Ritual Dance of the Young Zappa

Andre, , ,

CAL 110 (sleeve front)

At a young age, Zappa bought a copy of The Rite of Spring and loved every note:

The second 33 1/3-RPM record I bought was by Stravinsky. I found a budget-line recording (on Camden) of The Rite of Spring by something called ‘The World-Wide Symphony Orchestra.’ (Sounds pretty official, eh?) The cover was a green-and-black abstract whatchamacallit, and it had a magenta paper label with black lettering. I loved Stravinsky almost as much as Varèse.[1]

Much of my research relies primary sources. Lyrics, liner notes, bootlegs, interviews, and The Real Frank Zappa Book (FZ’s autobiography) make up the bulk of these sources. Along these lines, Avo Raup’s fantastic website Zappa Books–with its search-able database of interviews and zine articles–and Román García Albertos’ IINK (Information Is Not Knowledge)–a huge, cross-referenced database of lyrics and other album information–have been a tremendously helpful resources. But occasionally, I need to get right to the source. Such was the case with finding Zappa’s copy of Stavinsky’s The Rite of Spring.

In my current chapter (which examines cases of musical borrowings from Stravinsky in Zappa’s music), I make the argument that much of Zappa’s understanding of Stravinsky is influenced by the mythology surrounding the older composer. I wondered if there might be any juicy details on the liner notes that would provide some insight regarding the idiosyncrasies with which Zappa viewed Stravinsky. Armed with Zappa’s description I set out to find a copy of the same record…

As it turns out, Camden was a budget label for RCA Victor records, first introduced in 1955 (right about when Zappa would have been buying the record). Some quick Googling revealed that the Camden catalog did include a recording of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring! (I express surprise here due to prior aggravations brought on by tracing comments from The Real Frank Zappa Book…) CAL 110 features World Wide Symphony Orchestra performing The Rite!

341995093_7aa83c50f9The RCA Building in Camden, NJ
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ebot/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Further research revealed some interesting facts about the record. The World Wide Symphony Orchestra, it seems, was a pseudonym for the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. This particular record (CAL 110) was actually dubbed from 78 rpm discs of another recording by the SFSO conducted by Pierre Monteux. (Monteux, like the SFSO, isn’t mentioned anywhere on the record. Presumably, the motivation here was to re-release a back catalog of 78 rpm records in a more commercially-viable format using pseudonyms to avoid conflicting with sales of newer recordings of the same artists. It was, as Frank would say, strictly commercial.)

3359562292_d1a7096d70The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kerolic/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Monteux, as any responsible Stravinsky scholar will jump to tell you, premiered The Rite at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris in 1915 1913 (noted, of course, for the riot it incited). Zappa doesn’t seem to have been aware that his record featured such a prestigious conductor.

And–lucky me–a quick WorldCat search found a copy of the record at UC Santa Cruz! (Which means I could request it and get my grubby hands on it right quick.) This turned out to be a little more difficult that expected (frustrations with an inefficient interlibrary loan system), but the record arrived yesterday! Green-and-black abstract whatchamacallit and all!

Unfortunately, being the budget label that it was, Camden seems to have cut costs by not including liner notes. Oh well… The adventure wasn’t a total bust. I got to listen to the record and pretend to be a young Zappa listening to “The Augers” for the first time.

I snuck off to a remote corner of the library and took a few pictures of the record as well. You can see where some helpful librarian has scratched out “World Wide” and entered the correct performer data. (I would have ripped the vinyl to mp3s, but it was “in library use only.”) Here are some scans of the sleeve and label. Enjoy!

CAL 110 (sleeve front)CAL 110 (sleeve back)

CAL 110 (side A)CAL 110 (side B)

The first record Zappa bought, by the way, was The Complete Works of Edgard Varèse, Vol. I (EMS 401). And if Zappa played the Stravinsky as much as he played the Varèse, this disc got a lot of attention. (By one account, Zappa claimed to have listened to The Rite of Spring more than “any man in the world”![2])

References:
[1] Frank Zappa and Peter Occhiogrosso, The Real Frank Zappa Book (New York: Poseidon Press, 1989), 34.
[2] Rip Rense, “A Unique Musical Force or Blasphemous Freak: Which Is Frank Zappa?,” The Valley News (June 27, 1976).
Ritual Dance of the Young Zappa

47,791 thoughts on “Ritual Dance of the Young Zappa”

  2. maracamp

    moncler black mens coat nike internationalist yellow black hermes jypsiere 28cm crossbody bag brown silver nike hyperdunk 2015 mid mujeres plata coach legacy archival rambler jacket nobis coat sweaters navy

  5. sznurowane botki na koturnie w sklepie

    wholesale price porsche design round frame sunglassesfake louis vuitton sunglasses from china cinemas 93nike windrunner womens jacket. nike store clothing pinterestbolerko z po艂yskuj膮cego materia艂u bodyflirt 79

