Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Reference Recording: Reiner’s Scheherazade and Song of the Nightingale

David Hurwitz

I listen in awe of these performances, whose luster hasn’t […]

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Reiner’s Respighi Still Leads the Pack

Joseph Stevenson

Listening to these exquisite SACD remasterings of half-century-old classic Living

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Big Boxes: Abbado Loses to His Younger Self in Tchaikovsky

David Hurwitz

This set of Tchaikovsky symphonies and miscellaneous orchestral works reveals

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Under the Radar: The Most Exciting Bruckner Fourth

David Hurwitz

Barenboim’s Bruckner Fourth has divided opinions since it was first

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Under the Radar: Levine’s Remarkable Petrushka and Les Noces

David Hurwitz

In the five years or so since I rediscovered this

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Giulini in America, DG’s Chicago Recordings

David Hurwitz

Giulini’s Chicago recordings came in two waves, a first batch

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Reference Recording: Ravel Orchestral Works from Martinon & Chicago

Dan Davis

Jean Martinon led the Chicagoans for a brief five years

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Big Boxes: Solti’s Frustratingly Assembled Bartók

David Hurwitz

Another missed opportunity! Solti recorded some terrific Bartók, specifically his

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Reiner Conducts Strauss, As If You Didn’t Know

David Hurwitz

Writing about this set reminds me of the book report

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Reference Recording: Bernstein’s Ultimate “Leningrad” Symphony

David Hurwitz

There has never been a better performance of Shostakovich’s unwieldy

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CD From Hell: Sokolov’s Bogus Profundity In Mozart and Rachmaninov

David Hurwitz May 25, 2025

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Reference Recording: Kocsis in Rachmaninov’s Concertos and Paganini Rhapsody

David Hurwitz May 25, 2025

Hieyon Choi’s Beethoven Sonata Cycle

Jed Distler May 18, 2025

Benjamin Bernheim Rules as Met’s Hoffmann
by Robert Levine
October 6, 2024
Benjamin Bernheim Rules as Met’s Hoffmann Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, NY; Oct 24, 2024 Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann is a nasty work. Despite its
RIP David Vernier, Editor-in-Chief
by David Hurwitz
August 4, 2024
David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com’s founding Editor-in-Chief passed away Thursday morning, August 1, 2024 after a long battle with cancer. The end came shockingly quickly. Just a
Finally, It’s SIR John
by ClassicsToday
June 24, 2024
He’d received many honors before, but it wasn’t until last week that John Rutter, best known for his choral compositions and arrangements, especially works related