Click pics to enlarge. Grab this LP if you see it.

NY Diary (19-7): Memories Rekindled (A Day in the Life of a Wayfarer).

The title is an exaggeration. What I'd not give to be a wayfarer in Manhattan everyday! The most walkable city in the world! But yesterday I did get to spend half a day in the city.

First I went to the Chatham Square branch of the NYPL to return borrowed CDs. Then I went to the Department of Health nearby. Afterwards, I was free and went LP shopping, during which I walked from Chinatown to Chelsea.

Gaby Casadesus My score of the day was a very old (Polydor) Vox mono LP of Mozart Concerto No. 25, played by Gaby Casadesus, who is better known as the wife and duo partner of Robert Casadesus, who is much better known to Americans as he recorded extensively as a soloist for Columbia (the complete recordings is available in a 65 CD Sony box). For her biography, read this obituary (also this)

In contrast, Gaby Casadesus did not record as soloist in the US, but she did make a few for French Polydor, such as this Mozart concerto. The playing, needless to say, is pristine, even more graceful than her husband's for Columbia (I also prefer the Lamoreux/Bigot to Columbia SO/Szell). Unjustly little known.

Gaby did record some of the piano duo repertoire with Robert, among which the Mozart and Bach concerti were best known. But my absolute favorite is the Schubert Fantasie in F minor, D940 contained in the album pictured above, which for years was unavailable (now one track in a 65 CD box!). This performance of the late Schubert masterpiece has never been equalled, and is one of my desert island discs. Please listen to the youtube inset below and look at those angelic faces! That would be 15 minutes well spent.

Falafel, In Memoriam Ali Baba For lunch, I had a falafel sandwich at Mamoun's (MacDougal St), but despite its fame (several NYC stores, plus branches in Texas coming) to me it is not nearly as good as the old Ali Baba across the street, which since my student days had been my falafel go-to place, but unfortunately they closed several years ago. Compared to Mamoun's the Ali Baba version was less deeply fried but more spiced and flavorful; the hot sauce and yougurt had more nuance too. Sometimes after eating one I cooled down by having a lager in the downstairs bar next door, which is still there.

Although I am not crazy about Mamoun's, I show you this pic because it includes my favorite cafe in NYC, Cafe Reggio, which I always take visitors to.