Alexis

You will become addicted to this soundtrack. It actually surpasses the movie in that respect (although the movie is great too). I'm ready to start searching the cable channels or Netflix looking for these old Satyajit Ray movies.

Loved the movie, the soundtrack is not that great. The quirkiness of the movie does not translate well to the CD. The indian music selections on the disc leave much to be desired.

Granted, granted, This Time Tomorrow and Strangers are fantastic songs desperately thirsting for greater attention, probably two of the best you've never heard. However, all of the Kinks songs on this soundtrack are from Lola vs. the Powerman, The Kinks most famous (not saying much) album. That album is a moving experience in itself and a better purchase than this album. In fact, go buy the old Kinks catalogue (at least Arthur, Village Green, and Face) if you're turned on by this stuff. Wes has great taste, but this is somehow lazy in selection (for the love of Pete, Tea plays an enormous role in the the movie and the Kinks classic, 'Have a cuppa tea' is not used because it's on a different album). At least take this as an opportunity to be guided to one of the great albums of all time. Great music, but you can get it in a better form.

I have found a new artist to like because of this movie and soundtrack. Peter Sarstedt is amazing. I love the Kinks in this soundtrack along with some of the "room" tracks. LOVE IT!

I have to admit that I haven't seen THE DARJEELING LIMITED. The reason I have picked up the soundtrack is for the music, especially by Sathajit Ray. I am fascinated by Indian music and that fascination is what led me to pick up THE DARJEELING LIMITED. I love how the soundtrack is mixed between Satyajit Ray's film scores, classical music, and classic rock songs by The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. Surprisingly enough, the combinations of these diverse sounds really worked for me. I love how the soundtrack starts off with the lovely folk song "Where Do You Go to (My Lovely)" by Peter Sarstedt. There isn't a single song on the entire soundtrack that made me want to hit the skip button on my stereo.

I discovered Alexi through CDBaby, he was the top-selling artist on there for a very long time (until his original EP was no longer available) and one can understand why. His music is soulful and true. It inspires and consoles me. A further plus is the analog recording, which adds a warmth and depth absent from modern-day recordings. (It also proves that we are dealing with true talent here, there's no pitch-correcting and pro-toolsing an analog recording ;-)

If you feel saddened by the lack of truth in modern pop music or have lost hope that there are true artists left in this world, but this CD and it will restore your faith.

I was in search for music with raw emotions. I definately found it with Alexi Murdoch. Dark, romantic, true to life and realistic. This album took me from my past to my present relationships. Alexi is now one of my favorite muscians.

Another reviewer wrote that he loved the album but had a hard time staying with Murdoch in the emotional terrain that he mines in "Time without consequences". I can relate because Murdoch is a rare artist that can write soul wrenching lyrics of introspection and yearning and emotionally deliver them with his vocals. John Trudell, Michael Franti, Bruce Cockburn, and Bob Dylan are a few that come to mind with that rare combination of ablilities. It is road rarely travelled by most singer songwriters being that most don't have the ability or at best flirt with it instead of committing to it.
The album is bold and haunting being that most of the songs don't particularly have a chorus or normal song structures. The songs kind of ebb and flow culminating into min-folk orchestras by the end of some of them. Some of Alexi's lyrics can be unintenitionally challenging like "Sometimes I feel like I'm drowning... ...We'll actually most of the time" in "I had a dream I could fly". This music is intense and soul searching not for the faint of heart!!!

I can't tell you the last time I heard an artist that put me in this kind of trance. Joni Mitchell? Steven Stills? Radiohead? I'm listening to the CD right now. It's overwhelming. I have to thank the River 92.5 for turning me on to such unbelieveable music. Please play at the Red Hook Brewery in Portsmouth, NH soon. OMG. Take me now.

I was turned onto this cd by a dear friend as I had a two hour car ride through scorching southwestern Nevada ahead and she felt it would be a great soundtrack for the ride. She was absolutely right.
These eleven songs are quiet, evocative, and emotionally charged songs full of beauty and simple grace. There are some that were a bit out of character from the rest, but overall, this is a treat. Listening to the cd as the stark brown desert passed by my windows was a moving experience I will not soon forget.
If you want further proof that this cd is powerful, I literally sobbed as I listened to "Wait." I can't think of even a handful of songs that have done that to me in my entire four and half decades of life.
Safe to say that the next time she recommends a cd, I'm all over it.

