Classical Heartbreakers

Laszlo Varga (Performer), Robert Cohen (Performer), Tomaso Albinoni (Composer), Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer), Samuel Barber (Composer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Max Bruch (Composer), Alfredo Catalani (Composer), Frederic Chopin (Composer), Claude Debussy (Composer), Edward Elgar (Composer), Gabriel Faure (Composer), George Gershwin (Composer), Christoph Willibald Gluck (Composer), James Horner (Composer), Tolga Kashif (Composer), Gustav Mahler (Composer), Pietro Mascagni (Composer), Stanley Myers (Composer), Michael Nyman (Composer)

Product Details

• Performer: Laszlo Varga, Robert Cohen
• Composer: Tomaso Albinoni, Johann Sebastian Bach, Samuel Barber, Ludwig van Beethoven, Max Bruch, et al.
• Audio CD (January 13, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B0000B09Z9
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #49,327 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "Classical heartbreakers" broke my heart, June 26, 2004

By	P. Grupe (St. Louis, MO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am an avid listener of classical music, and I purchased this CD expecting to get some of the best classical music ever composed. I guess I expected a bit much though. Although the recording is filled with high quality performances of fantastic pieces, I was disappointed to find that only about half of the pieces are contained in their entirety on this 2-disc set. Songs such as Rhapsody in Blue and Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata were not recorded in full for this album, which caught me off guard and bothered me quite a bit.

Anybody who is unfamiliar with classical music will appreciate this album. Since it features some of the most moving classical pieces ever written, it is sure to entrance listeners. And by not placing entire 10-minute pieces on the CDs, it will not run on and bore those unaccustomed to the length of most classical music. However, if you are already well-versed in classical music and can listen to entire symphonies with ease, I would advise against buying this album. I now feel a desire to go out again and find the full versions of some of these pieces, since I feel I was cheated by only getting introductions or short movements on most of the album. Guess I should have paid a little more attention to what I was buying.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fantastic Compilation, April 30, 2004

By	Randy E. Aveille "raveille" (Davie, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Most of the musical pieces in this compilation are from versions as they appear in various movies. This is Classical music from classic movies such as: Somewhere in Time, Schindler's List, English Patient, The Piano, Platoon, et al. But make no mistake; the music is what's really worth mentioning here.

The title says it all. It claims to have "the most moving Classical music of all time," and they certainly have a case, as it is chock full of the kind of emotional pieces that can easily bring you to tears. This double CD compilation with 37 passionately beautiful pieces is a steal at $16.99.

If you've ever recorded your favorite songs on to tape, or burned them on to a CD, you'll see that this compilation is exactly what EMI Records has done. It is like a greatest hits, volume 1, of poignant Classical music. Almost all of the musical pieces are classic favorites, though there are a few contemporary ones also.

I found the music on this CD powerful and moving as advertised, and I think that Classical music fans should truly enjoy it. It is well worth the price it's being sold for, and I highly recommend it.

Since there is some missing information as to who the composers and artists are, here they are:

Disk 1

Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto No. 1 in B Flat Minor Op.23: I. Allegro Non Troppo E Mol; Andre Previn; Horacio Gutierrez; The London Symphony Orchestra

Mascagni - Intermezzo (Cavalleria Rusticana) {Raging Bull}; Riccardo Muti; The Philharmonia Orchestra

Rachmaninov - Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini - Variation #18 {Somewhere in Time}; Cecile Ousset; City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra; Sir Simon Rattle

Puccini - O Mio Babbino Caro (Gianni Schicchi) {A Room with a View};
Montserrat Caballe; The London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Charles Mackerras

Bach - Viola da Gamba Sonata in G Minor BWV1029 - II. Adagio (Opening) {Truly, Madly, Deeply}; Jordi Savall; Ton Koopman

Richard Strauss - Beim Schlafengehen (Vier Letzte Lieder) {The Hours}; Klaus Tennstedt; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Lucia Popp

Williams - Schindler's List (Theme) {Schlinder's List}; Iain Sutherland; New World Philharmonic; Tasmin Little

Debussy - Clair de Lune {Frankie and Johnnie}; Dame Moura Lympany

Mahler - Symphony No. 5 in C Sharp Minor: IV. Adagietto (Conclusion) {Death in Venice}; New Philharmonia Orchestra; Sir John Barbirolli

Catalani - Ebben? Ne Andrò Lontana (La Wally) {Diva}; Maria Callas; The Philharmonia Orchestra; Tullio Serafin

Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 14 in C Sharp Minor "Moonlight" Op. 27/2 - I. Adagio S; Dame Moura Lympany

