Best Classical Music for Sonus Faber Stradivari

Many of the Mercury CD reissues are very good. And, take a look at this thread about the Naxos recordings (which are very modestly priced) and pay particular attention to the recommendations from Texasdave. The Naxos catalog has some great recordings, but also has some not-so-good recordings.

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?gmusi&1068320901

If you're looking for recommendations of MUSIC for getting started listening to classical, there are several threads in the archives that will help with this. Let us know and we can point you to some as starting points.
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Some labels which are not specifically audiophile but which I have often found to be well-recorded: Pierre Verany, Harmonia Mundi, Hyperion and Analekta. Great music, great performances to be found here. Try Analekta's Handel arias sung by Karina Gauvin, if you like baroque vocal.

Never buy just for the quality of the recording (okay maybe just once to use as a demo). The performance means everything in any form of music and classical is no exception.

If you're just starting out then try the Carlos Klieber conducted Beethoven 5th and 7th symphonies. They are well recorded and very good performances. Try also the George Szell conducted Brahms Symphony #3 with Variations on a Theme by Haydn. These are all pieces that haven't grown old in 35 years of listening.

You can try Gary Karr Double Bass album for a mix, the double bass should be "to die for" on your SF.

Tall order as there are thousands. I'd suggest buying the DGG set celebrating James Levine's 60th B'day. The 3 CD's contains spectacular performances of Brahms, Stravinsky, Bartok, Sibelius, Beethoven... Uniformly stunning. Next I would get John Eliot Gardiner's recording of Bach's St. Matthew Passion (or Suzuki's recording of the Matthew Passion on the BIS label), Beethoven's MISSA SOLEMNIS (Gardiner) and the Beethoven Nine Symphonies with Abbado conducting the Berlin Philharmonic. After that some random suggestions: CHRONOCHROMIE of Messiaen (Boulez conducting on DGG), Boulez's DGG recordings of DEBUSSY with the Cleveland Orchestra, Schoenberg's GURRELIEDER (either the Chailly recording on Decca or Abbado's recording on DGG)....