The Tales of Hoffmann

First launched by EMI UK in 1988, The Classic Experience took the Britain by storm, riding high in the UK charts alongside the top rock and pop albums of the day. The recently launched CD format was just beginning to take-off and there was a new hunger for discovery of great classical music amongst the mass market. Three more volumes appeared over the following years making it one of the most successful classical compilation series of all time. The album covers were a particular point of interest, featuring specially commissioned artworks which includes visual references from the music featured on the discs. Listeners would spend hours searching the cover artwork looking to recognise the smallest of details! To mark the 25th anniversary of the launch of this series, all four volumes are brought together into one attractive 8CD clamshell box set.

101 Strings Orchestra was a brand for a highly successful easy listening symphonic music organization, with a discography exceeding 150 albums and a creative lifetime of around 30 years beginning in 1957. 101 Strings had a trademark sound, focusing on melody with a laid-back ambiance most often featuring strings. Their LPs were individualized by the slogan "The Sound of Magnificence." The 101 Strings orchestra included 124 string instruments, and was conducted by Wilhelm Stephan.

A great selection of classical music with good, pleasant sound. These discs are to be listened to and enjoyed; not analyzed and argued over. Just play one after the other for hours of famous pieces that take you chronologically from the Baroque through the Romantic period. It is an easy and economical way to listen to a fine general survey of great, timeless music. Plainly stated, a bargain.

Ivanka Ninova (mezzo-soprano), Steven Page (baritone), Mary Hughes (mezzo-soprano), John Oakman (tenor), Susan McCulloch (soprano), Rachel Rosales (soprano), Maria Spacagna (soprano), Richard di Renzi (tenor), Sylvia Sass (soprano), Maria Luisa Barducci (soprano), Charles K. L. Davis (tenor), Werner Hollweg (tenor), Edward Carroll (trumpet), János B. Nagy (tenor), Jana Scharkowskaja (soprano), Thomas Dewald (tenor), Patrick Marques (tenor), Lyubomir Dyakovski (tenor), Denes Gulyas (tenor), Günter Kurth (tenor), Reiner Goldberg (tenor), Heather Johnson (soprano), Albert Miklos (tenor), Sandor Solyom-Nagy (baritone), Bulgarian National Choir, Anatolji Kotscherga (bass), Christine Moore (soprano), Hans-Ulrich Mielsch (tenor), Ursula Buckel (soprano), Lajos Miller (baritone)

The World's Most Beautiful Melodies: Candlelight Classics is a 1992 album by The London Promenade Orchestra, released by Reader's Digest. It is part of The World's Most Beautiful Melodies series, this being a mixture of easy listening and classical gems.