CD-Charts Position 1

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Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words for the Piano (Schirmer's Library of Musical Classics)

by: Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy

Release Date November 01, 1986

CD-Charts Position 2
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Brahms: Works for Solo Piano

from: London

Release Date November 10, 1997
There may be the individual recording made by others - Gilels, Rubinstein, Arrau - of a particular piece which might be preferred but as a collection of the Brahms piano works, this set has to take the prize.

The quality of original recording is high and the digital transfer seemingly well done. One has to listen very attentively to detect which of the four Ballades were recorded monaurally; a strange anachronism in the 'sixties. Also, the piano is an unusually fine-sounding instrument and I wonder if it might not be the Bösendorfer which resided in Decca's Hampstead studios around the time these recordings were made.

As another reviewer has suggested, the accompanying notes in french and german do provide interestingly ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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Mendelssohn: 5 Symphonies; 7 Overtures

by: London Symphony Orchestra Claudio Abbado

Release Date November 11, 2001
I bought these from Amazon about a year or two ago but it is only recently that I have had to time to listen to them carefully several times. They seem very good recordings to me and are good value for money.

CD-Charts Position 4
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Mendelssohn: Octet; Quintet in B flat

by: Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble

Release Date August 16, 1999
I bought these from Amazon about a year or two ago but it is only recently that I have had to time to listen to them carefully several times. They seem very good recordings to me and are good value for money.

CD-Charts Position 5
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Bach: The Art of the Fugue

by: Glenn Gould

Release Date September 09, 2002
This is definitely one of my favourite GG Edition CDs. As with all of his Bach recordings, I'm struck by the brilliant mind of Glenn Gould, listening to the amazing clarity and freedom of his playing which makes this wonderfully complex music sound as if coming directly from his mind. What a shame he did not record complete piano version of the work! Highly recommendable not just to fans, but anyone who loves Art of Fugue, alongside koroliov's enthralling complete recording.

CD-Charts Position 6
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Mendelssohn- Piano Trios Nos 1 & 2

from: Naxos

Release Date December 03, 2001
I've always thought that if you put Mozart and Beethoven together you'd get Mendelssohn, and these two piano trios bear me out (I think) - they combine the melodic genius and lightness of Mozart with the passion that characterises Beethoven. Put quite simply, I think the D minor is the best piano trio I have ever come across, with the C minor not far behind.

The D minor trio, and in particular its first movement, is filled with sensuous melodies, the cello generally being favoured to take them. Backed up with a formidable piano part (and I know from experience, it is truly formidable!) the piece combines outbursts of fiery passion with some of the most beautiful moments of any chamber work I know. And some of the harmonies in here are just heartbreaking ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
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Beethoven - Complete Piano Sonatas

from: EMI Classics

Release Date September 28, 1998
I play these pieces regularly on my piano but I was reduced to tears on hearing several of these renditions by Barenboim. They are intensely intellectual and emotive interpretations and may not be to your taste but boy, they do have impact. I am now searching for Barenboim's later recordings to compare the styles. Impetuous youth, or genius? Only you can tell!!

CD-Charts Position 8
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Works of Igor Stravinsky [22cd]

by: Igor Stravinsky

Release Date July 02, 2007

It's common to find good value box sets from labels such as EMI Classics, Brilliant Classics and Warner Classics, but not so often on the Sony label.

In general, the bigger the set the better the value, with collections of more than ten discs often falling into the bargain category of under £1 a disc.

This collection though represents not only value for money but also provides pretty much all of Stravinsky's lifetime works (he composed around 127 pieces) in a compact box of just 5cm width thanks to the CDs being supplied in card sleeves.

The enclosed 24 booklet provides a biography of the composer, and more importantly full recording dates, venues, orchestras, soloists and conductors, and if this doesn't sound reason enough to own ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
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Liszt: Piano Music

by: Jorge Bolet

Release Date November 11, 2001
These Bolet performances are simply heaven and have a luxuriance which is hard to fault.

He achieves, I think, a perfect balance between the dramatic rhetoric; poetic/romantic; and spiritual/religious inherent in Liszt's musical character, and balance, I think, is everything in Liszt.

My personal favourites would have to be the Schubert song transcriptions. This is perhaps revealing. In a way I think that Liszt is at his best working with other composer's ideas, particularly Verdi. Claudio Arrau / Phillips.

Sorry if this makes me a bit of a traitor.

CD-Charts Position 10
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Bach - Violin Concertos

from: EMI Classics

Release Date August 06, 2001
Perlman is a violonist whose perormance is regarded as standard when it comes to Bach's works; in this album however, I was a bit disappointed of finding what I would expect in that the whole work sounds rather classic than baroque.
also, the orchestra seems to be a bit axcited of having Perlman as the violinist (!!?) as you simply can't hear the orchestra as it's always in the background. This gets quite annoying when it comes to question and answer parts between the violin and orchestra or when it's the violin who should be rather in background.. but that's a matter of recording I should think..

but in general,you still, no doubt, can enjoy the perfection of Perlman's performance, if you're not fussy about different interpretations of Bach's works..