Classical Wedding
This CD contains such beautiful music! My fiance and I are going to be married outside on the cliffs overlooking the beach, and this CD will be perfect for that walk down the aisle. Before I purchased this album, I practiced 'walking down the aisle' to get a feel for the music with the music samples provided, and I knew it was the perfect album when it brought tears to my eyes. It is ... Regular Price : $11.98
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Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 35-41
Karl Bohm was one of this century's great Mozart conductors--a fact that's apt to be forgotten in the flood of authentic instrument productions, many of them on DG's associated labels. He conducted Mozart with real love and affection, maintaining moderate tempos, allowing each work's gorgeous melodies a chance to sing and breathe. Mozart's symphonic music has its roots in the opera house, and so did Bohm. Listening to the witty woodwind interjections in the finale of Symphony No. 39, ... Regular Price : $23.98
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300 Years of Guitar Masterpieces
Manuel Barrueco is one of the best guitarists I've ever heard. Listen to his own arrangement of Albeniz's Suite Española and you'll have trouble believing it's only two hands on one guitar. But Barrueco doesn't use his technique to show off. He's a solid musician, as expressive in Bach as in Villa- Lobos. He also makes transcriptions that respect the origins of the music. This is a wide-ranging guitar collection, but all the music is ... Regular Price : $15.98
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Chopin: 4 Ballades / Perahia
Chopin's Ballades are imaginary short stories that leave the plot to the listener's imagination. The trick to a successful performance of such freeform compositions depends on the pianist's ability to realize all the color and variety of the various episodes while at the same time retaining control over the narrative structure of each piece. In short, it requires a classical poise and balance in projecting the relationship between form and content. This is just the sort of thing that ... Regular Price : $11.98
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Beethoven:The Five Piano Concertos/Triple Concerto
This surely rates as one of the great Beethoven piano concerto cycles of all time. It's a pity Sony hasn't remastered it using the latest digital image bit technology, but the sound quality sounds quite clear and pure, inspite of its age. Fleisher offers dramatic performances which are replete with ample lyricism and warmth. He comes across more as an American Wilhelm Kempff than as an Alfred Brendel; like Kempff, there is much passion ... Regular Price : $23.98
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Debussy: Piano Works
Philippe Entremont was really taken for granted as a pianist, both in the U.S. and in his native France. A favorite with Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and a staple pianist of the 1960s Columbia catalogue, Entremont displayed many of the finer points of the French school: precision, proportion, tight rhythm, and a colorful touch. This Debussy collection, a real bargain at budget price, features all of his strengths, in music which belongs in every piano-music ... Regular Price : $7.98
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Yo-Yo Ma & Bobby McFerrin: Hush
The idea here was to put two masters together--one classical cellist, one improvisational singer/sound-effects performer--and voilà! instant amazing, unique, hip--and, hopefully, hit--record. The intriguing setup was to see what would happen when each led the other through the unfamiliar territory of his own specialty. The success of this recording lies not so much in the music or even in the overall performances, but in the fascinating and fun opportunity to sit in on the musicians' good-natured, respectful give-and-take, to ... Regular Price : $17.98
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Schubert: Symphonies No.8 "Unfinished" & No.9 "The Great"
Schubert's two greatest orchestral works on one CD at budget price--if the performances were indifferent this would be no bargain at all, but they are superb. In fact, these versions may have been equaled, but they have never been surpassed. George Szell understood intuitively how to balance Romantic passion with intellectual discipline. In difficult pieces like the Schubert Ninth, he rose to the challenge like an Olympic athlete after a new world record. The recordings he made in his ... Regular Price : $7.98
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Bernstein Favorites-Children's Classics
Bernstein's comments and his way of narrating the first two pieces (Carnival of the Animals and Peter and the Wolf) was a wonderful way to add to this grand music. I was surprised by his free approach to the music. If you want to hear more of him, Copland's Second Hurricane has him narrating. It's not that great musically though (the Copland). The Britten piece is a favorite for the Children's Special on my local radio station, WGMS ... Regular Price : $9.98
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Classical Music For People Who Hate Classical Music
If you're looking for an all-in-one classical set, this one is probably the best you could get. There're however MAJOR omissions in this collection (as there always are):
1/ No Chopin (I mean come on, a classical collection without Chopin!)
2/ No Albinoni. Wow, how could one omit the Adagio for strings!
3/ Beethoven's work has been greatly overlooked. No Symphony no. 5. Only one piano sonata and none of the haunting violin sonatas!
