arora@sunybcs.UUCP (Kulbir S. Arora) (10/21/83)
Has anybody heard of The International Preview Society which offers
selections in classical music ? They have an incredible enrollment
offer of Beethoven's Nine Symphonies (Vienna Philharmonic) on
Deutsch Gramaphon (8 records) for $9.98 ! And there is no further
obligation to buy more !! I'm skeptical. Will anybody give me
some references on their reputation ?
Mail reply to the net or to me at
UUCP: seismo!rochester!rocksvax!sunybcs!arora
decvax!watmath!rochester!rocksvax!sunybcs!arora
ARPA: arora.buffalo-cs@udel-relay
Csnet: arora.buffalocbf@allegra.UUCP (10/24/83)
The International Preview Society is indeed for real. They will send you the Vienna/Karl Bohm Beethoven Symphony set, which Stereo Review's Richard Freed dubs the most satisfying of all, plus an excellent (also DG) recording of that supreme masterpiece, the Beethoven Violin Concerto, all for $9.98 plus shipping with no obligations. I joined a couple of years ago, and until I discovered J&R and the Tower cut-out bins in NYC, I got most of my records from them. They feature the entire classical standard repertoire on discs and cassettes from DG (Archiv), London (Argo), Philips and RCA along with a few Angel items, at reasonable prices with their "Bonus Certificates". They have recently started to offer some light pop classics by people like flutist James Galway, and some classic pops by people like Abba. The best deals, though, are to be found with their multiple-record sets of Symphonies, Operas etc. Most of their records date from less than five years back, and they add new releases every month. Service is reliable, although it has slowed down considerably in the past year as they have gotten much more popular. Also, their prices aren't as good as they used to be when they were owned by Polygram (the umbrella company for DG, London & Philips) instead of Warner Communications. You are given ten days to audition any selection you request (NOTHING is sent to you unless you ask for it), at which point you can return it, or decide to honor their invoice. I have returned records after more than ten days with no difficulites. I find their general trust ingratiating as members could easily abuse their services through the unethical practice of home taping. In general, I have few reservations about them, beyond the sometimes lengthy wait and the lack of a phone number at which to contact them. The IPS may not be as wonderful as it once was, but it's still an excellent deal. With a tool like Stereo Review's reasonably thoughtful Basic Repertoire pamphlet, one can use the IPS to build a good collection of the basic classics at a reasonable cost and great convenience. Although the Tower cut-outs are still tops. --C.Francois (decvax!allegra!cbf)
billr@tektronix.UUCP (Bill Randle) (11/02/83)
I've been a member of the International Preview Society for several years and can vouch for their integrity. I've ordered several records/sets and have not had any problems. Once or twice the reply card arrived too late to prevent record shipment; they sent me a note to that effect and I returned the records with no hassles. -Bill Randle Tektronix, Inc. tektronix!billr (uucp) billr@tektronix (CSnet) billr.tektronix@rand-relay (ARPA)