I'll admit it: I was coerced into participating in a local production of Titanic The Musical recently and while I never had, nor do I have any desires to perform on stage, I almost reluctantly fell in love with this incredibly moving story that involves an absolutely amazing musical score. I played Benjamin Guggenheim, who along with some of the most famous millionaires in the world (John Jacob Astor, George Widener and the Thayers, literally the Bill Gates and Donald Trumps of their day) died as the Largest Moving Object on the earth slipped beneath the waves, April 15th 1912.

First, one major difference between this re-telling of one of the greatest maritime disasters of all-time and others, there really isn't any two or three characters that stood out as lead roles. The story was carried almost collectively with a large group of people--ALL based on real passengers and crew of the ill-fated luxury liner. Oh, and Molly Brown is entirely absent from the tale having already been done to death many times before.

Second, the music--oh the music! If you are a fan of wonderful music, you simply owe it to yourself to experience this soundtrack. Everything from the opening number to 'Doing the Latest Rag' and so many in between to the closing 'Sail On, Sail On Great Ship Titanic' evokes a tremendous amount of emotion (which was exactly as planned) and is at once music you don't have to LEARN to love.

Kudos to those who helped to bring this magnificent story to the Broadway Stage. The Titanic will forever be one of my favorite stories, and now I add the musical to my long list of reasons to be utterly fascinated by what happened all those years ago in the North Atlantic.

One of my favorites. Although it is wonderful as a whole, there are little bits and pieces of amazing that pop up which are what really make this album soar. Moments such as

Barrett and the other sailors optimistic, "Fare thee well my darlin', I'll be back before a fortnight has passed..."

Alice Beane expressing her longing to be apart of the first class: "I want more than we've got Edgar. Why don't you?"

Jim Farrell coaxing Kate McGowan onto the lifeboat by singing [the semi-reprise], "You're going to be a lady's maid! Lady's maid in America!"

Also, "The Blame" is an excellent song. Highly reccommended.

Wow a great musical do not understand why it was cancelled in this country. The music and lyrics are very moving and make great listening. I will have to visit USA to see it I suppose.

This is my all-time favorite musical! It really works out when you're in love with Broadway Musicals and Titanic, like me! Michael Cerevis really shines as the builder Thomas Andrews in the song "In Every Age", as does Brian d'Arcy James as stoker Frederick Barrett in "Barrett's Song". This recording is definately worth your money for the most part and you'll probably love it almost as much as do.
Godspeed Titanic!

Robyn
aka Mrs Harold Bride :)

Very good CD not normally that easily available but delivered on time for a reasonable price.

First heard on Canadian radio, I was lucky to find it at AMazon. (where else?) As a long time listener to what is erroniously called "classical" music, I have found the clarity of expression in this CD amazing. Mr. Hamelin's renditions are a marvel of dexterity, and the Kapustin Sonata No 2 is so full of ear worms that I don't know whether to be angry or hopelessly in love. On a scale of five stars, 17!

Marc-Andre Hamelin's jazz CD is fabulous! I was totally unfamiliar with the works on this CD and, as usual, Hamelin never ceases to amaze me both in his facility, but also his superb interpretations! I can't even imagine these works played better.

This set is really a must have for anyone who enjoys good music.
We are on our 3rd copy- we scratched the first and lost the second in a move.

Watch out for the volume leveling mentioned in another review. Surely the compliers could have come up with a better sort order than by composer. The change in tempo/volume between pieces makes it impossible to enjoy. My two CD's ended up in the trash.

Ken

This is a great CD full of many songs that you will recognize and enjoy. If you are someone who likes classical music but doesn't necessarily know which songs or which composers you like, then this CD is for you. You will likely recognize many of the songs as the classical songs you would have picked out to be your favorites.

Most of the tracks were chopped down to 3-4 minutes so some of the best parts of the compositions are missing. I don't know what I was thinking trying to buy 40 classical songs on two CD's. If you really want to enjoy the music you would do better to purchase a CD with fewer, but better quality tracks.

In my years of experience teaching Fine Arts to high school students, I know that the majority, if not all, of the music included on this album is commonly used in collge music appreciation courses. This is an excellent sample of truly all the "greatest hits" of classical music. My students enjoy listening to the music and have later told me when take their required music apreciation courses in college that they "already know it all" because of this CD! The recordings are clear, the selections are passionate, and the listener will gain a familiarity with all of the most commonly heard classical music used in tv commercials, movies, etc.
I recommend this album, along with the boxed set, "Age of the Classics" for anyone who is interested in becoming familiar with the most famous staples of classical music.

