Bargains

[Bryn]

Mine arrived 10 days ago so clearly a run started on this once it was flagged up on here.

Meanwhile, scrolling rapidly through my Amazon wishlists just now I found a number of boxes reduced to £12.99. A quick search revealed a number of others although this is not (as far as I can see) an identifiable special offer.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_p_36_5?rnid=389088011&rh=n%3A229816%2Cn%3A%21520920%2Cn%3A697386%2Cp_n_binding_browse-bin%3A382528011%2Cp_6%3AA3P5ROKL5A1OLE%2Cp_n_feature_five_browse-bin%3A382534011%2Cp_76%3A419159031&unfiltered=1&qid=1467445818&bbn=697386&low-price=12.99&high-price=12.99&x=14&y=11

I went for the Hagen/Mozart, Haebler/Schubert and Bruckner/Celi boxes that were already on my wish lists.

Repeating the exercise at other price points (notably £10.99 although this was flooded with Membran boxes) quickly threw up other worthwhile reductions, while at £9.99 there are the Bruggen/Schubert Symphonies and Furtwangler Live Recordings (42-44) vol 1 on DG.

Many thanks for this tip-off. I ended up ordering some 8 £12.99 boxes. All but the "Ligeti Works" were straight-forward pick-ups from my chosen shop. The Ligeti, which was sent from another EU member state arrived at the shop before the others but Amazon failed to send me an email with the necessary alphanumeric code to enable the shopkeeper to release it to me. It took a telephone conversation via the Amazon help system to get a helpful call centre operative to issue the code and confirm it via email.

I must admit I was expecting the usual Sony bargain box arrangement with card slip cases and no booklet. How wrong could I have been. It comes with a very comprehensive booklet with plenty of commentary by the composer. Oh, and contrary to what one amazon.co.uk customer reviewer asserts, the set does include Le Grande Macabre (the revised 1997 version). O.k., you have to get the somewhat more pricey Teldec Ligeti Edition box to get the main orchestral works, and the Teldec African Rhythms CD to get the piano études missing from the Sony box, but that Sony box is still highly recommendable.



ASIN: B00303WQMO

[Dave2002]

Selections - delivery glitch

I have, over quite a number of years, used Selections for buying CDs and DVDs. I usually can't remember my customer number, and it's a faff to find it. Sometimes I don't bother, and maybe as a result I have more than one customer number.

More recently I noticed that it's possible to pay using Amazon, and I did that with at least one purchase not so long ago. However my latest purchase was ordered mid June, and today I started wondering why it hadn't arrived. Even though it was paid for on the Amazon site, there is no record of an order there, so I phoned up Selections to find out what had happened. I was then told that I didn't pay for delivery - so it is "waiting for me to collect". This is not the impression I had from the checkout page. It seems that Selections are agreed that I paid for the order, but are holding on to it until I make arrangements to have it delivered. Quite why they didn't think to send me a message to remind me, or query this I don't know. I probably ticked a box for free delivery, which is part of the Amazon system, but if "free delivery" actually means "we won't deliver" then that's not much good, is it? Other sellers operating via Amazon's payment system seem to have got this sorted - so I don't see why Selections are unable to do this. The charge for delivery will be slightly less than £5 (maybe £4.85?) I was told, when I agree to pay it.

Have others noticed this peculiarity? I did notice at one time that ordering from Selections and paying via Amazon resulted in cheaper postage/carriage charges, but now this seems to have changed, and this latest glitch is a slight irritation.

[pastoralguy]

I have, over quite a number of years, used Selections for buying CDs and DVDs. I usually can't remember my customer number, and it's a faff to find it. Sometimes I don't bother, and maybe as a result I have more than one customer number.

More recently I noticed that it's possible to pay using Amazon, and I did that with at least one purchase not so long ago. However my latest purchase was ordered mid June, and today I started wondering why it hadn't arrived. Even though it was paid for on the Amazon site, there is no record of an order there, so I phoned up Selections to find out what had happened. I was then told that I didn't pay for delivery - so it is "waiting for me to collect". This is not the impression I had from the checkout page. It seems that Selections are agreed that I paid for the order, but are holding on to it until I make arrangements to have it delivered. Quite why they didn't think to send me a message to remind me, or query this I don't know. I probably ticked a box for free delivery, which is part of the Amazon system, but if "free delivery" actually means "we won't deliver" then that's not much good, is it? Other sellers operating via Amazon's payment system seem to have got this sorted - so I don't see why Selections are unable to do this. The charge for delivery will be slightly less than £5 (maybe £4.85?) I was told, when I agree to pay it.

Have others noticed this peculiarity? I did notice at one time that ordering from Selections and paying via Amazon resulted in cheaper postage/carriage charges, but now this seems to have changed, and this latest glitch is a slight irritation.

Hmmm. It might be worth a quick email to Amazon since they're pretty hot on customer service. Free postage which you have to collect! Bloody cheek.

[Dave2002]

Hmmm. It might be worth a quick email to Amazon since they're pretty hot on customer service. Free postage which you have to collect! Bloody cheek.

