to traverse the USA: 22 concerts played across 16 states, travelling coast-to-coast and back using a specially-commissioned train to transport orchestra and instruments.

Two concerts from the tour, both from Pasadena, survive, and 75 years on we're releasing the first of these this week. Featuring Brahms' 4th Symphony, Debussy's Ibèria, Beethoven's Egmont Overture and music by Glinka, Wagner and Sousa, it's a remarkable document of a fabulous concert, in excellent XR-remastered Ambient Stereo sound.

We also celebrate Haydn's 293rd birthday this week with a 10% discount on all his music at Pristine.

Pristine’s latest release showcases the remarkable talents of Rudolph Ganz (1877-1972), a pianist, conductor, composer, and music educator. This collection features his complete recordings for Victor, highlighting his dual roles as conductor with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and as a solo pianist. The orchestral recordings, made between 1923 and 1925, mark his tenure as the orchestra’s fourth music director, with many of these rare 78 rpm-era performances being reissued for the first time.

The collection includes standard works by Elgar, Mendelssohn, Rossini, and Weber, alongside lesser-known pieces by Eduard Lassen, Eugen d’Albert, and Edward German. Also featured are Ganz’s four solo piano recordings from 1930, including a standout performance of Liszt’s Liebestraum. Celebrating the centenary of electrical recording, this release presents early microphone-based recordings from 1925, such as Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, showcasing Ganz’s dynamic interpretation and the expressive string playing of the SLSO.

We also celebrate Toscanini's 158th birthday this week with a 10% discount on all his recordings at Pristine.