Sisyphos

On this CD:

1. Sisyphos, ballet Dans med döden "Dance with Death"
Composed by Karl-Birger Blomdahl
Performed by Stockholm Royal Orchestra

2. Sisyphos, ballet Livets dans "Dance of Life"
Composed by Karl-Birger Blomdahl
Performed by Stockholm Royal Orchestra

3. Chamber Concerto for piano, woodwinds & percussion
Composed by Karl-Birger Blomdahl
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra with Hans Leygraf
Conducted by Sixten Ehrling

4. Symphony, No 3, "Facetter"
Composed by Karl-Birger Blomdahl
Performed by Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Sixten Ehrling

5. Trio for clarinet, cello & piano
Composed by Karl-Birger Blomdahl
Performed by Kjell Baekkelund, Erling Blondal Bengtsson, Thore Janson

Tracks:

Divertimento In B-Flat (Adagio)
Cassation (Final-Musik) In G - Adgio
Divertimento In G Minor (Andante)
String Quartet No. 12 In B-Flat - Adagio
Divertimento In D, KV 131 - Adagio
'Eine Kleine Nachtmusik' - Romance (Andante)
Divertimento In D, KV 136 - Andante
Serenade In B-Flat 'Gran Partita' - Adagio
Prelude No. 3 In F
String Quartet No. 1 In B-Flat - Adagio
Violin Concerto In D - Andante cantabile
Divertimento In B-Flat - Adagio

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful.......2007-06-26

I bought this CD to listen to at work (I am 6 months pregnant). The quality is awesome and the choice of songs is perfect I can listen to it over and over.

Great for putting kids to sleep!.......2007-06-08

I absolutely love this CD! In fact this is our second one because we wore out the first since we played it so much. It is very soothing, and in fact we used it to help both our kids (now 4 and 18 mo) go to sleep since they were babies. I highly recommend it!

Very Relaxing.......2007-04-10

It is very soothing and really helps you relax. I enjoy listening to it in the car during my high stress commute.

A Must Have for all Parents of Little Children !!!.......2006-11-25

I bought this when my first baby was...well, a baby. That was 8 years ago. Now I am on my 4th copy of this cd (Mozart For Mothers to Be) and my 3rd child. Nothing works better. I'm on here to buy my 4th copy becasue I've worn them out over the years and have to keep replaceing them. My 8 and 3 year old still use it, and now the new baby, also. Make it part of your nightly bed time routine and you'll have good little sleepers in no time. I swear by it. It is very soothing, calming and not distracting so it won't drive you bonkers if you can hear it a little from the next room.

A truely great gift for new parents, or if you have a sleepless little one at home. Turn on the cd, turn down the lights and let it sooth them to sleep.

Inspire the baby-within.......2005-12-13

Beyond sheer musical appreciation and enjoyment, Mozart's music in general is ideal for gently stimulating the "creative centers" as well as instilling a sense well-being. While there is much academic disagreement about the extent or reality of the so-called "Mozart Effect," it doesn't take a genius to observe how Mozart's music puts most people (and probably babies-to-be) in a happy mood ready to take on the day's challenges. There is a simplicity - yet elegance and musical brilliance - in his music that is also well-suited for the youngest of children.

The selections on this CD are all excellent and represent a nice range of Mozart's compostions, emphasising those that are ideal for creating a pleasant backdrop for leisure, dining and social occasions ("divertimentos"). The recordings are from the creme of musicians famous for their Mozart. Few works are as elegant and soaring as the Serenade #10 for winds - an astonishingly beautiful tune made famous from the early scenes of the movie, "Amadeus." Mozart supreme gifts of music are even seen in such humble "background music" as these pieces. And such continuity of warm, leisurely tones as these over 70 minutes is ideal for inspiring the baby to-be if that is why you are considering this CD. Better to expose a baby to the gentile, lyrical music of Mozart than to the dissonant, loud and disturbing tones of some classical music written well after Mozart.

As the reviewer below rightfully notes, compilation CD's of various unrelated works like this one is not quite how classical music is best meant to be heard. But in a way it is better for many to start with such collections like this - especially for those who just want the more quiet selections that are unintrusive. In that respect, this collection can be satisfying for most anyone (not just moms or babies). I have a huge classical music collection, but still really enjoy listening to one full CD of similar-temperament music like this one that flows easily and smoothly that doesn't demand my attention but only seeks to delight. And, in the end, that was the simple and primary goal of many of Mozart's compositions - to be purely enjoyed and delighted.

Average customer rating:

Excellent resource for wedding planners
Great item!
Preview your wedding day
25 WEDDING FAVORITES
25 Wedding Favorites

25 Wedding Favorites

Manufacturer: Vox (Classical)
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Classical Wedding
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ASIN: B00004Y6T1
Release Date: 2000-09-05

Tracks:

Wedding March (Lohengrin)
Allegro I (Water Music) - Stanislaw Skrowaczewski
Trumpet Voluntary
Minuet (Music For The Royal Fireworks)
Canon in D Major
Spring - Susan Lautenbacher
Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba (Solomon)
Air (Water Music) - Stanislaw Skrowaczewski
Sheep May Safely Graze (Cantana No. 208)
Arioso
Bist Du Bei Mir' (Anna Magdalena Notebook)
Panis Angelicus
Weichet Nur' (Wedding Cantata)
Silent Worship (Tolomeo) - Mary Ann Hart
Ave Maria
Sehet In Zufriedenheit' (Wedding Cantata)
Ave Maria
Jesu Joy Of Man's Desiring
Air On The G String - Mainz Chamber Orchestra
Pastorale (Messiah) - Eastman Chorale
Nocturne - Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
Wedding Day At Troldhaugen - Utah Symphony Orchestra
Hornpipe (Water Music)
Wedding March
Toccata (5th Symphony)

Customer Reviews:

Excellent resource for wedding planners.......2007-04-05

I work regularly with people planning church weddings who want the service to be dignified, traditional and formal. Often they have "ear memory" of music they've heard in other weddings, but no idea about its composer or title. This CD is the best compilation I've found of music that fits those requirements. Selections include great music and performances make it easy to imagine how they would sound in a particular church or other setting. Includes works by Protestant, Catholic and secular composers.

Great item!.......2007-03-29

Great CD! Perfect when planning your wedding music. There are a variety of songs from various composers.

Preview your wedding day.......2006-08-14

This CD was inexpensive, and provided a great way to preview songs for my wedding. The CD had a good song selection. My fiance and I were able to get a better idea of how the songs would be at our wedding. Definitely an inexpensive tool that is worthwhile.

