Classical - Basic Library recommendations (big list)

[icebear]

  I seems like this thread is dead - what a shame!

When someone is seriously interested in classical music there is the main thread in this forum.
A "search this (that) thread" by different composers will make it easier to digest than starting on page one and going through all of it.
 
What's the point of a separate beginner's list thread? Serve a limited selection on a silver platter? Then who is selecting...

Get a Mercury "Living Presence" box, or Decca "The Analogue Years" or EMI "Great Recordings of the century" for that matter, or just scroll through what recordings are included in these boxes and be done with it. For a beginner these are great starting points and present exceptional value.

 

[Light - Man]

 
When someone is seriously interested in classical music there is the main thread in this forum.
A "search this (that) thread" by different composers will make it easier to digest than starting on page one and going through all of it.
 
What's the point of a separate beginner's list thread? Serve a limited selection on a silver platter? Then who is selecting...

Get a Mercury "Living Presence" box, or Decca "The Analogue Years" or EMI "Great Recordings of the century" for that matter, or just scroll through what recordings are included in these boxes and be done with it. For a beginner these are great starting points and present exceptional value.

Thanks Icebear, I am only aware of the best classical recordings ever and  it does not welome beginners or Youtube videos etc.

 

[calaf]

 
When someone is seriously interested in classical music there is the main thread in this forum.
A "search this (that) thread" by different composers will make it easier to digest than starting on page one and going through all of it.

the "main thread" has a very low signal/noise ratio. It is fun to read through the banter,  but if I search for a recommendation for e.g. "Beethoven Quartets" I get, just in a handful of posts, Gewandhaus, Milkwaukee, Lindsays, Endellion, Tokyo and Alexander. The latter two are indeed top notch, but how is a newcomer to know? tyson recommends the Emerson, a classic, energetic set that may not be everybody favourite but  belongs in any classical collection.
 
Quote:

  Get a Mercury "Living Presence" box, or Decca "The Analogue Years" or EMI "Great Recordings of the century" for that matter, or just scroll through what recordings are included in these boxes and be done with it. For a beginner these are great starting points and present exceptional value.

none of the box sets you mention matches the balance nor the scope of tyson list. The Mercury and the  Decca in particular are  narrowly focused on 1950s big band showpieces. I can't find any Beethoven Quartets in there...
 Speaking of value, this "boxset" is free (with a spotify account)
https://open.spotify.com/user/1231388220/playlist/1rHT4oIROI9UKN5hPH8kD2

 

[Kundi]

Here is a list I put together of some of the great sets of classical music out there (pretty much all "bargain" priced), I thought I'd gather it in to it's own post so that it might act as a "reference" of sorts. Please feel free to add more rec's, as the list is hardly comprehensive.

I focused on inexpensive sets as they tend to offer great value, and they are a great way to get a lot of music for very little money.


Baroque (Pre-Classical)
This is music that uses a lot of counterpoint:

Bach Solo Cello Suites - Kirshbaum playing

Bach - Brandenbug Concerto's and Violin Concerto's conducted by Rees

Bach - Solo Violin - Rachel Podger playing

Bach - Goldberg Variations - performed by Hewitt

Bach - Well Tempered Clavier - performed by Hewitt

Vivaldi 4 seasons & other Concerto's conducted br Warrren-Green

Vivaldi - La Stravaganza - Conducted and performed by Rachel Podger

Classical
This is music that is almost always easy on the ear, with great melody assuming a dominant role, as opposed to the dominance of counterpoint in the pre-classical era.

Haydn - Late Symphonies - Conducted by Harnoncourt

Haydn - Paris Symphonies - Conducted by Harnoncourt

Mozart Complete Piano Concerto's - performed by Immerseel

Mozart Symphonies - conducted by Mackerras with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra

Mozart Wind Concerto's - performed by Orpheus Chamber Orchestra


Beethoven
Beethoven is his own category because he truly straddles the classical and romantic eras in almost equal measure. Some say he was the first Romantic, others say he was the last of the Classicists.

