Of the 4 recommendations I list here, if you can only have 1 recording, then this one would be my choice. Featuring Mstislav Rostropovich as the lead Cellist, and backed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra led by Herbert von Karajan, it is an impecible performance. Strong, bold and rich in its tones and melodies, this performance is hard pressed to be beat unless you are looking for an extra touch to this classical piece offered by my other recommendations.  As hard as it is to beat my first recommendation, Jacqueline...

Gutav Mahler is one of my favorite composers (it is true I have several "favorites") and his symphonies are worlds of art. Listening to them in order is quite a task however, as each is almost exhausting to listen to, taking you on such an emotional roller coaster that simply must be heard foremost, versus listening to these works of art as background music. I have all of his symphonies twice if not more. Bernstein is an awesome conductor of Mahler's works - indeed I prefer his conducting to his...

Antonin Dvorak is one of my favorite composers. Cello concertos are one of my favorite classical music to listen to (from various periods). Add in Rostropovich, one of my favorite Cello players of all time and now you are talking about one of my favorite pieces of all time. One of the things I enjoy most about classical music is listening to various takes on the same piece of music. Taking Dvorak's Cello Concerto for example, two Cellists come immediately to mind. Rostropovich and his strong playing...

Tonight was a big start for me. For the first time in over 22 years I stepped foot back into a college class room. My first class was in Music Appreciation 101. Now, I've been listening to classical music for a couple of years now and have really enjoyed it. So much in fact that this blog has been on my to-do list ever since. Since tonight started a new journey I figured why not start this one as well. For starters, it may even help me focus on the class. So, how did a guy like me get started...