25 WEDDING FAVORITES.......2006-07-20

My daughter had to move her wedding 3 weeks before the event and the music she had arranged could not be there. I purchased this CD and we were thrilled with the price, the selections on the cd and how quickly it arrived. Thanks for providing the music for a beautiful wedding.

25 Wedding Favorites.......2006-02-24

This is an excellent CD for a formal wedding, so-so for a casual one.

The Most Relaxing Classical Album in the World...Ever!

Average customer rating:

Lives Up To The Title, Fine Variety Of Genre's.
Good for relaxing pregnant women
Too much opera
Does what it set out to do, very well
TRULY The most relaxing and beautiful music ever written.

The Most Relaxing Classical Album in the World...Ever!
Johann Sebastian Bach , Léo Delibes , Gabriel Fauré , Erik Satie , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Edvard Grieg , Johann Pachelbel , Claude Debussy , Felix Mendelssohn , Camille Saint-Saens , Henryk Gorecki , Antonio Vivaldi , Edward Elgar , Jocelyn Pook , Sergey Rachmaninov , Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni , Luigi Boccherini , Jules Massenet , Ludwig van Beethoven , Jacques Offenbach , Pietro Mascagni , Antonin Dvorak , Giacomo Puccini , Ralph Vaughan Williams , Alexander Borodin , Joaquin Rodrigo , and Samuel Barber
Manufacturer: Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Most Relaxing Classical Album In the World Ever, Volume II
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25 Classical Favorites
Best of the Millennium: Top 40 Classical Hits

ASIN: B00000I93Z
Release Date: 1999-03-30

Tracks:

Air 'On the G String' - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
Morning - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
Canon In D - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
Gymnopedie No.1 - City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
II. Andante - Stephen Hough
Viens, Mallika - Mady Mesple
In Paradisum - Choir Of King's College, Cambridge
Clair De Lune - Dame Moura Lympany
II. Andate - Yehudi Menuhin
The Swan - Osian Ellis
II. Lento E Largo - Tranquillissimo - Zofia Kilanowicz
II. Andantino - James Galway
II. Largo - Yehudi Menuhin
Nimrod - London Symphony Orchestra
Blow the Wind - Pie Jesu - Jocelyn Pook
Variation 18 - Cecile Ousset
Pavane Op.50 - Gareth Morris

Tracks:

Zion Hort Die Wachter Singen - South German Madrigal Choir
Adagio In G Minor - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
Minuet - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
II. Largo - Andrei Gavrilov
Meditation - Hans Kalafusz
I. Adagio Sostenuto - Dame Moura Lympany
Belle Nuit, O Nuit D'amour (Barcarolle) - Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
II. Andante - Nigel North
II. Adagio - Jack Brymer
Intermezzo - Philharmonia Orchestra
I. Moderato - London Chamber Orchestra
O Mio Babbino Caro - Montserrat Caballe
Fantasia On 'Greensleeves' - Sinfonia Of London
II. Adagio Sostenuto (Opening) - Cecile Ousset
Nocturne - Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields
II. Adagio (Opening) - Julian Bream
Adagio For Strings Op.11a - The Philadelphia Orchestra
Entr'acte To Act III - Orchestre National De France

Amazon.com

You want relaxing classical music that'll soothe your soul but won't lull you into sleep? Here's a double CD for you. The Most Relaxing Classical Album in the World ... Ever! does its best to cover both well-worn classical favorites (Bach's "Air on the G String," Pachelbel's "Cannon," Debussy's "Clair de Lune") and some eclectic left-field choices (an excerpt from Górecki's Symphony No. 3, Jocelyn Pook's "Blow the Wind," and Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings. The performances of most of these excerpts are top-notch--artists include Sir Neville Marriner, James Galway, Jacqueline du Pré and the Philadelphia Orchestra--and there's enough variety here for everyone. --Edward Garabedian

Customer Reviews:

Lives Up To The Title, Fine Variety Of Genre's........2007-02-04

This CD is a great way to enjoy a large variety of Classical Composers & many of their best known pieces. Vivaldi's "Four Seasons," is an all time favorite. There are vocals, Piano pieces, & some fine Violins. I found the latter the most enjoyable. Here you can find Rodrigo & Pachelbell. Samuel Barber's haunting Adagio will make your skin tingle. This may not be to everyones taste, but if you wish to relax? Give this a couple of listens.

Good for relaxing pregnant women.......2007-01-17

I stumbled onto this album whilst searching bit torrent websites for classical music. I don't normally listen to classical music but thought it might be relaxing for my pregnant wife. After hearing the quality of the performances, the arrangement, and the recording I decided to buy the album from amazon. All the songs you would expect from a "best album in the world" are there and they are not boring to listen to like a lot of other classical albums. I now play this album in the car constantly and the wife requested it be played at the hospital during the birth.

Too much opera.......2007-01-10

If it wasn't for the opera this would be a great CD.

Does what it set out to do, very well.......2006-11-15

So i'm a classical music veteran, someone who prefers to collect a complete work, rather than classical compilations. I probably would not have listened to this album at all if my dad didnt buy it for me as a gift. By now, i own the complete works that over half of the excepts on this disc come from. I am a purist if ever there was one.

That said, i totally adore this set because i have learned to take it on its own terms. These discs weren't meant for expert classical listeners, so a review from that sort of mindset is useless. This set was meant for pure, easy listening, and for a basic starters kit for classical newbies. Most of all, it was just meant to do what the title says, to relax the average human being. classical expert or not.

Yes, some of these pieces have been altered or shortened, like Mozart's Flute and Harp Concerto Andantino, but they have been edited for a good enough reason: the full versions would have been too long to flow with the rest of the album. And also, the full versions contain so much development that they don't become easy listening anymore. The shortened versions work in the context of the album. Most essentially, the shortened versions on the discs still convey the main flavor the composers were going for. The melodies and themes remain unchanged.

To sum up, it is true that when i want to actually listen deeply to classical music, this album would never be a choice. I would want to hear the complete works like the composers intended. But at certain times when i simply don't mind about that stuff, when i just need to loosen up and free my mind of stress with some nice melodies, this set does the job well enough.

Last but not least: being a purist and a classical buff, i am very particular about performance quality. I was very glad to find that EMI did not get lazy about this. All the artists are world-class, and all the performances are at least exceptional. Some performances are even quite excellent, like the Clair De Lune, which is one of the best i've heard. (Credit to Dame Lympany, the pianist.)

So once again, recommended for its stated purpose, to relax. I am a purist, a classical buff, and i still enjoy this disc. That says something.

