*** Warning: non-audiophile content below ***
Yesterday morning I was on Amazon.com and came across the section of almost-free classical music downloads. These compilations are things that I have always avoided like the plague. But I decided to download the impressively named "The 99 Most Essential Schubert Masterpieces": http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Schubert-Masterpieces-Amazon-Exclusive/dp/B003O5FC42/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
For $1.99 you get 1.3GB and 13 hours of Schubert, including all symphonies but the first two, quartets, quintets, trios, Winterreise, and more. The set is not heavy on lieder (songs). Some of the artists are obscure but many are not, e.g., Alfred Brendel, Tokyo String Quartet.
Conclusion: I'm still working my way through this set, and I'm enjoying it. The sound is fine through computer speakers but I haven't played these mp3s through my main system (yet). I've never been one to pursue quantity for its own sake but this download was much better than I expected.
Yesterday morning I was on Amazon.com and came across the section of almost-free classical music downloads. These compilations are things that I have always avoided like the plague. But I decided to download the impressively named "The 99 Most Essential Schubert Masterpieces": http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Schubert-Masterpieces-Amazon-Exclusive/dp/B003O5FC42/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
For $1.99 you get 1.3GB and 13 hours of Schubert, including all symphonies but the first two, quartets, quintets, trios, Winterreise, and more. The set is not heavy on lieder (songs). Some of the artists are obscure but many are not, e.g., Alfred Brendel, Tokyo String Quartet.
Conclusion: I'm still working my way through this set, and I'm enjoying it. The sound is fine through computer speakers but I haven't played these mp3s through my main system (yet). I've never been one to pursue quantity for its own sake but this download was much better than I expected.