CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

Sarah Brightman Classics

by: Sarah Brightman, Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni, Francisco Tarrega, George Frideric Handel, Fryderyk Chopin, Sergey Rachmaninov, Giacomo Puccini, Antonin Dvorak, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Marie Canteloube, Francesco Sartori, Paul Bateman

Release Date November 20, 2001
I bought this for my brother for Christmas. It came when it was supposed to and was in perfect condtion. Wonderful experience, would order from this dealer again.

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

Classical Barbra

by: Barbra Streisand

Release Date October 25, 1990
This is the best album by her by far. The songs are old and I did not know them but they showcase her magneficent voice to perfection.

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

Renee Fleming - The Beautiful Voice ~ Gounod, Lehar, Orff, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Strauss

from: London/Decca

Release Date February 10, 1998
Once again Renee Fleming presents glorious collaborations in a compelling performance. The overall conception is one of beauty and unequivocal direction of line. Fleming begins with "Louise: Depuis le Jour." The spacious long phrases are profoundly evocative and the vocal timbre is crafted with glowing, long-breathed generosity. My most cherished performance is "Songs My Mother Taught Me",(A favorite of Joan Sutherland's) from the Gypsy Melodies Op.55, No.4. It is delighting in sweet textural clarity and brimming over with an infectious sense of inner purpose. Followed by "Martha: Last Rose of Summer," and "Doretta's Dream Song", Fleming sings with such a level of imagination which is rare enough, but once heard it never leaves you. "Carmina Burana: ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

Kiri

by: Kiri Te Kanawa, Giacomo Puccini, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, George Frideric Handel, George Gershwin, Giuseppe Verdi, Paul McCartney, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Marie-Joseph Canteloube, Gustave Charpentier

Release Date November 20, 2001
A terrific album by a great singer. This album represents the considerable territory that Kiri Te Kanawa covers in here repertoire. She moves easily from Handel to Puccini to Jerome Kern. The insertion of classic show tunes as a part of this CD is a nice little plus. Some opera stars absolutely kill popular music by overwhelming it with operatic technique (listen to Richard Tucker singing "What now my love"; this is a pleasant little tune, but it can't stand up to Tucker's voice of steel, using all the power at his command). Te Kanawa sings these songs, for the most part, nicely and does not overpower them with operatic conventions.

She does a wonderful job on Handel's "Let the bright seraphim," displaying good coloratura technique, ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

Best Classics 100 Volume 1

from: Angel Records

Release Date August 29, 2006
I was excited to see such a great collection of classics, but I was really disappointed to listen and discover that many tracks are shortened dramatically. A fraction of Rhapsody in Blue- a ridiculously short fragment of Bethoveen Ninth Symphony- "Ode to Joy" a tiny part of the first movement of Rachmoninov's Piano Concerto no.3.

I'd rather have fewer tracks and the complete movements.

CD-Charts Position 6
Average Rating:

The King's Singers Greatest Hits

from: EMI Classics

Release Date February 05, 2008
King's Singers Greatest Hits was disappointing. The contemporary music included did not have the smooth feel that one expects, and the classical pieces were all right but not spectacular. I did not feel that some of these pieces were greatest hits. I will probably go back to listening to older collections of their music.

CD-Charts Position 7
Average Rating:

Ultimate Classical: Chill Out

from: Decca

Release Date September 24, 2007
This is the ultimate collection of music to relax by. The five-CD set has it all: from the well-known "hits" to the relatively obscure, but equally beautiful and soothing pieces that you may hear for the very first time in this set. Just as incredible is the drop-dead low price! And finally, having all your classical favorites (including the freshly discovered ones) "under one roof" tops-off this great deal.

CD-Charts Position 8
Average Rating:

Best Relaxing Classics 100

from: EMI Classics

Release Date January 15, 2008
All of the EMI's series are inexpensive and worthwhile. If you don't mind short selections and exerpts, this series is a good,inexpensive way to get into classical music.I have the whole set,or most of them.

CD-Charts Position 9
Average Rating:

Lullaby

from: Polygram Records

Release Date February 13, 1996
I absolutely LOVE this CD! It was the first I ever purchased for my baby. She is now 10 months old and she has been falling asleep listening to it since she was a few weeks old. The music is so beautiful! There are 21 songs and each one is more beautifully done than the other. There aren't any other CDs out there that I have found to be this beautiful.

CD-Charts Position 10
Average Rating:

Sony Classical: Great Performances 1903-1998

from: Sony

Release Date October 12, 1999
While I like this sort of recording I bought it only because it was quite cheap in the used section. It has some very interesting moments, but of course is little more than a "sampler" if you will, and one that is too stuffed with a variety performers that don't necessarily work well one against the other. To be specific, when Victor put out this sort of thing it would be "The First 100 Years at the Metropolitan Opera", and that traced just that. All the singers from 1903 until the 1983 release date. Its hardly perfect, but at least it has a purpose.

EMI did a similar reissue, but it contained one CD at a time, so one could think carefully about that which they wanted to buy.

This is one of the rare times I'm going to say there's ... Read More: