Best Classical Preludes
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Enjoyable and helps to unwind the day's events."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Aside from the technical mastery and beautiful tone that are absolutes in all of his playing, one is dazzled by his curiosity and ability to adapt to so many forms and types of music. His Bach and Vivaldi are pellucid and played with non-sentimental crispness, his tango music gritty and rhythmically pungent, his jazz seemingly spontaneous, the "Meditation" from Thais simply ravishing, "Anything Goes" a romp, and the Appalachian music performed with both respect and a great twang, while the traditional Chinese music is fascinating.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Excellent recording of this master of the cello."
"A very good value as it is two CDs with something for every taste, from classical to folk to "show tunes" to world music, and of course all impeccably performed."
"I bought this album primarily for Alison Krauss singing "Simple Gifts," one of the finest (and hard to find) renditions of that wonderful song that is often badly covered, both instrumentally or vocally."
"What a fabulous and diverse collection: Classical, American traditional, Chinese traditional, Appalachian, Brazilian, baroque, and jazz."
"O mio babbino caro" from Puccini's Gianni Schicchi opens the disc, with Bell delicately accompanied by a harp and spinning the long melody with great sensitivity.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This CD is incredibly romantic and beautifully played by Joshua Bell."
"A favorite for some time...gave it as a gift to a young violinist."
"Mr.. Bell is a known virtuoso."
"What's to say, the artist is wonderful, the music is wonderful, it is just what I was looking for."
"This is a lovely CD, with short but beautiful melodies and Joshua plays them beautifully."
"Joshua Bell has compiled all my favorite songs on the violin..."
"Wonderful violin music."
"Beautiful violin music.Joshua Bell is a virtuoso."
Best Classical Quartets
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This collection of Classical music is superb."
"I love listening to this on the speake's of our travel trailer."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Classical Concertos
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This collection of Classical music is superb."
"I love listening to this on the speake's of our travel trailer."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Classical Serenades & Divertimentos
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This collection of Classical music is superb."
"I love listening to this on the speake's of our travel trailer."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Caprices
But if you've never heard Rachmaninov play Schumann's Carnaval , try starting there for one of the most imaginative recreations of a piece of music ever recorded.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"What an extraordinary pianist, and a great lesson on how to play his pieces, from the composer himself."
"Recording is older and not remastered, but fine for hearing the beauty of Rach... Kind of scratchy..."
"The recordings are obviously low quality, but this has nothing to do with the quality of music Rachmaninoff performs (these recordings are from the early 1900s, so the recording quality is expected)."
"This is a collection of all the recordings that Sergei Rachmaninoff made with RCA Victor."
"4 finally made me sit up and listen, even though I've owned two versions of this piece for a number of years (Ashkenazy & Wild)."
"Thus we can really appreciate Rachmaninoff in at least three different directions: composer, pianist and conductor; and if the first is generally recognized nowadays, the other two aspects of his genius are somewhat neglected. As a special bonus, we get Rachmaninoff as a conductor (disc 3) in his own Third Symphony, the symphonic poem ''The Isle of the Dead'' and the orchestral version of his famous ''Vocalise''. The very thought that we are able to listen to the playing of one of the greatest piano composers is difficult to assimilate and, for better or for worse, is bound to colour our perception of his recordings. Considering the fact that Rachmaninoff also made a number of transcriptions for solo piano of music by various composers, he easily emerges as a towering figure of Lisztian versatility, if necessarily on a much smaller scale. We should be deeply thankful that part of Rachmaninoff's life coincided with the invention of the earliest recording devices. Now, by modern standards Rachmaninoff's playing can only be described as highly idiosyncratic, with extreme tempo fluctuations and enormous sound. If today some brave young soul dares to play Chopin's Third Ballade or Second Sonata at a competition even remotely in the manner of Rachmaninoff, I am pretty sure he would be ostracized and any chances even of modest career would vanish into thin air. Occasionally, it must be admitted, this IS at the expense of the music, but far more often it is indeed a most refreshing exception among digital dullness that reigns supreme today. Rachmaninoff is generally regarded as a conservative and intellectual pianist, a puritan in the best