Man in need of new music

If you try Opera, make sure you get the 'highlights' version. So much of opera requires you to actually SEE it to appreciate it. The highlights will give you the 'good parts' without all the stomping around on stage.

Following up on my earlier post, it looks like the Chesky CD I had suggested is out of print, but it is offered by a number of sellers at Amazon. IMO it is well worth the high prices being asked, especially for those that are offered in "used/like new" condition. It is an amazing recording.

Isochronism, thanks very much for your comment.

Best regards,
-- Al

It can be tough to find TRULY well-engineered recordings, but I have found that anything recorded by Tony Faulkner, a British engineer, is a cut above the rest. His recordings just sound better IMO. I agree that Dvorjak is very accessible (his 7th is brooding and intense, 8th is joyful, and 9th is beautiful). Also, Wagner's overtures make great introductions, as do any of the Brahms 4 symphonies. Dvorjak's cello concerto is sublime and powerful, Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra is quirky and intense (but may sound dissonant to new ears), and of course, Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition is standard for any new listener. Tchaikovsky's 4th is loud and bombastic (except for the plucked strings 3rd movement), and his Romeo and Juliet and 6th Symphony are softer and less abrasive. So many to choose from, but these will get you started.

Oh, yeah...I second the live performance advice. You'll immediately understand what true tonal balance sounds like, and you'll hear how the strings sounds "as one." A good recording will mimic this effect without "spotlighting" the violins or any other frequency band.

Can anyone recommend a label that consistently puts out great sounding sacds? How are the Living Stereo reissues soundwise?