I just received the 71-CD Sony "Original Jacket" collection, and am most impressed. I owned many of the original LP's, all the way back to the 1955 Goldberg Variations, and pretty much played them to shreds on my old Thorens 125/SME /Grace ruby. The sound of the remasters is excellent, in some cases superb. I just listened to CD#35, the F minor "Appassionata" sonata of Beethoven's Opus 57, and was struck with the clarity and lack of tape flutter or hiss---very clean and dynamic redbook sound. The packaging is unique---a shoebox sized flip-top with the 65 or so "albums" (some are double albums) in chronological order of release, and a nice book with track info and release notes. The CD cardboard slipcases have the original jacket illustration, and the notes on the back are readable with a strong magnifier! The collection is advertised as limited edition----no idea of the press run, but if Gould is one of your favories, log onto Amazon and get yours ASAP. The only thing missing is a comprehensive index of composer and CD, but it's a minor quibble. However----the Columbia engineer who deleted the between-variation pauses in the 1981 Goldberg Variations should be taken out and shot (if still living) or exhumed and shot, if not.
It's wonderful to hear some of the recordings which had limited pressings, such as Hindemith's Marienleben with the soprano with whom Gould supposedly had a brief affair. The Ann Arbor record store which I frequented in the 1970's and 1980's did not always have the latest Gould recordings, and the Internet was not yet a realization, so this collection really fills a void in my musical life. Most highly recommended!!