sense of the word, and I daresay he is less impulsive than some of his illustrious contemporaries (such as Hoffman and Paderewski, for instance) but, being born as early as 1873 (30 years before Horowitz! ), Rachmaninoff certainly belonged to the grand nineteenth-century Romantic tradition of piano playing whose chief object was to communicate the emotional content of the music. Small wonder that these recordings have the most dismal sound in the whole box set: very loud background noise, highly artificial and often distorted piano tone. The Hungarian Rhapsody is particularly well recorded indeed, and it is a performance of towering virtuosity which may well make dizzy Cziffra himself, especially Rachmaninoff's dazzling cadenza. The performance is astounding, with super-fast octaves that blow Argerich away and very slow tempo for the second subject which makes it sound extremely poignant. They are far superior to the Edison ones from 1919 because, unlike them, they were made using Steinway concert grand and two horns for recording the treble and the bass sections of the piano. After 1925 all recordings Rachmaninoff made (again except any piano rolls) were electrical and these, of course, are greatly superior to the acoustical ones in terms of clarity and depth. Rachmaninoff's last recordings, made in 1939-42, are not the vintage mono RCA gave Horowitz a decade later, but they do not require much imagination from the listener in order to imagine why Rachmaninoff was the idol of many other great but vastly different pianists, such as Bolet and Horowitz for instance, and why Harold Schonberg himself used to rave about his abilities at the keyboard. 1, 3 and 4 were recorded in that period; sadly, though the piano is fairly well projected, the orchestra sounds pretty horrible, especially the tutti passages which remind me of a lost radio station. Rachmaninoff's own transcription of Tchaikovsky's tender ''Lullaby'' was one of the last recordings he made, in 1942, and it is remarkable how little background noise there is and how clear even the quietest passages are. The many lyrical passages in all three movements are played with exquisite tenderness, whereas the dramatic ones have an awesome power and need be heard to be believed. Too bad, also, that all those treasures mentioned in the discography printed in the biography of Rachmaninoff by Bertensson and Leyda, such as Liszt's Rhapsodie Espagnole or ''Au bord d'une source'', were apparently lost. Alas, though we are fortunate to have all concertos and the Paganini Rhapsody, the solo piano fare is meager: eight preludes (out of 24), three etudes-tableaux (17), one musical moment (6), two pieces from Op. Except for the highly disappointing G minor prelude, with its shoddy climaxes so far removed from the powerful renditions of Horowitz and Lugansky, the other pieces are superbly played, and mostly available in an electrical version. There is no such thing, and thank God (should he exist) that we have no recordings of Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt; they would be held as ''definitive'' and nobody would bother to play the music anymore. Mussorgsky's ''Hopak'' (1925) and Rimsky-Korsakov's ''The Flight of the Bumble-Bee'' (1929) are equally dashing, and so is the notoriously difficult Scherzo from Mendelssohn's ''A Midsummer's Night Dream'' of which Rachmaninoff obviously makes a child's game. (Fascinatingly, in 1972 Jorge Bolet recorded, very differently of course, many of these transcriptions in a now legendary LP which can be found as ''bonus tracks'' to his fabulous Carnegie Hall recital in PHILIP's Great Pianists of the 20th Century series.). Among the Chopin highlights from the ''electrical years'' there is a sweeping version of the Second Sonata (1930) with one of the fastest, singularly convincing though, funeral marches ever committed on disc. Since these 10 discs, on the whole, do confirm beyond any reasonable doubt Rachmaninoff's colossal stature as pianist, I may be allowed to conclude with few mild complaints. To name two examples, Mozart's Turkish March is way too rushed and sloppy, and the middle section of Schubert's Impromptu (Op. These are minor quibbles which do not in the least mar an otherwise absolutely fabulous set of recordings, a unique memento from another era of great pianism that will never happen again, alas."
"For example, while he would of course infuse his personality into a Scriabin piece, he could also approach it only as a master composer could; additionally he studied under the same instructor as Scriabin, and they were lifelong friends."
Best Sacred & Religious Music
At times, the analog synthesizers used in this 1984 recording sound dated and a little cheesy, particularly on "Deck the Halls" and "Good King Wenceslas." As pleasant and soothing as a Willard Scott birthday wish, Christmas does offer one selection that truly merits "classic" status: the reverent, prayerful, slow-motion interpretation of "Silent Night" ("Stille Nacht") for piano and strings that closes the album--a beautiful and heart-touching work.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"arrived faster than expected and is perhaps my favorite manheim steamroller album played all the way through with out any notice of scratches as well."
