Best Classical
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I first found out about this because my teenager nearly blew out my eardrums as she ran screaming from her room that Pentatonix was releasing a Christmas album. Each of the five musicians have gifted voices and talents and are essential to the group's unique style."
"A few of the songs on here skeptics may think the songs have been overdone and have no way of being different, but pentatonix found a way to twist the songs enough to keep the original magic but make it their own enough that it really stands out from other covers and brings the excitement of listening to that song for the first time again."
"Heard this group on the Christmas TV special - amazing voices, and acappella!"
"I love Pentatonix!!!!"
"Very interesting album - the voices are really good and close harmony I enjoy it and my guests were pleased."
"A fun new spin on holiday favorites, and sung by the talented Pentatonix and a few featured artist."
"This is by far our favorite Christmas album."
"'This was good but not half as good as last years."
A Pentatonix Christmas.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I first found out about this because my teenager nearly blew out my eardrums as she ran screaming from her room that Pentatonix was releasing a Christmas album. Each of the five musicians have gifted voices and talents and are essential to the group's unique style."
"A few of the songs on here skeptics may think the songs have been overdone and have no way of being different, but pentatonix found a way to twist the songs enough to keep the original magic but make it their own enough that it really stands out from other covers and brings the excitement of listening to that song for the first time again."
"Heard this group on the Christmas TV special - amazing voices, and acappella!"
"I love Pentatonix!!!!"
"Very interesting album - the voices are really good and close harmony I enjoy it and my guests were pleased."
"A fun new spin on holiday favorites, and sung by the talented Pentatonix and a few featured artist."
"This is by far our favorite Christmas album."
"'This was good but not half as good as last years."
DVD track list: 1.O Come, Emmanuel. 2.Carol of the Bells / God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. 3.Where Are You Christmas. 4.We Three Kings. 5.Rudolph. 6.A Family Christmas Yule Log Edition.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I can't recommend this album enough."
"A little disappointed in the DVD, the first few songs are fantastic and the rest is just a fire burning with music playing."
"This is one of the most soothing Christmas CDs we own."
"I was looking for Christmas music that offered a little something extra and found it in this CD."
"While I like them all, one of my absolute favorites is their rendition of "Where Are You Christmas" (which on their deluxe edition) also comes with the original video featuring the extraordinary talents of th piano player's daughter, Sarah. Oh, and for those with a bit more bang in their budget, don't allow the difference in the price of the Deluxe Edition deter you because it come with more than just a digital booklet."
"A gorgeous compilation of Christmas music."
"I was fortunate enough to hear them live in concert."
"I love this."
Best Ballets & Dances
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 Chamber Music
The Piano Guys have become a YouTube sensation with their clever and inspiring takes on popular music and creative videos that accompany them.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This is excellent music to work by, especially if you work with words. There's not much singing, the music is uplifting without being exhausting (Hans Zimmer soundtracks, I'm looking at you here), it's like a mental massage while you work."
"I can't remember who first introduced me to The Piano Guys, but I saw them first on YouTube."
"We really enjoy listening to these two musical geniuses."
"I love the upbeat quality of some of my favorite classical pieces blended with more contemporary music."
"Lest that makes them sound stuffy, it was precisely because they were so completely different from anything I'd heard before that I wanted to know if I was really hearing them accurately. My favorite piece involves a topless piano so they can pluck the strings, play percussion with their hands on the side of the piano from the inside, carry a beat by lightly hitting the keyboard cover to the full-up position in rhythm to, yes, someone actually playing the keys on the keyboard."
"Their sound is. deep, soulful, and expressive, which only comes from truly gifted and trained artists."
"Whatever, "Piano Guys" is at least as much "Cello Guys" as piano."
"This album is a good value for your money."
Best Classical Forms & Genres
On July 7, 1990, a magical night took place in Rome: Jose Carreras, Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti sang together for the very first time in one of the most evocative temples of opera, the ancient Baths of Caracalla in Rome giving life to the biggest classical music project of the century, The Three Tenors. In February 2015 Il Volo won the Sanremo Festival in Italy with the song Grande Amore .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Il Volo singing as one is always very beautiful here Ginaluca, Piero and Ignazio take their solo side and show that each of these talented young men are in a class by them self."
"Under the beautiful deep blue night skies of Florence, they serenade you into an exquisite bliss, unimaginable, even to the most trained opera ears!"
"This is a terrific album of wonderful hits."
"Their voices speak for my rating."
"If you like the music of Tenors then you will love this CD."
"Maestros Domingo, who also sang a bit of "Non Ti Scordar Di Me" (as if I could ever forget the first tenor I ever saw at the Met) and Rota. were incredible in their knowledge and control of the music."
"All the songs are well done but Ignazio Boschetto's "Una Furtiva Lagrima" is simply splendid ... Those high, very soft notes take my breath away."
"I've always enjoyed Il Volo, and Notte Magica is their best yet."