Beethoven Piano Concertos- performed by Pollini

Beethoven Symphonies- conducted by Gardiner

Beethoven Complete Quartets - performed by the Emerson Quartet

Beethoven - Violin Sonatas - performed by Ashkenazy and Perlman

Beethoven - Late Piano Sonatas - Performed by Goode

Beethoven - Appassionata and Waldstein Sonatas - Performed by Goode


Romantic
The romantic era still holds melody as supreme, but is much more personal, more emotive, and really expands and/or breaks the classical “rules”.

Brahms - Symphonies - Performed by Dorati

Brahms Complete Trio's - performed by Capucons & Angelich Trio

Brahms Piano Conceros - Performed by Pollini

Brahms - Violin Concerto - Performed by Hilary Hahn

Brahms - Piano Quartets - performed by Vogt, Fischer, Rivinius, and Masurenko

Bruckner Complete Symphonies - Conducted by Jochum

Chopin solo piano - Performed by Pollini

Dvorak - Symphonies 7, 8, 9 - Conducted by Dohnanyi

Dvorak & Elgar - Cello Concertos - performed by Fournier

Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsodies and other piano works - performed by Cziffra

Liszt - Years of Pilgrimage - Performed by Lazar Berman

Mahler - 9 Symphonies - conducted by Bertini

Rachmaninov - Symphonies and Orchestral music - conducted by Ashkenazy

Rachmaninov - Piano Concertos 1 & 2 - performed by Andsnes

Rachmaninov - Piano Concerto 3 and Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto 1 - Performed by Argerich

Saint Saens - Piano Concertos - Performed by Hough

Schubert - Symphonies - performed by Wand

Schubert - Piano and String Trios - performed by Beaux Arts Trio

Schubert - Impromptus - performed by Brendel

Schubert - last 4 String Quartets - performed by the Quartetto Italiano

Schubert - Piano Sonatas - performed by Andsnes

Schumann Symphonies - conducted by Barenboim

Scriabin - Piano Sonatas - performed by Hamelin

Sibelius Complete Symphonies conducted by Blomstedt

Sibelius Violin Concerto - played by Kyung Wha Chung

Richard Straus - Complete Orchestral music - conducted by Kempe

Tchaikovsky 4 through 6 Symphonies - Mravinsky conducting

Wagner - "The Ring" - conducted by Solti

Impressionism
From a construction standpoint, this music is late-Romantic, but the use of harmony is unique, so they get their own category as well. For this list the impressionists are restricted to Debussy and Ravel:

Debussy Orchestral Music - conducted by Dutiot

Ravel Orchestral Works - Conducted by Boulez

Debussy - Preludes for Piano, Book I and II - performed by Jacobs


Post Romantic
This music is harmonically and formally more aggressive and more free than the Romantic period. Things start to get quite a bit more dissonant in this period.

Bartok - 3 Piano Concertos - Performed by Schiff

Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra - Reiner Conducting (SACD Hybrid)

Bartok Violin Concerto 2 and Stravinsky Violin Concerto - Mullova playing, Salonen conducting

Bartok String Quartets - played by the Emerson Quartet

Prokofiev Piano Concertos - Performed by Beroff

Prokofiev Violin Concertos - performed by Lin

Shostakovich String Quartets - performed by Emerson Quartet

Shostakovich Symphonies - conducted by Barshai

Shostakovich - Cello Concertos - performed by Rodin

Shostakovich - Violin Concertos - performed by Vengerov, conducted by Rostropovich

Stravinsky - Rite of Spring & other Orchestral - conducted by Tilson Thomas

Vaughan Williams - Symphonies - conducted by Haitink

Walton - Symphonies and Concertos - conducted by Previn



Modern
This music is characterized by almost complete freedom from form, often very dissonant, sometimes minimalist, sometimes uses 12 tone scales, melody is often absent with rhythm and harmonic explorations taking center stage.

John Adams – Earbox

John Cage – Music for Prepared Piano

Kronos Quartet – 10 CD set of modern quartets

Ligeti Edition I – String Quartets and Duets

Ligeti Edition III – Piano Music

Schnittke - String Quartets - performed by the Kronos Quartet

Curious if this list has changed since you posted it.

 

[Tyson]

Oh yeah, lots. I’m consistently astonished at the quality of recordings and performances from the last 10 years. I subscribe to Qobuz which has excellent classical music selection. Every Friday they drop a whole bunch of new releases and I discover at least one great recording every week, and usually more than one!