Chopin: Greatest Hits

Frederic Chopin (Composer), Eugene Ormandy (Conductor), André Previn (Conductor), Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra), London Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), Philippe Entremont (Performer), Hiroko Nakamura (Performer), Emanuel Ax (Performer), Alexander Brailowsky (Performer), Fou Ts'ong (Performer), Michie Koyama (Performer), Cyprien Katsaris (Performer), Gary Graffman (Performer), Cecile Licad (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Philippe Entremont, Hiroko Nakamura, Emanuel Ax, Alexander Brailowsky, Fou Ts'ong, et al.
• Orchestra: Philadelphia Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra
• Conductor: Eugene Ormandy, André Previn
• Composer: Frederic Chopin
• Audio CD (August 9, 1994)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000002A1N
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,193 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #38 in Music > Classical > Forms & Genres > Fantasies
  • #69 in Music > Classical > Chamber Music > By Period > Romantic (c.1820-1910)
  • #85 in Music > Classical > Ballets & Dances > Ballets

Track Listings

1. Polonaise for piano No. 3 in A major ('Military'), Op. 40/1, CT. 152

2. Waltz for piano No. 6 in D flat major ('Minute'), Op. 64/1, CT. 212

3. Mazurka for piano No. 15 in C major, Op. 24/2, CT. 65

4. Waltz for piano No. 7 in C sharp minor, Op. 64/2, CT. 213

5. Mazurka for piano No. 23 in D major, Op. 33/2, CT. 73

6. Fantasy-Impromptu for piano in C sharp minor, Op. 66, CT. 46

7. Nocturne for piano No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 9/2, CT. 109

8. Waltz for piano No. 11 in G flat major, Op. 70/1, CT. 217

9. Prelude for piano No. 7 in A major, Op. 28/7, CT. 172

10. Polonaise for piano No. 6 in A flat major ('Héroique'), Op. 53, CT. 155

11. Etude for piano No. 3 in E major, Op. 10/3, CT. 16

12. Prelude for piano No. 20 in C minor, Op. 28/20, CT. 185

13. Prelude for piano No. 15 in D flat major, Op. 28/15, CT. 180

14. Piano Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 35, CT. 202: Marche funčbre

15. Etude for piano No. 12 in C minor ('Revolutionary'), Op. 10/12, CT. 25

16. Mazurka for piano No. 2 in C sharp minor, Op. 6/2, CT. 52

17. Les sylphides, ballet (arrangement): Grand Valse Brillante

18. Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21, CT. 48: Allegro Vivace

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More like Three and a Half Stars, February 4, 2006

By 

Music Lover (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chopin: Greatest Hits (Audio CD)

When I think of the piano, the first composer that comes to my mind is Chopin. Chopin was a composer who excelled in small form writing for the piano. He wrote beautiful melodies with complex accompaniment that was both challenging for the performer and enlightening for the listener. Chopin did not write many multi-movement pieces and what he did write is generally not as good as his solo piano pieces anyway (this is my opinion, not a fact).

When buying recordings of Chopin's music, there are basically two options. You can either go with a "Greatest Hits" type collection, which works very well with Chopin, or you can buy collections that assemble all he wrote for a certain form (preludes, nocturnes, etudes, etc...). If you are new to Chopin, I suggest buying a "Greatest Hits" collection, though not necessarily this one, even though this is the CD in my car right now. The playing is okay but it's nothing really that special. Considering all the masterful Chopin interpreters out there, such as Rubinstein, Ashkenazy, Argerich, Pollini, and Perahia, it seems silly not to start with a pianist that you really love, since almost every great pianist has recorded works by Chopin. Having said that, this collection contains almost all my favorite works by Chopin, my only complaint being I wish it had more than one nocturne. Thus it serves as a good introduction to Chopin's music. I would recommend the Favorite Chopin collection by Ashkenazy over this collection because not only is he an amazing pianist and a masterful interpreter of Chopin, but it's two discs for the price of one.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Chopn's Greatest Hits, April 7, 2001

By 

Mel Spenser (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chopin: Greatest Hits (Audio CD)

Not a good version of Les Sylphides (#17); which is only a 5 minute excerpt. Any other Les Sylphides pieces are sprinkled throughout the CD as piano.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, not Great, March 1, 2002

By 

J. Dabgotra (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chopin: Greatest Hits (Audio CD)

Revolutionary Etude and many other performers are good. However, Fanastie Impromptu I've heard performed much better. Raindrop Prelude is played okay, but the song is so low in volume that I can hardly hear it. Good deal though.