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When I was a child in the late 50's and 60's, the evening meal was eaten at the dining table, with the whole family gathered together. We always had music playing ... usually Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. This great collection of Arthur Fiedler's works includes many of Fiedler's favorites, but also many of my family's favorites, too.
I have my entire CD collection in ITunes, and added this compilation to the others. I now have over 16 Fiedler CD collections, which total over 28 CD's. I am surprised at how many pieces are not duplicated from other CD's or CD collections in "100 Fiedler Favorites."
When I first played these 7 CD's, I was thrilled. However, when I compared the duplicates from this collection to the other CD's, I was greatly disappointed in the tonal quality.
When I mentioned this to someone who has used ITunes longer than I have, he suggested that I re-import my entire collection at 320 kbps, instead of the default setting (128 kbps) that I had used. <sigh> Some hours later, I was glad that I had taken the time.
While I can still hear a SLIGHT difference in the sound quality, it is minimal. Unless you bounce back and forth between two recordings of the same piece, it IS NOT obvious. I am once again delighted with this collection.
Based on it's name, one would expect to have 100 pieces in this collection. Yet, in true Fiedler fashion, there is an encore, making a total of 101!
If you enjoy this, I would also recommend the Fiedler Legacy collection, as a supplement to 100 Fiedler Favorites. (If I could only have one, I would PROBABLY choose "100 Fiedler Favorites" but The Arthur Fiedler Legacy, as a set, is pretty spectacular, too) The Arthur Fiedler Legacy is not sold as a set; each of the 5 CD's is sold separately.
"The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Stars and Stripes: An American Concert" includes 76 Trombones, Trumpeter's Lullaby, The Entertainer, Bernstein's Music from Mass, variations on America, etc. (Not found on Amazon on 5/7/08.)
"The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Symphonic Spectacular" includes 1812 Overture, Sabre Dance, Bolero, Bach's Fugue in G Major, Danse Macabre, etc.
The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Symphonic Spectacular
"The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Evening at Pops" includes Aquarius from "Hair", Blue Danube, Gypsy Baron March, Tubby the Tuba, In the Hall of the Mountain King, Dream Pantomime from Hansel & Gretel, etc.
The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Evening at the Pops
"The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: From Famous Broadway to Hollywood's Reel Thing" includes medleys from Fiddler on the Roof, Mary Poppins, Star Wars Theme, Alfie, Midnight Cowboy and Day by Day from "Godspell," etc.
The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: From Fabulous Broadway to Hollywood's Reel Thing
"The Arthur Fiedler Legacy: Superstars and Songbooks" includes I think I love you, King of the Road, Do you know the way to San Jose, Leaving on a Jet Plane, etc.
Superstars and Songbooks: Pops by Arrangement
Those 5 Legacy sets, each with 2 CD's, when added to "100 Fiedler Favorites," make a total of 265 pieces, for a total of nearly 21 hours of listening! Yet I only see 8 duplicates: Little Fugue in G minor, Stardust, Jalousie, Dream Pantomime from Hansel and Gretel, Sabre Dance, Days of Wine & Roses, Blue Danube and, of course, Stars and Strips Forever.
My only disappointment in either 100 Fiedler Favorites or the Legacy collections, is the arrangement of the songs. I understand why Arthur Fiedler Legacy CD's are packaged the way they are: The title of the CD explains the style of music.
With the 100 Fiedler Favorites, the first 3 CD's are a nice mix of Light Classical music. CD #4 is mostly Strauss waltzes and polkas, with a waltz by Lehar and Waldteufel thrown in for good measure. CD #5 is mostly marches, including, but not limited to, patriotic marches. CD #6 features American composers who lived in this century: Gershwin, Copeland, Gould, Rodgers, Anderson and Cohen. CD #7 is primarily a mix of more "current" songs (Bearing in mind that Fiedler died in 1979, "current" is current for his time: Mancini and the Beatles, Stevie Wonder; I Left My Heart in San Francisco; The First Time I Saw Your Face; Smoke Gets in Your Eyes).
I personally would have preferred a mix of all of these, rather than straight CD's of one type of music. (Which is why I like ITunes!)
If you are a Fiedler fan, or enjoy the light classics, this is a "Must Have" set.
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