List of Best (Most Recommended) Classical Music in Surround Sound

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BTW, excellent survey, humprof. It's depressing however, how SO FEW Classical Recordings [which number in the thousands] have discrete elements. Especially considering SACDs also have the Stereo layer which purists covet.
 
BTW, excellent survey, humprof. It's depressing however, how SO FEW Classical Recordings [which number in the thousands] have discrete elements. Especially considering SACDs also have the Stereo layer which purists covet.

Thanks, Ralph. Depressing indeed--although at least there are other good recordings (like those on 2L and Sono Luminus) that are truly immersive even if they're not discrete. Still: glad for whatever we get! I'll add your suggestions when I do the next round of edits.
 
Thanks, Ralph. Depressing indeed--although at least there are other good recordings (like those on 2L and Sono Luminus) that are truly immersive even if they're not discrete. Still: glad for whatever we get! I'll add your suggestions when I do the next round of edits.

Yes, I have a great number of those 2L and Sono Luminus discs. Wonderful recordings and repertoire! BTW, those 4 pages of TACET mch SACDs listed at HRAudio.net are discrete marvels ....... but may not be to everyone's liking. The musicians literally SURROUND you. If you like your Beethoven 9 symphonies ultra DISCRETE, look no further.
 
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There are definitely more than a few discrete elements in this two disc SACD.
 
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Just finished revising the "starter" list of discrete classical recordings (in this post).
So here's a starter list of classical recordings that I built mostly by going back through this thread. According to those who recommended them, these were either recorded discretely or contain notable discrete elements. Accuracy definitely not guaranteed; additions, corrections, notes, and disputes welcome. N.B.: this list doesn't include anything from the AIX or Tacet labels, and for now, I've also left out the MoFi Vox reissues. In principle, this list also doesn't include recordings with "active" rears (i.e., more than just hall ambience) or "immersive" recordings (e.g., 2L or Sono Luminus recordings, which are multi-mic'd and recorded in surround, though not discretely)--although people who know some of these better than I do may want to argue about how to classify them.
  • Aho, Kalevi. Symphony No. 12 (“Luosto”). Lahti Symphony Orchestra/Chamber Orchestra of Lapland/John Storgards. BIS SACD-1676 (2008). SACD 5.0
  • Bach, Johann Sebastian. The Four Great Toccatas and Fugues. E. Power Biggs. Sony 87983 (2003). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Columbia Masterworks MA/MAQ 32933 (1974). SQ LP/Q8). Mixed by Ray Moore.

  • Bartok, Bela. Concerto for Orchestra. Boulez Conducts Bartok. New York Philharmonic/Pierre Boulez. Columbia Masterworks MQ/MAQ 32132 (1973). SQ LP/Q8. Mixed by Ray Moore. (In 2002, Sony Classical re-released this, together with The Magnificent Mandarin, on SACD 5.1 [Sony Classical SS 87710]--but while they cleaned up the sonics, they also messed with the mix, which doesn't much resemble Moore's original quad.)

  • Berlioz, Hector. Symphonie Fantastique. Boston Symphony Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa. Pentatone Remastered Classics PTC 5186211 (2015). SACD 4.0. Originally released in stereo on Deutsche Grammophon 2530 358 (1973). Mixed by Thomas Mowrey.

  • Berlioz, Hector. La Damnation de Faust. Edith Mathis, Donald McIntyre, Thomas Paul; Boston Symphony Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa. Pentatone Remastered Classics PTC 5186 212 (2015). SACD 4.0. Originally released in stereo on Deutsche Grammophon 2709 048 (1974). Mixed by Thomas Mowrey.

  • Berlioz, Hector. Requiem. Utah Symphony /Maurice Abravanel. Vanguard Classics 1506 (2002). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Vanguard VSS-2/3 (QR, 1969) and VSQ 30006/7 (SQ LP, 1972). Discrete sound featuring four brass choirs in one movement only. Paired with Mahler’s Symphony No. 1, which was not recorded discretely.
  • Berlioz, Hector. Requiem. Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/Robert Spano. Telarc SACD-60627 (2004). SACD 5.0.

