CD-Charts Position 1
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The #1 Opera Album

by: Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Léo Delibes, Georges Bizet, Umberto Giordano, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Richard Wagner, Gioachino Rossini, Alfredo Catalani, Jacques Offenbach, Ruggiero Leoncavallo, Charles Gounod, Gaetano Donizetti, Pietro Mascagni, Antonin Dvorak, Richard Bonynge, Herbert von Karajan, Alberto Erede, Lamberto Gardelli, Giuseppe Patane, John Mauceri, Zubin Mehta, Charles Dutoit, Gyorgy Fischer, Riccardo Chailly, Istvan Kertesz, Leone Magiera, Evelino Pido, Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Renée Fleming, Cecilia Bartoli, Luciano Pavarotti, Jussi Bjorling, Renata Tebaldi

Release Date February 27, 2001
I'm new to opera, but this CD has really beautiful music. I use it in my CD clock radio (Timex, that I purchased here also) to go to sleep to.

CD-Charts Position 2
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Ravel: Boléro

from: Decca

Release Date November 09, 1999
I find Maurice Ravel's music among the most unique and wonderful of the twentieth century. It marks the sublime marriage of pensive impressionism with--and many music scholars might disagree with me on this matter--a vibrant late-romanticism. There are few collections that highlight this grandness with as much clarity as this album.

The vividness of Ravel's orchestral coloring and the complexity of his polyphony can make the performance of any of his works a sizeable challenge for the finest of orchestras--the slightest miscalculation in dynamic, timing, or articulation can result in entire voices being lost in a mass of sound, but the Montreal Symphony do a flawless job. Also, Maestro Dutoit's interpretations are well-measured, ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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Violin Adagios

from: Decca

Release Date March 20, 2001
An excellent compilation of folk tunes and violin concerto adagios, played masterfully by some of the world's most revered musicians. Features modern pieces (Korngold, Barber), which are a personal favorite of mine.

CD-Charts Position 4
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Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals

from: Decca

Release Date October 25, 1990
As an instructor of a college level Music Appreciation course, I consider this CD to be a very handy item in my teaching arsenal. Believe it or not, these young adults appreciate being engaged in hands-on listening lessons, and the format of the composition allows for that. The quality and clarity of the sound is outstanding, and the orchestra of French musicians pays homage to their native son Camille Saint Saens. Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals
Thank you, J. Esquilin

CD-Charts Position 5
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Essential Tchaikovsky

from: Decca

Release Date March 12, 2002
There's something for every Tchaikovsky lover on this disc. From Swan Lake to Onegin, many of Tchaikovsky's most-known melodies are on this disc. I'd have preferred more than an excerpt of the first movement of Piano Concerto No. 1, but this disc is a great introduction to Tchaikovsky's works.

CD-Charts Position 6
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Romantic Adagios

from: Decca

Release Date June 13, 2000
This is a very nice cd to listen to and sip red wine in one's back yard while reading a good book. Well worth to add to your collection.

CD-Charts Position 7
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Saint-Saëns: Piano Concertos 1-5

from: Decca

Release Date May 16, 1995
I am so happy to have discovered these piano concertos from Saint-Saens. I listen to this CD very often. It truly is a beautiful collection of music. I am thrilled to have discovered Camille Saint-Saens.

CD-Charts Position 8
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Prokofiev: Complete Concertos

by: Sergey Prokofiev, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Joshua Bell, Lynn Harrell, Andre Previn, Charles Dutoit, London Symphony Orchestra

Release Date January 14, 2003
This set contains almost all Prokofiev's concertos. Contrary to what is advertised as "Complete Concertos", it omits Prokofiev's early work "Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 58". Although a large amount of thematic material is reused in the later piece "Sinfonia Concertante for cello & orchestra in E minor, Op. 125", there are really substantial differences. (Traditionally, when a set is advertised as "complete", it will contain at least all works with Opus numbers.) But really, Op. 58 is not performed in the concert halls these days. (At least, none that I am aware of.) If you are really interested in comparing these 2 works, you may consult, e.g. Chandos recording "The Unknown Prokofiev".

I like the performances here. For each individual ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
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Chopin: Piano Concertos nos. 1 & 2 / Dutoit, Argerich

by: Frédéric Chopin, Charles Dutoit, Martha Argerich, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal

Release Date May 18, 1999
I usually like both Argerich and Dutoit, but EMI has not done either of them justice, and to me, Argerich sounds less involved than in other recordings. The real drawback, though, is the sound. Decca provided Dutoit and the Montreal Symphony with clear, open sound that made their recordings enjoyable. To me, EMI's sound here is indistinct, bordering on muddy at times. Orchestral detail is lost, and on a couple of occasions the piano just disappears behind the orchestra. I bought this recording expecting something special, but was quite disappointed.

CD-Charts Position 10
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Movie Adagios

from: Decca

Release Date October 09, 2001
This CD was all that I hoped for. Beautiful, evocative music just made for a relaxing evening at home.