Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo Classical Music suggestions? (sushi?)

Welcome, Chris. I'm also a fan of Jim Svejda. If you can't get him in Holliston(strangely, Great Barrington is the only MA station listed), you should be aware that on the kusc.org site you'll be able to get to a list of the dozens of stations which stream their audio on the internet and carry Record Shelf at various times. Jim also hosts classical music every weekday night on KUSC from 7:00 PM to midnight.

Hi spiffnme,

I have a few suggestions that I think you may enjoy:
($$$=premium,$$=mid,$=bargain)

Rachmaninov/Franck, Sonatas for Cello and Piano, etc.
Hyperion CDA 67376 $$$
Stephen Isserlis(Cello), Stephen Hough(Piano)

This is a brand new recording, and it is absolutely fantastic. The Rachmaninov is particularly gripping. Pricey, though!

Rachmaninov, Piano Concerto No.3 in D minor, Opus 30.
Arcadi Volodos (Piano), James Levine (Cond.), Berlin Phil
Sony Classical SK 60893 $$

Live, although you would be hard pressed to tell. Best Rachmaninov 3rd, hands down (I have 15 different recordings of it, and have heard over 40)

Bach, Solo Cello Suites 1998 recording
Pieter Wispelwey (Cello)
Channel Classics CCS 12298 $$$ (but double pak)

Very warm, beautiful tone. Avoid his earlier (1990) recording on the same label.

Holst, The Planets
Andrew Davis (Cond.), BBC Symphony
Apex (Time/Warner - budget) $

My favorite recording of The Planets, spectactular performance and well recorded too! Dutoit is nice, but 3 times the price (rhyme not intended)

Also, if you are in Canada, check out the CD bins at Chapters/Indigo. They carry a classical series done by Tring (TIM classics?) that is really good. The CDs look a little like something you might find at WalMart, but the recordings are very well done, and some of the artists give definitive performances. All performances are with the Royal Philharmonic, using various conductors. Here are a few good starters:

Beethoven Piano Concertos 1,5
Beethoven Piano Concertos 2,3
Beethoven Piano Concerto 4, Triple Concerto
Michael Roll (Piano), Howard Shelley (Cond.)

Grieg Piano Concerto, Lyric Pieces (excerpts)
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto, Seasons (excerpts)
Ronan O'Hora (Piano), James Judd (Cond.)

Checkout the Apex (Time/Warner) series. Cheap (cheaper than Naxos, even!), but often good. For definitive sound quality (albeit high price), the Chandos label has unbeatable sound. Hyperion is usually not too far behind. Unfortunately, these labels are both UK imports, making them $$$. Brilliant Classics has taken to re-releasing some good recordings originally done on CRD, ASV and Haenssler that can be quite good too, and they are very affordable (at HMV).

I know this seems like a long list, but there is a lot of good stuff out there that is often overlooked by music snobs.

Good luck!

Alright...for Sushi or any of you other classical fans out there....I've been listening to the 4 CD classical sampler set that I bought. One of the songs I orginally wanted was Wagner "ride of the valkyries". As I'm listening, I came across another track I've really been liking. I just checked the CD, and suprise suprise, it is also a Wagner piece, "Prelude to Lohengrin". Is there a good quality recording out there where I can get both of these pieces as well as some of his other stuff. I think this might be a good place for me to start. Thanks in advance.

Zarak

Z, the first thing is that you must be warned that on penalty of death ist verboten to refer to classical orchestral excerpts(especially by Wagner!)as "songs".

My favorite CD that has the two excerps you mentioned(assuming it's the Prelude to Act I of Lohengrin;the Preludes to Acts II and III are somewhat less famous)is on Deutsche Grammophon DG 447 764 with Levine conducting the Met Orchestra. Of course, I could also give you a laundry list more.

We like laundry lists. Tell us all you know.

Craig, I should insist on certification that you got all my previous suggestions. But at this point I'll at least add one more in case it's really the Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin that Z liked: very nice Wagner collection on Seraphim 73299(about $7)with Jansons and the Oslo Philharmonic.

Suggestion. . . this thread has some good recommendations. Print it out and take it to your Public Library. Usually they have some good CD's of many types. Check out some and you can narrow down some of your preferences. I pay for this "free" service in my community through ever-increasing property taxes.

I have cut and paste most of the suggestions here into one document, and have brought it with me on two occasions already when shopping for music. It's been very helpful!

I've been looking online trying to find this...I'm finding things close but don't know that I have the exact recording. I assume DG 447 764 is a catalog number that I can search on. I found something related but it looks like a 4CD set of the entire Parisal (SP?), which was $67 or so. I'm guessing this is overkill for what I am looking for.

Perhaps this is it...
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000041KY/ref=ase_bridgebooks/102-7622250-4650523?v=glance&s=music

I'll check out the library before I do anything and see what I can dig up.