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 Baritone Voices
Sutherland's second recording of I Puritani is a substantial step beyond her first, thanks largely to the excellent cast assembled around her and to Richard Bonynge's growth in power and subtlety as a conductor.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The cast is in good voice and Bonyage moves them through their paces with his usual expert conducting."
"This CD should be the only version of this opera your order and it is worth every penny paid for this awesome opera."
"Bellini, Pavarotti, Sutherland plus Cappuccilli, Ghiaurov and Bonynge - Can't be beat!"
"Love this opera - this purchase was fantastic!"
"This is definitely the best recording of I Puritani on the market and it is worth the price whether you purchase it new or used...it is definitely worth adding to your collection!"
"Yes, that production had its flaws...Pavarotti's voice cracked, and Sutherland's last note was blood curdling. And the score is just too long...it saps the joy out of the beautiful arias by drawing them out. In summary, the live 1976 performance and Sutherland's 1962 recording made me love this opera."
Best Voices
Jonathan Antoine's solo debut, "Tenore," follows the success he achieved with former singing partner, Charlotte Jaconelli, which includes a top 10 debut on the Billboard Classical Crossover chart and over 200,000 albums sold worldwide. "Tenore" is the result of combined natural talent and strong work ethic; it is our first taste of Jonathan Antoine s potential as he begins his promising solo career.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I believe this young man will be opera's greatest ambassador."
"It has taken me a few days longer than normal to write this review for no other reason than I fear I will not have the words to do this incredible album and this brilliant tenor the justice deserved. The tour de force of Tenore will have you experiencing heights of great joy and haunting sorrow. Jonathan instinctively knows when the "telling of the story" requires power and intensity or should be sweetly gentle."
"It's mature and sophisticated well beyond his 19 years, extremely powerful, gorgeously beautiful, exquisitely tender, heartwrenchingly emotional."
"Someday though I am hoping to watch him as an opera singer in opera houses."
"Plan to be mezmoized by his powerful voice and in awe of how he has complete control of those long wonderful notes and the levels he reaches so effortlessly."
"I was mesmerized by his voice, and probably watched his audition video 50 times or more."
"This is a beautiful album which deserves it's place at #1 in UK Classical Charts - Jonathan now holds the official record at 19 years of age for achieving this!!!"
"The beauty and passion displayed in each track by this young man defy description.He sings so effortlessly. The only thing better than hearing TENORE on CD or download, would be to see JONATHAN ANTOINE in person."
Best Soprano Voices
Yet only a bit more than a generation ago, the possibilities inherent in the long-playing record inspired John Culshaw, a young producer for Decca, to attempt the most ambitious recording project ever contemplated up to that time--a complete studio recording of the Ring . The care lavished on the capture of the music was unmatched at the time of the recording, and still leaves this as one of the best sounding Rings even today, when the oldest part ( Rheingold ) has reached its 40th anniversary.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The Solti Ring is the best recording of the Ring cycle."
"And, to add to that, the world is sorely lackiing of hochdramatische sopranos, true heldentenors, and great bass-baritones to sing the parts of the cycle's most difficult roles--Brunnhilde, Siegfried, and Wotan. Due to this, in order to be able to experience this monumental opus, you must turn to the recordings of the past to sample the greatness of Richard Wagner. With a team that consisted of chorus master Wilhelm Pitz, singers Astrid Varnay, Hans Hotter, Wolfgang Windgassen, Ramon Vinay, Gustav Neidlinger, Gre Brouwenstijn, Martha Modl, and later Birgit Nilsson, Martti Talvela, James King, Leonie Rysanek, and other singers who owned these roles in the Theatre on the Green Hill, plus a plethora of conductors that consisted of Herbert von Karajan, Hans Knappertsbusch, Clemens Krauss, Joseph Keilberth, and Rudolf Kempe (all conductors who by some divine intervention all had last names beginning with "K"), Wieland Wagner unveiled a new and fresh way of Wagner interpretation along with a team of singers and musicians who made this great music sing. Solti leads the Wiener Philharmoniker in a recording that brings the theatrical values of Wagner's operas to the comfort of the living room without the stage noises and other distractions that some listeners seem to detest. Here, you get the steerhorns and tuned anvils and metal bars that Wagner personally requested to be put into the score, in addition to other sound effects that would be impossible to realize in the theater. It is true that while Solti had a heavy hand in this recording in comparison with conductors such as Karajan, Krauss, Bohm, and Boulez who exuded transparency in their readings, he brings everything in the score to life. From the Mime Wanderer riddle scene to the Forging song to the Wotan Erda confrontation and the glorious love duet that ends the opera, Solti gets all the orchestral nuances perfectly. From the haziness of the Norn scene to the Dawn love duet and the Gibichung hall music, and the Waltraute Brunnhilde dialogue, I think Solti captures this Act perfectly. Act 2 is done well too, with Gottlob Frick's menacing Hagen and Neidlinger's definitive Alberich creating a most sinister mood accompanied by Solti's masterly conducting. From the chattering of the Rhinemaidens to Siegfried's death and funeral march to the glorious Immolation Scene, I think this Act III represents Wagner's music at its greatest, and no other recording captures the essence of the final moments of the Ring with all its synthesis of the various leitmotifs in such a moving manner. I have never seen such a glorious cast assembled in the recording studio such as this, and everything from Neidlinger's Alberich, Nilsson's Brunnhilde, Hotter and London's Wotans, Windgassens's Siegfried, Flagstad's Rheingold Fricka and Ludwig's Walkure Fricka, Hoffgen's Erda, King's Siegmund, Crespin's Sieglinde, Frick's Hagen and Hunding, Bohme's characterful Fafner, Sutherland woodbird, Stolze's Mime, and the chattery and lusty Walkures, Norns, and Rheinmaidens is simply a vocal treat. James King is a most moving Siegmund, surpassed only by his Bohm interpretation and possibly Ramon Vinay on a good day, and his Sieglinde, Regine Crespin, is one of the most female and human singers ever to have brought the role to life. With the care lavished on such a great project (Culshaw's attention to the miniscule details in the score), Solti's wonderful conducting, and a cast that truly represents the golden age of Wagner, I would say, this is an essential recording for anyone's collection."