"love all mannheim steamroller."
"Great music , but I should have looked at what the songs were."
"My favorite Christmas cd!"
Best Classical Etudes
A classic collection of 11 CDs that compiles every recording that the late Arthur Rubinstein released on the RCA label from 1946-1967!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"A must-have for Chopin lovers."
"I'm not that professional, well I like the ballade No.1 very much when first listening to it on a plane."
"I have to admit that i am addicted to the Nocturnes."
"Rubenstein and Chopin."
"This is a gift for my birthday for my husband to give me!"
"Marvelous!"
Best Classical Fugues
No Description Available. No Track Information Available Media Type: CD Artist: BACH,J.S.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Listening to the Art of the Fugue is a nearly daily ritual for me."
"Best recording of this ensemble."
"Wonderful new reading of a classic!"
"I am a Bach fan and found this an excellent addition to my library."
"Had never heard of Emerson String Quartet before (I'm a piano fan) but knew this set from several other performances such as Tatiana Nikolaeva & Glenn Gould."
"Hypnotic."
"The Emerson string quartet is one of the tops in the world and their presentationof this work is exceptional."
Best Classical Suites
New product.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Simply transcendent!"
"Great music."
"Great cello pieces to listen to when stressed out!"
"I listen to this while painting and truly feel elevated and ennobled, which is then embedded into my painting, in which I seek to dignify life."
"Yo - Yo Ma is spectacular, and of course the Bach Cello suite is spectacular as well."
Best Classical Ballads
A classic collection of 11 CDs that compiles every recording that the late Arthur Rubinstein released on the RCA label from 1946-1967!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I always believe Rubinstein's Chopin performance is the greatest."
"A must-have for Chopin lovers."
"I'm not that professional, well I like the ballade No.1 very much when first listening to it on a plane."
"I have to admit that i am addicted to the Nocturnes."
"Rubenstein and Chopin."
"This is a gift for my birthday for my husband to give me!"
"Marvelous!"
Best Classical Rondos
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My 8 yr old son LOVES these."
"This was a gift and the recipient was delighted to receive it; she had a very happy day and plays it often."
"We have this set, as well as volume 1."
"The CDs arrived promptly, and my niece loves them!"
"a must have for long car rides... great stories about composers and their music for the family."
"bought as a gift for nephew's family."
"My son listens to these over and over since he was 5 and he is now 13. if you pic any classical children's cds, pick these!!!"
Best Classical Canons
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Wonderful baroque beautiful Music."
"Great recording, good value."
"i love this album.."
"This is a beautiful recording of a beautiful collection of music; I bought it on a whim without knowing much about it."
"Baroque as I've never heard it."
Best Classical Sonatas
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Enjoyable and helps to unwind the day's events."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Classical Scherzo
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"His exquisite control of tone and timbre, his sense of dramatic timing, his effortless fluency, his dedicated and intelligent musicianship, all conspire to make one fall in love anew with this thrice-familiar music. As many critics have opined, this pianist's rubato as well as his agogic stresses and hesitations can sound either revelatory or arbitrary depending on one's tastes and mood. Every pianophile should hear these performances, which convey such effortless virtuosity and such authentic involvment with the music that Arrau's distinctive interpretive gestures scarcely obrtude, and one can even forgive Inbal for making the long ritornelli in the two concertos seem interminable. Not only is the price right, but the remastering is splendid, correcting some of the tubbiness that afflicted the original LPs (and earlier CD incarnations) and bringing this great artist right into one's listening space."
"I have several recordings of Chopin by different artists and appreciate them all....I used to love to listen to Askenazy live in Toronto in the 1970's as he was a regular performer there and still like his recordings. To have seen him and heard him play live ( as I did) was a mesmerizing thing of beauty..I shall never forget the live performances....(I feel so fortunate)."
"I am no Chopin expert, and I am sure there are better exponents than Claudio Arrau, but I have owned this set for a few years now, and each time I listen to it, I feel like I am still only scratching the surface of its beauty."
