Mozart at Midnight

Antony Pay (Performer), Karl Leister (Performer), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), Alexander Gibson (Conductor), Frans Brüggen (Conductor), Iona Brown (Conductor, Performer), Jeffrey Tate (Conductor), Neville Marriner (Conductor), English Chamber Orchestra (Performer), Peter Damm (Performer), Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (Orchestra), New Philharmonia Orchestra (Orchestra), Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century (Orchestra), Mitsuko Uchida (Performer), Nobuko Imai (Performer), Henryk Szeryng (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Antony Pay, Karl Leister, Iona Brown, English Chamber Orchestra, Peter Damm, et al.
• Orchestra: Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, New Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century
• Conductor: Alexander Gibson, Frans Brüggen, Iona Brown, Jeffrey Tate, Neville Marriner
• Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Audio CD (May 10, 1994)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Philips
• ASIN: B00000419X
• In-Print Editions: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,508 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Serene but not sleepy Mozart, September 21, 2005

By	Alan Lekan (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Mozart lived in what the music world calls the "Classical Era" where most of the music composed was typically in three movements: Fast - Slow - Fast. Theme collections like this CD here "cherry pick" some of the nicer slow movements Mozart wrote and put them on one disc of similar tone and temperament. Featured in this collection are movements with the Italian music terms, "adagio" (very slow) or "andante" (moderate pace) - but not the "allegros" or "Rondos" (which are fast and lively). Such a grouping allows 60-70 minutes of music that is more condusive to reading, lounging or entertaining without the sudden or loud surges from the fast movements. Of course, the most pure and educational way to listen to classical music is in its complete form of all three or four movements. But, especially for the classical newcomer, this can be too much for cartain parts of one's day, so these compilation CD's of easy-going classical melodies can be a better way to enjoy classical music much of the time.

The selections here are an excellent representation of Mozart's music with performances that are quite good (but maybe not THE best for the experienced classical fan which is fine). Highlights are the dreamy clarinet and wind pieces and the famous slow and enchanting movements from the piano concertos (solo piano + orchestra) - a form of music Mozart perfected to extraordinary levels. But because some selections are full symphonies, concertos, or scored in those dramatic minor-keys that can be somewhat stimulating, the music is more a pleasant companion for late-night reading or conversation and less of a means to cure insomnia at midnight. But, otherwise, you will be experiencing here some of Mozart's finest music - which spotlights some of his more lyrical & musically-rich slow movements. If you want the most scerene music to fall asleep to, the best choices in this series are: "Baroque for Bathtime" and "Bach for Bedtime."

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent CD especially for bedtime music of little ones, October 24, 1999

By A Customer

We bought this CD for the purpose of exposing our son (2 yrs) to classical music while providing good music to help relax him and put him to sleep for the evening. It works great! In fact, I often lay with my son as he goes down and I find myself lost in this CD. It makes it hard to get up. One slight flaw is that the music can be a tad Peaky at times and can sometimes wake a heavy eyed boy.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Like a floating cloud, March 14, 2004

By	Enrique Torres "Rico" (San Diegotitlan, Califas) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Although I don't much about classical music I do appreciate the occasional seranade. There are certain times that lend more to listening to this type of music so maybe that is why they came up with the night-night title. It is extremely relaxing and if you are not careful or too tired you might begin cutting some zzz's. Actually I find that this is perfect music for reading before bedtime as it stimulates just enough to perk your attention but doesn't grab it and take you away from concentrating on your book. Although I'm not a big classical music person some of the music sounds very familiar so maybe for those in the know you might recognize some of old Wolfgang's best or most well known works. After looking over the liner notes and credits it seems that most of these recording are older but put together here for a theme. Some of the recording date back as far as 1970 with the newest being from 1994. I guess this is classical music for the novice, a sort of compilation of some of his Adagio's, Andannte's and Larghetto's. Now if I only knew how to differenciate between these identifying terms! It just sounds real soothing. The price is right for people that just dabble in this type of music occasionally and are not hard core serious classical music listeners. It is part of the Phillips Classics releases that includes a whole line of various major composers music set to a theme. For example, they have another one for Mozart that is more lively that is entitled "Mozart in the Morning" . I guess anytime is the right time for hearing some of these symphonies. Try it you just might like it.