Sondheim produces music that I can never get out of my head. I don't always catch onto the tunes and rhythms right away, but with time they become embedded in my mind. "Follies" is one of my favorites and sadly, one of the Sondheim plays I'm dying to see but think I have no chance. Too bad, because I'd love to see these songs come to life on the stage.

My only real complaint is that since the original ambitious plans for a gatefold, vinyl double album were jettisoned for a smaller production, the ending especially feels cut off. Maybe the original didn't end with a big fluorish and refrain of "Beautiful Girls" but I can't imagine that being true. Despite being recorded in 1971, this cast album is lush and sounds more organic than other recordings of the same show. Excellent.

Here's the bottom line: The original cast recording of Follies is one you should own. This is truly one of the most satisfying cast recordings out there. It's got all the smarty-pants technique of Stephen Sondheim at his most erudite, but it's also chock full of that most elusive quality in Broadway musicals in the last forty years--memorable melodies! And lots of `em!

When Sondheim gives you clever and touching lyrics along with a great melody line, it just doesn't get better. And that, my dear, is how you get classic songs like "I'm Still Here" and "Losing My Mind", both of which are best represented on this recording.

Yes, yes, I know. There's Follies in Concert to consider. And that's a fine recording too with a lot going for it. Get both. But if you can't, get this one instead. It really is the definitive Follies. Yes, it's abridged, hence the four stars instead of five. Even so--by comparison to other CD recordings, these are the performances you want.

The premise of the show examines the anxieties, regrets, and illusions that haunt a group of aging performers, well past their prime as they meet for a reunion before the old theater is torn down. (The characters are mostly chorus girls for the "Weismann Follies".) Wisely, the original cast was comprised primarily of--yep!--aging performers that many regarded as well past their prime. The voices aren't always pretty, yet the songs are often performed with a depth and understanding you simply won't find in a younger, less jaded performer. The full production employed a motif of having much older characters are joined by younger and rangier versions of themselves. This comes to haunting effect, for example, when an elderly, wheelchair bound Justine Johnson wistfully sings "One More Kiss" in duet with her memory of herself come to life. And then there's the legendary moment when Yvonne DeCarlo, having, in reality, just been thrown from the train of her career after the cancellation of The Munsters (she played Lily), brings off a fiercely satisfying delivery of "I'm Still Here".

And I haven't even mentioned my favorite songs yet. Suffice it to say that Alexis Smith (Yes, that Alexis Smith, whose old movies you can never remember, but whose name you know you know) performs two solos that may be some of the most refined vocal acting you'll ever encounter on an original cast recording.

God knows I could go on, but if you're not convinced yet, well then I just don't know what to do with you. Just buy the CD already. We'll all feel better.

I saw the original play with the great original cast three times. everytime it was better.i have the original cast recording,and it is excellent,although quite abridged.nevertheless a masterpiece.i really enjoyed Dorothy Collins,and her rendition of Losing My Mind.-it is absolutely the greatest. you can feel the emotion of the song as she sang it.a perfect job..i really liked Yvonne DeCarlo and I'm Still Here.her singing voice-was rather low,but her voice fitted the song,and what a tune.she was great singing that so true tune that really reflects life.I really didn't care for Alexis Smith as her voice while singing was sort of talking the songs through,her voice came across better on stage,i thought,rather than on the recording.Harold Prince should have had the complete recording of all the songs,not an abridged version.however,i still give it five stars.buy it-Dorothy Collins,i think, was the greatest singer in the show.her pitch,diction,and emotions and her great acting-fantastic-just came through so great...enjoy it.bob

Wonderful performances of Sondheim songs, especially from Dorothy Collins. There are other recordings with equally good performances, especially the one with Barbara Cook, and what one hears in listening to different recordings is how many valid ways there are of performing the songs.

Being a lover of Sondheim's music, I have enjoyed "Follies" many times already, and expect to enjoy listening to this CD again and again.

I was lucky to see her in San Francisco, April 2008. I have not even heard of this work before, but her sound was captivating from the start to the end. The audience was certainly appreciative as well. I thank Mutter for selecting this program.

I wanted a CD that captures the live atmosphere and the space, but this studio recording will have to do. The audio quality is very good. It is clean, carries much of the tonal quality of her violin sound.

The low price doesn't do justice for the quality of the music you get.