  14. robotultra

    mackage womens winter coats nike sportswear blazer mid suede vintage altuve jose 27 jersey city seattle seahawks on field jersey air jordan melo upset synonym for great prada loafer sale contract

  15. simmordasa

    air jordan 5 gul and svart air max 2014 femminile bianca nero converse one star violet air jordan retro 9 nero rosso dak prescott nfl jersey sales nike hyperdunk 2014 azul and blanco

  17. ts160 tenis ayakkabè°‹sè°‹

    self inflatable whoopee cushion keyringone of my favorite brushes for painting furpurito bha dead skin moisture gel review unboxing beautynose hair scissors grooming cutting scissors for trimming hair nose scissors for men women manual nose ear hair re…

  18. blue floral dress shoes

    floral dresses for spring 2017 floral strapless dress sweetheart neckline hsn womens floral dress shoes cute white floral dresses long blue floral dress river island green floral dress

  20. jadamsrealtor

    prada top handles yz 8350 red bean paste christian louboutin shoes zurich connection mackage rima crossbody 500 tory burch kids flats adidas ultra boost clear grey jack mackage aden bag

  21. floral shift dress australia

    floral knee length bodycon dress pink floral dress next flower dresses for women party can you wear a black floral dress to a wedding next blue floral prom dress next oasis floral dress

  31. emutemusic

    air jordan 14 sort and gul for salg online nike lebron 12 nero grigio nike kd 7 nero grigio nike air max 2016 gris verde vtodasey giants black jersey 1978 81 jersey indiana pacers

  32. karlisteffy

    nike mercurial victory negro rosado nike free run 3 5.0 dam盲nner gelb rosa hot rosado nike air max 2015 adidas nitrocharge footballe hvid gul nike internationalist vert jaune nike air max 90 b酶rn gr氓 lyser酶d

  33. womens nike air max 95 black gold

    nike zoom clear out himmelblau gold air jordan retro 10 mintgré…¶n gul femminile nike roshe run hyp verde grigio nike air force 1 mid maschio nero bianca anthony new york knicks jersey coach and rodarte courier crossbody bag in glovetanned leather with s…

  37. size 20 floral dress

    floral tea dress uk grunge floral dress tumblr louche lachelle floral dress size 14 floral overlay dress topshop floral dress black trim paper dolls navy tropical floral v back dress

  38. flower dresses bhs

    river island white digital floral print shirt dress maxi flower dresses for women flower girl dresses springfield mo floral print overlay dress floral dress denim forever 21 blue floral dress

  39. babyliss curl pro ceramic curling tong flubit

    the north face wicker full zip hoodie cosmic blue heather tnf medium grey mens clothing hoodies sweatshirtsboss jeans orange 63 50302776 sergios menswearfiorelli pink purple handbag for sale in birtleytimberwolf jackets nordic jump jacket columbia col4…

  40. faridekhalaf

    nike kobe 9 rouge or mujeres nike lunarglide 6 amarillo jordan wearing gamma blæ°“ 11 kvinners nike air max lunar 1 græ°“ hvit hombres nike dunk naranja negro nike zoom winflo 3 lilla sé…¶lv

  41. air jordan retro 5 plata verde bean flint gris

    zx flux xeno for venta mn air jordan after game wei脽 blau gym shoes nike limited nike camo mens ken crawley jersey nfl 20 new orleans saints rush realtree mujeres ralph lauren short azul amarillo flyknit lunar 3 taobao weapons

  42. pauline dress blog mode d茅co lifestyle besancon tenue octobre 2017 cuissardes jupe similicuir blouse blanche manteau

    lumberjack river scarponcini donna marrone chiaro 00101015 pianetaeccellente magliette nba michael carter williams maschile rosso pantaloncini da basket nba philadelphia 76ers 61vans alte donna confronta i prezzi e acquista al miglior prezzovans parka…

  43. nexcouriers

    nike kyrie 2 triple svart mens nike air max 2014 running shoes wolf grey nike air max 90 men black red ralph lauren cotton shorts herre under armour curry 5 r酶d nike free run 4.0 v3 m盲nner dark gr眉n orange

  44. edotokyolabo

    hermes scarf grey prada mens loafers brown 2017 christian louboutin outlet barcelona info mackage crossbody coach news tory burch kiernan almond riding boots air max ltd cheap

  50. freinds p bilka tur og andet d off topic fotos fra lb

    t锚nis infanti barato u timas unidades mascu ino menino. carregandobuy nike shox 2 40 and other basketba at. our wide se ection is e igib e for free shipping and freepromo莽茫o quente mascu ino sapati has kris ey kapora 5 venda on ine sapatos femininosand…

Comments are closed.