Scott Joplin Music

I bought this 4-disc set at Costco a decade ago when it was still called Price Club, and I still listen to it. Each of the 4 discs contains music from a particular season of the year, and the compilations cover numerous pieces from all the styles of classical music; from Baroque thru the Romance period. Leading each disc are the appropriate parts from the 4-Seasons by Vivaldi. Thee are followed by pieces from composers such as Copland, Beethoven, Strausss, Mozart, Dukas, etc... Some of the pieces are quite famous, and should have been left out as most classical fans already have them; i.e. Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony. The up-side is that this set also has a lot of more obscure pieces that are quite good; such as "Sleighride" by Mozart. Overall, this set provides multiple hours of good listening that is appropriate for a car ride, or while reading a book.

In perspective these are some of the most popular songs of their time. I enjoy the historical value of songs from the past. Hearing someone sing about things you may have only learned from a history book, makes it more real.

Its a pleasure to hear Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler. The recording is excelent.

I don't actually own this particular compilation, however, since I own nearly every recording represented on these discs...I think I'm qualified to comment. This is a wonderful representation of the high quality of work that DRG Records does.
The previous review is way off the mark. This is definitely not a waste of time or money. This is 25 years of preserving Broadway shows, Off-Broadway shows, studio recordings (mostly from the city center concerts), etc. So what if they "aren't as good as the original", DRG is preserving many recordings and artists that other mainstream labels don't or won't. You have wonderful recordings from Brian Stokes Mitchell, Nathan Lane, Debbie Gravitte, Tyne Daly, Anthony Perkins, Joanna Gleason, Marin Mazzie, Carol Burnett, Heather Headley, Patti LuPone, Barbara Cook, etc., and many of these are from Original Cast Recordings just as they appeared on Broadway. This is an excellent sampler of the work going on at DRG. No...I'm not an employee...just an avid listener and collector of theatre recordings.

There's a reason you've probably never heard of most of the songs and shows on this album, not to mention most of the artists. This is a second-rate collection of second-rate numbers performed by mostly second-rate artists. In the case of the shows that were revivals, the performances on the original cast recordings were better. Don't waste your money.