Introduction
Mon, Oct 8 2012, 12:48PM
I'm delighted to find this forum, I have been looking for somewhere dedicated to comparative discussion of classical recordings. The Hoffman forum is good for detailed and informed opinion about mastering and pressings but classical music is very much a minority interest there.
Classical LPs are such a complete bargain in terms of price/quality that for years I've been unable to resist buying them by the handful from charity shops and those
10-for-a-pound boxes you find under the counter. My lunchtimes have been spent doing this for years, scooping up all kinds of repertoire in London, Toronto and Sydney.
The result is that I live in the middle of an LP collection that has grown to a total shelf-length of more than 22 feet. This is a bit much relative to the size of the living room, and now I'm doing my best to bring it down a little. The thing is, much of it has never been listened to, as working long hours and having a small child to put to bed and read to means there is little time to actually put my feet up and play them.
So, now I find myself effectively living in a used record store, exploring the shelves. It's quite exciting as there is real treasure in there and I have already found one composer I hardly knew who has jumped into my top five. There is a lot of duplication of content, though (16 different recordings of the Emperor Concerto...) and many that are just works I am not personally interested in.
I am looking forward to discussing the contrasting recordings as I try to reduce the collection to the best of the best, but the first thing I'd like to ask is about getting rid of the discards. The purging that has occurred so far has got us down to 20 foot 6 inches, with 18 inches of records on the out pile. These however are generally not junk, I wasn't unselective in the years of purchasing and most of them are famous performances or soloists, good labels, in good condition.
Can anyone here recommend a forum for selling classical LPs, short of starting my own website which would be overkill? I'm not a fan of eBay any more, since the universal use of Paypal has meant that it works out very expensive for relatively low-priced items, and there just doesn't seem to be a lot of interest there. Maybe there just isn't a lot of interest any more full stop. I'm wondering if there's somewhere more targeted to its audience and moderate in fees. Discogs satisfies the latter but is not primarily inhabited by classical people. Any ideas?
Mon, Oct 8 2012, 3:52PM
#2
RE: Introduction
We sing from the same hymn sheet.I am also an avid collector of the classical LP.It does become an obsession, I reached the stage of building a extension on my house to accommodate the ever growing shelves.
Culling is attractive,but be very careful.It has been my experience sooner or latter you end up regretting many records that have been deposed off.
Selling classical LPs on ebay can be very profitable as long as you know what you are doing.Work from the premis that 95% have absolutely no monetary value at all,so keep them and enjoy.There is a market for the other 5%,mostly in the far east,that can reach very serious amounts. Label and pressing is everything.I sold by ebay auction that finished today, Dvorak New World Symphony with Kertesz conducting the Vienna Phil SXL 2289 (note this is not Kertesz LSO version on the same label) this grooved wide band Decca LP sold for an astonishing £330.
There is always the option of taking a pile too Classical Record Exchange,that is not too far from you at Notting Hill Gate.They do give cash,but you get double on an exchange basis.They have a good selection to choose from.
Tue, Oct 9 2012, 10:01AM
#3
RE: Introduction
well done, sir! That is a truly astonishing sum. What condition was the vinyl in, to listen to? Did you list it on ebay.co.uk?
I know there are some very deep pockets in the far east. I was once bidding for some beautiful LPs of the Busch Quartet's inimitable performance of the Late Quartets, but it seemed to be a getting a bit relentless, and when I looked at the bids (this was in the days when you could see bidders' user names on eBay), I found that there were two people with Japanese-sounding user names in the battle, so I discretely withdrew and sure enough it went far beyond my means. They are affecting the price of valves as well, my amplifiers are built by an old friend who is finding the more sought after triodes now becoming unaffordable due to demand from the same region.
Tue, Oct 9 2012, 11:58AM
#4
RE: Introduction
Mr Bong
I too have a reasonable sized LP collection which I have no intention of getting rid of in any circumstances. It is my own classic car, and every now and again I take it out for a spin!! (pun intended)
If you are trying to downsize, you could try the odd charity shop, and there are some interesting classified adverts at the back of Gramophone magazine. I think some will come and collect if necessary.
DSM
Having said all that, anything that I wouldn't expect to sell for more than 3 or 4 quid is currently being put in a box labelled 'help yourself' outside my office. Since out of 1000 people at work only 5 were interested enough in free classical LPs to reply to an e-mail offer, and nothing has gone from the box in a week, this clearly isn't going to work.
Any forum members who find themselves in central London, specifically Shaftesbury Avenue/Chinatown area, and want to have a leaf through the contents are welcome. It's mostly baroque at the moment as that is the category currently being decimated.