TRULY The most relaxing and beautiful music ever written........2006-11-10

This album along with Volume 2 are now the two most valued albums in my music collection. I have all of the songs contained on these two albums but they are scattered through at least a dozen different albums and several are not performed by artists such as those that recorded this album and Volume 2.
SIMPLY BEAUTIFUL !!!!!!!!!!

Average customer rating:

How can you go wrong with Mozart?...Buy this and find out.
25 Mozart Favorites
Wonderful collection and price!
Nice Mozart selection - Nice price
Mozart Listener

25 Mozart Favorites

Manufacturer: Vox (Classical)
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000058HV
Release Date: 1996-08-20

Tracks:

'The Marriage Of Figaro': Overture
Symphony No. 29 In A, K. 201: ll. Andante
Symphony No. 25 In G Minor, K. 183: l. Allegro con brio
Piano Concerto No. 9 In E Flat, K. 271: ll. Andantino
Piano Concerto No. 17 In G, K. 453: l. Allegro
'The Magic Flute': Overture
Symphony No. 40 in G minor: l. Molto Allegro
Symphony No. 38 In D, K. 504 'Prague': lll. Finale: Presto
Serenade In B-Flat For 13 Winds, K. 361/370A 'Gran Partita': lll. Andante
Clarinet Concerto In A, K. 622: l. Allegro
Flute Concerto No. 2 In D, K. 314: ll. Andante ma non troppo
Clarinet Quintet In A, K. 581: ll. Larghetto
Piano Sonata In C Minor, K. 457: ll. Adagio
Piano Sonata In A Minor, K. 310: l. Allegro maestoso
Piano Concerto No. 23 In A, K. 488: ll. Adagio
Symphony No. 39 in E-flat, K. 543: lV. Finale: Allegro
Horn Concerto No. 3 In E-Flat, K. 447: lll. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 21 In C, K. 467: ll. Andante
Sinfonia Concertante For Violin And Viola In E-Flat, K. 364: l. Allegro maestoso
String Quartet No. 17 In B-Flat, K. 458 'The Hunt': l. Allegro vivace assai
Violin Concerto No. 4 In D, K. 218: ll. Andante cantabile
Violin Concerto No. 5 In A, K. 219: ll. Adagio
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525: lV. Presto
Requiem, K. 626: Confutatis Maledictis
Exsultate Jubilate: Alleluia

Amazon.com

This is an astonishing collection of works - or parts of works - by Mozart that covers almost every aspect of his creative output: symphonic, religious music, concerti (for piano, horn, violin, clarinet, flute), chamber music, serenades (for strings; winds), a couple of opera overtures and more. Those who know and love Mozart's music will not need this, but it's a great introduction, a great overview. The selections are well-chosen and interestingly organized, with familiar pieces splrinkled among some not-so well known. A good primer. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

How can you go wrong with Mozart?...Buy this and find out........2007-05-13

I was extraordinarely ignorant when I purchased this recording. I thought,"WOW!! Look at all the music you get in this CD set. The price cannot be beat!" When I received the CD, I discovered that you don't really get any music at all. This is a great sample CD, and should be bought by a person brand new to classical music. However, if you have any experience with classical music, you will want to pass on this CD.

Each of the pieces are hacked apart to the point of it being comical. It's interesting to listen to the greatest music in the world, only to have the development cut. All of a sudden I was thrust into a new key, I thought my ears were going crazy. Perhaps an effort by a decent high school orchestra, but this music is not up to snuff with any other recording.

Do yourself a favor and go out and purchase real recordings of Mozart, and not watered down stereotypes.

25 Mozart Favorites.......2007-05-12

Very pleased with product, delivery, cost and service. Will use this vendor again.

Wonderful collection and price!.......2007-05-11

I found this to be a nice collection of favorites, especially to keep in the car and listen to. It is a variety of well known compilations. Although not encompassing, it is perfect as a review for driving, relaxing, and enjoyment. Plus, the price is right!

Nice Mozart selection - Nice price.......2006-09-24

Nice selection of Mozart work that give us inner peace...

Mozart Listener.......2006-08-31

This is a good CD if you like Mozart's music. It is not the best CD I ever purchased. It is nice to listen to it in the morning before I go to work. And I sometimes listen to it in the evening before I go to bed. It is relaxing and soothing. I am not a music major or therapist. This is the best review I can write. Mary Agnes Cross

Jacqueline du Pre - Favourite Cello Concertos ~ Boccherini, Dvorak, Elgar, Haydn, Monn, Saint-Saens, Schumann

Average customer rating:

Beutefully interpretted
I THOUGHT I had heard these concertos,,,
Excellent Selection
A sassy dame
Pleasure to listen

Jacqueline du Pre - Favourite Cello Concertos ~ Boccherini, Dvorak, Elgar, Haydn, Monn, Saint-Saens, Schumann
Edward Elgar , Luigi Boccherini , Antonin Dvorak , Camille Saint-Saëns , Joseph Haydn , Arnold Schoenberg , Robert Schuman , Daniel Barenboim , Sir John Barbirolli , Jacqueline du Pré , Valda Aveling , Georg Mathias Monn , London Symphony Orchestra , New Philharmonia Orchestra , Chicago Symphony Orchestra , and English Chamber Orchestra
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000002S1F
Release Date: 1990-05-07

Tracks:

Cello Concerto No. 1 In C Major, Hob. VIIb:1: 1 - Moderato - Kadenz - Tempo I
Cello Concerto No. 1 In C Major, Hob. VIIb:1: 2 - Adagio - Kadenz - Tempo I
Cello Concerto No. 1 In C Major, Hob. VIIb:1: 3 - Allegro molto
Cello Concerto No. 2 In D Major, Hob. VIIb:2: 1 - Allegro moderato
Cello Concerto No. 2 In D Major, Hob. VIIb:2: 2 - Adagio
Cello Concerto No. 2 In D Major, Hob. VIIb:2: 3 - Rondo (Allegro)
Cello Concerto in B flat major: 1 - Allegro moderato - Kadenz - Tempo I
Cello Concerto in B flat major: 2 - Adagio no troppo
Cello Concerto in B flat major: 3 - Rondo (Allegro) - Kadenz - Tempo I

Tracks:

Cello Concerto In A Minor, Op. 129: I. Nicht zu schnell
Cello Concerto In A Minor, Op. 129: II. Langsam - Etwas lebhafter - Schneller
Cello Concerto In A Minor, Op. 129: III. Sehr lebhaft - Kadenz - Tempo I
Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33
Cello Concerto In G Minor: I. Allegro
Cello Concerto In G Minor: II. Adagio
Cello Concerto In G Minor: III. Allegro non tanto

