Remastering Cy's Music
Unhappily, almost all of Cy's recorded music remains largely inaccessible in out‑of‑print vinyl record format. While certain lucky collectors have these records, most persons seeking them are relegated to searching old record shops' dustbins (itself a pleasurable task to some of us smitten with the collectors' bug) or bidding for them on E‑bay. The Walter family is in the process of transferring Cy's recorded music to digital media, working with award‑winning audio engineer Seth Winner, of Seth B. Winner (of Seth B. Winner Sound Studios, Inc., 2055 Whalen Avenue, Merrick, New York 11566-5320; 516-771-0028; SethBWinner@optonline.net) . Thus far, only the rarest transcription discs and the most fragile of the acetate and lacquer discs have been transferred in this effort, but we hope to continue it until all of the 78‑ and 33‑rpm records are retained in digital format. Some of the transfers already made have been filed with the Library of Congress and may be enjoyed there.
Concurrently with this effort has been the successful project to release Cy's music on commercially‑available CDs. In this regard, and due to the concerted efforts of Alex Hassan and others, a terrific disc entitled "The Park Avenue Tatum: Cy Walter Piano Solos+" has been released by the British label, Shellwood. This CD is available from Shellwood's website. The Walter family is hopeful that much more of Cy Walter's recorded music will soon be re‑released commercially in CDs produced in America, and will keep you posted as these efforts progress to happy fruition.
|