Adagio for Relaxation

Maurice Ravel (Composer), Samuel Barber (Composer), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), Pietro Mascagni (Composer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Max Bruch (Composer), Edward Elgar (Composer), Tomaso Albinoni (Composer), Georges Bizet (Composer), Gustav Mahler (Composer), Leonard Slatkin (Conductor), Charles Münch (Conductor), Alexander Schneider (Conductor), James Levine (Conductor), Erich Leinsdorf (Conductor), Zubin Mehta (Conductor), Eugene Ormandy (Conductor), Guildhall String Ensemble (Performer), Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Boston Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Guildhall String Ensemble
• Orchestra: Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Leonard Slatkin, Charles Münch, Alexander Schneider, James Levine, Erich Leinsdorf, et al.
• Composer: Maurice Ravel, Samuel Barber, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Pietro Mascagni, Ludwig van Beethoven, et al.
• Audio CD (March 6, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000059SV0
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #264,517 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #100 in Music > Classical > Instruments > Reeds & Winds > Bassoon

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great!, December 16, 2001

By 

clwinter - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adagio for Relaxation (Audio CD)

I have this CD along with Mozart, Chopin and a couple others of the Relaxation CDs and I think they are wonderful. I listen to this CD all of the time when I am studying (actually I'm listening to it now studying for finals). The Adagio for strings (for string quartet/string orchestra), Op11 by Samuel Barber is my favorite on the CD. It is so beautiful. Wonderful compilation!!

12 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Do not buy this!!!, November 6, 2001

By 

"miket34" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adagio for Relaxation (Audio CD)

Horrible SOUND QUALITY! NOISE - it sounds like it was recorded from a cassette tape! Music itself is not in question here of course but the noise makes it impossible to enjoy. Even if you remove the noise somehow, the sound itself is pretty bad too - uneven frequencies balance, resonating bases on some tracks, no highs at all on the others. I'm almost positive that the source for these tracks was a very low quality cassette tape. BAD! Stay away from this (...).

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A disappointing collection at best. Look elsewhere for better., July 14, 2007

By 

G. Stewart "Debussy & Sibelius Freak" (Chesapeake, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adagio for Relaxation (Audio CD)

The composers and compositions included in this compilation are all wonderful. That is why I bought it. Unfortunately, the disc is flawed and unemotional.

The problem with this recording is the sound and the heart behind the performance. The entire album is very poorly mixed and some of the songs cannot be heard unless you turn the volume all the way up, which, upon crescendo, leaves you deaf and makes you swallow your tongue in shock. Well, maybe not that bad, but you get the point. The majority of the songs are just not played well. I can't really explain except to say that there is no passion in the music.

Each of the pieces, played and mixed properly, would easily rate a 4 or 5, however due to the sound and/or performance, a lower rating is deserved. Here is how I would rate each of the songs on this disc based on sound quality and performance:

1. Concerto in G - ** (very quiet throughout, but a nice performance)

2. Adagio for Strings - *** (average performance of a great composition)

3. Concerto for Bassoon - ** (boring, no feeling)

4. Intermezzo - *** (quiet in parts, but a decent rendering)

5. The Creatures of Prometheus - **** (one of the better tracks on the cd)

6. Violin Concerto No. 1 - *** (not a bad mix, but played dispassionately)

7. Enigma Variations - ** (very quiet throughout, but played beautifully)

8. Adagio in G Minor - **** (best sound mix on the disc, very good piece)

9. L'Arlessienne - * (noise in background; sounds like a copy of a copy)

10. Symphony No. 5 in C Sharp minor - * (quiet then loud, very bad sound mixing)

Again, this is a compilation of wonderful compositions, but the quality is sub-par and I expected a lot more. I would recommend that you look elsewhere for better quality recordings as this was not what it should have been.

Overall, a 2.5; 3 stars is generous.