The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music 2008
by Ivan March, Edward Greenfield, Robert Layton
List Price:
Our Price: $3.69
You Save: $26.31 (88%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Edward Greenfield, Ivan March, Robert LaytonEditor: Paul Czajkowski
Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-10-10
ISBN: 0141033363
Number of pages: 156
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Book Reviews of The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music 2008
Book Review: Still the Best
Summary: 5 Stars
Truth be told there just are not that many good classical music guides to choose from. In terms of scope the Good Guide is second to the Penguin. In my humble opinion, if you're serious about building or adding to an existing collection of classical CDs and DVDs you will own the "Good" book. You'll also own the Penguin Guide simply due to its more comprehensive scope as there are works (e.g., Beethoven's Overtures to name but one example) that are not covered in the "Good".
The Good Guide, like the Penguin, originates from the U.K. Some reviewers feel both these guides have a bias towards British artists. While to some extent this is true, it's not what other reviewers make it out to be and there are countless number of non-British recordings that are highly recommended in these pages. Besides, to my knowledge, one really doesn't have much choice because outside of the Penguin and the Good Guides a comprehensive guide for purchasing classical music is not available. There is the "Third Ear" but is does not come close to the high standard of these two publications. In fact, I have found the Third Ear to be far more biased AGAINST British recordings than these two guides are biased for them. If you're a complete beginner, the NPR Guide by Ted Libbey is an excellent place to start and it can't be accused of a British bias.
Gramophone Magazine is the only respectable periodical I've found that gives updated reviews and information about the latest in classical music recordings. The "Good" Guide is issued by the editors of Gramophone. This is the first year I bought the Good Guide as I've been content with the Penguin. However, after being a subscriber to Gramophone Magazine for the past 3 years I've been so impressed with their recommendations that it was a logical purchase for me.
I've perused the pages of the Good Guide and found a lot of agreement between it and the Penguin. Certain recordings are obvious recommendations and usually both these guides lead the buyer to owning certain "masterpiece" recordings. Both guides provide professional reviews of many of the avialble purchases for a given piece. Both provide great descriptions of many of the subtleties of given recordings and how the performers interpret the music. These descriptions make it easy to compare and contrast recordings and will help one become a more discerning listener.
If you love opera, you're in for a real treat. In addition to being season ticket holders to the Seattle Symphony and Pacific Northwest Ballet, we also have season seats to the Seattle Opera. I use these guides to make sure I own the music for whatever it is we will be hearing and "seeing" in our upcoming seasons. For Opera Lovers, the DVD recommendations are great to have. Now, in addition to having the best CDs of a given opera, I am now able to confidently purchase outstanding DVDs of the operas we'll be attending. If you go to live classical music performances of any kind, being able to familiarize yourself with what you'll be hearing before you attend the performance only leads to enhancing the performance.
As you can tell, I am very pleased with both the Penguin and Good Guides. Once you're really serious about compiling a CD/DVD collection, I'm confident you'll feel the same. These books will become your trusted advisors and you'll look forward to replacing them as they're updated.
Again, if you're really just starting out, you're fine with the NPR Guide (350 Essential Works) to begin with. It is refreshingly brief in scope and will get you the base you need for your collection and you'll be pleased with your recommendations. A great example is Libbey's recommendation of the Leon Fleisher/George Szell recordings of the Beethoven Piano Concertos. These recordings are phenomonal treasures at bargain prices!
Once you really get into classical music listening as a part of your life, and your "being" so to speak, it won't be long before you'll realize you'll want more. Owning these two guides will make you smarter about the music you're listening to and you'll be proud of your collection of excellent recordings.
In closing I want to express my belief in my credentials to make a recommendation to prospective buyers of these Guides. I am 52 years old. At age 5 I began piano study under Edith Knox in Los Angeles. Edith was a Juliard graduate who studied piano with Alexander Ziloti. Ziloti was a pupil of Franz Liszt. Ms. Knox premiered the Ravel Piano Concerto in G at the Hollywood Bowl with the L.A. Philharmonic Orchestra in, I think, 1936. I continued to study with Ms. Knox into my early twenties afterward, I studied with Reginald Stewart at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara. I currently study with Celia Chandler, who studied with Leon Fleisher and is thus from the "Vienese" school (Beethoven, Czerny, Schabel,) as opposed to the Listz lineage of Ms. Knox. In college I majored in composition and piano and for four years was the student representative for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. For the past 30 years I've continued listening to classical music for countless hours each and every week of my life.
