Hour Of Love - Florian ZaBach

2nd Piano Concerto

Hour Of Love
Florian ZaBach
Violin Solos with Orchestra directed by Phil Boutelje
Decca Records Hi-Fi DL 8086
1955

From the back cover: ZaBach was a phenomenon from the start. A true prodigy, he performed the Beethoven Violin Concerto at the Auditorium Concert Hall when he was twelve. At fifteen he was astounding listeners at the Chicago World's Fair. A few years later, in 1936, he toured European capitals to a crescendo of continental acclaim.

Back in the United States he added to his successes, went into radio and learned the popular side of music as staff artist and soloist. When war came he served two years in the Medical Corps of the Army. After his discharge, ZaBach formed his own orchestra and was a star attraction in the Persian Room of New York's Plaza Hotel, the Empire Room of Chicago's Palmer House, the Cocoanut Grove of Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel, the main room of Washington's Mayflower Hotel, and other topnotch spots. Playing at New York's Strand Theatre, he broke all records with an unprecedented stay of thirty-three weeks. In television he made half a dozen appearance with Arthur Godfrey as well as other coast-to-coast leading TV shows, was featured many times with Milton Berle, Ken Murray, and other headliners, before he starred on his own Florian ZaBach Show.

ZaBach owns a priceless Guarnerius violin on which he performed with great effect in this album entitled "Heart Strings." His amazing technical virtuosity is displayed in a pervious album, "The Hot Canary," and the present collection is another indication of ZaBach's verve and versatility, as well as his scintillating musicianship.

From Billboard - February 5, 1955: Liberace clicked big on records as a result of his TV film series, so dealers should watch this package by Florian ZaBach. The handsome violinist is currently getting the same kind of romantic video buildup accorded to Liberace (via the syndication of ZaBach's own film series). And the promotion results could pay off big sale-wise for this album. ZaBach, best known for his "Hot Canary" LP, is an accomplished violinist, and this album contains 12 excellent examples of his work, including "Intermezzo," Schubert's "Unfinished Symphony," and "Melody in A." All the selections as "classical" but the package is definitely aimed at the pop market.

Intermezzo
Theme from Tchaikovsky's 5th Symphony
Theme from Chopin's Fantasied Impromptu
Theme from Tchaikovsky's Romeo And Juliet Overture
Eighteenth Variation
Theme from Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto with chorus
Poeme By Fibich
Theme from Tchaikovsky's Andante Cantabile
Theme from Schubert's Unfinished Symphony
Melody In "A"
Dance Of The Slave Maidens