Bach- Brandenburg Concertos / Orchestra of the Age of Enlighte

Beethoven: Symphonies 5 & 7 Long regarded as the quintessential interpretation of the most popular and best-loved symphony ever written, this performance of the Fifth has everything: passion, precision, drama, lyric beauty, and a coiled fury in the first movement that sets your pulse racing from the very...	Mozart: Great Piano Concertos Decca has gotten around the perennial problem of filling Mozart Piano Concerto CDs by splitting No. 25 between two discs, giving us 155 minutes of Mozart for the price of a single top-line CD. The performances are top-line, too, if you like big-orchestra Mozart. Ashkenazy perform...	Brahms: Piano Trios Nos. 1 & 2 The Eroica Trio's recording career has been cleverly managed, starting with three albums of relatively lightweight, very well played music before finally arriving at major repertory. Tackling these two Brahms masterpieces, the Eroica proves thoroughly up to the task. They handle ...	Beethoven: Favourite Piano Sonatas	Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky: Petrushka / Le Sacre du Printemps Whatever the limitations of Stravinsky's baton technique, no one else on disc conjures the same bustling excitement at the outset of Petrouchka. Overlapping, polyrhythmic textures in Petrouchka and in Le Sacre du Printemps come off with Mozartian lucidity, Mendelssonian lightness...
Schubert: Trout Quintet, Death and the Maiden / Amadeus Quartet	Haydn: Lord Nelson Mass / Willcocks, King's College Choir	Tchaikovsky: Symphony 6 "Pathétique" in B minor Op. 74 Upholding the high standards established with the other performances in his complete Tchaikovsky symphony cycle, Mariss Jansons turns in a performance of the Sixth that is strong on musical argument and rather less "pathetic" than many. Pathetique, by the way, does NOT mean "p...	Bizet: Carmen / de Los Angeles, Gedda, Micheau, E. Blanc; Beecham As remastered for EMI's Great Recordings of the Century series, this classic 1959 Carmen sounds marginally better than its previous silver disc incarnation. Tape hiss is reduced, but without any compromise in residual overtones. A/B comparisons also tipped the scales in favor ...	Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 / Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra This performance is also available on Deutsche Grammophon in an earlier, mid-price incarnation, but this version is clearly the one to own, since the remastered sound is a definite improvement over previous issues. Herbert von Karajan always did a good job with this symphony, ...

Think Higher
I love to paint, draw and read with this on low in the background... also nice relaxing way to drive too. Good recording, glad I got the complete concertos - gives my mind time to unwind..... enjoy it

One of the best recordings of Branderburg concertos
I own quite a few recordings of the Branderburg concertos (Suzuki, Saval, Boston Baroque...) this one is one of the best. There is an evident feel of musical joy coming out of this recording. I can't find other ways to describe it. The musicians are enthusiastic about the work they are playing, restrained most of the time but when it is called for they give their best. Highly recommended.

my copy was ok
This is an excellent version of the Brandenbergs. The tempos are good and the instruments are all clearly heard. I noticed that some sort of production problem led to some poor reviews with the 2 CDs having the same music for some people. I did NOT have that problem and think this set can be highly recommended.

Could be great.
I got a gift certificate for Borders and I decided to get this as I have been wanting it despite reports of the same music being on both discs. I brought it out to the van and immediately played both CDs and they both were the exact same music. I return the disc at Borders before we left the parking lot. What little we played sounded so right. Brilliant energy and refinement. Excellent sound quality. If I knew I could get one that was manufactured correctly I would purchase it in a heart beat. Very Dissapointing.

Production Error
I would like to confirm the problem reported by Mr. Whittet. I purchased the disks in November 2005 and found the same mistake that he did. Disk 1 has the same music as Disk 2. In other ways this is a spectacular recording. The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment gives a graceful and articulate reading of the concertos, and the recorded sound is clear, warm, and spacious. But, despite the bargain price, it's not worth it just to get two copies of concertos 4-6.