A series of great  Orchestra Records by great conductors  on 78 rpm records

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Great Recording by Oswald KABASTA and the Munich Philharmonic

 Respighi Brazilian Impressions 

Respighi's greatest work is without a doubt his Impressioni Brasiliane, "Brazilian Impressions", a deeply unsettling and astonishingly modern work worthy (as it is often the case with Respighi) of a Richard Strauss, a 1928 travelogue in three parts that includes a chilling section inspired by a visit to a snake-breeding farm (and the snakes make the deathly sound of the Dies Irae) the best version of IB -- a version that, we fear, won't be surpassed for a long time, if at all --  is the one conducted  by another forgotten giant of the 20th century, Oswald Kabasta,

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Oswald Kabasta (December 29, 1896 – February 6, 1946) was an Austrian conductor.

Life and career
Kabasta was born in Mistelbach, Austria and later studied with composer Franz Schmidt. In 1931 he became head of conducting at the Vienna Academy. He also served as musical director of Vienna Radio about this time.[1] In 1938 he became principal conductor of the Munich Philharmonic. His interpretations, especially of Anton Bruckner, are admired for their intensity and rhythmic drive. He enjoyed the public approbation of Adrian Boult, who announced in a 1938 radio broadcast that:
The present high reputation of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra is due to Professor Kabasta who, with Sir Henry Wood and Dr. Mengelberg, commands our admiration by virtue of sheer mastery in the business of conducting. Quite apart from their merits as musicians and artists, they are superb craftsmen.[2]

Kabasta was an enthusiastic supporter of the Nazi regime. After the Anschluss in 1938, he signed all his letters with, "Heil Hitler!". After the end of World War II, Kabasta was forbidden to work as a conductor by the Allies when he admitted that he had applied to join the Nazi party (although he claimed to be "inwardly anti-Nazi").[3] In October 1945 the denazification authorities ordered the city of Munich to discontinue his salary.[3] Devastated by his dismissal, and his relegation to the status of "common laborer", he committed suicide in Kufstein, Austria in 1946.[4]

Composer Ottorino Respighi made his first trip to Brazil in May 1927, in the company of his wife Elsa. Engaged to lead a concert series of his own music in Rio de Janeiro, Respighi struggled to bring to terms an orchestra largely schooled in opera and zarzuela accompaniment and thus unused to purely instrumental performance. To this end Respighi acquitted himself, and the concert series was a success. Before his return to Europe, Respighi announced to the Brazilian press that he'd been absorbing local music and custom during his stay and would return the following year with a five-part orchestral suite based on his experiences. Respighi did, in fact, return to Rio de Janeiro in June 1928, but more pressing matters had weighed upon him in the interim, and the promised five-movement suite was presented only as a three-movement work entitled Brazilian Impressions. It nonetheless was warmly received; the result being that Respighi subsequently dropped the plan to add the two additional movements.

"Tropical Night," the first movement, is a boldly colored and highly impressionistic piece which is paced very slowly and is decorated with light sprays of harp and distantly intoned Brazilian folk tunes. A bit more on edge is the second movement, "Butantan" (In a Snake Garden Near São Paulo) which is set in a snake farm visited by the Respighis that was maintained by the Butantan Reptile Institute. Thousands of snakes were being bred for the collection of medicinal venom; judging from the tense atmosphere of the piece, one may deduce that the composer was somewhat unnerved by this experience. Rattling tambourines and slithering clarinets (marked "strisciante") represent the massive pits of reptiles; towards the end a snaky "Dies Irae" may be heard in the strings, perhaps signifying a great need to take leave of this scene. The concluding "Canzone e danza" is based on folk dances heard at Carnival. Compared to the fireworks Respighi displays in conclusions such as that of The Pines of Rome, "Canzone e danza" is restrained, rather short and surprisingly low-key. Brazilian Impressions as a whole has something of a travelogue quality, suggesting that if Respighi did absorb Brazilian music and culture, he did not do so very deeply, or not at least with the all-embracing enthusiasm of French composer Darius Milhaud. However the Brazilian Impressions is highly attractive music of excellent quality, makes brilliant use of orchestral color and provides a pleasant, exotic diversion of about 20 minutes' duration.

Oswald Kabasta (December 29, 1896 – February 6, 1946) was an Austrian conductor.

Life and career

Kabasta was born in Mistelbach, Austria and later studied with composer Franz Schmidt. In 1931 he became head of conducting at the Vienna Academy. He also served as musical director of Vienna Radio about this time.[1] In 1938 he became principal conductor of the Munich Philharmonic. His interpretations, especially of Anton Bruckner, are admired for their intensity and rhythmic drive. He enjoyed the public approbation of Adrian Boult, who announced in a 1938 radio broadcast that:
“  The present high reputation of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra is due to Professor Kabasta who, with Sir Henry Wood and Dr. Mengelberg, commands our admiration by virtue of sheer mastery in the business of conducting. Quite apart from their merits as musicians and artists, they are superb craftsmen.[2]  ”

Kabasta was an enthusiastic supporter of the Nazi regime. After the Anschluss in 1938, he signed all his letters with, "Heil Hitler!". After the end of World War II, Kabasta was forbidden to work as a conductor by the Allies when he admitted that he had applied to join the Nazi party (although he claimed to be "inwardly anti-Nazi").[3] In October 1945 the denazification authorities ordered the city of Munich to discontinue his salary.[3] Devastated by his dismissal, and his relegation to the status of "common laborer", he committed suicide in Kufstein, Austria in 1946.[4]