Downloading
– How to do it; where to source the
music (iTunes, Emusic, Own label websites;
Podcasting) – all the latest technological
advances and options on how to enjoy
Classical Music are featured in the
new super large edition of the indispensable
Gramophone Guide.
This opening feature
is just one of the tome’s useful attributes.
There are so many. The growing volume
of DVD releases of concerts, operas,
ballets, historic recordings and documentaries
has prompted, in response to readers’
requests, the incorporation of DVD reviews
into the main body of the book; so if
you want, for instance, to find recommended
recordings of Verdi’s La Traviata,
you can find DVD recommendations with
the audio suggestions. The collections
section also includes DVDs featuring
favourite artists.
Equally useful are
the brief biographical details for each
composer before the reviews of their
works. For some cornerstone repertoire
pieces, there are boxed comparative
reviews; for example, on page 711 eight
comparisons of recordings of Mozart’s
Symphonies 40 and 41 are given.
The authority of Gramophone’s
distinguished reviewers has always been
the rock on which music lovers have
built their collections since April
1923. This latest Guide contains some
3,000 up-to-date reviews of currently
available CDs including important current
reissues. All have a definitive one
to three ‘disc’ rating with a distinctive
diamond symbol indicating "simply
the best" - and a price guide.
Other features include:
the current Records of the Year; ‘100
Great Recordings’; suggestions of works
to build a basic library; and essays
on the historical periods of music from
Early Music to The Romantic Era and
‘Into the Future.’ The latter feature,
useful for many who might find ‘Modern’
works ‘difficult’, has a list of seminal
works, from Bartók to Varèse;
an explanation of the term ‘Serialism’,
a list of key terms, ‘Recommended Repertoire
Exploration’ and a box entitled ‘Looking
into the Future’ with another list that
includes recordings of: Adams’s El
Niño, Pärt’s Lamentate.
Da Pacem Domine and Turnage’s Scherzoid
and Yet Another Set To.
Informative, intelligently
and practically organized, and comprehensive:
as ever, the 2008 Gramophone
Guide is a must for all serious record
collectors.
Ian Lace
Informative, intelligently and practically
organized, and comprehensive: as ever,
the 2008 Gramophone Guide is
a must for all serious record collectors.
... see Full Review
