Favorite Classical CDs by 
NickVolos 
If you made it this far down, you just discovered my favorite chart of all - a list of my favorite classical CDs. Most of these CDs are collections of multiple of the composer's works - in some cases spanning the whole lifetime of the composer - rather than individual works. The chart is sorted based on my favorite collection of a composer's work and not based on the performer(s) and/or conductor that interprets it. All selections are rated 100 as all represent the absolutely top most quality that music has to offer. Reverse this chart from 100 to 1 and the music in it remains beautifully perfect.
- Chart updated: 02/09/2015 13:15
- (Created: 11/07/2013 04:43).
- Chart size: 27 albums.
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These six quartets (counting the Große Fuge) comprise Beethoven's last major, completed compositions. Although dismissed by the musicians and audiences of Beethoven's time, they are widely considered to be among the greatest musical compositions of all time. The Late String Quartets inspired many composers and musicians. Igor Stravinsky described the Große Fuge as "an absolutely contemporary piece of music that will be contemporary forever". Richard Wagner, when reflecting on Op. 131's first movement, said that it "reveals the most melancholy sentiment expressed in music". The quartets have been performed and recorded by string quartets worldwide. (wikipedia)
[First added to this chart: 11/07/2013]
Year of Release:
1993
Appears in:
Rank in 1993:
None
Rank in 1990s:
None
Average Rating:
Comments:
0
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I have heard all these pieces and even played some myself over the years and thought that this was an excellent collection of Mozart's wind concerti. You really get to see the development of this prodigy from his teens (bassoon concerto) to his late 30s, the clarinet concerto was one of his last crowning pieces.
The oboe and bassoon concerti were both delightful and the "clicking" of the keys mentioned by another reviewer are the limitations of the instruments. I'm an oboist and all oboes and bassoons make this noise. I don't find it distracting at all. If you hear it, think of it as an percussive accompaniment. :-) I thought the bassoon concerto to be one of the best interpretations yet and the oboe concerto was confident and bright.
The Sinfonia Concertante (one of my original reasons for purchasing the set) was delightfully balanced and playful - a definite pleasure.
The flute concerto and andante were both fun to listen to as well as the concerto for flute and harp. The horn concerti are always joyful and are a nice balance to all the woodwind (technically-speaking) music.
The clarinet concerto was indeed lovely and played on a basset clarinet so there were some richer tones than when it's played on a typical 'A' clarinet. Superb.
I thought all the concerti had wonderful cadenzas and the orchestra was excellently balanced against the soloists. This is a CD collection that you will never regret and will feed your soul. (Music Freak, Amazon Customer Review) [First added to this chart: 11/08/2013]
The oboe and bassoon concerti were both delightful and the "clicking" of the keys mentioned by another reviewer are the limitations of the instruments. I'm an oboist and all oboes and bassoons make this noise. I don't find it distracting at all. If you hear it, think of it as an percussive accompaniment. :-) I thought the bassoon concerto to be one of the best interpretations yet and the oboe concerto was confident and bright.
The Sinfonia Concertante (one of my original reasons for purchasing the set) was delightfully balanced and playful - a definite pleasure.
The flute concerto and andante were both fun to listen to as well as the concerto for flute and harp. The horn concerti are always joyful and are a nice balance to all the woodwind (technically-speaking) music.
The clarinet concerto was indeed lovely and played on a basset clarinet so there were some richer tones than when it's played on a typical 'A' clarinet. Superb.
I thought all the concerti had wonderful cadenzas and the orchestra was excellently balanced against the soloists. This is a CD collection that you will never regret and will feed your soul. (Music Freak, Amazon Customer Review) [First added to this chart: 11/08/2013]
Year of Release:
2002
Appears in:
Rank in 2002:
None
Rank in 2000s:
None
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Judging from the somewhat sonically compromised recordings available, hearing Arturo Toscanini live really must have been a tremendous musical experience. With the current set of complete Beethoven symphonies remastered to best mono-channeled sonics to date from the archived masters, we can finally hear into the boxy, cramped acoustics of the recording studio and by hearing into the orchestra departments, we can more accurately hear the extremely high level of technical discipline which the great conductor encouraged, if not demanded from his players. Significant unanimity of instrumental attack is filled out with significant single-mindedness when it comes to releasing the note(s), and finally we can hear something like an almost uncanny one-ness of phrasing and tempo, both within instrumental groups and across them.
The spillover is music, music, music. Once he got all his players sufficiently together, Toscanini had a clear (and typically, compelling) vision of where the composer who wrote the music wanted the music to go. Surely like any gifted music-maker, Toscanini no doubt had his worse days and his better days. After listening through all nine Beethoven symphonies in remastered sonics on headphones, a modern listener can pretty much finally get enough of what Toscanini was doing with his players, and when it comes to Beethoven, it's fairly difficult in the final analysis to gainsay Toscanini as at least one way that Beethoven does sound, can sound, ... and perhaps ought to sound?
Each one of the nine stands tall as utterly indispensable in these famous Toscanini readings which, as people duly note, have hardly been out of print since their first release on vinyl. The familiar dynamism of the odd-numbered symphonies comes across without hesitation; but the even-numbered works have genuine Beethoven force and energy, too. (Dan Fee, Amazon Customer Review) [First added to this chart: 11/09/2013]
The spillover is music, music, music. Once he got all his players sufficiently together, Toscanini had a clear (and typically, compelling) vision of where the composer who wrote the music wanted the music to go. Surely like any gifted music-maker, Toscanini no doubt had his worse days and his better days. After listening through all nine Beethoven symphonies in remastered sonics on headphones, a modern listener can pretty much finally get enough of what Toscanini was doing with his players, and when it comes to Beethoven, it's fairly difficult in the final analysis to gainsay Toscanini as at least one way that Beethoven does sound, can sound, ... and perhaps ought to sound?
Each one of the nine stands tall as utterly indispensable in these famous Toscanini readings which, as people duly note, have hardly been out of print since their first release on vinyl. The familiar dynamism of the odd-numbered symphonies comes across without hesitation; but the even-numbered works have genuine Beethoven force and energy, too. (Dan Fee, Amazon Customer Review) [First added to this chart: 11/09/2013]
Year of Release:
1958
Appears in:
Rank in 1958:
None
Rank in 1950s:
None
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 3. Page 1 of 1
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Favorite Classical CDs composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 1 | 4% | |
| 1960s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1970s | 3 | 11% | |
| 1980s | 3 | 11% | |
| 1990s | 8 | 30% | |
| 2000s | 12 | 44% | |
| 2010s | 0 | 0% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
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|
|
| Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert | 3 | 11% | |
| Aldo Ciccolini | 2 | 7% | |
| Musica Amphion / Pieter-Jan Belder | 2 | 7% | |
| Jean-Philippe Collard / Augustin Dumay / Frédéric Lodéon / Michel Debost / Le Quatuor Parrenin | 1 | 4% | |
| Quatuor Mosaïques | 1 | 4% | |
| Jakob Lindberg | 1 | 4% | |
| Alban Berg Quartett | 1 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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|
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9 | 33% | |
| |
3 | 11% | |
 |
3 | 11% | |
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2 | 7% | |
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2 | 7% | |
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2 | 7% | |
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1 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
Favorite Classical CDs chart changes
| New entries |
|---|
 Debussy: L'Oeuvre Pour Pianoby Aldo Ciccolini |
Favorite Classical CDs similarity to your chart(s)
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