Holst's 1926 recording of The Planets is not without its problems. Sessions took place in Columbia's studio at Petty France, London, where a large orchestra had to be crammed into a small space. The original sound, extremely well captured by EMI's transfer engineers, is very confined and there is sometimes a slightly hectic, claustrophobic quality in Holst's conducting. For instance, he rather tears into the opening of ''Mars'' in a way that he didn't when making his pre-electric version of the work in 1922–3. In fact, there are several points where the earlier performance is superior, as listeners can hear for themselves on a Pearl reissue which contains all Holst's acoustic recordings (4/91). Though the pre-electric sound is remarkable in its way, there is of course extra body and range in the early electrical recording. The composer's daughter, Imogen, has related how her father regarded rhythm as the most important component in a musical performance, and his interpretation is certainly very strong rhythmically, and uncompromisingly direct. It's sad to think that he lived for another eight years but made no more records.
Elgar could not have been treated more differently by the gramophone, for his 1926 account of the Enigma Variations was followed by an extensive programme of sessions almost up to the point of his final illness at the end of 1933. This transfer of the Enigma is the same as that contained in Vol. 2 of EMI's Elgar Edition (2/93), and has pretty well solved most of the not inconsiderable technical problems posed by the early electric recording technique. In a way the performance is not typical of the composer's late conducting style, for it displays a degree of string portamento not to be found anywhere else on his electricals. He conducts in a typically vital, warm and affectionate fashion, however, and all the ''friends pictured within'' are vividly brought to life.'