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Top 5 Classical recordings

HI all,

I was wondering how many of the AuidogoN fellows engaged in Classical Music would like to have a Thread to share top picks and recommendations, that hopefully will be useful for those looking to start or otherwise expand a collection.

In order to be of help not only to people already into it, but also newcomers, I would ask a double question:

A.- If you were to recommend a top 5 list of masterpieces of all time, to a person looking to get into classical music with no knowledge at all, which would be you recommendations?

B.- Your favorite 5 composers and his 5 top masterpieces.

I know just 5 may be very hard, for question one specially, but to keep it simple and of help to others I thought it may be a good number. And will be easier to to average in the different responses.

Also please provide a recommended recording of each piece if possible.

Lastly I would ask to indicate the number of disks each one owns of the category. It can be interesting to see if the responses changes with the experience of the individual. I don't mean an specific number... don't wanr anyone counting for 3 days 3,543 discs... but maybe a range like:

C.-

1.- < 10
2.- > 10 - < 100
3.- > 100 - < 1000
4.- > 1000

What do you think?

I will start myself:

A.-

1.- Mozart, Piano concerto No. 20 & 21:

Recommended recording: Mozart Piano Concertos 20-25, Decca, Vladimir Ashkenazy, ASIN: B0000041LF

2.- Beethoven, 5th symphony

Recommended recording: DG, Carlos Kleiber ASIN: B000001GPX

3.- Vivaldi, 4 seasons

Recommended recording: DG, Anne-Sophie Mutter ASIN: B00002DE2L

4.- Schubert, Trout Quintet

Recommended recording: DG, Amadeus Quarter, Emil Giles ASIN: B000001GXF

5.- Brahms, Piano trio no. 1

Recommended recording: Phillips, Beaux arts trio (complete trios), ASIN: B00000416K

B.- (in no particular order)

1.- Schubert

a) String quintet D956.

Recording, DG Late sting quartets, string quintet, Emerson Sting quartet. (Trio series). ASIN: B0001ZWGI8

b) String quartet death and the maiden D810

Recording, DG Late sting quartets, string quintet, Emerson Sting quartet. (Trio series). ASIN: B0001ZWGI8

c) Symphony no. 9 the great

Sony Classical. Bernsein century. Symphony no 8 and no. 9. New York Philharmonic and Bernstein. ASIN: B00003WGO4

d) Piano quintet The trout D667

DG, Amadeus Quarter, Emil Giles ASIN: B000001GXF

e) Piano trio in E flat D929

Decca. Schubert complete trios. Beaux arts trio, Grumiaux trio. (Duo series). ASIN: B00000417B

2.- Tchaikovski

a) Violin concerto no 1

Living stereo. Brahms/Tchaikovsky Violin concertos. Heifetz/Reiner. ASIN: B0009U55RE

b) String quartet no 1

DG Masters. Dvorak American quarter / Tchaikovsky quartet no 1 / Borodin Quarter no 2. Emerson String quartet. ASIN: B000001GO3

c) Piano concerto no 1

Living Stereo. Tchaikovsky piano concerto no 1 / Rachmaninov piano concerto no 2. Van Cliburn. ASIN: B0002TKFRC

d) Trio for piano op 50

DG. Shostakovich - Tchaikovsky trios. Argerich, Kremer, Maisky. ASIN: B00000JSAC

e) Symphony no 6 Pathetique

DG, Tchaikovsky symphonies No 4, 5 & 6, Karajan. ASIN: B000001GYJ

3.- Dvorak

a) Cello Concerto. DG. Dvorák: Cello Concerto, Op. 104 / Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations, Op. 33. Rostropovich. ASIN: B000001GQ8

b) Quarteto Americano. DG. Dvorák, Tchaikovsky, Borodin: Quartets. Emerson String quarter. ASIN: B000001GO3

c) New world symphony. Dvorák: Symphonies 8 & 9 / Kubelik, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. DG. ASIN: B000001GQ7

d) Piano Quintet. Dvorak: Piano Quintet, Op. 81/ String Quartet No. 10, Op. 51. Decca. Tacaks quartet & Andreas Haefliger. ASIN: B00001IVQR

e) Slavonic Dances. Sony. Cleveland Orchestra and George Szel. ASIN: B00005YD5H

4.- Rachmaninov

a).- Piano concert no 3. Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos 2 & 3 / Ashkenazy, Kondrashin. Decca. ASIN: B00001IVQT