Tracks:

Concerto In B Minor, Op. 104: I. Allegro
Concerto In B Minor, Op. 104: II. Adagio ma non troppo
Concerto In B Minor, Op. 104: III. Finale (Allegro moderato)
Concerto In E Minor, Op. 85: Adagio-Moderato
Concerto In E Minor, Op. 85: II. Lento-Allegro molto
Concerto In E Minor, Op. 85: III. Adagio
Concerto In E Minor, Op. 85: IV. Allegro ma non troppo

Amazon.com essential recording

During her far-too-brief career, cellist Jacqueline du Pré exhibited an almost oracular power of communication. Her performances bristled with the kind of brilliant electricity that could change lives and convert listeners to a lifelong love of music. Happily, it's possible to experience a sense of that power from the recordings du Pré completed before multiple sclerosis halted her career as a performer in the early 1970s. This set provides a splendid portrait--at bargain price--of du Pré's unmistakable personality: the astonishingly original yet convincing phrasing, raw energy, and ability to make her instrument sound uncannily like a human voice (du Pré was after all a favored student of Mstislav Rostropovich). Her rendition of Haydn's Concerto in C is clearly cast in a romantic--and nowadays perhaps unfashionable--mold, yet du Pré's big, bold tone carries the musical line forward with exhilarating presence. It's a demeanor that proves especially reassuring for the quirkily mercurial inventions of Boccherini. Yet du Pré most indelibly leaves her signature on the work that became her hallmark, Edward Elgar's E Minor Concerto, grafting a deeply personal level of expression onto the score's rich post-World War I melancholy. In the Schumann, du Pré makes an eloquently passionate protagonist. A similar sense of excitement is to be heard in Dvorák's Concerto--performed near the end of her career--above all in the flame of inspiration she evidently sparks from the orchestra in the serene close of its slow movement. This is a supremely rewarding collection for the beginner and aficionado alike. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews:

Beutefully interpretted.......2007-04-04

Jacquline du Pres interprettation of some of the moast famous cello consertos is simply amasing. her music just flows with energy and abbowe all passion. she realy brings out the qaleties of the cello with intensety and softnes intertwined. music bursting with passion.

I THOUGHT I had heard these concertos,,,.......2007-04-04

UNTIL I was fortunate enough to have heard them performed by Jacqueline du Pre!!!
ABSOLUTELY STUNNING!!! Her superb playing, along with truly masterful
interpretative skills, just "comes pouring out of the speakers!"
Also, the orchestras were obviously truly inspired by these opportunities to perform and record with one of the greatest musicians of all time.
The sound quality is excellent, as is the separation and clarity of both the soloist's and orchestral performances. The overall dynanism is also top notch - I found I had to lower the volume substantially from my normal
system loudness levels.
I've enjoyed this set so much I'll probably wind up buying everything from Amazon that EMI has produced with Jacqueline du Pre's name on it!

Excellent Selection.......2007-02-27

The choice of concertos is excellent and the artistry of Jacqueline du Pre is exceptional. The Schumann and Saint-Saens works are truly beautiful.

The album is a fitting tribute to the tragic loss of an incredible young talent.

A sassy dame.......2007-02-20

I love this CD. It came extremely fast to NZ and a bonus too as I was expecting only one cd not three!
While Dvorak is currently my favourite, other composers featured here have been growing on me.
Never been a Cello devotee in the past, but I am enjoying this new phase of my musical listening.
The late Ms du Pre plays with vigor and assertiveness, yet manages to convey those moving and sublime moments when needed.
Most enjoyable. Thanky you

Pleasure to listen.......2006-02-23

This 3 cd pack plays daylong on the player. Great music, great artist.

Essential Mozart: 32 Of His Greatest Masterpieces

Average customer rating:

Gorgeous music, bad quality cd.
Great music, low quality reproduction
A nice introduction
Mozart is the reference point for good classical music.
Mozart's music

Essential Mozart: 32 Of His Greatest Masterpieces

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol. 1
Beethoven Collection: Symphonies Nos. 1-9, Complete Recording (Box Set)

ASIN: B00005A8JZ
Release Date: 2001-03-13

Tracks:

Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K525: Allegro - Academy Of St Martin-In-The-Fields
Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K467: Andante - Radu Lupu
Le nozze di Figaro: Voi che sapete - Cecilia Bartoli
Clarinet Quintet In A Major, K581: Largetto - Peter Schmidl
Ave verum Corpus, K618 - James Vivian
Vesperae solennes de confessore in C major: Laudate Dominum - Emma Kirkby
Concerto For Flute And Harp In C Major: Andantino - Lisa Beznosiuk
Le nozze di Figaro: Overture - London Philharmonic Orchestra
Cosi fan tutte: Trio: Soava sia il vento - Renee Fleming
Symphony No.39 in E-flat Major, K495: Andante con moto - Chicago Symphony
Horn Concerto: Rondo - Barry Tuckwell
Don Giovanni: Serenade Deh, vieni alla finestra - Bryn Terfel
Contredanse In C Major, K609 No.1 'Non piu andrai' - Vienna Mozart Ensemble
German Dance, K605 No.3 'Sleigh Ride' - Vienna Mozart Ensemble
Piano Concerto No.23 In A Major, K488: Adagio - Vladimir Ashkenazy
A Musical Joke, K522: Presto - Vienna Mozart Ensemble

Tracks:

Symphony No.40 In G Minor, K550: Molto allegro - Vienna Philharmonic
Piano Sonata No.16 In C Major: Allegro - Andras Schiff
The Magic Flute: Queen Of The Night: Der Holle Rache - Sumi Jo
Clarinet Concerto In A Major, K622: Adagio - Franklin Cohen
Don Giovanni: La ci darem la mano - Cecilia Bartoli
Serenade in Bb Major, K361: Adagio - London Wind Soloists
Der Vogelfanger bin ich ja - Hermann Prey
Le nozze di Figaro: Dove sono - Kiri Te Kanawa
Violin Concerto No.3 in G Major, K216: Adagio - Joshua Bell
Requiem, K626: Lacrimosa - Vienna Philharmonic
Litaniae de venerabili altaris sacramento: Dulcissimum convivium - Margaret Marshall
Piano Sonata No.11 In A Major, K331: Rondo alla turca - Andras Schiff
Don Giovanni: Champagne aria: Fin ch'chan dal vino - Bryn Terfel
Divertimento No.17 in D Major, K334: Minuet & trio - Vienna Mozart Ensemble
Exsultate, jubilat, K165: Alleluja - Leontyne Price
Symphony No.41 In C Major, K551 'Jupiter': Finale: Molto allegro - Vienna Philharmonic

Customer Reviews:

Gorgeous music, bad quality cd........2007-04-13

The music is Mozart's and is fantastic. The last piece on the first disc
stutters halfway through, and seizes up my system. I don't have time to return items to Amazon. On the positive side, most of the time Amazon provides quality products and service. I gave 3 stars because I love the music.

