Bargain box sets

[Stanfordian]

I'm looking for some ideas for baragin boxed sets for a gift but I have a relatively small budget. I have seen and liked the Simon Rattle set of the complete Mahler symphonies at £19.99 inc p&p. A while back I saw on amazon the 22 disc set of the complete 'Works of Igor Stravinsky' on Sony for only £17.99 inc p&p. It is priced considerably more now. That sort of thing.

[Curalach]

They also have the Bertini Mahler set (11 cds) at £21.97 (well worth 2 quid more than Rattle), Jansons 10cd set of Shostakovich symphonies at £20.99, and Boulez conducts Stravinsky, 6 cds at £17.99.

We are fortunate to have such bargains available to us. I try not to think what I paid for some of these years ago.

[Mandryka]

This price comparison site

http://www.find-cd.co.uk/

has saved me (or lost me?) a fair bit of money over the years.

You'll find the Janssons Shostakovich set a couple of quid cheaper than its Amazon price.

[Nick Armstrong]

This price comparison site

http://www.find-cd.co.uk/

has saved me (or lost me?) a fair bit of money over the years.

You'll find the Janssons Shostakovich set a couple of quid cheaper than its Amazon price.

Great link, mandryka!! Thank you for that, I had never come across that before. The sort of thing I love - I hate the idea that somewhere, the CD I'm buying is going for fewer ££££....

[Pianorak]

Probably another useful site, but it still pays to shop around. Have just ordered the Liszt Douze Grandes Etudes (Hyperion) from MDT at £6.80 plus 75p p&p. Find-cd.co.uk: Our Lowest Price: £9.99.

[Mandryka]

Probably another useful site, but it still pays to shop around. Have just ordered the Liszt Douze Grandes Etudes (Hyperion) from MDT at £6.80 plus 75p p&p. Find-cd.co.uk: Our Lowest Price: £9.99.

Indeed - I always check with play.com, as it tends to be a very competitive seller, yet its links on find-cd are erratic. I don't think MDT ever appears on there - I've never used MDT, as have usually been put off by p&p charges, but will give them a look from now on.

[Ferretfancy]

Although I love to see and hear Janssons in the concert hall, I found his Shostakovich set rather a disappointment, it might be wise to sample if possible before buying. You should be able to find the Barshai / Bavarian RSO at a similar bargain price, and it's really good.

[aeolium]

My two last box set purchases were of the Gulda Mozart tapes (recordings of Friedrich Gulda playing 10 Mozart sonatas and a fantasy - superb playing) and of the complete Prokofiev symphonies conducted by Walter Weller with the LSO/LPO, following Jonathan Swain's BaL review of Prok 6. The symphonies are very well played and in excellent sound. Each set cost about £9 from Europadisc.

[notnerb]

Two good boxes I've recently picked up from Amazon - Du Pre complete EMI recordings - 17 discs, £22 - and Levine's Mahler set - 10 CDs, £16 or so.

[amateur51]

My two last box set purchases were of the Gulda Mozart tapes (recordings of Friedrich Gulda playing 10 Mozart sonatas and a fantasy - superb playing) and of the complete Prokofiev symphonies conducted by Walter Weller with the LSO/LPO, following Jonathan Swain's BaL review of Prok 6. The symphonies are very well played and in excellent sound. Each set cost about £9 from Europadisc.

Oh I'd hoped I'd put the Gulda Mozart to the back of my mind, but you 've revived my interest, aeolium if they're that good. He was a fascinating player, full of good ideas and few dodgy ones but what the heck - he was never dull

[aeolium]

am51, I love these Gulda performances. It's quite the opposite of 'Dresden china' Mozart playing, very strong but at the same time wonderfully stylish (at times sounding almost more like early Beethoven) - quite unlike any other performances of these works I've heard. The sonatas are predominantly the earlier ones, plus the 'Facile' sonata K545 and the C minor fantasia K475. Having also got the Gulda Beethoven set (also very cheap) I'm interested in exploring his Bach recordings, particularly the Wohltemperierte Klavier.

And by the way, every repeat is played

[StephenO]

They also have the Bertini Mahler set (11 cds) at £21.97 (well worth 2 quid more than Rattle). We are fortunate to have such bargains available to us.

Agreed. The Bertini set is a fantastic bargain with some of the best Mahler performances I've heard on disc. Rattle only really surpasses him in the Resurrection (his earlier recording with the CBSO, not his vastly inferior one with the Berlin Phil). Only Bernstein on Sony can rival Bertini IMO, but at double the price.

Other great bargains are Karajan's 1960s set of the Beethoven Symphonies and Abbado's Mendelssohn Symphonies at £17.99 each, both of which I'd recommend without hesitation, and Bohm's Schubert set at £14.99. Paul Lewis's box of the Beethoven Piano Concertos (£25.33) is also well worth considering. Top of my wish list at the moment are the Melos Ensemble's complete EMI recordings, £25.99 from Amazon.