Rushton, what a great list! Many thanks. This should keep me occupied for a while.
Ajahu, I certainly agree that, at the end of the day, it is both the quality of the piece and of the performance that matter. Yet, just as I would (generally) rather hear a favorite performance of a favorite piece on vinyl rather than CD (because the vinyl--generally--sounds better, and thus provides a better "entry", if you will, into the music and the performance), I'm finding that pressing quality matters. For example, I really enjoy Stravinky's own performances of his lesser-known ballets Orpheus and Apollo. But it took me 2 CDs and 4 Lps before I got satisfactory renditions of these recordings...and, what sounded best to me happened to be a late Columbia US pressing, which, according to the word on the street about Columbia pressings, shouldn't be the case.
Thanks for everyone's input and happy listening...
Ajahu, I certainly agree that, at the end of the day, it is both the quality of the piece and of the performance that matter. Yet, just as I would (generally) rather hear a favorite performance of a favorite piece on vinyl rather than CD (because the vinyl--generally--sounds better, and thus provides a better "entry", if you will, into the music and the performance), I'm finding that pressing quality matters. For example, I really enjoy Stravinky's own performances of his lesser-known ballets Orpheus and Apollo. But it took me 2 CDs and 4 Lps before I got satisfactory renditions of these recordings...and, what sounded best to me happened to be a late Columbia US pressing, which, according to the word on the street about Columbia pressings, shouldn't be the case.
Thanks for everyone's input and happy listening...