Dial Records was an American record company and

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed dir ...

that specialized first in bebop jazz and then in

contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included seria ...

. It was founded in

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

by Ross Russell. Notable artists who recorded for Dial include

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

, who signed an exclusive one-year recording contract with Russell on 26 February 1946, as well as

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

Max Roach Maxwell Lemuel Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz Jazz drumming, drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in h ...

, and

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging solo ...

. Dial Records initially pressed its music for the Tempo Music Shop of

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, but soon relocated to New York City. In the summer of 1949, Ross Russell announced a change of focus, with the label turning to the release of classical music by contemporary composers. The first release in this new series was

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...

Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion The Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion, Sz. 110, BB 115, is a musical piece written by Hungarian composer Béla Bartók in 1937. The sonata was premiered by Bartók and his second wife, Ditta Pásztory-Bartók, with the percussionists Fritz Schi ...

. This series, titled the Library of Contemporary Classics, was inspired when Russell obtained the master tape of a recording of

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

's Chamber Symphony No. 1 from Blue Star Records in Paris, in lieu of payment for a number of Dial jazz masters for European distribution. Russell's interests shifted focus again in 1953, when he made field recordings of calypso music in the British, French, and Netherlands West Indies. This resulted in the Dial Ethnic Series (Dial 400 label) of ten ten-inch rpm discs, issued between June and November 1953. Dial also continued to release material from jazz sessions recorded earlier, but in 1954 Russell sold his jazz recordings to Concert Hall Records, sending them the masters, pressing lists, and log sheets on June 3, 1954.

Mosaic Records Mosaic Records is an American jazz record company and label established in 1982 by Michael Cuscuna and Charlie Lourie. It produces limited-edition box sets. The sets recordings are leased from the major record companies, usually for a three- or f ...

released a limited edition box-set (CD) of Dial recordings called ''The Complete Dial Modern Jazz Sessions''.

Releases

*Dial 1002: "

A Night in Tunisia "A Night in Tunisia" is a musical composition written by Dizzy Gillespie around 1940–42, while Gillespie was playing with the Benny Carter band. It has become a jazz standard. It is also known as "Interlude", and with lyrics by Raymond Leveen w ...

" and "

Ornithology Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

." Both tracks were recorded by the Charlie Parker Septet on 28 March 1946. On its release, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' considered it "A collector's item"."Record Reviews" (18 May 1946)
''

'' at

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

. Retrieved 29 April 2013. *Dial 1035: " Get Happy" and "Congo Blues." Session led by vibraphonist

Red Norvo Red Norvo (born Kenneth Norville; March 31, 1908 – April 6, 1999) was an American musician, one of jazz's early vibraphonists, known as "Mr. Swing". He helped establish the xylophone, marimba, and vibraphone as jazz instruments. His reco ...

, featuring

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

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(as),

Flip Phillips Joseph Edward Filippelli (March 26, 1915 – August 17, 2001), known professionally as Flip Phillips, was an American jazz tenor saxophone and clarinet player. He is best remembered for his work with Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic conce ...

(ts),

Teddy Wilson Theodore Shaw Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986) was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist", Wilson had a sophisticated, elegant style. His work was featured on the records of ma ...

(p),

Slam Stewart Leroy Eliot "Slam" Stewart (September 21, 1914December 10, 1987) was an American jazz double bass player, whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass (arco) and simultaneously hum or sing an octave higher. He was a violinist before swi ...

(b),

Specs Powell Gordon "Specs" Powell (June 5, 1922 – September 15, 2007) was a jazz drummer who began performing in the swing era. Career Specs was the first black staff musician hired by CBS in 1943. Born in New York City, he started on piano but ...

(d), recorded at WOR Studios, NYC, June 6, 1945. *Dial 1045: "Sing Hallelujah" and "Bird's Blues." Same session as Dial 1035 *Dial LP 903: Re-release of Dial 1035/1045, with "Sing Hallelujah" renamed "Hallelujah" and "Bird's Blues" renamed "Slam Slam Blues."

Library of Contemporary Classics

*Dial No. 1:

. William Masselos and Maro Ajemian, pianos; Saul Goodman and Abe Marcus, percussion. Recorded New York, 1949. *Dial No. 2:

, Chamber Symphony No. 1. Orchestre des Concerts Pasdeloup, conducted by

Pierre Dervaux Pierre Dervaux (born 3 January 1917 in Juvisy-sur-Orge, France; died 20 February 1992 in Marseilles, France) was a French operatic conductor, composer, and pedagogue. At the Conservatoire de Paris, he studied counterpoint and harmony with Marcel ...

. Recorded Paris, 1949. *Dial No. 3: Arnold Schoenberg, ''

Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte An ode (from grc, ᾠδή, ōdḗ) is a type of lyric poetry. Odes are elaborately structured poems praising or glorifying an event or individual, describing nature intellectually as well as emotionally. A classic ode is structured in three majo ...

'', Op. 41; String Trio, Op. 45. Villers String Quartet; Jacques Monod, piano; Ellen Adler (recitation), conducted by

René Leibowitz René Leibowitz (; 17 February 1913 – 29 August 1972) was a Polish, later naturalised French, composer, conductor, music theorist and teacher. He was historically significant in promoting the music of the Second Viennese School in Paris after ...

