Liner notes from original albums and CDs for proofreading
Viva! . . . the many faces of Mexico, all enchanting . . . The low-lying valleys blooming with luxuriant tropical growth . . . The snowcapped volcanoes standing guard over the capital city . . . The wide yellow beaches and the shimmering blue waters of the Pacific at Acapulco.
The stamping, whirling gaiety of the Mexican hat dance . . . The sizzling, spectacular brilliance of the fireworks at a fiesta in Taxco . . . The breathtaking daring of the boys diving from the rocks in Acapulco . . . The magnificence of the fighter’s red and gold costumes, the rhythmic olés of the crowd at a bull fight.
Sunset behind the enormous pyramids that were old when Cortez conquered Mexico . . . Lantern-lighted patios where voices and guitars are sounding the soft, rich romantic ballads of Mexico . . . A stroll through the lovely Chapultepec Park in the heart of Mexico City under trees so ancient that they also gave shade to the last of the Aztec emperors.
The tireless beasts of all work, the burrows, clip-clopping over the cobblestones of the square of a tiny sunlit town . . . The purple bougainvillea pressing heavily against the walls surrounding houses in Cuernavaca . . . Groups of beautiful flashing-eyed Mexican girls in Sunday finery circling the red and blue bandstand in the square at Oaxaca . . . Viva!
In another of the series of Long Playing Records designed and recorded especially for dancing, Columbia presents Percy Faith and his orchestra in eight melodious selections. These medlies are intended to give dancers a complete dance set on one side of a 331⁄3 Long Playing Record, and to provide nondancers with music that is as exciting to listen to as it is to dance to.
Rarely do dancers find themselves provided with the sort of music that Percy Faith presents in this collection. For here is a full concert orchestra, playing arrangements of extraordinary color and complexity, in strict dance tempo. Such full-bodied music is generally reserved for “listening” programs, where the conductor may take liberties with the tempo. But instead Percy Faith has designed two medlies for his large orchestra that exploit their full resources and yet give the dancer a series of toe-tickling beats. Each medley contains a fox trot, a waltz, a samba, and a rumba, and two of the numbers — Flight 331⁄3 and Brazilian Sleigh Bells — are Faith originals.
The conductor of these rich orchestrations, Percy Faith, was born in Toronto, Canada. At the age of seven he began studying the violin, and soon added the piano to his musical accomplishments. At ten he gave his first concert, and later played in movie houses, accompanying silent films. After his graduation from high school, he began playing with various Canadian orchestras, and slowly discovered that he was appearing more and more frequently on radio programs. Along with all this, he continued to study with classic masters. In 1931, he formed his own orchestra, and shortly thereafter became staff arranger and conductor for the CBC. In 1940, he came to the United States as conductor of The Contented Hour, and in 1947 added The Pause That Refreshes On The Air to his distinguished musical contributions, joining Columbia Records in 1950. His home is now on Long Island, and when he is not busy in recording and radio studios, he devotes considerable time to photography, golf, model trains and fishing.
