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Serenade 13 in G Not Ruined By Starbucks, Please

Recently on Itunes, I stumbled into Tchaikovsky's Quartet for Strings No 1 in D major and my wife thought it was just sublime and relaxing.

Hoping to download the CD, I was disappointed to discover that the track was taken from some cheesey

"Classical Music for Neurotic Yuppies Who Drink Coffe, Dont Know That Its Actually Baroque and Think Kenny G is Jazz" type of a CD.

As I glanced through the tracks on the compilation, it made me sad to realize that a lot of the music I actually used to really like, but thanks to shopping mall coffeehouse culture are all now horribly overplayed.

Eine Klein Nachtmusic, Handels Water Music, you know the list.

Therefore, could anyone please recommend some lush, soothing, suitable for waking up favourites of your own that I might add to my collection?

Anything that might be a little quirkier or more obscure? As usual, extra credit for great recordings.

Best Wishes.
cwlondon
jgreenwood
20 posts
 
A couple works come to mind:

Mozart trio for clarinet viola and piano - nicely paired with the clarinet quintet on a Harmonia Mundi Musique d'Abord disc.

Schubert octet - I have a couple of recordings, but no hands-down favorite.

Palestrina Masses? I have a nice set by the Tallis Scholars.

And to change genres, there's always Bill Evans and the Modern Jazz Quartet.
slipknot1
1,423 posts
 
I might suggest the early Beethoven String Quartets (Op.18).
Respighi's "Ancient Airs and Dances".
The Helicon Ensemble's performace of Bach and Vivaldi on Reference Recordings (RR-23) is worth exploring.
Beethoven "Sonata in G Major, OP.96 For Piano and Violin"
Enescu "Sonata No. 3, Op.25 in Rumanian Folkstyle"
gabbro
88 posts
 
When I first read this, I immmediately thought of the Hayden string quartets (Kodaly Quartet on Naxos) as well; I like op. 1, no. 5&6 and op. 2, no. 1&2.

Vivaldi is also nice in the AM. Try Carmignola "Late violin concertos" (Sony Classical), and the Academy of Ancient Music "Concert for the Prince of Poland" (Harmonia Mundi); both are lush.

For a swirling sound, Tony Banks "Seven, A suite for orchestra" (Naxos).

As I write this, Schubert's Piano Trio No. 1 is on Sirius in the next room and is sounding quite nice.
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