; Koldofsky Trio. *Dial No. 4: Arnold Schoenberg, Third String Quartet, Op. 30.

Pro Arte Quartet The Pro Arte String Quartet is a string quartet founded in Belgium, which became affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1941. History Origins 1912-1941 The Pro Arte String Quartet was founded by Alphonse Onnou in Brussels in 1912 ...

(

Rudolf Kolisch Rudolf Kolisch (July 20, 1896 – August 1, 1978) was a Viennese violinist and leader of string quartets, including the Kolisch Quartet and the Pro Arte Quartet. Early life and education Kolisch was born in Klamm, Schottwien, Lower Austria and ra ...

, Albert Rahier, Bernard Milofsky, Ernst Friedlander). *Dial No. 5:

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( , ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...

, '' Lyric Suite''.

(

, Albert Rahier, Bernard Milofsky, Ernst Friedlander). *Dial No. 6:

Alan Hovhaness Alan Hovhaness (; March 8, 1911 – June 21, 2000) was an American-Armenian composer. He was one of the most prolific 20th-century composers, with his official catalog comprising 67 numbered symphonies (surviving manuscripts indicate over 70) and ...

, Piano Concerto (''Lousadzak''); ''Tzaikerk'', for flute, violin, timpani, and strings; ''Achtamar'', for piano solo; ''Shatakh'', for piano and violin. Maro Ajemian, piano; Anahid Ajemian, violin; Phillip Kaplan, flute; Saul Goodman, timpani; Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Alan Hovhaness. *Dial No. 7:

Anton Webern Anton Friedrich Wilhelm von Webern (3 December 188315 September 1945), better known as Anton Webern (), was an Austrian composer and conductor whose music was among the most radical of its milieu in its sheer concision, even aphorism, and stea ...

, 5 Movements for String Quartet; 6 Bagatelles; Symphony op. 21. Pro Arte String Quartet, Paris Chamber Orchestra, conducted by

. *Dial No. 8:

Olivier Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithologist who was one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex; harmonically ...

, Visions de L'Amen *Dial No. 9:

, Chamber Concerto for Violin, Piano, and Thirteen Wind Instruments. Roland Charny, violin;

Jacques-Louis Monod Jacques-Louis Monod (25 February 1927 – 21 September 2020) was a French composer, pianist and conducting, conductor of 20th century music, 20th century and Contemporary classical music, contemporary music, particularly in the advancement of th ...

, piano; Orchestre de chambre Paul Kuentz, conducted by René Leibowitz. *Dial No. 10:

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

, Suite no. 1; Renard; Volga Boatman; Elegy;Berceuse du Chat. Milofsky, Carmin, Conducted by Robert Craft. *Dial No. 11:

Gosta Nystroem Gosta may refer to: * Barankinya Gosta (1935–1998), prominent Zimbabwean Chewa sculptor *Gosta Green, area in the city of Birmingham, England * Gosta River, tributary of the Valea Padeşului River in Romania *Predrag Gosta Predrag Gosta (Cyrilli ...

, Sinfona del Mare. Ingrid Eksell, Stockholm Orchestra, conducted by Tor Mann. *Dial No. 12:

, Mavra *Dial No. 13:

, Woodwind Quintet op. 26. Metropolitan Wind Quintet. *Dial No. 14:

, Fantasy op. 49a, 6 Little Piano Pieces, 5 Piano Pieces op. 23. Gwendolyn Koldofsky,

Eduard Steuermann Eduard Steuermann (June 18, 1892 in Sambor, Austro-Hungarian Empire – November 11, 1964 in New York City) was an Austrian (and later American) pianist and composer. Steuermann studied piano with Vilém Kurz at the Lemberg Conservatory and Fer ...

. *Dial No. 15: Alban Berg, Seven Songs of Youth; " Schliesse mir die Augen beide"; ''An Leukon''; Four Songs Op. 2 (orch. Leibowitz); Four Pieces for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 5.

Bethany Beardslee Bethany Beardslee (born December 25, 1925) is an American soprano particularly noted for her collaborations with major 20th-century composers, such as Igor Stravinsky, Milton Babbitt, Pierre Boulez, George Perle, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and her ...

, soprano; Jacques-Louis Monod, piano. Irene Joachim, soprano; chamber orchestra conducted by René Leibowitz; Earl Thomas, clarinet; Jacques-Louis Monod, piano. Recorded 1951. *Dial No. 16:

, Pierrot Lunaire, conducted by

. *Dial No. 17:

, Concerto for Nine Instruments, conducted by

. *Dial Nos. 19-20:

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

, ''

Sonatas and Interludes ''Sonatas and Interludes'' is a cycle of twenty pieces for prepared piano by American avant-garde composer John Cage (1912–1992). It was composed in 1946–48, shortly after Cage's introduction to Indian philosophy and the teachings of art hist ...

'' for prepared piano. Maro Ajemian, prepared piano. Recorded New York, 1951.

Releases

Library of Contemporary Classics

See also

References

Further reading