CDs: Classical

This disc includes two Violin Sonatas written by Alexander Feht in 1982 in Siberia. They were recorded in Moscow, and digitally remastered by Stephen Tholberg in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. ALEXANDER FEHT (composer) Alexander Feht was born in 1961 near Siberian city of Novosibirsk in Russia. He received formal musical education (piano, ... (See the whole review)

Art songs, written by Alexander Feht, classical composer from Siberia and long-time citizen of the U.S., were recorded in Moscow in P. K. Kondrashin’s studio by distinguished tenor Nikolay Dorozhkin and pianist Sergey Chechyotko. " ... Excellent songs deserving to be known in the grand line of Russian melodies, and sung by a Russian tenor w... (See the whole review)

This album represents James Horner at his absolute finest.  The film itself has become a cult fantasy classic, but even people who panned the film gave the score top ratings.  This soundtrack marked Horner's first experience conducting the London Symphony Orchestra, and at the time of the album's production in 1983, he became the youngest composer ... (See the whole review)

I come from a part of the world where Christmas means sunshine & summer holidays so it's hard not to have a sense of irony about the yuletide season when you see signwriters painting snowy graphics on shop windows while wearing shorts, Serengetis & SPF 30+. Indeed, an ambulance always follows Santa's float in the Christmas parade just in case the j... (See the whole review)

Not your father's "Switched on Bach"... William Orbit takes a modern synth approach to classics by Barber, Beethoven and Vivaldi without going the disco "Hooked on Classics" approach (or its modern day equivalents like the BOND girls...). Some may love it, purists may hate it, but it is interesting to see technology enable the individual t... (See the whole review)

How is Rachmaninoff not listed here yet? And not just because Rand mentioned his 2nd piano concerto in The Fountainhead. I loved, *loved* Rachmaninoff long before I'd even heard of Ayn Rand. I guess I assumed he would be a shoo-in with the Tchaikovsky crowd. In any case, this is a 3 CD set containing his four piano concertos, the impossibly ... (See the whole review)

Reiner at the helm, Gilels on the piano, and the CSO: nothing comes close to this one. This is an old recording, so you will easily find clearer modern CDs of this piece; but you will NOT find a better performance. This CD may be a hard find new (Amazon list it as 'out of stock'), but its worth it; used copies can be ordered from Amazon.com. Perhap... (See the whole review)

No other composer has put as powerful a spell on me, or as enduring a spell, as Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovksy. Tchaikovsky is my favorite of all composers, and his 4th and 6th Symphonies, are my most beloved of all his compositions. In this CD set you will hear 3 of the greatest symphonies ever written, with Conductor Yevgeny Mravinsky and the Leningrad... (See the whole review)

Composed by the great Nigel Hess. Hess and Bell worked closely together on the creation of this soundtrack. I haven't even seen the movie yet, but as a huge fan of Joshua Bell I had to get the CD as soon as possible. And it was a great decision. Each peice is a melodic joy. Bell plays with his usual precsion, feeling, and beauty. ... (See the whole review)

This is an attractive 2CD set of the complete music for solo violin by J.S. Bach. Performed by Objectivist violinst Garrett Fischbach, a member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York City. The Sonatas and Partitas are technical wonders, seamlessly combining the intellectual and emotional, the craft and art, as one inseparable expres... (See the whole review)

I was very surprised to have just discovered there was a soundtrack to the movie!!! ... (See the whole review)

There are Bach-worshippers in their millions, to be sure. Normally, I'm not one of them. But, via Stokowski, Bach acquires KASS. These are transcriptions for orchestra by Stokowski of various compositions (or borrowings) by Bach for organ. They will scatter your toupee, blow your mind, quicken your pulse (dangerously), inflame your belly, stir your... (See the whole review)

There's been way too much headbanging caterwauling promoted here lately (btw, did y'all realise that you can post CD recommendations under the "headbanging caterwauling" category now?) so I thought I'd recommend the sublime music-making I've just been listening to: Anne-Sophie Mutter playing the Bruch Violin Concerto with the Berlin Philharmonic. M... (See the whole review)

I'm going to take the unusual step here of directing people to someone else's review, here. This is because the review, like the music itself, is outstanding, and has certainly enhanced my enjoyment of it, and of one piece in particular, the Appassionata. ... (See the whole review)

This exciting string quintet brings new life to chamber music (though to keep it confined to mere chambers would be a crime). I just recently purchased this album through the iTunes music store and have thoroughly enjoyed all of it. All of the music on this CD was composed by the ensemble's violist , Mark Landson. All of the members of this group h... (See the whole review)

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I truly love this album... Its ominous dirge gives vent to something essential in me, like no other piece of music has ever been able to.  Here are some more explanatory reviews from the Amazon.com website: ... (See the whole review)

Concerto of Deliverance ... (See the whole review)

Of all the recordings of the 9th that I've listened to, this version, conducted by John Eliot Gardiner, is my favorite.  He really attacks the music, yielding an intense and epic result.  It was recorded using period instruments, so supposedly sounds much more like Beethoven originally intended.  The fifth movement seems to me to be especially pass... (See the whole review)

Rock group Queen's music always did have a touch of the operatic. Some of their best known tracks have now been arranged as a classical symphony, and it works brilliantly! I'd heard Freddy Mercury was a big opera fan. Coincidence? (See the whole review)