"The good people of Chile need to know - in fact the whole world needs to know - that in Claudio Arrau they produced one of the greatest, if not the greatest, Chopin interpreter of all time."
Best Classical Toccatas
This Collection of Three Centuries of Trumpet Music Ranges from Baroque Concertos by Vivaldi and Albinoni and Cornerstones of the Trumpet Repertory Such as the Concertos by Haydn and Hummel, to Contemporary Classics Such as Luciano Berio's Sequenza for Trumpet.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Hakan Hardenberger is a FANTASTIC trumpet player....this cd is FULL. of songs with his exceptional finesse."
"Wonderful CD- Don't pass it up!"
"The person who got this was happy to receive this."
"Super performance, and sound."
"Arrived in good shape and ahead of time."
"Born in 1961, and originally schooled at the Paris Conservatory, Haredenberger is a fantastic performer--The Times once called him "The greatest trumpet player on Earth", and his own website confirms that he is the greatest trumpet soloist today, so it must be true. He performs an impressively wide repertorie, from the baroque to the present--the 5 CDs in this collection include one of the Classical concerti I've mentioned; two of baroque music; one of unaccompanied modern pieces, and one of works from various periods for trumpet or cornet and piano. But I have to admit to feeling let down by someone who bills themself as the greatest trumpet soloist today, if that's all I'm going to get."
"This was a gift to my brother, and within 24 hours of giving it to him, he was already raving about it."
Best Classical Fantasies
A classic collection of 11 CDs that compiles every recording that the late Arthur Rubinstein released on the RCA label from 1946-1967!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"A must-have for Chopin lovers."
"I'm not that professional, well I like the ballade No.1 very much when first listening to it on a plane."
"I have to admit that i am addicted to the Nocturnes."
"Rubenstein and Chopin."
"This is a gift for my birthday for my husband to give me!"
"Marvelous!"
Best Classical Variations
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This collection of Classical music is superb."
"I am new to classical music but i must say this cd is fantastic."
"I love listening to this on the speake's of our travel trailer."
"Very good for relaxing."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Classical Inventions
In the capable hands of Carlos, Bach's keyboard masterpieces sound like they were made for the otherworldly blurps, farts, and chimes of a Moog synthesizer. Whether performing Bach's "Two-Part Inventions," "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring," or "Wachet Auf," Carlos offers one-of-a-kind interpretations, her synthesizers still sounding as otherworldly as they did in 1968.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Modern synths can do a lot of things the older ones can't, but there is a sound quality the old ones had that the new ones just cannot touch."
"If you are at all interested in "classical" music, you should grab this."
"Word was that the great organist and Bach scholar, E. Power Biggs, was extremely pained to witness the Master's work being so desecrated. ); almost got into a fist fight over whether this was genuine music or a coarse mechanical device imitating art and making a fast buck for the artist."
"I remember people had never heard of Walter Carlos, & a short while later no one did again, for he'd returned as a she named Wendy."
"Different than the LP i have from years ago, but fun listening all the same."
"Wendy Carlos, with the perfectionism that drives all great artists, explores vintage tunings in this offering, but the result leaves the untrained listener somewhat non-plussed."
"For those who remember, this was and IS a great album."
"When it was still in an experimental stage, Wendy (back then it was Walter) Carlos, achieved a flawless orchestration with bits and pieces of electronics."
Best Classical Short Forms
A classic collection of 11 CDs that compiles every recording that the late Arthur Rubinstein released on the RCA label from 1946-1967!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"A must-have for Chopin lovers."
"I'm not that professional, well I like the ballade No.1 very much when first listening to it on a plane."
"I have to admit that i am addicted to the Nocturnes."
"Rubenstein and Chopin."
"This is a gift for my birthday for my husband to give me!"
"Marvelous!"
Best Classical Improvisation
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"We loved these collections years ago when our kids were much younger and we listened to the stories on cassette tapes in our very first mini-van on long trips to visit family."
"This was a gift and the recipient was delighted to receive it; she had a very happy day and plays it often."
"We have this set, as well as volume 1."
"My grandsons love DVDs with a story behind each composer and I enjoy listening with them."
"My 8 yr old son LOVES these."
"The CDs arrived promptly, and my niece loves them!"