Bruch - Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor - II. Adagio (Opening) Sir Yehudi Menuhin; The Philharmonia Orchestra; Walter Susskind

Puccini - E Lucevan le Stelle (Tosca) {The Man Who Cried}; Carlo Bergonzi; Georges Pretre; Orchestre De La Societe` Des Concerts Du Conservatoire

Chopin - Nocturne in C Sharp Minor Op. Posth {The Pianist}; Maria Tipo

Barber - Adagio for Strings {Platoon} Eugene Ormandy; Philadelphia Orchestra

Elgar - Cello Concerto in E Minor Op. 85 - I. Adagio - Moderato (Opening) {Hilary and Jackie}; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Norman Del Mar; Robert Cohen

Shostakovich - Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Op.102 - II. Andante Dmitri Alexeev; English Chamber Orchestra; Jerzy Maksymiuk

Verdi - Va, Pensiero (Chorus of Hebrew Slaves) (Nabucco) {The Godfather, Pt. 3}; Bernard Haitink; Covent Garden Chorus & Orchestra of the Royal Opera House

Disk 2

Albinoni - Adagio in G Minor (Realised Giazotto) [Extract] {Gallipoli}; Academy of St. Martin in the Fields; Sir Neville Marriner

Nyman - Heart Asks Pleasure First/The Promise {The Piano}; Unknown artist

Quarantotto & Sartori - Time to Say Goodbye; David Abel

J.S. Bach - Goldberg Variations - Aria {The English Patient}; Maria Tipo

Offenbach - Barcarolle (Les Contes d'Hoffmann) {Life Is Beautiful}; Choeurs Rene Ducios; Clu; Elisabeth Schwartskopf; Jeannine Collard; Orchestre De La Societe` Des Concerts Du Conservatoire

Rachmaninov - Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor - II. Adagio Sostenuto (Opening) {Brief Encounter}; Cecile Ousset; City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra; Sir Simon Rattle

Elgar - Nimrod ("Enigma" Variations) {Elizabeth}; The London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Adrian Boult

Puccini - Vissi d'Arte (Tosca); Georges Pretre; Maria Callas; Orchestre De La Societe` Des Concerts Du Conservatoire

Myers - Cavatina {The Deer Hunter}; Manuel Barrueco; Steve Morse

Schubert - String Quintet in C D956 - II. Adagio (Opening) {Carrington}; Hungarian Quartet; Laszlo Varga

Gluck - J'Ai Perdu Mon Eurydice (Orphée et Eurydice); Anne Sofie Von Otter; John Eliot Gardiner; Orchestre De L'Opera De Lyon

Chopin - Étude in E "Tristesse" Op.10/3; John Ogden

Verdi - Attendo, Attendo...Addio del Passato (La Traviata); Dame Kiri Te Kanawa; Myung-Whun Chung; The London Symphony Orchestra

Bach - Double Violin Concerto in D Minor BWV 1043 - II. Largo Ma Non Tanto {Children of a Lesser God}; Bath Festial Orchestra; Christian Ferras; Sir Yehudi Menuhin

Kashif - Queen Symphony - III. Adagio {Who Wants to Live Forever - Save Me}; Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Tolga Kashif

Chopin - Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor - II. Romance (Larghetto) (Opening) {The Truman Show}; Garrick Ohlsson; Jerzy Maksymiuk; Polish National Symphony Orchestra

Faure - In Paradisum (Requiem) {The Thin Red Line}; Cambridge Choir of Kings Choir; English Chamber Orchestra; Stephen Cleobury

Horner - My Heart Will Go On {Titanic}; David Abel

Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue (Conclusion) {Manhattan}; Andre Previn; The London Symphony Orchestra

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars a terrific compilation for beginners, February 7, 2006

By	ronaldbrian (Quezon City, Philippines) - See all my reviews

I agree with P. Grupe-for classical music lovers, it is a let down to listen to cut tracks of well-performed classical greats, like Chopin's 1st piano concerto in this collection. Nonetheless, this is a terrific compilation for people beginning to get interested in classical music. This compilation is an eclectic mix of the familiar (Beethoven's moonlight sonata, Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini variation no. 18, Myer's Cavatina, Barber's "Adagio for Strings, etc.), the contemporary (Michael Nyman's The Promise, Horner's My Heart Will Go On), and the truly moving (Bach's Double Violin Concerto, Bruch's Violin Concerto, Schubert's String Quintet in C)-relatively obscure pieces usually left out in less inspired and mediocre classical music compilations. It is gratifying to see that opera music has not been left out. Get this cd if only for the Maria Callas tracks, Lucia Popp's performance of Strauss' Beim Schlafengehen, and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa's Addio del passato.