  • Bizet, Georges. Carmen. Marilyn Horne, James McCracken; Metropolitan Opera Orchestra/Leonard Bernstein. Pentatone Remastered Classics PTC 5186 216 (2014). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Deutsche Grammophon 2709 043 (1973). Mixed by Thomas Mowrey and remastered by Jean-Marie Geijsen.

  • Corigliano, John. Symphony No. 3 "Circus Maximus"; Gazebo Dances. University of Texas Wind Ensemble/Jerry Junkin. Naxos NBD0008 (2010). BDA 5.0.

  • Ericcson, Hans-Ola. The Four Beasts’ Lament (Mass for organ and electronics), etc. Hans-Ola Ericcson, others. BIS SACD-1485 (2005). SACD 5.0.

  • Giuliani, Mauro; Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario; Villa-Lobos, Heitor. Guitar Concertos. Narciso Yepes; London Symphony Orchestra/English Chamber Orchestra/Luis Antonio García Navarro. Pentatone Remastered Classics PTC 5186202 (2014). SACD 4.0. Originally released in stereo by Deutsche Grammophon. Mixed by Rudolf Werner.

  • Haydn, (Franz) Joseph. Mass in Time of War. Leonard Bernstein's Concert for Peace. Patricia Wells, Gwendolyn Killebrew, Alan Titus, Michael Devlin; Norman Scribner Choir; (National?) Orchestra/Leonard Bernstein. Dutton Epoch CDLX 7346 (2017). SACD 4.0. Originally release on Columbia Masterworks MQ 32196 (1973). Mixed by Larry Keyes and remastered by Michael Dutton.

  • Holst, Gustav. The Planets. Strauss, Richard. Also Sprach Zarathustra. Boston Symphony Orchestra/William Steinberg. Blu-Ray 4.0 (192/24). Deutsche Grammophon 479 8669 (2018). Mixed by Günter Hermanns (Thomas Mowrey, co-exec. prod.)

  • Mahler, Gustav. Symphonies No. 1 & 4. Levine Conducts Mahler. Brahms, Johannes. Symphony No. 1. Levine Conducts Brahms. London Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra/James Levine. Dutton Vocalion 2CDLX 7344 (2017). Originally released on RCA Red Seal CRD3 1040 (1975) and RCA Victor ARLI 1326 (1976). Mixed by Robert Auger and Michael J. Dutton.

  • Maderna, Bruno. Complete Works for Orchestra, Vol. 4. "Quadrivium," etc. Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra/Arturo Tarnayo. NEOS 10936 (2012). SACD 5.1.

  • Orff, Carl. Carmina Burana. Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus/Carl Runnicles. Telarc Surround SACD-60575 (2001) SACD 5.0.

  • Les Percussions de Strasbourg. East Meets West. Works by Francis Miroglio, Alain Louvier, Georges Aperghis. Pentatone RQR Series PTC 5186156 (2004). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Philips 6521 030 (1972).

  • Messiaen, Olivier. Turangalîla Symphony. Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra/Ricardo Chailly. Decca 470 627-2 (2003). SACD 5.1

  • Popov, Gavriil. Symphony No. 1; Shostakovich, Dmitri. Theme & Variations, Op. 3. London Symphony Orchestra/Leon Botstein. Telarc SACD 60642 (2004).

  • Prokofiev, Sergei. Alexander Nevsky; Lieutenant Kije. Philadelphia Orchestra/Eugene Ormandy. Dutton Epoch CDLX 7362 (2018). SACD 4.0. Originally released on RCA Red Seal ARD1 1151, ARLA1 1325 (1975, 1976). Mixed by Paul Goodman and remastered by Michael Dutton (Kije mixed by Dutton).

  • Rachmaninoff, Sergei. Vocalise. Budapest Festival Orchestra/Ivan Fischer. Channel Classics CCS SA 21604 (2004). SACD 5.0. Paired with Symphony No. 2, but only Vocalise is recorded in “conductor perspective.”

  • Ravel, Maurice. Orchestral Works: Le tombeau de Couperin; Menuet antique; Ma Mere L'Oye; Valse nobles et sentimentales; Une barque sur l'ocean. Boston Symphony Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa. Pentatone Remastered Classics PTC 5186 204 (2014). SACD 4.0. Originally released in stereo on Deutsche Grammophon (1974). Mixed by Thomas Mowrey.

