Ernani (1903 HMV recording)

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The recording of Verdi's Ernani in 1903 by the Italian Gramophone Company, a part of HMV, was the first complete opera recording. It was issued on 40 single-sided discs. [1] The first complete orchestral recording, Arthur Nikisch's recording of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, was made in 1913. [2]

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This discography is an incomplete, chronological list of recordings commercially released with the name British Symphony Orchestra on the label. The list also includes other known recordings which fall outside this strict definition: either because they have been included in published discographies of specific conductors under this name; or have been re-released as such on CD; or were never publicly released for general sale; or for comparison purposes only.

Ernani is an opera by Giuseppe Verdi that debuted in 1844, based on the play Hernani by Victor Hugo.

References

Notes

  1. Dearling & Dearling, Guinness Book of Music, p. 267: "1903 First complete opera recording: Verdi's Ernani by Italian HMV, issued on 40 single-sided discs.
  2. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Graduate School of Library and Information Science, "Occasional papers, Num. 174 to 179", 1986: "The first complete opera, Verdi's Ernani, was recorded in 1903. It took up 40 single-sided discs and was issued on the H.M.V. label.22 The first complete orchestral recording, Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, was not made until 1913."

Sources