"Being a Chicago native, I've been a fan of Solti for a very long time & his conducting of the Ring cycle is absolutely sensational."
"The cast is simply incredible, featuring the incomparable Birgit Nilsson as Brunnhilde and a wonderful Wolfgang Windgassen as Siegfried."
"Yes, asking a Wagnerian about his/her favorite recording of Der Ring will always produce wildly varying responses, but regardless of what you may read in other reviews, the fact remains that this recording is THE standard Ring, and certinly the right choice for those new to Wagner's masterpiece. As I said in an earlier, anonymous review: "This collection is a must for anyone who wants to embark on a lifelong study of the monumental Ring Cycle."
Best Jazz Piano
The classic hits of Frank Sinatra are presented with style and grace in an intimate jazz trio setting.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"As I own more than 20 Beegie CD's I feel well qualified to give it a top rating."
"Sing it to me Frank, This one is sweet to/for ALLl festive OCCASIONS."
"Great."
"Wife liked it so I'm in good shape."
"Wonderful CD --listen to it a lot!"
"Some reviewers here didn't like this album as much as her others."
"I'm usually quite critical, discerning usually, but since finding Beegie Adair...every arrangement she does would get an A+ from my college music theory instructor!"
"Great Music of Sinatra favorites."
Best Far East & Asia
It is a distinctive mix of folk instruments and courtly formality--a highly disciplined and richly ornamented music originally conceived for moments of importance and ceremony. Several unusual instruments are employed, including the dan bau , a one-string guitar with a bamboo stem that bends notes like a whammy bar , and the k'ni , a rifle-shaped fiddle with a mouth attachment that can create a voice-box effect similar to that used by rock guitarists such as Peter Frampton and Joe Walsh in the '70s. The music is so expertly performed and so beautifully sequenced--the focus shifting from ensemble to solo pieces, from stringed instruments to flutes--that attention never wanders. The most exciting pieces feature a clarinet playing long lines over pounding percussion, a combination common to the music of many Southeast Asian nations.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Item as described."
"Truly a nice selection of music from the North and South, played on instruments foreign to the ear in America."
"Not sure who put this together or where it comes from, but it is an excellent set of traditional vietnamese music which is very hard to find good examples of."
"That book(s) for the traditional discs share the same background material and then have notes on the individual selections. I've had this cranked up on my large car stereo and the sound is clean with good separation. I don't have a large collection of east Asian discs but this is easily my favorite."
"Viet Nam is most often identified with communism and with war, which is a pity, because the music of Viet Nam is as expressive and as complex as pieces written by Bach or Beethoven."
Best Romanian Music
1980 POLYGRAM RECORDS Audio CASSETTE.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I remember this music from years past."
"I first heard this " The Lonely Shepard" as background music for video of the natural beauty of our world."
"Beautiful and very relaxing."
"He plays wonderfully - I really enjoy listening to his music."
"This is a nice music CD for those who likes inspirational music, wonderful melodies to help get relax any body."
"If you have never heard the panpipes played before, this is the CD to start with."
Best New Age Instrumental Music
From Jay Stocker, the best selling composer who brought you the " Hidden In My Heart" collection; comes a new instrumental series of beautiful, cinematic arrangements that will take you away on a journey of soothing peace and tranquility. If you loved the peace and tranquility of the "Hidden In My Heart," series from Scripture Lullabies, you’ll enjoy Quietly every bit as much for:
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Arrived for Christmas and we finally opened it during a road trip over the weekend."
"Calming background music when one is in the mood."
"Very nice, relaxing Christian music."
"Really enjoy the music on this CD."
"I purchased this to listen to during afternoon relaxing time."
"Great for background at meal time or just relaxing."