Childhood and Memory

1. Wall and the Wind

2. Velvet Gentleman

3. Anne's Song

4. Childhood and Memory

5. Sunday Rain

6. Seattle

7. Three Hesitant Themes

8. Murray's Song

9. Bodie

Childhood and Memory,William Ackerman,Windham Hill Records,Adult Alternative,Chamber Jazz,Contemporary Instrumental,Jazz Music,New Age / Meditation,Pop,Solo Instrumental

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Average customer rating:

Childhood and Memory William Ackerman Manufacturer: Windham Hill Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Jazz | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music Solo Instrumental | New Age | Styles | Music General | Adult Contemporary | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: In Search of the Turtle's Navel Passage Past Light It Takes a Year Conferring with the Moon: Pieces for Guitar ASIN: B000000NEV Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

1. The Wall And The Wind
2. The Velvet Gentleman
3. Anne's Song
4. Childhood And Memory
5. Sunday Rain
6. Seattle
7. Three Hesitant Themes
8. Murray's Song
9. Bodie

Average customer rating:

Gideon Lewensohn: Odradek Manufacturer: Ecm Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music ECM Classical | ECM Records | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music ECM Jazz & World | ECM Records | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music ASIN: B00006L3GG Release Date: 2002-11-05

Tracks:

1. I. Homage To Gyorgy Kurtag
2. II. Homage To Micah Lewensohn
3. III. Homage To The Hiliards
4. IV. Homage To George Rochberg
5. V. Scherzofinale Or A Message From Dimitry
6. Postlude For Piano
7. I. Prologue - Kancheli And Lutoslawski, A Casual Meeting...
8. II. On The Verge Of Paranoia
9. III. Joseph Tal - A Spark Of Childhood Memory And A More Recent Comment
10. IV. Tal Was Born Around The Time Mahler Died...
11. Alla Marcia - Kurt Is 100...
12. VI. Echo Di Walzer - Eith An Alcoholic Step
13. VII. ReTalango
14. VIII. ...Und Noch Zuruckhaltend
15. IX. Monelle Says It Is Somewhat Bartokian Indeed...
16. X. Sarabandoned
17. X(a) ReTal
18. X(b) ReSarabandoned
19. XI. Mahler And Kafka In Terezin - A Preview
20. XII. ScotTalissimo
21. XIII. Time To Tune
22. XIV. Ich Grolle Doch!!!
23. XV. Epilogue
24. Postlude For Piano

Average customer rating: Ravishing music, matchless pianism

Speak Memory Manufacturer: Urtext Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Pavanes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Brahms | Brahms, Johannes | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Chopin | Chopin, Frédéric | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Grieg, Edvard | ( G ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Liszt | Liszt, Franz | ( L ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Ravel, Maurice | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Rachmaninov | Rachmaninov, Sergei | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Schubert | Schubert, Franz | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Robert Schumann | Schumann, Robert | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Scriabin, Alexander | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Mendelssohn | Mendelssohn, Felix | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Debussy | Debussy, Claude | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Etudes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Character Pieces | Short Forms | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Intermezzos | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Scriabin, Alexander | Composers | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Piano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Vladimir Feltsman- American "Live" Debut at Carnegie Hall ASIN: B000A2UBR0 Release Date: 2005-08-09

Tracks:

1. Etude Tableux Op. 33 No. 2 In C Major
2. Prelude Op. 23 No. 6 In E Flat Major
3. 'Daiseis'
4. Mazurka Op. 24 No. 4 In B Flat Minor
5. Waltz Op. 69 No. 1 In A Flat Minor
6. Waltz Op. 64 No. 2 In C Sharp Minor
7. Adagio In E Major
8. Liszt: 'Widmung'
9. Traumerei
10. Einsame Blumen
11. Liszt: Litaney
12. Intermezzo Op. 117 No. 1 In E Flat Major
13. Duetto Op. 38 No. 6 In A Flat Major
14. La Terrasse Des Audiences Du Clair De Lune
15. Bruyeres
16. Feuillet D'Album Op. 45 No. 1
17. Arietta
18. Wanderer
19. Pavane In G Major
20. Der Dichter Sprich
21. Myra Hess: Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring Chorale From Cantata No. 147 In G Major

Customer Reviews:

Ravishing music, matchless pianism.......2005-08-25

The superb Russian-born pianist Vladimir Feltsman plays the short pieces in this exquisitely chosen program with his habitual intelligence, clarity, and passion. This ravishing collection is worth the price just for Liszt's gorgeous transcription of Schumann's "Widmung," one of the most beautiful and moving love songs ever written. This is a CD you will want to play again and again.

