naxos music recommendations

[PerfectWagnerite]

Why choose a 6/7 Tristan und Isolde when Pappano's version on EMI is 9/9? In operas the competition is hard. Naxos rules in less recorded repertoire were 'the old giants' do not have anything to offer.

Because the 6/7 cost half as much as the 9/9? It matters to some people.

The same clowns there gave the Kleiber/DG Tristan a 8/7 which is a total disgrace. There is no way in hell the Papano is a better recording.

[Don]

Why choose a 6/7 Tristan und Isolde when Pappano's version on EMI is 9/9?

Let's keep in mind that these ratings represent the opinion of one person.  I'm sure that there are folks who consider Pappano's version much less worthy than 9/9.

[71 dB]

Because the 6/7 cost half as much as the 9/9? It matters to some people.

According to this logic Naxos should always be the first choise as it is a "budget label". I paid £12.24 delivered for the Pappano. Not much. I doubt I could get the Naxos under £10 delivered.

The same clowns there gave the Kleiber/DG Tristan a 8/7 which is a total disgrace. There is no way in hell the Papano is a better recording.

I haven't heard Kleiber/DG so I can't comment.

[Scott]

Yes I have, also in the Scandinavian and Finnish composers thread.
The fifth I reviewed also, and can recommend it, for it is very fine, as all the Naxos recordings are with Alfven.

Harry, where is your review of the Alfvén Fifth? I couldn't find it.

[Harry]

Harry, where is your review of the Alfvén Fifth? I couldn't find it.

Somewhere far away on the listening thread my friend, I will try to locate it for you!

[Robert]

RE: Naxos web site....Not to change the subject. But after a year I decided to subscribe. $19.95, I filled out the necessary form and submitted it....It was approved. The only problem is I do not get full recordings...I have emailed them for two days, they answer me an inane response..and it still has not been resolved.....Anyone have any similar problems.....

[Brian]

RE: Naxos web site....Not to change the subject. But after a year I decided to subscribe. $19.95, I filled out the necessary form and submitted it....It was approved. The only problem is I do not get full recordings...I have emailed them for two days, they answer me an inane response..and it still has not been resolved.....Anyone have any similar problems.....

Really? I've never heard of that before. Do you mean the music stops playing part of the way through?

[Robert]

Really? I've never heard of that before. Do you mean the music stops playing part of the way through?

No. If you join but do not subscribe you get to hear 25% of each disc in their catalog....Once you pay the $19.95 you get to hear all the catalog complete...Now the Naxos library is with a lot of different labels and to have access to that is about 150.00 a year...So after a year I decided to subscribe. I was approved and they sent me a receipt...but still I only hear 25%. I have emailed them for the past two days but they email back the usual mumbo jumbo. I told them in my last email resolve it today or refund my money...period...no reply yet....

[71 dB]

RE: Naxos web site....Not to change the subject. But after a year I decided to subscribe. $19.95, I filled out the necessary form and submitted it....It was approved. The only problem is I do not get full recordings...I have emailed them for two days, they answer me an inane response..and it still has not been resolved.....Anyone have any similar problems.....

Did you log out + log in after subscribing? The problem might be related to cookies (solution: clear cookies).

At my parents place I can listen 100 % of the tracks without subscribing. The sound quality is much better too (128 kbps instead of 20 kbps). So, Naxos has bugs on their pages.

[Robert]

Did you log out + log in after subscribing? The problem might be related to cookies (solution: clear cookies).

At my parents place I can listen 100 % of the tracks without subscribing. The sound quality is much better too (128 kbps instead of 20 kbps). So, Naxos has bugs on their pages.

the problem was resolved. It seems they decided to add a slash into my sign on and it took me a few days to figure it out....On my receipt I noticed this innocent looking slash, I just copied it and it worked...thanks for your/// help

[71 dB]

the problem was resolved. It seems they decided to add a slash into my sign on and it took me a few days to figure it out....On my receipt I noticed this innocent looking slash, I just copied it and it worked...thanks for your/// help

Good! Enjoy! 