In this recording we have three of Brahms' greatest chamber works (the violin sonatas) played by, in my humble opinion, two of classical music's greatest performers--Anne-Sophie Mutter, on violin and Alexis Weissenberg, on piano. The "wow factor" is very much in evidence in this recording--great music (some of the finest chamber music that ever has been penned) fabulous violin playing and marvelous piano playing coming together in such a way that I just sat back listening in total awe feeling that life really ain't too bad when one can hear music and performances like those contained on this recording at such a reasonable (cheap!) price! (Anne-Sophie and Alexis have a wonderful "go at it" in the fourth movement of the 3rd Sonata--wow!)
Although this disc is at the "bargain basement" price of four dollars and ninety-seven cents ($4.97), the sound is superb. EMI is really to be commended for offering these superb performances at such a "rock bottom" price. I truly loved this recording as you will too if you purchase it!

While Brahms wrote only three sonatas, they are a great trio of works. The first is the most intense, the second the most lyrical and the last one the most inspired with a slow movement that is arguably Brahms most beautiful melody. The two famous musicians here give us radiant performances. At almost 10 bucks less than a full-priced version of this music, this CD represents great value.

I have an enormous collection these Preludes. From Richter, Rachmaninov, Horowitz, Sofronitsky, to Hayroudinoff, Luganksy, and all the wonderful ones in between[Hofmann, Gilels, Moiseiwitsch, etc]. As far as single collections go[those containing all the preludes] this one has never been surpassed. And I dont think there has ever been a faster, more clear recording of op23.2. Breathtaking!!!!
Weissenberg himself is a shockingly inconsistent pianist. It is inconceivable to me how one pianist that can produce such a volcanic talent here can also bore you to sleep with his Goldberg variations, but, as with Richter, when he is at his best-he is one of the greats[I would never compare him directly to Richter-or anyone else for that matter[.
For those looking to purchase one disc containing all of these remarkable pieces, look no furthur. Richter never recorded them all, nor did Moiseiwitsch or Rach himself. More recently a pianist named Rustem Hayroudinoff recorded them all for Chandos, and did so very well. But they dont stand up to these. The sound is fine-there is absolutely nothing to complain about there.
Dont hesitate. This is a set for a lifetime.

I always considered Weissenberg as not only a tremendous virtuoso but also as a very inspired musician. With this Rachmaninov recording, Weissenberg lives up to his reputation. He's as sensitive in Rachmaninov's dishevelling technique as in Bach's Partitas.

Technically speaking, Weissenberg does a good job. But the way he plays Rachmaninoff's preludes is rather embarassing. Look at the music, for instance, and you'll see plenty of instances where Weissenberg ignores what Rachmaninoff wrote. This simply isn't fair.

I don't know much about the technical quality of this performance or recording. I can say that I've been listing to the Preludes since I was a child in probably a half-dozen different recordings. This performance and recording evoke in me the best sensations I experienced listening to this music as a boy.

What is really incredible in this CD is not only the great artistry and lyricism, of Weissenberg - from the hammer blows to the murmers - but the quality of sound which is superb enough to demonstrate the capabilities of one's wide-range audio systems. Although recorded in 1968-69, it is obvious that the recording engineers of that time had the technical capabilities to capture the sound of the piano in all its magnificience, seldom reached with all of the current technology. (My CD is a reissue on the BMG label and although not so marked on the jewel case, it is a - to repeat,a brilliantly - remastered disk). One hears the composer and the performer working together transparently. That is what CD-making should be all about!

Leaving the hype aside, EMI would have been more accurate to entitle this 2-CD ssurvey "Opera Arias by the Young Caballe." In the whole generous 151 min. there are only 6 songs to represent her extensive recital repertoire, and no Zarzuela. For those items you have to go to rCA. Here we get Caballe mostly from the Seventies (1971-79) with bits form the early Eighties.

The reviewers below have given deserved praise to Caballe's abilities as diva. My onw opinion is that she was better on records than in the opera house. She wasn't gifted as an actress and cut a short, wide figure onstage. But as a vocal actress on disc she was very convincing, despite her over-reliance on pathos and delicacy. One longs at times, amid all the beauitful floated notes, for more spine and guts to her heroines. (I find her acclaimed Aida, for example, a one-note portrayal.) Lady Macbeth needs to be more sinister, Elisabetta more tragically enduring.