Average customer rating:

Childhood and Memory Maurice Andre ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Jazz | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music Solo Instrumental | New Age | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Classical | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B0000AKQIV Release Date: 2007-04-10

Tracks:

1. III Allegro Assai
2. Choral- Jesus, Que Ma Joie Demeure
3. VII Badinerie
4. I Allegro
5. III Allegro
6. I Adagio
7. IV Allegro
8. Trumpet Voluntary
9. Ave Maria
10. III Allegro
11. Air De La Riene De La Nuit: Der Holle Rache
12. III Rondo
13. Fantaisie Et Variations Sur Le Carnaval De Venise
14. Tritsch-Tratsch Polka
15. Caravan
16. One Note Samba
17. Summertime
18. Un Americain A Paris
19. Le Vol Du Bourdon
20. Hora Staccato
21. Ave Maria
22. Les Feuilles Mortes
23. La Strada

Average customer rating: A fascinating look at a tortured genius

The Life and Works of Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Antoni Wit , Gerhard Markson , Kenneth Jean , Michael Halasz , Ondrej Lenard , Philippe Entremont , Stefan Sanderling , CSSR State Philharmonic Orchestra , National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland , National Symphony Orchestra of Polish Radio and Television , National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine , Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra , Royal Philharmonic Orchestra , Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra , Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra , Wiener Kammerorchester , Bernd Glemser , Oxana Yablonskaya , Takako Nishizaki , and Vladimir Grishko Manufacturer: Naxos ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Ballets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Sextets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Glinka | Glinka, Mikhail | ( G ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Tchaikovsky | Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich | ( T ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Character Pieces | Short Forms | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Romantic | Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Overtures | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Ballets & Dances | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Piano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Cello | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Violin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra | ( V ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Romances | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Russian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Instructional | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music Similar Items: Brahms: Life & Works Life & Works of Verdi The Life and Works of Franz Schubert Life & Works The Life and Works of Antonín Dvorák, Narration with Musical Excerpts ASIN: B0000669V2 Release Date: 2002-07-16

Tracks:

1. Tchaikovsky In Early Childhood
2. Music: Glinka: Overature To A Life For The Tsar
3. Enforced Separation From His Mother
4. Music: Tchaikovsky: Dumka, Op. 59
5. Death Of His Mother
6. Music: Reverie Du Soir
7. Early Manhood: The Spendthrift Civil Servant
8. Music: Minuet From Mozartina
9. Dismissive Opinions Of Other Composers
10. Music: The Storm
11. Journey To A Breakdown
12. Music: First Symphony
13. Abortive Engagement
14. The Advent Of Balakirev
15. Music: Romeo And Juliet
16. Travels And A Wounded Friendship
17. Music: First Piano Concerto

Tracks:

1. Reforming The Ballet
2. Music: The Rose Adagio From The Sleeping Beauty
3. Bizet's Carmen Has A Major Effect On Tchaikovsky's Music
4. Music: Francesca Da Rimini
5. A Compositional Paradox
6. Music: Rococo Variations
7. The Struggle Of Despair And Hope: He Decides To Marry
8. Music: The Tempest
9. The Advent Of Nadezhda Von Meck
10. Music: The Sleeping Beauty Waltz
11. The Disastrous Road To Matrimony
12. Music: Romeo And Juliet
13. Marriage, Trauma, And A Fairy Tale Annuity
14. Letter To Mme Von Meck
15. Music: Romeo And Juliet

Tracks:

1. Recorvery And Creativity
2. Music: Fourth Symphony
3. The Creation Of His Favorite Opera
4. Music: Lensky's Aria From Eugene Onegin
5. The Return To Compositional Health
6. Music: Violin Concerto In D
7. He Experiences Distressing Relapses
8. Music: Capriccio Italien
9. Psychological Disturbances And A Long Fallow Period
10. Music: Piano Trio In A Minor
11. Sufferings For Mme Von Meck; He Decides To Settle Down
12. Music: Manfred Symphony
13. Conducting Tours And Domestic Bliss
14. Music: Fifth Symphony
15. More Conducting Tours, And A Working Holiday In Italy
16. Music: Souvenir De Florence

