by Tony Wilds
The star of Viva Cugat! to many is the audiophile quality of this entry in Mercury's &Perfect Presence Sound Series.& Indeed, the gatefold liners and beautiful packaging, not to mention the glories reaped from the lost art of microphone placement, make it a splendor of stereophonic experimentation. Risking nothing, the all-instrumental material includes three by Ernesto Lecuona and two by Cugat: the fabulously exotic, haunting &Nightingale& from 1942 and &Jungle Concerto.& The warhorses &Siboney& and &Say 'Si Si'& appear yet again, both in swinging, &mod& versions with lasting appeal. Other tunes, such as &Anna& and &Poinciana,& are beautiful enough to lend themselves to both the tricks of channel separation and the string section, neither of which is either staid or too overwrought.