Good to know. I’d have been interested in this set if they hadn’t just got me to buy the 4 individual boxes. I’m hoping the DVDs will be packaged up separately later. I agree with your assessment of the Korean 60s (and 70s) box. I had the Korean 60s box when it first came out - larger mini LP sleeves with better detail and protective liners. I ended up getting rid of it because My OCD couldn’t handle having a my 60s box be different than the other ones.
Qubuz is showing a "remastered" Schnabel Complete Sonatas by Warner Classics released last year. I will listen over the weekend. I hope they did not get crazy with noise reduction
I read somewhere that they (Warner, who acquired EMI Classics) did indeed apply a lot of noise reduction, just like EMI did with previous complete Schnabel sets. Haven't heard the recent set myself. I have the Schnabel Naxos series.
Are there any suggestions of mega SACD Classical Box sets out there that's worth buying? I do hope the RCA Living Stereo would if they have not done so. I have (5 short of a mega box set); a 20 CD set of Karajan Edition, 100 Meisterwerke DG DDD recording.
There is one of Bach's Sacred Cantatas by Suzuki though the performances are mediocre. At ImportCDs a lot of those Living Stereo SACDs were around $9 before the 10% discount, I've noticed them slowly raising prices on box sets, maybe as their stock gets low? Also recommending Mark Obert-Thorn's Naxos transfers for Schnabel. They aren't as cheap as a box set, I do wish I could have had them all these years instead of seldomly listening to the Pearl transfers due to how rough they sound at an acceptable volume level. Literally changed my opinion on Schnabel's Beethoven just from a wide gap in mastering differences.
Amazon.de's 3 for 2 sale is going on now. Using the holidays as an excuse, finally splurged on three mega sets: 1) Liszt Complete Piano Music (Leslie Howard) - 99 cds 2) The Menuhin Century-Luxury Edition - 80 cds + 11 DVDs 3) Rudolf Serkin - The Complete Columbia Album Collection - 75 cds My poor wallet
WARNING - The Pavarotti Complete Opera Recordings My set arrived today from Amazon and the CDs are all in cardboard sleeves with the spine facing upwards. I looked for the 'Madam Butterfly' recording. At first I thought it wasn't there but then discovered that when you pull out the sleeves containing CDs 29-30, which are labelled 'Beatrice di Tenda' on the spine, it turns out that the cover image is in fact 'Madam Butterfly' and those are the discs contained inside. In addition the CDs 35-36, labelled 'Maria Stuarda' are actually 'Luisa Miller'. CDs 90-91 are labelled 'Manon Lescaut', but turn out to be 'Rigoletto'. These are presentational errors but they do not inspire confidence! As there are 100+ CDs in the box I 'm hoping that the sloppiness is confined to mislabelling. It will take a while to see whether the CDs themselves contain errors. I'll try and contact Decca to see if they have plans to replace the misprinted sleeves.
I don't consider myself an expert by any means on Bach's Cantatas, but I am an enthusiast, and I have enjoyed those from the Suzuki cycle that I've listened to (I have the box). Can you characterize what you think is mediocre about them?
No idea in which language scrompton's link was (probably German, it's in Dutch for me), but, just in case, here it is again, partly in English: 3 kaufen, 2 bezahlen
Of course, everyone has its preferences, but, I got to say guys, the Suzuki Cantatas are among the best recordings of these works. And yes, I consider myself an expert.
Fair enough. Was just curious as I am always interested in refining my appreciation and understanding of these works. In general, I love Gardiner's interpretations, but I have found that Suzuki has a lighter touch in some which suits them better. Gardiner likes to play these in a very lively manner, rescuing them (in his view, I think) from the somewhat staid and stodgy tradition of Bach interpretation. The best example I've found to illustrate the differences between the Gardiner and Suzuki cycles is the Alto/Tenor Aria from BWV 134 (Cantata No. 134, "Ein Herz, das seinen Jesum lebend weiss," BWV 134 (BC A59): 4. Aria. Wir danken und preisen...). Suzuki just captures it exquisitely -- perfectly paced --with the right mix of joy and solemnity. Gardiner's sounds like a horse race in comparison.
You can select English as the language on Amazon.de. It runs the site through a translator so it’s not perfect. I have no idea why the link shows as the page title. I just posted the Amazon url
Price Alert: Rostropovich Cellist of the Century 40CD+3DVD box-set EUR 89,00 at Amazon.de at moment. This is probably the best price this box has ever been: https://de.camelcamelcamel.com/Rostropowitsch-Rostropowitsch/product/B01MQO1GWL https://www.heidoc.net/amazon/amazon_global_check.php?asin=B01MQO1GWL https://www.amazon.de/Rostropowitsc...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B01MQO1GWL regards, DB
I love Gardiner too, AND I love Suzuki. Bach's cantatas are like, say, Beethoven's piano sonatas or Mozart's piano concertos in the sense that multiple recordings are needed in order to really understand their richness. Suzuki tends to be serene and ethereal; he makes me think of angels basking in pure beauty. Gardiner tends to be more vital and flesh-and-blood; he makes me think of humans feeling passions and struggles. Suzuki is more abstract, with pure steady tones from his singers; and Gardiner is more detailed, with moment-to-moment inflections from the singers. Very glad to have both! Also glad BTW to have Karl Richter's incomplete set. Plus Harnoncourt/Leonhardt's pioneering but idiosyncratic set. Still, Gardiner and Suzuki are the most rewarding for me -- in their different ways.
It was a little under $80 shipped (US address) at Barnes and Noble in their last classical box sale after the fall coupon. Nice diplomatic way of putting it I will certainly revisit it now that a couple of people have given a detailed reply. When I heard Suzuki after years of listening to Gardiner my thoughts were a bit more harsh. I've changed my mind on many classical discs over the years and wouldn't be surprised here.
Amazon UK has the Mozart 225 box on offer today (Black Friday). It works out to 203. 07 pounds shipped to the US, or about $270. Not the killer deal of a year ago which many of us took advantage of, but may help some late comers!
Marston Records, a historical classical label that does superb work, from sound quality to packaging to repertoire, is having a rare 30% off sale. I just got this email from them: Marston Records - dedicated to preserving the great performances of the past and keeping alive the remarkable traditions that were prevalent at the dawn of recording. For those residing in the U.S., I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving. For those whose Thanksgiving is in the near past or future, please share our holiday in spirit. This has been a year with personal ups and downs, but at Marston, there is always something to be thankful for. In fact, in less than a month, Marstonwill mark its 21st year in business. Many of you have been with us since the beginning and we want to celebrate our 20th Anniversary with you in a meaningful way. A Marston sale is a very rare event. I believe we have had just three sales since we began and the value of our CD sets seem to increase universally. Starting now, at the beginning of black Friday and ending on Cyber Monday (27 November 2017 at 11:59 pm EST), everything in our current catalogue will be 30% off. Please use this opportunity to fill in gaps in your Marston collection, or get your holiday shopping done early. Share your interest with a friend or a loved one and know that you will be supporting something that hopefully has been meaningful to you. Go to our website, order what you like, and type CELEBRATE when prompted to enter a discount code. Your CD order will be reduced by 30%. Happy 20th Anniversary to Marston. May we all be around to celebrate future anniversaries together. Joyfully, Ward Marston, Scott Kessler, Rich Harris, and Mark Stehle (610) 690-1703 [email protected] www.marstonrecords.com