Tracks:

1. The Rift With Mme Von Meck
2. Music: Sixth Symphony (Second Movement)
3. His Obsession With 'Bob' Davydov; Adventures In America
4. Music: Fifth Symphony
5. Further American Adventures
6. A Trip To Niagara
7. Music: Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy (The Nutcracker)
8. A Darker Episode
9. Music: Voyevode
10. Portrait Of A Conductor
11. A Hero's Return
12. Music: Sixth Symphony
13. The Mystery Surrounding His Death
14. Music: First Piano Concerto

Customer Reviews:

A fascinating look at a tortured genius.......2002-08-21

Naxos continues to do a wonderful job with its "Life and Works" series. Quite some time ago, we had a Life/Works of Mozart, one of Chopin and then two more, Liszt and Beethoven. he latter are even better packaged than are the earlier sets, with a thick booklet that offers us essays on the historical background, the position of the composer in his time, a look at the major works, a listening plan, recommended readings, personalities, a calendar of the artist's life, a glossary, and a discography. This booklet is worth the price of the set alone.

Now we have two more entries in this amazing series, again written and narrated by Jeremy Siepmann: "Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky" (8.558036-39) with a playing time of 4 hrs. 5 min. and "Johann Sebastian Bach" (8.558051-54) with a playing time of 4 hrs. 34 minutes. (Please see my comments on the Bach set on its webpage.)

Was there ever a sadder composer than Tchaikovsky? Siepmann practically introduces us to the child in his cradle and covers his 53 or so years of torment over his music, his sexuality, his impossibly hopeless marriage his strange relationship with Mme von Meck, and above all his music.

To make the recording more vivid, the producers have assigned professional actors the roles of the composer himself (Malcolm Sinclair), the women in his life (Karen Archer and Teresa Gallagher) and the men (Stephen Thorne and David Timson). There are many music examples (drawn, of course, from Naxos recordings), some of them considerably longer than necessary. For example, the "Sugar Plum Fairy" is heard at length to represent all of the "Nutcracker" score when several shorter samplings would have served the purpose better. But this has been true for the entire series, and perhaps the producers will rethink this aspect.

Average customer rating: Stylish Pickings Another one of his best It melts in your hand Best of the "solo" Ackerman recordings

Childhood and Memory William Ackerman Manufacturer: Windham Hill Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Jazz | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music Solo Instrumental | New Age | Styles | Music General | Adult Contemporary | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music General | New Age | Indie Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Passage Imaginary Roads ASIN: B00000AF3I Release Date: 1998-08-25

Tracks:

1. The Wall And The Wind
2. The Velvet Gentleman
3. Anne's Song
4. Childhood And Memory
5. Sunday Rain
6. Seattle
7. Three Hesitant Themes
8. Murray's Song
9. Bodie

Customer Reviews:

Stylish Pickings.......2004-03-23

But for a short duet with flute (Anne's Song), and an essay on the banjo (Sunday Rain), this is a solo acoustic guitar album. It is the William Ackerman closest to his roots, still heavily influenced by John Fahey and Robbie Basho. Still more comfortable by himself and excited by the beginnings of his musical journey. Unpolished in comparison to his later work, there is still great power here.

Starting out with pattern picking in open tunings while working in melody almost by slight of hand (Wall and the Wind, Childhood and Memory) Ackerman then shifts to more jazz-like stylings of Three Hesitant Themes (which dances like a moth in the fire of fingerstyle playing) and experiments like Sunday Rain. And there is the pure Fahey-like exuberance of Seattle. Ackerman is pushing limits as much as he is playing for entertainment.

In listening to Childhood and Memories repeatedly in preparation for this review, I gradually came to understand some of the technical feats Ackerman was performing and to begin to unravel the tag end of a very fertile musical mind. Apparent complexity is often simple, and what sounds effortless stretches unexpectedly.

Some feel that this album falls a bit short of the high points of some others, but I disagree. There are unexpected depths worth examining and some pure tour-de-force essays to spellbind. As with many of Ackerman's older works the album can be hard to find but will greatly reward the seeker.