Great music, low quality reproduction.......2007-01-30

this is a great collection of his work... the only problem i have found so far is that my copy has irritating "clicks" over the recording.

A nice introduction.......2006-02-22

This is a good well rounded collection to dip you into the classical world of Mozart.

Mozart is the reference point for good classical music........2005-10-20

A good collection of his best work and I find it helps me focus when I'm writing or contempating life.

"We exposed these animals [rats] in utero and then sixty days after birth to different types of auditory stimulation and then we ran them in a spatial maze. And sure enough, the animals that were exposed to the Mozart completed the maze faster and with fewer errors. And now what we're doing is we're removing their brains so we can slice them and see neuro-anatomically precisely what has changed as a function of this exposure. So it may be that this intense exposure to the music is a type of enrichment that has similar effects on the spatial areas of the hippocampus of the brain." --Dr. Frances Rauscher

Dr. Frances Rausher sums up what I feel happening when I expose myself to this incredible composer (Mozart).

I have yet to grow tired of any of the tracks yet, but I will invest in more of his work soon.

Mozart's music.......2005-10-17

This is a review of Mozart's music, not the cd. Mozart is praised to the skies by all and sundry, including most musicians, including my father, who no doubt has his reasons. But my feeling about Mozart has always been that there is nothing in Mozart's music that is other than music. There is no logical impressionism, there are no events that seem to be transpiring as in, for example, Beethoven. Mozart is just music. Mozart is to music as pure mathematics is to science. It hints of nothing else and has no application. I find some of his music irritatingly trivial, for example, Eine Kleine Nachtmuzic. This is mechanical music that one can imagine being piped in by a totalitarian government that insists everyone be cheerful. If Disneyland was an eighteenth century totalitarian state, Mozart would be its Muzak. The populace would be awakened, like Chinese train passengers, at 6AM by the strains of some allegro. They would arise and busy themselves with their ablutions in a state of thoughtless cheer, never for one moment leaving the surface of things. That being said, the second movement of Mozart's clarinette concerto is the music that one will hear on going into heaven.

Average customer rating:

Great for the road
Beethoven 25 Favorites
25 Beethoven Favorites
bEtHoVeN mAnIaC
Great Price...Not so good itself

25 Beethoven Favorites

Manufacturer: Vox (Classical)
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000058HX
Release Date: 1996-08-20

Tracks:

Egmont Overture - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 In C Minor - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 21 In C Major - Alfred Brendel
Piano Sonata No. 14 In C Sharp Minor - Jerome Rose
Piano Sonata No. 8 In C Minor - Jerome Rose
Piano Sonata No. 23 In F Minor - Jerome Rose
Symphony No. 6 In F Major - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 7 In A Major - Ludwig Van Beethoven
'The Creatures Of Prometheus' Ballet - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Violin Concerto In D Major - Susanne Lautenbacher
Sonata For Violin And Piano No. 5 In F Major - Aaron Rosand
Piano Trio In B Flat - Mannheimer Trio
Fse - Various Artists
Quintet In E Flat For Piano And Winds - Abbey Simon
'Chorale Fantasy' In C Minor For Piano, Chorus And Orchestra - Walter Klien
Piano Concerto No. 2 In B Flat - Alfred Brendel
Piano Concerto No. 3 In C Minor - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 4 In G Major - Alfred Brendel
Piano Concerto No. 5 In E Flat - Alfred Brendel
Symphony No. 3 In E Flat - Ludwig Van Beethoven
'The Ruins Of Athens,' - Ludwig Van Beethoven
'Corolian,' - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Ecossaise For Piano - Alfred Brendel
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor - Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 9 In D Minor - Ludwig Van Beethoven

Customer Reviews:

Great for the road.......2007-05-11

Beethoven 25 Favorites.......2006-11-21

Very good! I ordered it especially for Piano Sonata No. 8 Pathetique

25 Beethoven Favorites.......2006-11-05

Good overview of his works----an introduction into his depth as a composer

bEtHoVeN mAnIaC.......2005-11-03

[...] Honestly, it isn't THAT THAT great, but its good enough for its price. I'd say that your $ pays off, for a while. I've noticed how after a long time, it gets aggrivating at times. No harm meant, "Beethoven lover". I just mean don't plunge into this cd with all the hopes in the world. Besides, it's just my opinion, so you may like it more than me. All i can say is; a) listen to some samples before you buy, b)know this is not REALLY the great Beethoven himself, and c) enjoy YOUR music, whatever it may be.

Great Price...Not so good itself.......2005-05-19

This a great priced cd, but the content is why it is so cheap. It's a true-amateur album. Beethoven Lover is over her/his head. This is the real world, not a fantasy-everyone-likes-every-type-of-music world. Deal with it and agree with me. It isn't so great.

Beethoven: The Complete Symphonies and Piano Concertos

Average customer rating:

Great Performance
Great Analog Beethoven Cycle
An essential collection
The best value in classical music on CD at the moment...
Wonderful Performances

Beethoven: The Complete Symphonies and Piano Concertos

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Beethoven - The Complete String Quartets / Alban Berg Quartet
Mozart:The Complete Piano Sonatas and Variations
Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas / Daniel Barenboim
Dvorák: The Symphonies
Furtwangler Conducts Beethoven - Beethoven: symphonies no 3,4,5, & 9, Leonore

ASIN: B00004YA0S
Release Date: 2000-11-07

Tracks:

I: Adagio Molto - Allegro Con Brio
II: Andante Cantabile Con Moto
III: Menuetto & Trio: Allegro Molto E Vivace
IV: Adagio - Allegro Molto E Vivace
I: Allegro Ma Non Troppo
II: Andante Molto Mosso
III: Allegro - In Tempo D'allegro - Tempo I
IV: Allegro
V: Allegretto

Tracks:

I: Allegro Con Brio
II: Marcia Funebre: Adagio Assai
III: Scherzo & Trio: Allegro Vivace
IV: Finale: Allegro Molto - Poco Andante - Presto
Gross Fuge