I only provide this bit of autobigraphical information so you know that I've got a solid foundation in classical music and consider myself a lifelong student of the genre. Even though I'm an avid reader, I don't feel as though I'm qualified to be a literary critic. However, based upon my personal life experiences in classical music I think I am qaulified to write a review about classical music guides. Buy these with guides with confidence. There is no perfect book for building a classical music collection but these two are the best available.
Happy listening!
Summary of The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music 2008
This book has remained the best and most successful guide to classical music for over 40 years. Fully revised by its team of eminent authors and written with wit and passion, "The Penguin Guide" offers reviews of all the latest releases as well as the finest established recordings; the greatest historic performances; the major period instrument recordings; an in-depth survey of the best of the budget-priced CDs; and, a core collection of 100 handpicked CDs that every serious classical music fan should own. Now published annually for the first time, this book is essential reading. "Indispensable, illuminating and comprehensive" - "The Times".Reference Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Reference Books
The Great Song Thesaurusby Roger Lax, Frederick Smith
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1989-02-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $174.48
The New Oxford History of Music: Volume IV: The Age of Humanism 1540-1630Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1968-12-31; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $102.77
Price in other shops:
The Oxford Companion to Popular Musicby Peter Gammond
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1991-04-04; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $27.94
Price in other shops:
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (Oxford Paperback Reference)Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1996-08-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.75
Price in other shops:
Musical Involvement: A Guide to Perceptive Listeningby Donald J. Funes, Stephen E. Squires
Harcourt College Pub; Published: 1991-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $57.95
Compact Discs Yearbook 2000/ 1, The Penguin Guide to (Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music)by Ivan March, Edward Greenfield, Robert Layton
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2000-10-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.94
Price in other shops:
Listening to Musicby Jay Zorn
Prentice Hall College Div; Published: 1994-12-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.95
Price in other shops:
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Playing Guitar (2nd Edition)by Frederick Noad
Alpha; Published: 2001-08-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.99
Price in other shops:
DJing for Dummiesby John Steventon
For Dummies; Published: 2007-01-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.99
Price in other shops:
This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsessionby Daniel J. Levitin
Penguin Audio; Published: 2007-08-16; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $15.50
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The NPR Listener's Encyclopedia of Classical Musicby Ted Libbey
Workman Publishing Company; Published: 2006-04-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.19
Price in other shops:
Brahms: The Symphonies - Haydn Variations / Academic Festival Overture / Tragic OvertureRelease date: 1997-11-25; Music CD
Best price: $12.02
Price in other shops:
The Gramophone Classical Music Guide 2011Gramophone Publications; Published: 2010-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $21.34
Price in other shops:
Bach: Goldberg VariationsRelease date: 2000-10-03; Music CD
Best price: $6.84
Price in other shops:
All Music Guide to Classical Music: The Definitive Guide to Classical Music (All Music Guide Required Listening)by Chris Woodstra, Gerald Brennan, Allen Schrott
Backbeat Books; Published: 2005-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $20.95
Price in other shops:
The NPR Guide to Building a Classical CD Collection : The 350 Essential Worksby Ted Libbey
Workman Publishing Company; Published: 1999-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.63
Price in other shops:
The Gramophone Classical Music Guide 2010: The Most Authoritative Guide to the Best Classical Recordings Written by the World's Leading CriticsGramophone Publications; Published: 2009-09-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.84
Price in other shops:
Classical Music: Third Ear: The Essential Listening Companionby Alexander Morin
Backbeat Books; Backbeat Books; Published: 2001-07-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.00
Price in other shops:
The Gramophone Classical Music Guide 2012by James Jolly
Gramophone Publications; Published: 2011-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $21.16
Price in other shops:
The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music 2009by Ivan March, Edward Greenfield, Robert Layton
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2008-11-25; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $59.95