Best Modern, 20th, & 21st Century
1 SkyWorld
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'm always on the lookout for good background music to write to, and my goodness, this album is incredible."
"Blackheart is worth the price of the entire album all by itself."
"Two Steps From Hell specializes in the increasingly popular genre known as "Trailer Music"; compositions that are clearly in the style of action-adventure symphonic scores, but which are clearly not from movies you've ever seen."
"When I love a track or feel my mind creating visuals for some epic movie trailer or thrilling fight scene. It's like I mentally become a movie director and start visualizing scenes that excite my imagination to no end. But the auto tuned lyrical songs are terrible and certainly not a strong point for the Two Steps team."
"Imagine trying to find inspiration to tackle on dull chores, or even finding the drive to make yourself finish that half-block of a morning jog."
"Which is nice to have - the album flows rather well, and the tracks do lend themselves quite well to the title of Skyworld.."
"I've been a fan of TSFH for a bit now so as amazing as this album sounds to me there is some bias in my opinion."
"Since first coming to this genre after listening to their first album and finding many other offerings, I've found TSFH to not be capable of delivering consistently album to album. Their albums have two versions of each track, one with vocals and one without."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"To be heard, the volume on my stereo must be turned way up to listen to it at all."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Mix a country boy, a pop star and an opra singer and what do you have?"
"These guys are a great trio whom I heard on a show broadcasted on TV."
"Their music is excellent and it was great to know that America has great tenors."
"My Mom thinks they have beautiful voices."
"There is no,other group as good as,this one."
"i love having lots of different Xmas music to listen to during the holidays."
Best Historical Periods
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
"My feeling after listening to this several times is that most of the songs are simply too short, clocking in at well under two minutes."
Best English
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The multi-layered libretto, by David Henry Hwang analyzes the search for knowledge as a basic human need, exceeding limitations, but with a cost to oneself or to others. The prologue with a wheelchair-bound scientist introduces the quest with a graphic description of physical limitations from which the questioning mind seeks liberation. The final scene of act III, after the spaceship launch, is particularly poignant, and demonstrates how superb music can universalize and convey the depth of emotion suggested by the text. One example is the repeated motion of the waves in Act II that intensifies the monotony and frustration of the long voyage before land is finally sighted. The conducting by Dennis Russell Davies brings out the fullest potential, from the crashing climax of Act 1 to the sublime calm that ends the opera."
"I was at the World Premiere for this opera - my first time to be in the Met Opera House, my first time to be at a Philip Glass premiere, in the first month after I moved to New York City."
"I recorded, live, the original broadcast from the Met. I live in Sierra Vista, AZ., and was very excited when it was broadcast live on KUAT, the night of Columbus day 1991, 500 years after Columbus discovered America."
"I have been trying to buy this since 1992, when it was played at the 500 year commemoration of the discovery of the Americas."
"This one grows on you."
"In fact, I am tempted to say that The Voyage is like a cross between the musical style of Akhnaten and La Belle Et La Bete (and other works from roughly that same mid-90s period, like the score to The Secret Agent film)."
"So, although I can't really compare it with the original (Troyanas since passed away) it was a very welcome recording and, being a Glass fan, I have enjoyed it greatly."
"Although not Glass's greatest opera (that title remains with 'Akhnaten' or 'Satyagraha'), this is still a monumental work."
Best Instruments
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
"My feeling after listening to this several times is that most of the songs are simply too short, clocking in at well under two minutes."
Best Opera & Vocal
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
"My feeling after listening to this several times is that most of the songs are simply too short, clocking in at well under two minutes."
Best French
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"After having the LP versions of these overtures by Ormandy/Phil Orchestra and Bernstein/NY Phil from years gone by, I see now that they are not available on CD or out of print."
"Good quality."
"This is a song my family used to hum to me when I was a child and I carried it along to my children and now my grandchildren!"
"This is a good CD."
"This is a great collection of overtures."
"love this music."
"Not in the least, it reminds me of the great shows of my youth, Sergeant Preston of the Northwest Mounted Police, and Captain Video."
Best Easy Listening
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
"My feeling after listening to this several times is that most of the songs are simply too short, clocking in at well under two minutes."
Best Strings
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs were first introduced to my ears on my father's old collection of 45 rpm records."
"To be heard, the volume on my stereo must be turned way up to listen to it at all."
"The song selection and choral and orchestral renderings are beautiful and so fitting for the Christmas season."
"I think the Robert Shaw singers are the quintessential coral singer for Christmas songs, none better."
"I ordered this album to approximate an old 33 LP record by the same-named choir (probably different singers many years later) that my parents had when I was a child in the '50s and '60s."
"Great compilation of Christmas carols, all beautifully done in acapella."
Best Symphonies
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I feel queasy whenever I see a photograph of Alfred Cortot - the Vichy High Commissioner of Fine Arts. Even so, just as salvation was vouchsafed to the Good Thief, is redemption possible for our swish, goosestepping friend? If the likes of Horowitz and Richter have a rival in this domain, it is surely Cortot. Every sentiment and state of being in Schumann's lexicon is given utterance and vibrantly so. Repeats are also sparse, particulary in Davidbundlertanze (Frisch in particular - my favourite - is disappointingly truncated). One almost raises a votive offering to Cortot when the Poet at last falls silent."
"After having played Appassionata's first movement in front of Anton Rubinstein, A.R told him: "Beethoven's music must not be studied. Consider besides, the happy meeting with two legend musicians as Thibaud and Casals; I mean, in despite of the fact the natural gifts, Cortot was surrounded for wisdom companies. & March 1929, Small Queen Hall) have been one of the main battle horses and most beloved preferred compositions by the most of high caliber pianists (as in the case of Frau Carreño, for instance) ; while Kempff gives a dreamy approach, Cortot makes a mesmerizing, disturbing and nervous performance, plenty of electricity and sublimate passion. It owns an overflowing poetry and is to my mind the nearest composition related with the autumnal approach of Franz Schubert in his last days. 2 (rec.4 July 1935) we find seriously less gifted pianist but at the meantime, a wiser man , this admirable set of variations are played with hat sense of elusiveness and dreams so typical of the youth years. 4 July 1935) - conceived by Schumann as " Souvenirs for those who have grown up" - is a superb poetic homage to those years of the childhood seen through adult eyes. We have to recognize and acknowledge the impressive and notable Engineering process about the clean and almost imperceptible hiss for Music & Arts personal."
"Cortot brings his own well-thought-out views to several of Schumann's central piano works, including Kreisleriana, Kinderszenen, and Symphonic Etudes."
Best Early Music
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I plan to buy more classical choral music as I used to sing with the choral affiliates of the Indianapolis and the Detroit Symphonies."
"CD Arrived Timely and Nicely Packaged!"
"I have admired Robert Shaw and I love Choral arrangements."
"Anyone who pursues the art of choral excellence - and with it a representation of the masterpieces will want and enjoy this CD."
"I like knowing that music I have hunted for can be found at Amazon."
"As usual, the articulation of words is such that you can hear them clearly, even sung by a large chorus."
"Robert Shaw (1916-1999) founded his Chorale in 1948 in New York City."