Tracks:

I: Adagio Molto - Allegro Con Brio
II: Larghetto
III: Scherzo & Trio: Allegro
IV: Allegro Molto
I: Allegro Con Brio
II: Andante Con Moto - Piu Mosso - Tempo I
III: Allegro -
IV: Allegro - Presto

Tracks:

I: Adagio - Allegro Vivace
II: Adagio
III: Menuetto: Allegro Vivace - Trio: Un Poco Meno Allegro
IV: Allegro Ma Non Troppo
I: Poco Sostenuto - Vivace
II: Allegretto
III: Presto - Assai Meno Presto
IV: Allegro Con Brio

Tracks:

I: Allegro Vivace Con Brio
II: Allegretto Scherzando
III: Tempo Di Menuetto
IV: Allegro Vivace
Overture
Overture
Overture
Overture

Tracks:

I: Allegro Non Troppo, Un Poco Maestoso - Christa Ludwig
II: Molto Vivace - Presto - Christa Ludwig
III: Adagio Molto E Cantabile - Andante Moderato - Christa Ludwig
IV: Presto - Recitativo - Allegro Assai - Alla Marcia - Christa Ludwig
Overture - Christa Ludwig

Tracks:

I: Allegro Con Brio
II: Largo
III: Rondo: Allegro Scherzando
I: Allegro Con Brio
II: Adagio
III: Rondo: Molto Allegro

Tracks:

I: Allegro Con Brio
II: Largo
III: Rondo: Allegro
I: Allegro Moderato
II: Andante Con Moto
III: Rondo: Vivace

Tracks:

Fantasia For Piano, Chorus And Orchestra
I: Allegro
II: Adagio Un Poco Mosso -
III: Rondo: Allegro

Amazon.com essential recording

Otto Klemperer's Beethoven is one of the towering achievements in the history of recordings. By today's standards, these performances are hopelessly old-fashioned: dark, heavy, and frequently very slow. But they are also the grandest, most unsentimental, most purposeful versions in the catalog. In addition, the relatively slow tempos (only in the fast movements--the slow ones are pretty swift) and forward wind balance permit more detail to be heard than in most original-instrument performances. At budget price and with the entire piano concerto cycle thrown in for good measure, this is greatness incarnate. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

Great Performance.......2007-07-07

There are many different ways to perform Beethoven and each one is valid.
If you like it fast - go to Toscanini or Norrington. If you prefer slow, powerful and majestic, this is your set. Towards the end of his distinguished career, the great Otto Klemperer set down his final views of the performance of these symphonnies. The set is a coherent whole and will give great pleasure for ever. The challenging mix of the young Barenboim and the aged Klemperer worked surprisingly well and thus the concertos may also be recommended. There are odd additional items which add to the pleasure. Finally do not forget to purchase his memorable set of 'Fidelio' to complete your traversal of a great conductor giving great performances of a composer that he loved. Finally the price is ridiculously low and provides quality and quantity at a great price. Thus you should be able to buy the opera set from the savings made!

Great Analog Beethoven Cycle.......2007-05-07

This Klemperer cycle is just one of a dozen or so GREAT analog Beethoven symphony cycles that were recorded during Analog's golden age starting about 1958. These cycles are easily a match for digital and they should still be around for another 1,000 years, if the Lord tarries. These sets include: Karajan (twice, early 60s and late 70s) Bohm, Krips, Jochum, Bruno Walter, Leinsdorf, Rene Leibowitz, Szell, Ormandy, Bernstein, Steinberg, and Solti. This morning I listened to the Klemperer recordings of Beethoven's symphonies 5, 6, & 7. Very enjoyable, I got my Beethoven RDA fix.

Of all these Analog sets, I most enjoy the Leibowitz Spring 1961 cycle with the Royal Philharmonic. I have this cycle on an audiophile early 90s European import Edition Phoenix label special pressing "on extra virgin vinyl." These are by far the best analog symphonic lps I have ever heard from a recording standpoint. BY FAR! And they will rock your house.

You can almost justify Karajan's 4 recorded Beethoven cycles and one video based upon improvements in recording technology. Thru Rhapsody, I have listened to his mid 50s cycle and the orchestra sounds great, but the recording quality is sub par compared to Analog's golden age. So the rational for 4 cycles would be, (1) recent great improvements in recording technology (early 60s), (2) it has been 15 years and he has grown as an artist (late 70s), (3) we now have digital! Let's do one of the first Beethoven digital cycles (80s).

Klemperer is a no-brainer. I do not have to think twice about plopping one of his lps onto my turntable or hitting the play button at Rhapsody. When the music starts, the listening pleasure begins. Don't miss his Bruckner symphony recordings!

An essential collection.......2007-04-25

How best to describe Otto Klemperer's perspective on Beethoven's symphonies: grand, heroic, intense, insightful, stubborn, obstinate, detailed, dramatic, monumental, granitic, deeply emotional, never sentimental. This boxed set of the complete symphonies and concerti embodies all of these elements as stands as one of the great achievements of recorded music.

These performances were recorded with the Philharmonia Orchestra at its peak, in the sumptuous acoustics of Kingsway Hall in London and in fine and detailed sound, and mostly in the mid-1950's during one of the brief charmed periods of Klemperer's life. EMI's impresario Walter Legge had made him permanent conductor of the Philharmonia, and when Klemperer embarked on this project in his 70's, he was in relatively good mental and physical health (Klemperer could show symptoms of manic depression and survived many health crises - brain tumor, broken bones, paralysis - which would have stopped most people).

By this time Klemperer had slowed the tempi of the fast movements of the Beethoven symphonies (listen to his early 1950's recordings of the 5th and 6th on Vox to hear by how much). This tendency is more pronounced in these studio recordings than in the live performances which were recorded during that era. The slowness is mostly saved by Klemperer's use of "sprung" rhythms, which keep the slow tempi from feeling laggardly.

Klemperer's earliest recordings in this series - symphonies 3, 5 and 7 - predate stereo and were recorded in excellent monaural sound. He rerecorded all three of these symphonies in stereo, but those recordings were made after he burned himself by falling asleep while smoking in bed. All three performances feature slower tempi than the earlier ones (whether this was the conductor's preference or the result of physical incapacity is open to conjecture). In particular, the rerecorded 7th suffered from lax phrasing, inattentiveness and perverse tempi. That is NOT the version contained in this set: fortunately, EMI had simultaneously recorded the earlier version of the 7th in "experimental" stereo, and it is that earlier version which is released here (and in remarkably good stereo). The versions of the 3rd and 5th are the rerecorded stereo ones.

