YourClassical's favorite classical music albums for new listeners

You have started to delve into classical music; now you’re wondering which recordings should be in your starter collection. The programming staff at YourClassical has some suggestions for you.  

The Four Seasons, Antonio Vivaldi (Opus 111): Violinist Fabio Biondi and his group Europa Galante, renowned for using period instruments (or replicas), gives new life to what might be the most famous baroque music ever. Here’s the final movement of “Summer.”

The Berlin Concert, John Williams (Deutsche Grammophon): This 2021 recording with the Berlin Philharmonic showcases the composer’s most iconic film themes (think Superman, Harry Potter, Star Wars, Jurassic Park), showing that Williams’ music isn’t just for movie fans but will leave a lasting classical legacy. This track is from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

My First Recital, Ruth Laredo (Essay): Proof that you never forget the first time you play for an audience: The pianist was in her 50s when she recorded this album in 1990. In re-creating the recitals of her childhood, Laredo draws from the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven and Pyotr Tchaikovsky in offering some of the most popular, and simplest, piano works in classical music. Here she plays Beethoven’s Für Elise.

The Piano Concertos & Paganini Rhapsody, Sergei Rachmaninoff (Deutsch Grammophon): Superstar pianist Yuja Wang recorded these works in 2023 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Rachmaninoff’s birth. Known for her superhuman technique and endurance (she played all five pieces in one Carnegie Hall concert), she is proof that classical music is very much alive. Have a listen to the final movement of the Piano Concerto No. 2.

Symphonic Spectacular (Telarc): Classical greats including Dmitri Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, Emmanuel Chabrier’s Espana and George Enesco’s Romanian Rhapsody are given vibrant life by the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, led by Erich Kunzel. Here’s Richard Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries.

American Jubilee (Telarc): More from Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops, who provide a backdrop for your patriotic celebrations with such stateside classics as John Philip Sousa’s The Stars and Stripes Forever, Morton Gould’s American Salute, Samuel Ward’s America the Beautiful and John Williams’ Liberty Fanfare. And what would an Americana album be without Aaron Copland’s Variations on a Shaker Melody?

Elle (Analekta): La Pieta, an all-female ensemble led by violinist and conductor Angele Dubeau, offers this 2021 collection of short pieces that showcase meditative works written by women, including Rachel Portman, Caroline Shaw and Rebecca Dale (whose Winter is heard here). Find out more about the album on New Classical Tracks.

Dance! (Deutsche Grammophon): Daniel Hope and the Zurich Chamber Orchestra lead us on a history of movement through such classical works as Camille Saint-Saens’ Danse Macabre, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and Bizet’s L’Arlesienne Suite. Igor Stravinsky wrote a few dances himself, including this “Tarantella” from Pulcinella Suite.

Franz Schubert’s Symphony No. 5 and Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 (Italian) (Philips): This release offers an inspired pairing of two of the most cheerful symphonies in classical music, brought to life by the energetic Orchestra of the 18th Century, conducted by Frans Brüggen. Here’s the first movement from Mendelssohn’s work.

The World’s Favourite Tenor Arias, Luciano Pavarotti (Decca): What better introduction to opera is there than listening to Pavarotti? The great tenor, who might have been the first among the famous Three Tenors (who also included Placido Domingo and José Carreras), dominated the 20th-century opera stage. His voice (and fame) might never be equaled. Perhaps his signature aria is “Nessun Dorma, from Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot.