Trust Your Ears: The Mercury Living Presence story

Our opening episode reflects on the birth and evolution of Mercury Living Presence and the people who shaped its distinctive sound. Through interviews with music historian Michael Gray and mastering engineer Tom Fine (son of the original Mercury Living Presence producer, Wilma Cozart Fine, and original recording engineer C. Robert 'Bob' Fine), we explore how the label became a leading force in classical music, earning global acclaim for its imaginative repertoire, novel recording techniques and evocative LP releases.

We also uncover the stories behind some of the label’s most beloved and influential recordings, from 1951’s Pictures at an Exhibition (produced with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra), to its spectacular recording of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 overture, plus collaborations with Byron Janis, Frederick Fennell, Howard Hanson and the London Symphony Orchestra.

‘Trust Your Ears’: The Mercury Living Presence story is produced by dCS in partnership with Decca Records.

More information about the series, which celebrates the 70th anniversary of Mercury Living Presence and the catalogue’s re-release on streaming services, is available here: https://www.dcsltd.co.uk/reviews/trust-your-ears/

Featured Music

Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition (Rafel Kubelík, Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1951

Tchaikovsky - 1812 Overture (Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, University Of Minnesota Brass Band & Antal Dorati), 1954

Respighi: Ancient Airs & Dances Suite No.2 (Philharmonia Hungarica, Antal Dorati), 1958

HiFi A La Espanola - Andalucia (Eastman-Rochester Pops, Frederick Fennell), 1960

Bach Suite No. 2 for Solo Cello (Janos Starker), 1966

Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 1. (Byron Janis, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Kyril Kondrashin), 1962

Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker Ballet, Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies (Antal Durati, London Symphony Orchestra), 1962

In our final episode, we delve into the process behind an ongoing project to make the entire Mercury Living Presence catalogue available on streaming services worldwide. Abbey Road Studios engineer Jared Hawkes talks to us about working on high-resolution digital transfers of the label’s master tapes at a purpose built archive facility in London, while Tom Fine tells us about remastering several of the catalogue’s mono and stereo recordings for a new era, and bringing the label’s music to a wider audience than ever before. Plus, we look back at some of the musical highlights from the catalogue and reflect on its relevance today.

‘Trust Your Ears’: The Mercury Living Presence story is produced by dCS in partnership with Decca Records.

More information about the series is available at dcsaudio.com/mlp

FEATURED MUSIC

Bartók, Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta Sz.106 (Rafael Kubelík & Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1951

Prokofiev, Piano Concerto No. 3 in C major (Byron Janis & Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra), 1962

Scheherazade, Symphonic Suite Op.35 IV. The Festival Of Baghdad (Antal Doráti & Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra), 1959

Stravinsky, Rite Of Spring Part 2. The Sacrifice IV (Antal Doráti & Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra), 1959

Saint-Saëns Symphony No.3 in C Minor, Op.78 Allegro Moderato Presto (Marcel Dupré, Paul Paray, Detroit Symphony Orchestra), 1957

Bartok's Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta BB 114:1 (Rafael Kubelík & The Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1951

Fiesta in Hi-Fi, McBride: Mexican Rhapsody (Howard Hanson & Eastman Rochester Orchestra), 1956

Stravinsky, The Firebird Suite (Antal Doráti & The London Symphony Orchestra), 1959

Messaien, 3 Preludes and Fugues No.1 In E Minor (Marcel Dupré), 1959

Mussorgsky, Pictures at an Exhibition: The Heroes’ Gate of Kiev (Rafael Kubelík & Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1959

In episode 2, we turn to the 1980s and the advent of digital audio to learn how the Mercury Living Presence catalogue was remastered for CD. Tom Fine explains how his mother, Wilma Cozart Fine, came to be working on the remastering project 25 years after retiring from the music industry, and mastering engineer Dennis Drake reveals how he and Wilma transferred Mercury’s vast collection of LPs to the digital domain.

We also examine the role that dCS played in the remastering process, and the pioneering technologies that allowed Wilma and Dennis to preserve the magic of the original LPs. Plus, Rob Cowan and Michael Gray reflect on the Mercury catalogue’s enduring influence and appeal.

EPISODE NOTES

‘Trust Your Ears’: The Mercury Living Presence story is produced by dCS in partnership with Decca Records.

More information about the series, which celebrates the 70th anniversary of Mercury Living Presence and the catalogue’s re-release on streaming services, is available here: https://dcsaudio.com/edit/trust-your-ears-exploring-the-history-of-mercury-living-presence

FEATURED MUSIC

Dmitri Shostakovich, Symphony Number 5 in D Minor (Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra), 1961

Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 'Organ Symphony' (Marcel Dupré, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Paul Paray), 1957

Bela Bartók, Music for Stringed Instruments, Percussion and Celesta (Rafael Kubelík, Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1951

Concerto Grosso For String Orchestra & Piano Obbligato (Rafael Kubelík, Chicago Symphony Orchestra), 1951

Felix Mendelssohn, Fingal’s Cave Overture, Symphony No. 3 ‘Scottish’ in A Minor (Antal Dorati, London Symphony Orchestra), 1956

Felix Mendelssohn, Fingal’s Cave Overture, Symphony No. 4 ‘Italian’ in A Major (Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra), 1961

The Romeros: The Royal Family of the Spanish Guitar - Torroba: Llamada (Angel Romero), 1962

Respighi: Ancient Airs & Dances Suite No.2 (Antal Dorati, Philharmonia Hungarica), 1958

Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake, Op. 20 (Antal Dorati, Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra), 1954

A complete box set of Kubelík’s Mercury recordings with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, remastered in 2021 by Tom Fine, is now available on Eloquence. Further information is available here: https://www.eloquenceclassics.com/releases/rafael-kubelik-the-mercury-masters/

You can read more about the box set’s production here: https://www.eloquenceclassics.com/strongrafael-kubelik-strong/

Coming soon on Decca Classics: Five new Mercury Living Presence LP reissues, including Paul Paray/Detroit Symphony - Chabrier, Q3 2021.

Coming soon on Mercury Eloquence: Paul Paray - The Complete Mercury Masters 1953-1962 (CD Box Set), 2022.