You will find no finer studio versions of the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 7th or 8th. All are insightful, beautifully detailed and powerful. The 2nd clearly looks forward to the 3rd and not back toward Hayden, the 4th is boisterous and vital, the 6th bucolic and sumptuous (not a quality normally associated with Klemperer), the 7th gains in drama what it loses in swiftness and lightness, and in the 8th in particular we see the conductor's empathy to Beethoven's sense of humor. Klemperer had a deep affinity for the "Eroica", and the rerecorded version here, while slower than the 1955 recording, was dubbed by "High Fidelity"'s Harris Goldsmith (no Klemperer fan, he) as "the best Eroica going slow" and is a monumental masterpiece (the second movement is shattering). The 1st, while leisurely, is a lovingly crafted.

That leaves the 5th and 9th. There is no doubt in my mind that the earlier, mono 5th is superior to the remake in this set. We lose that sense of an inevitable onslaught, especially in the outer movements. And the 9th, while similar in conception to the live versions recorded around the same time (on Testament with the Philharmonia and on Music&Arts with the Concertgebouw), suffers from diffuse sound and occasional lack of focus. I emphasize that these recordings of both symphonies are still head and shoulders above most of the competition; we're talking about different levels of greatness here.

Are there superior Klemperer recordings of these symphonies? Yes; but all are live, and despite the relatively good reprocessed sound, they don't reveal the same level of detail that these studio recordings do. Klemperer was a very different conductor in front of an audience, and there is more vitality and drama in the live versions of the 3rd (Testament, with the Danish Symphony), 6th 7th and 8th (Music&Arts with the Concertgebouw) and the 9th (see above). Music&Arts' set of the complete symphonies, recorded live in Vienna in 1960, is long out of print and had cramped sound with poor detail - a supplement to this set, not a replacement.

As to the piano concerti: they are better than one might expect. Barenboim, although steeped in the Germanic performance tradition, is more naturally aligned with the Furtwangler and Edwin Fischer than with Klemperer. However, the two of them actually work together extremely well and this is a fine, insightful set.

Any complete cycle of Beethoven, symphonies or concerti, will have drawbacks. There will be unevenness in the performances, as there are here. But there are advantages to hearing one musician's perspective on the works, especially when (as here) the performer has depth of understanding, integrity of vision, and a structural understanding of the pieces.

The digital remastering is excellent and the sound barely shows its age. This may not be your only complete set of Beethoven's symphonies, but it should be one of them. And at a price this low, it's a bargain too.

The best value in classical music on CD at the moment..........2007-01-02

What is the best value in classical discs available today ? Who knows, but I defy anyone to beat the EMI compilation of Klemperer' recordings of the complete Beethoven Symphonies, Piano Concertos (with Barenboim), several overtures the Choral Fantasia etc etc. 9 discs for only $44 ( well that was the price I paid). You have got to be kidding... I only had two concerns with buying this. First on the age of the recordings, all more than 40 years old. No worry at all. This is a masterpiece of reconstruction. The sound quality indistinguishable from any modern recording. Secondly , the performances themselves. I had been warned that Klemperer notoriously chose rather slow tempi. Again I needn't have worried. I immediately went to the slow movements of the 2nd piano concerto and the fourth symphony, where many slow tempists have in the past come unstuck. The piano concerto was an absolute revelation. The combination of the youthful Barenboim and the Philharmonia's masterful playing time and gain had me on the edge of my seat. " Yes,go on, well...." Slow it may have been. Boring, never. The same applies in spades to the slow movement of the fourth. Right from the eerie opening, which is yes, very slow indeed, I knew this movement would be a revelation and I can honestly say I have never hear it better played. Follow this with a scherzo bounding in energy and thumping finale and you will never get a better performance of this, one of Beethoven's "lesser" symphonies. And I haven't even got round to the "biggies" yet! The box set looks unattractive and the portrait of Klemperer makes him appear a first class nerd. Pay absolutely no attention to this....

Wonderful Performances.......2006-04-07

I have admittedly not made it through the entire set as of yet, but feel sufficiently blown away by the First Symphony and the Eroica - particularly the second movement of the latter - to weigh in here. With respect to the tempo issue, I must - at least so far - argue in favor of Klemperer's decision to slow things down a bit. I think the effect is, as someone else has observed, a clearer and more visceral experience of Beethoven's composition. It brings out the feeling. The sound comes up a little short on the low end, but it isn't a major distraction. My only problem lies in EMI's inexplicable lack of any discussion of the performances. The notes are bland, dry descriptions of the pieces themselves, with some basic history thrown in. Given the fact that there are probably hundreds of different CDs of Beethoven's symphonies out there, all with similar explanatory notes, it is infuriating that nothing is said about these particular performances. This is in contrast with the EMI Bach set (with Yehudi Menuhin) in which there is a wonderful essay that discusses Menuhin's work in historical context.

Average customer rating:

Just what you would expect
Wonderful collection and price!
Like Floating On A Cloud
Bach
Good CD, especially for novices

25 Bach Favorites

Manufacturer: Vox (Classical)
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Fugues | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Inventions | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

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General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B0000058I1
Release Date: 1996-08-20

Tracks:

Toccata In D Minor For Organ
Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 In F: I. Allegro
Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 In G: I. Allegro
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 In D: II. Affetuoso
Concerto For 2 Violins In D Minor: I. Vivace
Concerto For 2 Violins In D Minor: II. Adagio
Violin Concerto No. 1 In A Minor: I. Allegro
Violin Concerto No. 2 In E: I. Allegro
Magnificat In D: Magnificat
Magnificat In D: Deposuit potentes
The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I: Prelude 1
Concerto For 3 Harpsichords In C: II. Adagio
Concerto For 2 Harpsichords In C Minor: II. Adagio
Concerto For 4 Harpsichords In A Minor: First Movement
Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring
Toccata, Adagio & Fugue In C: II. Adagio
Partita No. 3 For Solo Violin: Prelude
2-Part Invention: No. 8 In F
Wachet Auf: Sleepers Awake
Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 In G: III. Presto
Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 In F: III. Allegro assai
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 In D: III. Allegro
Orchestral Suite No. 2 In B Minor: VII. Badinerie
Mass In B Minor: Gloria
Mass In B Minor: Dona Nobis Pacem

Customer Reviews:

Just what you would expect.......2007-05-19

I was looking for a CD of exclusively Bach music, not necessarily played by a famous artist or orchestra. This had a lot of his well-known pieces and was exactly what I was looking for.