  • Reich, Steve. Electric Counterpoint; Six Marimbas Counterpoint (arr. for solo marimba and tape); Vermont Counterpoint. Kuniko Plays Reich. Kuniko Kato. Linn CKD 385 (2011). SACD 5.0.

  • Respighi, Ottorino. Fountains of Rome; Pines of Rome; Roman Festivals. Sao Paolo Symphony/John Neschling. BIS BIS-SACD-1720 (2010). SACD 5.0. Discrete rears for offstage instruments in finale of Pines of Rome only.

  • Rheinberger, Josef. Two Concertos for Orchestra & Organ. E. Power Biggs; Columbia Symphony/Maurice Peress. Dutton Epoch CDLX 7334 (2017). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Columbia MQ 32297 (1973).

  • Stravinsky, Igor. Firebird (1910 Complete Version) . Boulez Conducts Stravinsky. New York Philharmonic/Pierre Boulez. Columbia Masterworks MQ 33508 (1975). SQ LP. Mixed by Ray Moore.

  • Stravinsky, Igor. Pulcinella Suite; Scherzo Fantastique; Symphonies of Wind Instruments. Boulez Conducts Stravinsky. New York Philharmonic/ Pierre Boulez. Dutton Epoch CDLX 7343 (2017). SACD 4.0. Originally released in stereo on Columbia Masterworks M 35105 (1978). Mixed by Larry Keyes.

  • Stravinsky, Igor. Petrushka (1911 version). Boulez Conducts Stravinsky. New York Philmarmonic/Pierre Boulez. Dutton Epoch CDLX 7343 (2017). Originally released on Columbia Masterworks MQ 31076 (1972). Mixed by Ray Moore, remastered by Michael Dutton.

  • Vivaldi, Antonio. The Four Seasons, etc. English Chamber Orchestra/Pinchas Zukerman. Dutton Epoch CDLX7335 (2017). SACD 4.0. Originally released on Columbia Masterworks MQ 31798 (1972).

  • Vivaldi, Antonio. The Four Seasons; Concertos for Violin and Double Orchestra. London Mozart Players/David Juritz. Naxos 5.110001 (2001). DVD-A 5.1.

  • Wagner, Richard. Tannhauser (Paris Version). Hans Sotin, Helga Dernesch, Rene Kollo, Victor Braun; Wiener Philharmoniker/Georg Solti. Decca 4832507 (2018). Blu-Ray 4.0 (192/24). Originally released in stereo on Decca SET 506-9 (1971).

Just finished revising the "starter" list of discrete classical recordings (in this post).
 
Speaking of discrete surround organ recordings, the rheinberger dsic that 4-eared wonder suggested is fantastic. What a delight it is!. Dont forget the Hansjorg Albrecht SACDs. There are 2 Wagner discs, a Mussorgsky Pictures , Holst Planets.

Looks like there are several others, too (pp. 336ff.): https://www.oehmsclassics.de/promo/oc071.pdf

Do you know if they're all discrete? (And/or if the download versions are MCh?)
 
Speaking of discrete surround organ recordings, the rheinberger dsic that 4-eared wonder suggested is fantastic. What a delight it is!. Dont forget the Hansjorg Albrecht SACDs. There are 2 Wagner discs, a Mussorgsky Pictures , Holst Planets.

That Hansjorg Albrecht interpretation of THE PLANETS is simply astounding:
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Try this one. You can get whiplash from the Scherzo.
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Hey Kal,
In your latest article in Stereophile, you report on a 5.1 recording by "Roomfull of Teeth" with the Seattle SO. I have looked everywhere for this, including the SRO website.. All I can find is stereo CD and stereo Flac. Where can I get this?
Thanks!
 
I wish there was some resource on classical multichannel releases and rankings, like the polls here. Some kind of guide. Been searching the forums and there's not enough information. Starting a whole new music library for classical recordings without knowing where I'm going with this seems like a sisyphean task, and most of the 5.1 recordings I did get are not discrete at all. Between the best performances and best recordings, how does one begin to rank multichannel releases?

Waiting for three releases from DV right now - the two Daniel Barenboim & Artur Rubinstein, and Leonard Bernstein Haydn's Mass in Time of War. Hope they're good...
This is a big question, and one which raises a few questions of priority. Do you want really discrete surround, are you more focused on performance quality, or audio quality more generally (or, more likely, given preference, which is most important).