In all, this two-fer serves as a fine survey of her early career, and for listeners like me, who don't necessarily buy Caballe's complete opera sets, it may be all we need.

This is a great collection of caballe's eternal art.All the songs here have been remastered and sound wonderful.The very best of,contains a nice selection of caballe's greatest verdi singing.Her rendition,heard here,of una macchia e qui tutt'ora(macbeth)is the best one in recorded history.She sings it with such beauty,feeling,and power,not to mention the most ethereal pianissimo high Dflat to ever caress the ear.All of the arias on this disc amply demonstrates her mastery of bel canto, and italian opera for that matter.In signore,ascolta from turandot,another memorable performance from Caballe,she sculpts this aria beautifully like a master craftsman;ending this piece with a ultra high pianissimo bflat,which she holds out all the way to the final bars of the music,for an astounishing 15 seconds.One of the most beautiful notes to ever float from the human throat.Other noticable mentions would be her pace pace mio dio,her ave maria from othello,col sorriso d'innocenza from il pirata,as well as an entire spanish recital(recorded in 1979,in good voice)are all include here;and much more besides.There is also a nice picture of a young, beautiful, and thin Montserrat Caballe on the cover.The cd booklet includes exstensive linear notes and five rare photes of this divine soprano,who has both a heart and voice of pure gold.

I`VE BEEN LOOKING FOR SO LONG THE "PUCCINI ARIAS" ALBUM AND IT`S ALMOST COMPLETE IN THIS COMPILATION. ENJOY THE PURE VOICE OF MONTSERRAT WITH THIS GREAT COLLECTION OF GREAT ARIAS BY VERDI,PUCCINI,BELLINI,ROSSINI,ETC. YOU`LL NEVER REGRET.CLEAR SOUND DIGITALLY REMASTERED.

This two-disc recital draws heavily upon two Caballe recital discs (a Bellini/Verdi recital, and a recital of Puccini arias), with some extra material thrown in. At the end of disc one, there are also some Spanish songs thrown in, a good choice, since Caballe sang these songs extensively in her many recitals.

For Caballe fans that already own the backlist of her recitals, there is not enough here to entice you to buy this new recital, unless you like the unique combination of arias. Tracks 1-5 on disc one are wonderful interpretations by Caballe of Verdian arias. I especially like the one from Macbeth- perfectly executed, with the pianissimi in all the right places. Equally as thrilling is her Tu Che Le Vanita, a dramatic, long aria that shows off the interpretive power she was capable of, when she wasn't in a lazy mood. As for the Ave Maria, I find it curious that they chose to cut the preceding Willow Song. In my mind, you can have a Willow Song on a soprano's recital disc without the Ave Maria, but it seems inappropriate for the reverse to be the case. Personally, I don't think that Caballe has anything on Mirella Freni, who is perhaps the most perfect Desdemona of her era.

I must admit to not having heard Caballe's interpretations of L'Altra Notte and Voi Lo Sapete. To imagine Caballe singing Santuzza really seems like a stretch to me. My favorite Santuzzas are Callas, Bumbry, and Verrett (in that order). Of course, Caballe did sing a lot of roles, and it isn't impossible that she could do justice to the aria, but I just can't imagine it, try as I might. A final selection worth mentioning is the aria from William Tell, from a supreme bel canto recording of Rossini's masterpiece.

Tracks 1-11 on the second disc are culled from her famous Puccini Arias recording, with the exception of In Questa Reggia from Turandot (a role that she would sing very late in her career, as opposed to the more familiar and suitable-for-her-voice role of Liu). What is notable is what didn't make the cut. Listeners will be deprived of her heart-wrenching, powerful interpretation of Sola, Perduta, Abbandonata, with its sinister clarinet obligato. They will also miss out on an enchanting aria from Puccini's little known and rarely staged Le Villi. This is a shame, since the original Puccini Aria disc is currently out of circulation.

The rest of disc two focuses on Bellini, in the form of I Puritani and Il Pirata. Listeners will be treated to both the polacca and the mad scene from Bellini' final opera. Caballe, of course, cannot hold a candle to Joan Sutherland, who was a true coloratura soprano (Caballe was more lyrical), but she isn't bad, either, as Elvira. The Bellini role that would garner her more acclaim was Imogene from Il Pirata. This two-disc recital draws to a close with her divine reading of Imogene's mad scene. This is the stuff of operatic legend.

All in all, minor quibbles aside, this is a great introduction to those not familiar with Caballe's grand art.