Another one of his best.......2001-11-15

This is William Ackerman's third album, from 1979. It still displays Ackerman's traditional folk influences (which were heavier on his first two albums, "Search for the Turtle's Navel" and "It Takes a Year"), but the record begins to forebode the direction he would pursue beginning in 1981 (with "Passage," a much more streaky album) and continuing to the present. This is one of the best moments in the whole Ackerman catalogue.
The last album to feature Ackerman completely on solo guitar for the record's duration (save for a very brief flute line in "Anne's Song"), "Childhood and Memory" boasts some of Ackerman's most developed and moving compositions. The opening "The Wall and the Wind" is delightfully melodic and springlike. "Sunday Rain" is bleak and austere; check out the creative banjo usage on this one too. And I love "Murray's Song" (which Ackerman rerecorded on 1991's "The Opening of Doors"). "Seattle" and "Gideon" hearken back to the bluegrassy folk of Ackerman's first record.
All in all, this album is certainly one of Ackerman's finest. It would be a great introduction to his body of work or an essential purchase for someone already hooked.

It melts in your hand.......2000-07-12

William Ackerman's first three albums (I can't speak for any others) are so bland, so mild, so inoffensive that you could play them to your aged grandmother without any problems, except that she might ask you to turn them up; on a couple of the faster items you might notice her tapping her toe, faintly. But I'll bet that after listening some time your grandmother's going say, "Well, it's very pretty and all, but aincha got Blind Joe Death by John Fahey? When I hear the American acoustical guitar, I like it to go someplace, not just lie in a corner and curl up!" Ackerman's tunes drift pleasantly down, like snow, and melt as soon as they touch the ground, leaving not a trace behind, except the faint impression of wasted time.

Best of the "solo" Ackerman recordings.......2000-01-20

Will Ackerman has created a sizeable number of records starting in 1976 (In Search of the Turtle's Navel) and continuing (hopefully) into the future.

This record was his third and in some respects it was the last one of its kind by Will: a solo accoustic guitar recording. All his later albums are to a greater or lesser extent duets or trios with other musicians. But not this record. This is the "pure stuff".

I think it is wonderful. Its NOT ground breaking music (like Michael Hedges early works) but there is some quality, some sense of time and space that I find in William Ackerman's music which I rarely find anywhere else. Not to say that this music can't be intense, it is. The track "Seattle" is a musical journey that is violently beautiful, perhaps Will's single finest work. Or perhaps "Bodie" with its wild opening that then falls back into a quiet, reflective mode, is the piece that best sums up Ackerman's work.

I love nearly all of Will's recordings (and own them all), but this one, this one is special. It is a touch-stone in my life.

A minor note: This does not seem like "folk" music to me. First, all the compositions are original to Will. Second, at its core, this music is not based on American blues, bluegrass, or even English/Celtic folk tunes. This is solo guitar, unique to Will Ackerman, an inspiration to many.

Average customer rating:

Scenes from Childhood: Solo Guitar Manufacturer: Duns Scotus ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Bernstein | Bernstein, Leonard | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Rota, Nino | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Robert Schumann | Schumann, Robert | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Guitar | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music General | Pop | Styles | Music General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music Orchestral Pop | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Movie Scores | Soundtracks | Styles | Music Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music Solo Instrumental | New Age | Styles | Music ASIN: B00004WJIS Release Date: 1998-12-01

Tracks:

1. Themes from "The Godfather": Themes - Nino Rota
2. One Hand, One Heart from "West Side Story": One Hand, One Heart - Leonard Bernstein
3. Etude in B Minor - Fernando Sor
4. Scenes from Childhood: About Strange Lands and People - Robert Schumann
5. Scenes from Childhood: Pleading Child - Robert Schumann
6. Scenes from Childhood: Dreaming - Robert Schumann
7. Scenes from Childhood: Almost Too Serious - Robert Schumann
8. Scenes from Childhood: The Poet Speaks - Robert Schumann
9. Ashokan Farewell - Jay Ungar
10. Laura - David Raksin
11. Julia Florida - Danny Infantino
12. Memory [From Cats] - Andrew Lloyd Webber
13. Themes from the Film "Titanic": Themes - James Horner

Average customer rating: There were greater talents. This Is No Lesson in Economics... CLASSICAL MUSIC AT ITS MOST EXPENSIVE (AND BEST) It's actually not so expensive A Superb Reissue