[mahlertitan]

the problem was resolved. It seems they decided to add a slash into my sign on and it took me a few days to figure it out....On my receipt I noticed this innocent looking slash, I just copied it and it worked...thanks for your/// help

enjoy your Naxosmusiclibrary access, i know that i love it (they add like 300 new Cds a month!)

[Guido]

I personally love Naxos and have only ever bought two dudds from them:
1) Fratres - appallingly played, badly recorded, what less could you want!
2) Kliegel Shostakovich Cello Concertos - two of the finest cello concertos of the 20th C. But here they are played rather badly - the first is OK, but a little dull (there are many excellent versions out there), but the second is a trvesty - horrendously slow, dull, unengaging, ad emotionally reserved, which is the absolute opposite of the work - I have heard people say it was a poor work based on this performance - Get Rostropovich instead.

Other than that my purchases have been good to excellent, with many being the finest on record IMO. Not everything is the best of course, but then what label is? I have been very impressed with the Barber series (apart from the piano and violin concertos, and the piano music just isn't as good as Browning's pure and simple. Everything else though is great to stupendous), and English music in particular is usually very good (Walton, Bliss, Britten, Rawsthorne etc.)

I have only heard one Naxos opera - Barber's Vanessa, which is absolutely brilliant in every way.

[Brian]

While the Naxos recommendations have kept piling up, I've gone through some of the earliest releases in the Naxos catalog looking for some good ones. The early years were hit and miss, yes, but there were indeed some wonderful hits. Here are the best recordings from the first three years of Naxos (1987-1990):

BIZET Carmen and L'Arlesienne Suites / Slovak Philharmonic, Anthony Bramall
BEETHOVEN Overtures Vol. 1 / Slovak Philharmonic, Stephen Gunzenhauser
BRAHMS Hungarian Dances / Budapest Festival Orchestra, Istvan Bogar
HAYDN first volumes of the Kodaly string quartet cycle
CHOPIN Piano Concerti / Istvan Szekely, Gyula Nemeth, Budapest SO

A brief look at the first days of the Naxos catalog shows how much the label has changed - this year so far the best Naxos releases have not been of such standard repertoire; they've been discs of Martinu piano music and a saxophone concerto by Keiko Abe. Oh, how things have changed!

[Lethevich]

I personally love Naxos and have only ever bought two dudds from them:
1) Fratres - appallingly played, badly recorded, what less could you want!

Hehe... their non-vocal Part is crummy indeed.

[Guido]

A brief look at the first days of the Naxos catalog shows how much the label has changed - this year so far the best Naxos releases have not been of such standard repertoire; they've been discs of Martinu piano music and a saxophone concerto by Keiko Abe. Oh, how things have changed!

Well they've recorded virtually the entire standard repertoire by now surely? Don't they have something like 5000 discs, so one would expect them to be into the nonstandard repertoire by now?!

[71 dB]

Well they've recorded virtually the entire standard repertoire by now surely? Don't they have something like 5000 discs, so one would expect them to be into the nonstandard repertoire by now?!

More like 3000+ discs but that's a lot too. 

[Harry]

Well they've recorded virtually the entire standard repertoire by now surely? Don't they have something like 5000 discs, so one would expect them to be into the nonstandard repertoire by now?!

I think you make a mistake here my friend!
Naxos recorded some of the standard repertoire, of course, but the non standard outruns them by thousands.
They always ventured in the unknown.
True of late and in the past they tackled some core repertoire, but with little success.
And if you go on a careful way through the catalogue you will notice, that the core repertoire is not as much represented as in other catalogue's!
So to say that they have to go into nonstandard repertoire made me laugh.
They do, and much more so as any other record company.

[71 dB]

Obsolete

[Harry]

What do you mean Harry?  Naxos has recorded hundreds of CDs of standard repertoire:

Handel - Messiah (8.550667-668) => not standard repertoire?
Elgar/Dvorak - Cello Concertos (8.550503) => not standard repertoire?
J. S. Bach - French Suites (8.550709+8.550710) => not standard repertoire?

Compare it to the non standard repertoire my friend, that is far greater, and that is what I meant.
Of course they have recorded some standard works, but their fixation was as the founder said, on non standard repertoire, and that still holds good!