Weingartner's association with the Columbia company in England began in 1923 and all his recordings were from that day made by that company and, after the merger with HMV, by EMI and its subsidiaries.

The recording sessions shown here does not document the 78” matrix numbers. There are still collectors of 78” records around, but they will find their information in literature or on sites that specialise in these complex matters. Most Weingartner recordings documented here have been available on LP or CD at some time.

In the 1920's and early 1930's two or three takes were nearly always made of each matrix. The first positive from the take chosen for issue was marked with an "a", the second with a "b" and so on. Good transfers to LP and CD may indicate whether “a” or later takes are used.  

Simultaneous recording of the same take on two machines was introduced after Blumlein invented moving coil cutters. This process was used in some of Weingartner's later sessions, the duplicate being distinguished by the letter A after the take number. It is notable that, where this process was used in Weingartner's sessions, single takes only of each matrix were frequently made. This in itself is evidence of Weingartner's professional approach to the recording process.

The quality of transfers of Weingartner's recordings have always been very variable. The original American Columbia (CBS) ML and some EMI Japan LP transfers were good. European EMI and most "pirate" releases have often been very disappointing. On CD, the Naxos Beethoven series seems promising as they have been clever in selecting mostly reasonable pressings and have not removed too much of the high tones. But, the original Columbia LP release from mid 50s may still sound fuller and more dynamic?