The Rubinstein Collection (Limited Edition) [Box Set] Manufacturer: RCA ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Mazurkas | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Polonaises | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by J.S. 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Classical | Styles | Music Piano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Cello | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Violin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music Modern & 20th Century | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music London Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra | ( M ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music San Francisco Symphony Orchestra | ( S ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music St. Louis Symphony Orchestra | ( S ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Lullabies & Berceuse | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Barcarolles | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Caprices | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Classical | Box Sets | Stores | Music ASIN: B00001O2XZ Release Date: 1999-10-26

Amazon.com

A retail price of $1,600 for a box set? Granted, it's not something most of us can afford. But, for piano buffs and fans of Artur Rubinstein, this mammoth limited-edition 94-CD set might be an investment to consider. For starters, BMG has collected all of the approved studio recordings of Rubinstein (including 200 or so that have never been on CD) and added a handful of previously unreleased recordings and some interviews. The lot has been remastered for this collection using the latest technology (RCA's disc-and-a-half Highlights sampler actually showcases some of the more dramatic remasterings)--a good thing, when you consider that many of these master tapes have a lifetime's worth of surface noise. You get a lavishly illustrated book with essays and photographs and a nice case to store the works; everything but the credit plan is included, really. Of course, it's up to you to decide whether you want 706 recordings of 347 pieces played by the same great pianist. And, though owning Rubinstein's three complete cycles of Beethoven's concertos might sound tempting, will you really listen to each of them? Probably not, but if you need 'em, here they are. (His Chopin cycles, on the other hand, you will listen to repeatedly!) It's easily one of the most impressive and comprehensive box sets that classical music has seen: a true career overview with excellent remastering and handsome packaging that reflects the collection's price tag (unlike some box sets that are just that: CDs in boxes). Do you need it? Probably not. Will you want it? You bet. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

There were greater talents........2005-05-30

I must confess that I hate Rubinstein's sound as a pianist, but his dedication and verve were notable. Think though of Claudio Aurru's gifts, remarkable... I feel that to love Rubinstein one must love a world of safe emotional borders and sameness; sorry A.R fans. jb

This Is No Lesson in Economics..........2004-10-10

It is a natural tendency when reviewing items in this price-point to contemplate cost-effectiveness first and foremost. Considering that CDs have no nutritional value and cannot keep kids off crack, I am uncomfortable recognizing, much less crossing, some line in the sand where space ordinarily reserved for record-reviews must yield to amateur musings on the evils of conspicuous consumption or macroeconomic conceptions of social justice. Let's assume for the moment that this box set is free, removing from our purview the materialistic thrill or global economic blight one might seek and/or wish to stave off in purchasing it.

Rubinstein's "official" recorded output is astounding. It spans 5 decades, and encompasses significant forays into the oeuvre of dozens of composers. Though technique is generally expected to decline with age, few pianists live to be 96 years old. Rubinstein the pianist and Rubinstein the musician reached their highest collective summit when Rubinstein the man was well into his 60s. The "late-bloomer" aspect of his career places a considerable quorum of his most polished recordings squarely within the stereo era. Some of this material had made its way onto CD prior to this release, most notably his Chopin. Unfortunately, Rubinstein's well-deserved public acclaim as Chopin's supreme torchbearer unjustly limits his reputation along "expresio unius est exclusio alterius" lines. For example, though Rubinstein chose to record only a small handful of Beethoven sonatas, it is doubtful that one might hear them better played, even by his Beethoven specialist contemporaries Schnabel and Kempff. Rubinstein also ardently championed French and Spanish music, and is said to have loved performing Brahms most of all. This release places many of his most accomplished recordings before the ears of the listening public for the first time since their original release on vinyl.

I am frequently intoxicated by the earliest recordings from the 30s and 40s. Some of them, like his first traversal of the Chopin scherzi, are bite-your-nails-til-they-bleed thrilling. On the other hand, the initial limitations of the recording process required this (and every) pianist to make bothersome compromises with respect to tempi and dynamics at times. Ultimately, it comes down to personal taste. I am more consistently drawn to Rubinstein the wise-master than Rubinstein the young Turk.