Wonderful collection and price!.......2007-05-11

Like Floating On A Cloud.......2006-09-20

My first real appreciation of this sound was from watching the film "Slaughterhouse Five" in the theater, back in the '70s. That soundtrack was just a taste of what you get with this recording. My family pops this CD in the car stereo on long trips, and glide down the highway to some original smooth grooves. Helps the miles pass swiftly. Music for the soul.

Bach.......2006-08-27

Surely you don't need me to review the guy. You know who he is, you've heard his music, and I hope you own some. So let me turn the podium over to a cat named Picasso, and you can read into that whatever you wish. She's in a chair, near the CD player. She has entered the room specifically for the music. Her eyes are squinted, almost but not quite shut, little face concentrating on just how contented those sounds make her feel. Nobody can say why they move her so, any more than we can say why they move us so. If we knew the answer to that one, we'd copy the guy. But anyway, she loves the music, and don't you dare make a sound such as squeaking your computer chair. If you do, her golden orbs will open, fix upon your face, and shame you. Yes they will. But if you are quiet long enough, you can watch a little calico sleep, with the very same sweet kitten face that drew you to her five years ago. Bach is gooooood.

Good CD, especially for novices.......2005-10-12

I was looking for a recommended Bach CD - certain music by a certain orchestra - and stumbled on this. It is an excellent choice for a new library. I think when there was more than one movement to a piece, it would have made more sense to go ahead and keep the movements together instead of separating them, but a novice listener would not notice. A great way to become exposed to a great composer.

Average customer rating:

terrific
Get what you pay for.
Wonderful!
If only the Amazon discography was as good...
One of the best Vivaldi CDs on the market

25 Vivaldi Favorites

Manufacturer: Vox (Classical)
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00000IPS5
Release Date: 1999-12-13

Tracks:

I. Allegro - Antonio Vivaldi
I. Allegro - Paul Grund
I. Allergro - I Musici di Zagreb
II. Largo - Edward Carroll
III. Alegro - Gli Accadmici di Milano
Et In Terra Pax - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra And Chorus
II. Adagio Molto - Susanne Lautenbacher
I. Allegro - Musici Di San Marco
II. Largo - Musici Di San Marco
III. Allegro - Melvin Berman
II. Largo - Anton Stingl
I. Allegro - Alois Sprach
II. Adagio - Susanne Lautenbacher
Stabat Mater Dolorosa (Opening Movement) - Margarethe Bence
III. Allegro - I Musici di Zagreb
II. Largo - Gunter Lemmen
III. Allegro - Hans-Martin Linde
III. Allegro - Susanne Lautenbacher
I. Allegro - Musici Di San Marco
III. Allegro - Susanne Lautenbacher
I. Allegro - Musici Di San Marco
II. Larghetto - I Musici di Zagreb
Chamber Concerto In G Minor For Recorder And Oboe - Baroque Trio Of Montreal
Opening Movement From 'Gloria' - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra And Chorus
Concerto In C For 2 Trumpets, PV 75: III Allegro - Edward Carroll

Customer Reviews:

terrific.......2006-04-23

Vivaldi 25 favourites is marvelous ,it has been digitally enhanced and is certainly a keeper.Really am pleased with anything i have purchased from Amazon

Get what you pay for........2005-10-15

This CD is decent but does NOT sweep you off your feet into a soaring concert hall with your heart beating loudly and your breaths coming in faster. Why? I think its the quality of the recording and the caliber of the musicians maybe? But hey, $4.98 does not buy much more than a fast food meal- so no harm done! Happy Listening!
-Rupa

Wonderful!.......2004-11-26

I couldn't believe the wonderful, pure sounds that came from this low-priced CD. I absolutely love it and highly recommend it!!

If only the Amazon discography was as good..........2004-02-14

The majority of the musical selections is undeniably fine. If only the track listing (s) were accurate or agreed with each other and the actual selections as they are ordered on the CD!

One of the best Vivaldi CDs on the market.......2003-01-24

I don't know how SPJ Music Inc., based in the world-famous town of Hauppaage, NY, manages to do it, but they have released at least 24 of these "25 XXXX Favorites" CDs, and all those that I have heard are superb collections. OK, many of the performances on this album are by ensembles that few will have heard of in North America, such as the Wurttemburg Chamber Orchestra, Musica di San Marco, and I Musici di Zagreb, and maybe they are a bit old (no recording dates are given), so SPJ probably doesn't have to pay much in the way of royalties. But this collection of works by Vivaldi is truly second to none.

Wait till you hear track 6, "Et in terra Pax from 'Gloria', by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, for instance, or track 14, from Stabat Mater Dolorosa, sung by Margarethe Bence with the Alto Pro Music Orchestra of Stuttgart. We are transported into the heights of the etherial world of sacred music, right up into the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, yet with that unmistakable touch of Vivaldi, who could be both consumately sacred and masterfully secular as he wished -- or even both at the same time. As has been proven again and again in the 20th century, Vivaldi was one of the greatest composers in history, and every classical music lover should have this CD in his or her collection.

I have a lot of Vivaldi recordings by period music ensembles like the virtuosic Il Giardino Armonico (who recorded the two best DVDs of Vivaldi works in existence, one with Cecilia Bartoli) and the somewhat more conservative Europa Gallante, led by Fabio Biondi. Then there are CDs by individual masters like Andrea Marcon (with the Venice Baroque Orchestra) and the immortal Nigel Kennedy (with the English Chamber Orchestra). Older classics re-released on CD include recordings by the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, the Orchestra of the 18th Century, and the Romero family (Los Romeros). And the list goes on and on. All are superb recordings that have given me hours of pleasure.

But this "bargain" CD rates right up there with the best of them, and I highly recommend it both for those who are just beginning to discover the wonders of Vivaldi's music and for "hardened" veterans. If it had been issued as a full price CD it might have had trouble getting known in such a crowded and competitive field, but it would have deserved every bit as much praise as I have given it here. As a collection of superb performances of many of Vivaldi's greatest masterpieces by a wide variety of different ensembles, it even has something to commend it over recordings by a single artist or a single ensemble. Buy it and enjoy!

Music Track:

Recommended Music:

Music from Six Continents, 1998 Series

Music: Red Tape

Stone's Throw [Import]

Nowhere to Hide [Live] [Import]

Les plus grandes chansons [IMPORT] [Import]

Live at Palo Alto: May 13, 1955 [Live]

How Tha West Was Won, Vol. 1

God Can Do Anything But Fail

Behaviour Self