The modern classical recordings which are generally considered unmissable are the recordings Julia Fischer did for Pentatone, and many of the recording Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra did for Channel. Not terribly discrete but first-tier performances in native DSD recorded surround. These labels have a fairly excellent track record generally, as does BIS. Many of the orchestra labels are also good, but the sound from live recordings isn't as uniformly excellent as you can get from studio recordings. The performances also tend to be more variable in quality.

Of what you got, Rubinstein's final traversal of the Beethoven piano concertos is a really wonderful one, with occasional finger slips being more than compensated for by eight decades of living with this music and having a deep sense of its ebb and flow (Rubinstein was born in 1887). The quad sound is good but not particularly discrete, which I personally think meshes well with the autumnal playing. The Bernstein/Haydn disc is a surround extravaganza and lots of fun, as I recall - more typical of the very discrete Columbia mixes of the period.

There's a thread with more info here: https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...nded-classical-music-in-surround-sound.20662/
 
This is a big question, and one which raises a few questions of priority. Do you want really discrete surround, are you more focused on performance quality, or audio quality more generally (or, more likely, given preference, which is most important).

The modern classical recordings which are generally considered unmissable are the recordings Julia Fischer did for Pentatone, and many of the recording Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra did for Channel. Not terribly discrete but first-tier performances in native DSD recorded surround. These labels have a fairly excellent track record generally, as does BIS. Many of the orchestra labels are also good, but the sound from live recordings isn't as uniformly excellent as you can get from studio recordings. The performances also tend to be more variable in quality.

Of what you got, Rubinstein's final traversal of the Beethoven piano concertos is a really wonderful one, with occasional finger slips being more than compensated for by eight decades of living with this music and having a deep sense of its ebb and flow (Rubinstein was born in 1887). The quad sound is good but not particularly discrete, which I personally think meshes well with the autumnal playing. The Bernstein/Haydn disc is a surround extravaganza and lots of fun, as I recall - more typical of the very discrete Columbia mixes of the period.

There's a thread with more info here: https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...nded-classical-music-in-surround-sound.20662/
Thank you so much for this. With all my searching, this thread is new to me. Exactly what I was looking for :51QQ
 
I wish there was some resource on classical multichannel releases and rankings, like the polls here.

I totally second that.

Right now, I’m afraid to buy ANY quad classical after reading all the reports of fake, upmixed, or otherwise worthless reissues of legitimate quad mixes.

Fake, misrepresented, or shoddy quad releases on digital is a growing problem that needs to be addressed forcefully — and right quick. Or there will be no end to it.
 
I've come to the conclusion that the music matters more than the format and level of discreetness, so when it comes to classical music, the performance and mastering is more important than whether the multichannel mix is slightly discrete or mega discrete. This Zander conducted-performance of Mahler's second symphony is relatively discrete but I'm afraid the performance just doesn't do it for me: it's simply too slow. My favourite symphony is Mahler's 3rd and I'd love to hear a mega discrete multichannel mix of a well-mastered first-class performance. I've got this box set of Mahler symphonies by Abbado-Lucerne Festival Orchestra that contains a fabulous 3rd symphony, but it's a live performance and not exactly discrete, so it ticks the right boxes...except the multichannel mix is fairly weak. Still, at least it's great as is :)
 
Derek, here's a list of all the Classical QUAD recordings from Quadraphonic Discography. You may want to Bookmark it for future reference:

http://www.surrounddiscography.com/quaddisc/quadclas.htm

I likewise have a 4.2 MAIN SYSTEM. I have a 5.1 in my bedroom where I watch movies. Don't miss the center channel in my main system at all.

BTW, here's a listing of ALL the Rock/Pop/Jazz QUAD recordings from Quadraphonic Discography:

http://www.surrounddiscography.com/quaddisc/quadpall.htm


Oh that's great Ralph. Looking at the first link I see that Fassbaender sings on the Stokowski recording Ubertrout mentioned above. Fassbaender sings the best Urlicht ever on this recording under the direction of Chailly. If she brings half as much to the Stokowski recording and it's discrete, then this could be the best version of Mahler's second symphony, like ever!
 
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