RCA invested undisclosed sums of time and money into restoring, remixing, and remastering all of the recordings for this release. Some of the earlier recordings have been available on CD for quite some time (e.g. Chopin's Op. 28 Preludes, the Ormandy/Philadelphia Grieg concerto). Despite the intervention of acoustical restorationist-par-excellence Ward Marston, the remastering undertaken in the course of this project has not dramatically improved the sound on these releases. Short of traveling several decades into the past and placing more sensitive microphones in more strategic locations, there was probably little else that could have been done. Marston's brilliance is far more obvious in restoring to near original luster many deteriorating tape recordings from the late 40s and early 50s. The stereo recordings also sound fuller.

I am pleased with my purchase because having access (and, most importantly, having listened to) all of these recordings is a moving experience. It allows me to contemplate this extraordinary artist as a man, whose performance is inevitably colored by the accumulation of experience, the expanding flexibility of the recording process, the onset of maturity, and (perhaps sadly) declining physical powers. There are multiple recordings of most pieces in this collection, but I rarely find it difficult to cull a favorite among them. At this point, I play some of the records frequently, and others rarely. If your aim is to hear Rubinstein at his best, this set provides the resources you need to make what are at turns obvious, and others hopelessly personal choices. This set includes detailed (and mostly newly written) liner notes for each record as a well as an engaging hardcover book providing no fewer than 3 complete indices to the recordings (by date of recording, Composer, and Volume number). The box itself is a work of art, looks stunning on a shelf, and never requires polishing. Most of the 81 volumes are sold separately, and have been made available for download on the Apple Music Store.

While I will not claim that Rubinstein's interpretations are equally effective, I cannot think of any other pianist, now living or forever deceased, who could approach such a broad repertoire with the unwaivering technical finesse and prophetic musicianship evident in the bulk of his recorded output. If you never see the likes of a "Rubinstein Collection" on the shelf again, do not dismiss it as another textbook illustration of price elasticity. To do so is to dwell on on the vagaries of consumerism when the more important issue is that the next Rubinstein may never be.

CLASSICAL MUSIC AT ITS MOST EXPENSIVE (AND BEST).......2003-05-30

You have two choices: Starve the kids or skip the mortgage payments for a month or two. How else can you afford this 94 (!) disc set that captures every studio recording the classical icon ever recorded. Trust us: The kids are fat enough.

It's actually not so expensive.......2001-06-06

Provided you have the time, listening to this collection not only helps you better appreciate Rubinstein's supreme talent but also gives you some idea of his unfolding genius--how his technique and interpretation changed through the years. There's enough room in music for every kind of interpretation, as long as you take the music first, and all the interpretations Rubinstein offered are interesting. Of course this set is expensive, but it's nearly 100 CDs plus liner notes, so the price is not that bad. Besides, if you decide to really listen to this set the way it deserves, it's going to be years before you buy another CD.

A Superb Reissue.......2000-04-30

A friend of mine was able to aquire the Rubinstein Collection and I have been borrowing from it liberally.

RCA deserves to be commended on going the extra mile and releasing ALL of the authorized Rubinstein recordings, well organized and superbly remastered in this comprehensive edition. Hopefully, RCA will also release the individual volumes for those who are not completists or who simply cannot afford the entire set. True, this set is at full price. A source who was connected with this reissure has told me that RCA planned to issue the set at mid price, but the cost of this mammoth edition went far overbudget--and the full price was dictated by their production costs. Certainly, the money was well spent. The ramastering, particularly in the earlier recordings, must be heard to be believed. The packaging, documentation, and liner notes are all first class.

It is fascinating to trace Rubinstein's evolution as an interpreter--from the devil-may-care early days through the mature recordings of the 1950s, into the 1970s, when his playing on record tended to be a bit cautions.

Hopefully, the cost of producing this magnum opus and the reported slow sales it has been getting will not deter RCA from producing more boxed sets of Horowitz and many of the other artists in the RCA vaults. Bravo, RCA!

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1. Circadian Symphony
2. Club Trini
3. Columbus & the Age of Discovery [Soundtrack]
4. Cymbiosis: Jazz Sampler, Vol. 2, No. 1
5. Deep Heart
6. Deja Views
7. Dmitri Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth Of Mzensk
8. Donizetti: Don Pasquale
9. Donizetti - Don Pasquale / Bruson · Mei · Lopardo · T. Allen · Munich RO · R. Abbado
10. Encounter

Meditation Music

meditation music

Meditation Music

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Collection [Import]

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Barbara d'Alcantara

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