CD-Charts Position 41
Average Rating:

Dvorak in Prague-A Celebration

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Sony

Release Date March 22, 1994
excellent recording......i have been to prague twice and it is my favorite place on earth......the recording made me feel like i was there again.....

CD-Charts Position 42
Average Rating:

The Mario Lanza Collection (3CD)

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: RCA Victor

Release Date November 12, 1991
I don't know how this could be any better. Mario sings like an angel and I love most of the selections. I have thoroughly enoyed listening to my cd's, over and over.

CD-Charts Position 43
Average Rating:

Arias

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Decca

Release Date October 25, 1990
There is nothing that breaks down the walls of adversity like music. It has indeed been said that in music there are no limits, and certainly Pavarotti is a patron of this ideal. In his voice there are no walls, there are no barriers and there's no telling where the vibrations of his vocal chords end and the music begins.
This CD collects the best of his arias, the greatest moments of his passions, in one comprehensive (albeit concise) disk. It would be an understatement (and an obvious statement!) to say that his interpretations are ideal, so I'd prefer to say that his interpretations open a new world: through his music, he has defeated his mortality, he has united people in heart and mind, and most importantly, he's given us a key to ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 44
Average Rating:

Cecilia Bartoli ~ Opera Proibita (Handel · Scarlatti · Caldara) / Les Musiciens du Louvre · Minkowski

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Decca

Release Date September 13, 2005
One can't help but be impressed with the agility in Bartoli's voice. Vocal fireworks! And yet the "Mentre io godo...", "Caldo sangue" and "Lascia la spina..." are so sweet and calming. I consider this CD a must have!

CD-Charts Position 45
Average Rating:

Handel - Messiah / Nelson, Kirkby, Watkinson, Elliott, Thomas, AAM, Hogwood

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: L'Oiseau-Lyre (Decca)

Release Date October 10, 1991
While there may be no perfect "Messiah" recording out there, this is STILL one of the very finest, and I've owned it since its original release & still return to it regulary. Emma Kirkby's solos alone make this One of the top Three to Five choices out there among hundreds of versions available. This is one of the Original attempts to produce an more "historically accurate" version, by using a choir of Men and boychoir, rather than the more commonly used mixed choir of males & females. And surely the Christ Church Choir of Oxford delivers a serene, rich, pure tone, which is very "transparent" in the four vocal parts Handel wrote for the chorus, balanced by the clear & equally transparent Academy of Ancient Music Orchestra. Some often ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 46
Average Rating:

Handel - Serse / von Otter, Norberg-Schulz, Piau, Zazzo, Tro Santafe, G. Furlanetto, Abete, Les Arts Florissants, Christie

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Virgin vertias (EMI Classics)

Release Date November 02, 2004
Granted there are many footfall and other noises, so I guess I'll take the other reviewer's and Amazon's word that it was recorded live. But I don't hear any coughing or applause. Anyway, the voices are wonderfully recorded, with high fidelity sound and without any of the distortion or tinny, next-room quality that many opera DVDs have. So if it was a live performance, I'm guessing the singers were either standing in front of, or holding, high quality microphones. I was just blown away by the whole performance and thought it wonderful, both in terms of the artistry and sound quality.

I couldn't find the SPARS code written anywhere on the product or on the website, but it sounded like DDD to me.

CD-Charts Position 47
Average Rating:

Offenbach - The Tales of Hoffmann / Domingo, Sutherland, Bacquier, Bonynge

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Decca

Release Date October 25, 1990
First, I'd like to correct something said by a previous reviewer. This recording was made in August 1971, not 1976. Joan Sutherland is in at least as good of voice as she was in her 1971 recordings of Lucia di Lammermoor and Rigoletto. Domingo is in glorious, luscious voice. Any criticism of his work here is ridiculous. Bacquier does a fine job as the bass, though his high note in the "Diamond Aria" is less than first-rate. Sutherland is in her best vocal and dramatic form as the third heroine, Antonia. I would recommend this over the Sills recording because, even though the sopranos are evenly matched, Domingo is a far better tenor than Burrows, and the overrall "sound" of the recording is also much better.

CD-Charts Position 48
Average Rating:

Charlotte Church

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Sony

Release Date November 16, 1999
Charlotte church is truely a remarkable success in the press,for her wonderful voice as a child of 12-14 years old, I give her credit and i would love to meet this girl one day, i think the world of her, it would be wonderful if she could sing those songs when she was a child, because she has got such a beautiful voice, which I think is just amazing,i think the reason why she doesnt like this new pope is becayse she had religion shoved down her throat and she prberly had a gutful of religion,but she still sys that she is quite religious,if she deicdes to go back and doing opera that would be really wonderful because people would rcongise her once again, I wish the press would back off and stop all this harsh critism because when you come to think of it she is ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 49
Average Rating:

Great Recordings Of The Century - Janet Baker Sings Mahler / Barbirolli, et al

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
by: Sir John Barbirolli, Janet Baker, Halle Orchestra

Release Date May 04, 1999
I would only add that the orchestral accompaniment on this recording is just astoundingly sensitive, spontaneous and full of life. These are musicians who know how to listen. The responsiveness of the orchestra to the soloist reminds me of some of the greatest jazz improvisations. I've listened to this recording for 30 years and it continues to amaze me.

CD-Charts Position 50
Average Rating:

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9

CD-Charts > Music > Featured Composers- A-Z
from: Decca

Release Date August 15, 1995
I won't bore you with my opinions on the various aspects of the performances. Others do that here far better than I could. Rather, I'd like to share a few thoughts on the technical quality of the recording. The 9th is apparently very difficult to record. Most recordings are sadly lacking in one aspect or another. The mixing and dynamic range requirements are very formidable. To record the faint sound of a single instrument at one point and the crashing triple forte of a full chorus and orchestra at another, and keep the two at their correct relative volume levels requires great dynamic range and highly skillful mixing. It is accomplished perfectly here. Finally, the clarity and crispness of the entire recording is stunning. In other 9ths that I've heard, there's ... Read More: