Topic: Classical Music Reviews - magazines & online sources

[North Star]

How accurate does everyone find the classical music review section on the NPR Music website? I'm still learning the ropes when it comes to purchasing classical music (well, as a more discriminating consumer and not just buying box sets from the bargain bins!).

I have no idea of NPR, but I recommend asking here on the 'Recordings you are considering' thread (and searching for earlier discussions), and reading Amazon reviews, although most of them are worthless, some are very knowledgeable reviewers (it's awful if Giordano Bruno quit permanently).

[Zizekian]

I have no idea of NPR, but I recommend asking here on the 'Recordings you are considering' thread (and searching for earlier discussions), and reading Amazon reviews, although most of them are worthless, some are very knowledgeable reviewers (it's awful if Giordano Bruno quit permanently).

Thanks!

[eyeresist]

How accurate does everyone find the classical music review section on the NPR Music website? I'm still learning the ropes when it comes to purchasing classical music (well, as a more discriminating consumer and not just buying box sets from the bargain bins!).

I don't know that "accuracy" enters into the matter, beyond getting the name of the piece right and being able to tell if the musicians are in tune. The rest is a matter of personal taste, so the trick is to find critics whose taste complements your own.

[jlaurson]

I don't know that "accuracy" enters into the matter, beyond getting the name of the piece right and being able to tell if the musicians are in tune. The rest is a matter of personal taste, so the trick is to find critics whose taste complements your own.

That's not quite right, I hope. A good critic is one where you don't need his or her tastes to complement your own to a.) enjoy reading a review (super-rare, because most of the writing is at such a low level) and b.) gain enough information, objective and subjective reaction, to begin form an opinion of your own. Think - in live reviews - of what Martin Bernheimer can do.

[Beale]

I don't believe this site has been mentioned previously: The Flying Inkpot Classical Music ( http://www.flyinginkpot.com/ )

There are some useful reviews and commentaries on the classical music scenes by writers from Singapore.

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

I subscribed to Fanfare for many years and greatly enjoyed it, but with a new job my work consumed me and my listening time.  Now retired, I'm hoping I will get an online subscription to it for Christmas this year (includes access to their considerable scanned archive of back issues).  It will be good to be back with an old friend, though I know I will miss many of the old reviewers who have surely gone on to other things or their reward.

[Spineur]

I occasionally consult the french magazines "Diapason" and Classica, which I feel underwhelming.  They put out so many "diapason d"or and 5*, one has the feeling that they are promotional tools for studios.  Its got to be a 'diapason du siecle" (like Minkowski Oriadante) to raise my attention.  Plus the occasionally pretentious tone that really puts me off.

The best source for me is my sister who is a professionnal musician.

[geralmar]

I am particularly interested in the early years of the LP and stereo classical recordings.  I find the following sources of free online access to old music/HiFi magazines helpful for old reviews and just browsing:

The Saturday Review (1940s-72)
unz.org

High Fidelity (1954-60)
HiFi Stereo Review (1958-62)
vintagevacuumaudio.com

[ludwigii]

In past years, I bought and regularly consulted the issues of the magazines :

Musica and Dossier (Italian)
Diapason (French)
Le Monde de la Musique (French)
The Gramophone
BBC Music Magazine
The Classic Voice (Italian)
Amadeus (Italian)
Orfeo (Italian)
CD Classica (Italian)
Compact Disc Classics (Italian)
Musica (Italian)
Repertoire (French)
Classica Repertoire (French)

Then I have accumulated so many that I decided to stop with this drug 

Orfeo was a magazine on Ancient and Baroque music, very interesting :



The old Repertoire was my favorite :

[Wakefield]

In past years, I bought and regularly consulted the issues of the magazines :

Musica and Dossier (Italian)
Diapason (French)
Le Monde de la Musique (French)
The Gramophone
BBC Music Magazine
The Classic Voice (Italian)
Amadeus (Italian)
Orfeo (Italian)
CD Classica (Italian)
Compact Disc Classics (Italian)
Musica (Italian)
Repertoire (French)
Classica Repertoire (French)

Then I have accumulated so many that I decided to stop with this drug 

Orfeo was a magazine on Ancient and Baroque music, very interesting :



The old Repertoire was my favorite :

I have always loved/hated Amadeus because of its exclusive and hard to find disks.

[JRJoseph]

I have been subscribing to many of the magazines mentioned plus lots of internet sites and have just about every piece of music from all the major composers I need including many versions of many of them.  I have reached the point where I am searching for minor classical, romantic, modern and even baroque composers.  When does a love for music become a compulsion.  I truly at least like and quite often love my collection of music but have I gone too far with it?  Making a choice sometimes is difficult as is what to buy next or should I give up my magazine subscriptions as in see nothing want nothing but then again. I might discover some more interesting music.

[RebLem]

The only mag I subscribe to is Fanfare, and I love it.  If you can't afford it and have a well stocked magazine store near you, you might want to annually get just their November/December issue, in which each of their reviewers list up to five issues from the previous year that they think are the best of the year.  Most of them cheat a bit and write a narrative indentifying the also-rans that they finally cut to get it down to five.  I lso read reviews here and at Classical Music Guide, and @ Amazon.  If you are a regular @ Amazon, you will find a few reviewers that are as good and knowledgeable as any of the pros, and after a while, you will recognize them by their names or monikers.