front cover photographer unknown
In addition to my vinyl collection I'm selling, I have hundreds of
reel-to-reel, pre-recorded tapes I'm selling. This is an entry about one of
them.
Leontyne Price ~
A Christmas Offering, will be for sale on eBay in
December of 2014 (
see link below for others now on sale). Interested? Contact me by
email, please, not by a comment.
~ ~ ~
Leontyne
Price was born Mary Violet Leontyne Price on February 10, 1927. She
made her first appearance on the grand operatic stage in San Francisco
on September 20, 1957, singing the role of Madame Lidoine in the U.S.
premiere of
Dialogues of the Carmelites by
Francis Poulenc. A few weeks later, Price sang her first
Aida, stepping in for Italian soprano
Antonietta Stella. It was performed at the
Greek Theater
in Berkeley in October, I believe, 1957. I saw that performance (
with real live elephants, see: Paul Simon at the Greek Theater); it was
the first time I saw an opera live. I remember thinking at the time
that the casting of Price in the role of Aida was brilliant. What an
incredible experience! The chance of a lifetime, really!
I believe my sealed and never-opened copy of this
reel-to-reel tape by
Leontyne Price, A Christmas Offering, is a promotional copy
*. The reason: it is different than the one usually seen (
photo above); the cover is plain with no photo of any kind (
typical of promo albums) . . .
. . . and (except for shrink wrap) there is nothing on the back of the tape box (also typical of promotional albums).
Besides the United States, there have been issues of this recording in Canada, Holland and the UK.
Canada pressing Holland pressing
UK pressing
Leontyne Price, Herbert von Karajan, Vienna Philharmonic* – A Christmas Offering
Label: London Records – OS 25280
Format: tape 7½ ips - LON 70049
Country: US
Recording Date: June, 1961
Genre: Classical
Style: Romantic
Track list:
Side 1:
1 - Silent Night
2 - Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
3 - We Three Kings Of Orient Are
4 - Angels We Have Heard On High
5 - O Tannenbaum
6 - God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
7 - It Came Upon The Midnight Clear
8 - Vom Himmel Hoch
Side 2:
1 - Sweet Li'L Jesus
2 - Ave Maria
3 - 3 O Holy Night
4 - Ave Maria
5 - Alleluja
Duration: 39:23
Composers:
Franz Schubert
Johann Sebastian Bach
Charles Gounod
Credits:
Herbert von Karajan conducting members of
The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra,
The Singverein deer Gesellschaft deer Musikfreunde and
The Wiener Grosstadtkinderchor
Vocals – Leontyne Price
Leontyne Price on YouTube:
Silent Night
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
O Tannenbaum
O Holy Night
Ave Maria -（Bach-Gounod)
*
A promotional recording, or promo, is an audio or video recording
distributed for free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or
soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly
to broadcasters, such as music radio and television stations, and to
tastemakers, such as DJs and music journalists, in advance of the
release of commercial editions, in the hope that airplay, reviews, and
other forms of exposure will result and stimulate the public's interest
in the commercial release.
Promos are often distributed
in plain packaging, without the text or artwork that appears on the
commercial version. Typically a promo is marked with some variation of
the following text: "Licensed for promotional use only. Sale is
prohibited." It may also state that the promo is still the property of
the distributor and is to be returned upon demand." However, it is not
illegal to sell promotional recordings,[1] and recalls of promos are
extremely rare and unenforced.[2]
Because promos are
produced in smaller quantity than releases made available to the general
public, they are sometimes considered valuable collectors' items. They
are never intended for sale in record stores.
A promo
single (short for promotional single) is a single that is made available
to radio stations, nightclubs, music publications, and other media
outlets by a record label for the express purpose of promoting a
forthcoming commercial single or an entirely new album. A song may be
released as a promotional single even if no commercial version of the
single is available to buy, usually if this is the case it is for the
purposes of promoting an entire album. While intended specifically for
use by professional disc jockeys and not for resale, they are frequently
sought out by music collectors nonetheless.
The promo
single is usually recognized by its limited liner notes and cover
artwork as well as its unique catalog number (or the occasional lack
thereof). Quite often, vinyl records will be issued in a generic
cardboard jacket or white paper sleeve while CDs will be issued in a
slimline jewel case or cardboard sleeve.
There may also be promotion-specific terms stamped on the disc or its cover, most notably "For Promotional Use Only."
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