"I remember distinctly my youngest identifying a musical sound bed underneath an Audi commercial by exclaiming "that's bibaldi!" All of our kids grew up playing several instruments and singing in choirs."
"a must have for long car rides... great stories about composers and their music for the family."
Best Classical Lullabies & Berceuse
A classic collection of 11 CDs that compiles every recording that the late Arthur Rubinstein released on the RCA label from 1946-1967!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"A must-have for Chopin lovers."
"I'm not that professional, well I like the ballade No.1 very much when first listening to it on a plane."
"I have to admit that i am addicted to the Nocturnes."
"Rubenstein and Chopin."
"This is a gift for my birthday for my husband to give me!"
"Marvelous!"
Best Classical Requiems, Elegies & Tombeau
4 in E Flat; Rondo for Horn and Orchestra in E Flat; Serenade in G "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik"; Divertimento in D , and more, conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy, Georg Solti; Neville Marriner, and more.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Wonderful music for seeping and listening."
"I'm not a connoisseur, but this seems like a terrific buy to me."
"This is just what I wanted."
"The set offers exactly what I wanted, a wide range of Mozart pieces."
"Amazing collection; I bought this set to listen to with my baby and he loves it :)."
"Nice collection of music, well performed, at a very reasonable price."
"Meet my expectations."
Best Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music
The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe, the 1st 2-CD set in the & Most Relaxing, series features some of the most well known classical pieces of all time, including Canon in D, Clair De Lune, Fur Elise, Ave Marie, Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Strings, Greensleeves, and More!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Enjoyable and helps to unwind the day's events."
"Very good for relaxing."
"love this collection of classical music."
"Added this to my collection of relaxing music to fall asleep to."
"great music, very soothing."
Best Oratorio
No Description Available. No Track Information Available Media Type: CD Artist: HANDEL,G.F.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is Handel's masterpiece, performed by the best orchestra, soloists and choir that I ever heard."
"it seems to be ok but the plastic case was badly damaged in shipping."
"Excellent, excellent service -- in all aspects."
"Great music!"
"I have had the album for over twenty years and this is my absolute favorite version."
Best Symphonies
Led by conductor David Parry, the LPO performed 50 pieces selected from every classical era & every thinkable composer.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"32: Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity. Debussy: Suite bergamasque, L 75: Clair de lune. Verdi: Nabucco: Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves, "Va pensiero, sull'ali dorate". Mozart: Concerto No. 95, "From the New World": Largo. Strauss: An der schönen blauen Donau (On the Beautiful Blue Danube), Op. 1. Mozart: Requiem, K. 626: Lacrimosa dies illa. Beethoven: Bagatelle in A Minor, WoO 59, "Für Elise". Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance, Op. 125, "Choral": An die Freude. Offenbach: Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann): Barcarolle. Albinoni: Adagio in G Minor for Strings and Organ. Mozart: Serenade No. 13 in G Major, K. 525, "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik": Allegro. Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville): Overture. Beethoven: Sonata No. 27:2, "Moonlight Sonata": Adagio sostenuto. Smetana: Má Vlast (My Fatherland): Vltava (The Moldau River). Boccherini: String Quintet in E Major, Op. 11 in A Major, K. 331: Rondo: Alla turca. Mozart: Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K. 620: Overture. Handel: Messiah, HWV 56: Hallelujah Chorus. Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite No. 34. Mozart: Messa da Requiem: Dies irae - Tuba mirum. Mahler: Symphony No."
"I listen to this music as I drive to and from work."
"Every human on the planet should know about our classical geniuses and forget the deplorable rhythms of rap and hip-hop which somehow seem to return the evolution at the cavemen era."
"This is regrettable both since, if you're a musical novice like me, you may not always be aware of who you're listening to and enjoying (in the sense of the original source) and because it can't be used as a potential means of moving from these pieces to pursuing more deeply individual composers and their work."
"I walk to this every morning!"
"A fun listen and all of the classical songs you've heard your whole life, but don't get if you're looking to explore newer music by classical artists."
"This box set is perfect for any lover of classical music, containing 50 wonderful pieces performed beautifully by the London Philharmonic Orchestra."
"I'm not actually a fan of "greatest hits" albums, far preferring to listen to complete works."