b) Piano concert no 2. Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos 2 & 3 / Ashkenazy, Kondrashin. Decca. ASIN: B00001IVQT

c) Symphony no 2. Rachmaninov: The Symphonies. Ashkenazy. Decca. ASIN: B0000042HY

d) Piano sonata no 2. Horowitz Plays Rachmaninoff/Concerto for Piano in Dm; Sonata for Piano No2/Vladimir Horowitz. RCA. ASIN: B000003ER1

e) Piano concerto no 1. Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 - 4, Decca, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Andre Previn, ASIN: B00000427L

5.- Mozart

a) Piano concerto no 21. Mozart Piano Concertos 20-25, Decca, Vladimir Ashkenazy, ASIN: B0000041LF

b) String quartet no 14. (Hayden quartets). Warner Music. Alban Berg Quartet Mozart: String Quartets Nos. 14 - 23. ASIN: B000024MCP

c) Clarinet quintet. DG. Emerson String Quartet. Mozart / Brahms: Clarinet Quintets. ASIN: B00000IX73

d) Requiem. Mozart: Requiem / Tomowa-Sintow, Müller Molinari, Cole, Burchuladze; von Karajan. ASIN: B000001GK8

e) SYmphony no 41 Jupiter. Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 35, 36, 38- 41. DG. Karl Bohm. ASIN: B000001GQB

C) >100 - < 1000

Ok who is next... thanks
Eli
eelii08
lowrider57's avatar
lowrider57
5,393 posts
 
Newbee, appreciate your comment and agree about Bruckner and Mahler for newcomers. I was directing my advice toward Eelii08... maybe I didn't make that clear.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,850 posts
 
The 3rd was my incarnation with Mahler.

I used to record 6 hour chunks of public radio to VHS Hifi back in the 80's.

One day, I fell asleep while listening to 1 such tape but something I was hearing woke me up mesmerized in some kind of half dreamlike state. It was the opening movement of that Oslo Philharmonic performance of the Mahler 3rd I had recorded off of WLRH in Huntsville, Ala. I lay there mesmorized for a good 90 minutes or so and when it was done felt a spiritual cleansing of sort had occured. This was my conditioning to make a goal to soak in as much Mahler as I possibly can handle in my lifetime. Mahler is not something I would listen to regularly though in the same way that I would limit my time riding a roller coaster.

Dvorak, Sibelius Shostokovitch and Stravinsky would probably be my personal 6-8 choices in my list of favorite go to composers. A lot of Dvorak and Sibelius is quite digestible for a newbie. Shostakovitch and other better known 20th century composers a bit tougher to digest often.
eelii08 OP
169 posts
 
Thanks guys. I am not too familiar with Bruckner or Mahler. I will follow your recomendations and put it in my list of next listenings in order to expand. However, unless more people recommend them seems they would not make the cut for the short list of choices for starters, for what all of you say.

Newbee will take a look at your postings. Thanks.

Seems Sibelius is getting a lot of recomendations too. Can you give a list of 3 or 4 from him?

Shostakovitch I do like it but it is a bit hard at times. I very much like his piano trio. The live recording from DG with Argerich, Kremer and Maisky doing Tchaikovsky piano trio as well is just fantastic.
newbee
4,751 posts
 
Re Sibelius, One of my favorite budget recommendations is a London 'Double Decker' compilation by Ashkenazy with the PO and Horst Stein and the L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande on EMI on 2CD's. It includes Finlandia, Karelia Suite, Luonotar, Tapiola, En saga, Night-Ride and Sunrise, Pohjole's Daughter, and Four Legends from the Kalevala. These are Sibelius' most popular tone poems and incidental music. Very highly recommended set for the novice. It should keep one happy for some time!

Then there is the Violin Concerto. An excellent piece, certainly in the 'great' category. I have a bunch of 'favorites' but for this recommendation I'd go with Kyung-Wha Chung and Previn with the LSO. I recommend this because it includes as a disc mate the very popular Violin Concerto by Tchaikovsky. And it's some fine fiddling as well.

I'll let others recommend the rest. :-)
newbee
4,751 posts
 
A goof. The Sibelius compilation was on the London label, not EMI. My poor memory is failing. :-)
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