CD-Charts Position 231
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The Da Vinci Code

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
by: Hans Zimmer

Release Date May 15, 2006
I have always found the movie 'The Da Vinci Code' to be underrated and I was particularly impressed with the music from the film. This original soundtrack is another fine piece of work from composer Hans Zimmer and compliments the movie very well.

Atmospheric, well composed and an album that works well in it's own right, I have no hesitation in recommending this soundtrack. It isn't perhaps the finest I have heard and isn't quite up to the standards of 'The Last Of The Mohicans', 'Braveheart' or 'Gladiator' but it is impressive and well deserving of four stars.

CD-Charts Position 232
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Famous Hymns from Westminster Abbey

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
from: Essential Classics

Release Date November 05, 2001
Great hymns, great choir, great singing. Why not 5 stars? Well, I feel that towards the beginning of this disc there are moments when the performance is somewhat wooden. I don't know if it's beacuse of the grandness of the choir and the abbey or if it's because you couldn't hear the choirboys (later in the disc you can hear them and it is pure grace), but it is only forever so slightly marred by that.

CD-Charts Position 233
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Classics: the Best of Sarah Brightman

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
by: Sarah Brightman

Release Date October 02, 2006

Fans of Sarah Brightman have expressed mixed opinions on this `Best Of' release.

Being labeled as a `crossover' artist I think can be a burden, for there are times when he/she will perform opera and classical music but get criticized by the `classical buffs' for trying to step on the toes of their treasured elitist professional musicians of the classical world.

Then there is the criticism from fans of `popular music', who see their idol apparently deserting their pop roots and alienating themselves by joining the orchestral high society club.

So when pop meets classical is there always friction?

No, I don't side with either of these views, for I believe everyone is free to sing anything ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 234
Average Rating:

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Strauss: Salome

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
by: Philharmonia Orchestra

Release Date October 27, 2008

Fans of Sarah Brightman have expressed mixed opinions on this `Best Of' release.

Being labeled as a `crossover' artist I think can be a burden, for there are times when he/she will perform opera and classical music but get criticized by the `classical buffs' for trying to step on the toes of their treasured elitist professional musicians of the classical world.

Then there is the criticism from fans of `popular music', who see their idol apparently deserting their pop roots and alienating themselves by joining the orchestral high society club.

So when pop meets classical is there always friction?

No, I don't side with either of these views, for I believe everyone is free to sing anything ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 235
Average Rating:

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Donizetti - L'Elisir d'Amore [Wiener Staatsoper 2006]

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
by: Ildebrando d'Arcangelo, Alfred Eschwe
starring: Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazon, Chor und Orchester der Wiener Staatsoper, Leo Nucci
directed by: Otto Schenk

Release Date November 06, 2006
This is a great performance with lots of fun. Anna Netrebko is a stunning Adina. Rolando Villazón is a clumsy but charming Nemorio. Ildebrando D'Arcangelo is a credible fraud and a great actor. L'Elisir d'Amore is a funny story with a happy end. You will enjoy it.

CD-Charts Position 236
Average Rating:

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Schubert: Complete Impromptus

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
from: Duo

Release Date March 10, 1997
This is such a beautiful recording. Alfred Brendel is the best pianist in my opinion and he once again interpreted these pieces extremely well. It's truly relaxing to listen to this CD.

CD-Charts Position 237
Average Rating:

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Tchaikovsky - the Sleeping Beauty (Ovsyanikov) [2006]

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
starring: Alina Cojocaru, Federico Bonelli, Christopher Saunders, Elizabeth McGorian, Alastair Marriott
directed by: Marius Petipa (Choreographer);Ashton / Dowell / Wheeldon (Additional choreography);Valeriy Ovsyanikov (Conductor)

Release Date June 30, 2008
This "Sleeping Beauty" is beautiful. The costumes are lavish and beautiful and the sets wistful, romantic, and straight out of a fairy tale.

The dancing, all around, is amazing, and Alina Cojocaru is wonderful as Aurora. Her dancing is light, beautiful and graceful. She makes a youthful, sweet, smiling, tender princess - i.e. a princess on the inside as well as on the outside. Even on the hard moments like the Rose Adagio, Alina's Aurora remains with us - gentle, warm, and accessible.

During the notorious Rose Adagio, she makes her balances perfectly. I have seen other ballerinas perform them, some of them scarcely pausing between taking their different suitors' hands, or else unsteady during those horrible, electrifying ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 238
Average Rating:

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Oliver (1994 London Cast)

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
from: First Night Records

Release Date March 21, 1995
This is the revived version of the classic 'Oliver' musical that was based on 'Oliver Twist' by Dickens. It is a triumph! I absolutely love it! With music that lifts you up and stirs the emotions. We are invited to follow Oliver, a small timid orphan, on his journey in search of love. Along the way we meet such wonderful characters as Fagan (played by Jonathan Price), the artful dodger, Nancy(played by Sally Dexter) and the terrifying Bill Sykes (played by the wonderful Miles Anderson). It is truley a heart warming story that is told so beautifully as only music could! It is like one of those films that you can watch over and over again - each time you listn to it you find something new and wonderful! Don't let faffy school productions put you off such ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 239
Average Rating:

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Sibelius - Finlandia; Karelia Suite

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
from: Naxos

Release Date October 01, 1999
It's hard to go wrong with Naxos discs; quality recordings at excellent prices, and wonderful selections. For a middlebrow listener like myself who has never managed to get into the more demanding side of classical music but is a bit jaded by the oft-repeated selections that keep appearing on compilation albums, this disc must be hard to beat for an introduction to Sibelius, covering at it does a variety of moods, from the soaring and powerful Finlandia, through the lilting Karelia Suite intermezzo to the haunting 'Valse Triste' (used to great effect in Bruno Bozetto's animated film 'Allegro non Troppo'). The other longer tracks are a bit ponderous to my undereduacated ear but this is still good value even if you skip those.

CD-Charts Position 240
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Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto

CD-Charts > Music > Classical Instrumental
by: Janine Jansen Mahler Chamber Orchestra Daniel Harding

Release Date October 27, 2008
I had not listened much to the Tchaikovsky Concerto in recent years, thinking of it as a bit of an old warhorse. Janine's passionate and fresh account has converted me back. Completely captivating. Buy with confidence!