Indeed, but how to contact Amazon? It's quite hard, and if it's not for something they sell it's tricky. I used to have contact lists for Amazon, but they could be out of date now.

[pastoralguy]

It's easy, Dave. Go to the search engine and simply put customer service or contact Amazon. It'll give you a link to all your most recent transactions and use the link with contact Amazon on it. They do take a dim view of third party sellers who provide poor or misleading service.

[hafod]

Amazon France has the complete Richard Strauss Operas on DG for €40.

https://www.amazon.fr/Richard-Strauss-Int%C3%A9grale-Op%C3%A9ras/dp/B00G4PV0H2/

Also Karajan 1960s for €95.

https://www.amazon.fr/Karajan-1960s-Hans-Priem-Bergrath/dp/B007IQWQ88/

[Bryn]

Amazon France has the complete Richard Strauss Operas on DG for €40.

https://www.amazon.fr/Richard-Strauss-Int%C3%A9grale-Op%C3%A9ras/dp/B00G4PV0H2/

Also Karajan 1960s for €95.
https://www.amazon.fr/Karajan-1960s-...dp/B007IQWQ88/

Well, though not a particular fan of Karajan, I gave in and ordered that box but the Strauss box had more duplication of the Brilliant Classics Richard Strauss Edition than I was happy to bear.

[Conchis]

Many thanks for this tip-off. I ended up ordering some 8 £12.99 boxes. All but the "Ligeti Works" were straight-forward pick-ups from my chosen shop. The Ligeti, which was sent from another EU member state arrived at the shop before the others but Amazon failed to send me an email with the necessary alphanumeric code to enable the shopkeeper to release it to me. It took a telephone conversation via the Amazon help system to get a helpful call centre operative to issue the code and confirm it via email.

I must admit I was expecting the usual Sony bargain box arrangement with card slip cases and no booklet. How wrong could I have been. It comes with a very comprehensive booklet with plenty of commentary by the composer. Oh, and contrary to what one amazon.co.uk customer reviewer asserts, the set does include Le Grande Macabre (the revised 1997 version). O.k., you have to get the somewhat more pricey Teldec Ligeti Edition box to get the main orchestral works, and the Teldec African Rhythms CD to get the piano études missing from the Sony box, but that Sony box is still highly recommendable.



ASIN: B00303WQMO

I'm currently hovering over this one.

I'm exploring Ligeti but note that this box doesn't include the Requiem - one of his KEY works - which really puts me in a quandary about whether or not I should pick it up.

[Bryn]

I'm currently hovering over this one.

I'm exploring Ligeti but note that this box doesn't include the Requiem - one of his KEY works - which really puts me in a quandary about whether or not I should pick it up.

You will find the Requiem in the 5 CD Ligeti Project (Warner) which took over from the Sony Ligeti Edition when the composer finally had enough of working with the latter.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ligeti-Project-Various-Artists/dp/B014G6AOAY/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1469042626&sr=1-3&keywords=ligeti

£16.42 including p&p from Switzerland (there should be no import duty due to Switzerland's special relationship with the EU). The 'live' recording of a perfromance directed by Nott is excellent.

There's also the classic 1965 Wergo recording under Gielen, and having just discovered its existence, a much more recent recording (CD and audio DVD) under Eötvös (duly ordered).

[Stunsworth]

Kempff's 60s set of Beethoven piano sonatas. Download from Qobuz, £8 for CD quality, £11 for high resolution...

http://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/beethoven-piano-sonatas-wilhelm-kempff/0002894796305

[mathias broucek]

Kempff's 60s set of Beethoven piano sonatas. Download from Qobuz, £8 for CD quality, £11 for high resolution...

http://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/bee.../0002894796305

[Beef Oven!]

Kempff's 60s set of Beethoven piano sonatas. Download from Qobuz, £8 for CD quality, £11 for high resolution...

http://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/bee.../0002894796305

Great spot, many thanks. I’m downloading the Hi-Res version as I type!

[Stunsworth]

Great spot, many thanks. I’m downloading the Hi-Res version as I type!

Glad to be of assistance. I'm a Sublime subscriber to the French store so got the high resolution version for just under 7€.

[Beef Oven!]

Glad to be of assistance. I'm a Sublime subscriber to the French store so got the high resolution version for just under 7€.

I should have subscribed. By now, given the number of Hi-Res downloads I’ve bought, It would have brought the cost in line with poorer sound quality streaming subscriptions (like Apple Music, which I subscribe to).

[HighlandDougie]

Not yet released but Artur Schnabel's Beethoven sonata cycle, newly re-mastered, is being re-released next month:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Beethoven-Piano-Sonatas-Arthur-Schnabel/dp/B01GIUNCNM/ref=sr_1_12?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1469383482&sr=1-12

And for fans of Lyrita and British symphonies, this looks like a bargain:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/British-Symphonies-London-Philharmonic-Orchestra/dp/B01H5GE0R0/ref=sr_1_8?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1469383837&sr=1-8