“To be sure, I am a student of literature and a fan of Mark Twain, but I had no idea, none whatsoever (!), of what a rich and inspiring life he lived. He was a comic genius as well as a man devastated by continual heartbreak. I have always known PBS to do a wonderful job with their specials, and I have admired Ken Burns since the day I first discovered his work on the women's movement i.e. the Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton story (highly recommended as well!)... but in their retelling of Mark Twain's life, these two forces have outdone themselves. From now on I will always think of Samuel Clemens as an intrinsic part of what we call Americana. Forget baseball and apple pie, Twain and his writings are (or should be) the true American pastime. I have watched many biographies of American authors but none come close to this, NONE. My favorite author of all time is F. Scott Fitzgerald and not one of his many audio visual biographies can touch the completeness and depth that has been carefully devoted here to Twain. In the 3+ hours of this presentation I laughed outloud, and was moved to tears, outraged, entertained, and educated by this telling of Twain's life. There is no way it could be better or more complete and I defy any lover of Twain, or literature in general, to feel differently. Go to your local library and borrow it first, once you see it, you will insist upon owning it... truly.” – Customer Review on Amazon.com

“Gu Zheng is one of the oldest music instruments in the World. The earliest Zheng can be dated back 2500 years ago. It had five silk strings and a bamboo soundbox. Influenced by Confucianism, at that time playing and understanding music was one of the four skills a person must have to be considered as well-educated. The drawing on the left gives a picture of three men enjoying the music of Gu Qin which is the sibling of Gu Zheng.”

“Lin Yinping is famous Zheng Musician, graduated from Zheng Major, China Central Conservatory of Music. He was once the solist in China Theatre, and won the highest prize in the 1st Guangdong Music Performing Competition. He also played big in 1st Mountain City TV Competition and 1st “Art” International Instrumental Competition. 1993 he represented China to join in the 1st International Harmonia, Osaka, Japan, and won a great success. And he was highly praised during his tour in Hong Kong and Singapore area. He has been recorded in “Chaozhou Musicians Biography”. At present, he is member of China Musician League, China National Orchestral Music Academy and Beijing Gu Zheng Academy.”

“I'm a huge fan, and I own all of her albums. The songs in this CD are a bit different from her previous work. I liked her 3rd album the best. However, this is still an excellent CD with some really-really great songs. Not to mention her voice is beautiful and extremely rich. I highly recommend it!” – Customer Review on Amazon.com

“Here is another valuable document of Wilhelm Furtwängler’s activities as a Mozart conductor at Salzburg. Mozart’s music appeared infrequently on his concert programmes – the last four symphonies and the requiem plus the odd concerto when some renowned soloist demanded.. That said, he obviously had a special affection for the operas, which became more or less the core of his Salzburg performances during his last years.” – Göran Forsling, MusicWeb-International.com

“Does any other pianist from the past or living exist who soundss better in Schumann? The answer is no. And the reason be that very few pianists of any generation are capable to make the piano sings as Kempff. However he doesn't play Schumann in a romantic mood. Kempff was not only a superb pianist but a deep thinker. He had the gift of looking through the score and produce the tonal effect, the right pulse, the cantabile line with rapture, emotion and expresiveness. His symphonic studies, the Second Sonata or Papillons has no equal. If you request me to name another winner pianists in Schumann I would state for Cortot, Richter and Ives Nat would be those. But Kempff finds the spirit of Schumann as a whole. Nevertheless, in the piano concert or in the chamber music there are others. Ivan Moravec in the piano concert (watch my review) and the piano trios given for Casals in Prades Festival. There's a excellent version of the piano quintet with Serkin Budapest. And I still wait for a convincent performing of the piano quartet. This set is fundamental in your collection!” – Customer Review on Amazon.com

“Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen is, in my opinion, one of, if not the, greatest musical works in history. It is fifteen hours of gorgeous, dramatic music, coupled to an endlessly fascinating and moving story. Needless to say, every recording of this gigantic work is going to be flawed in some way, so choosing a Ring recording is a question of personal tastes and preferences. While Solti's 1958-65 Vienna cycle is by far the most famous and popular, it is not the one I like the best. Herbert von Karajan's cycle, recorded from 1966 to 1970, is the best cycle I have ever heard.” – Customer Review on Amazon.com

“Gerry Mulligan Meets Ben Webster, also simply called Meets Ben Webster, is a 1959 album featuring the November 3 – December 2 studio sessions of American jazz musicians Gerry Mulligan and Ben Webster. In a 2003 review, All That Jazz described this album as the most notable example of Gerry Mulligan's work partnering other legendary figures of jazz. The album, as a “classic album from two giants”, is featured in NPR's “Basic Jazz Record Library”. Originally released on the Verve label, the album was reissued by Verve, Mobile Fidelity and Polygram many times before being re-released in an expanded edition called Gerry Mulligan Meets Ben Webster (Complete) by Verve in 1997.” – Wikipedia.org

“50 years ago the great German conductor Hermann Abendroth that the Germans often call the «other Furtwängler» passed away. To celebrate this anniversary we are releasing three previously unissued recordings stemming from the archives of East German ex-Radio: a magnificent Bruckner 7th and two works by Tchaikowsky (an excerpt of the 3rd suite and excellent performance of the Pathétique where the 3rd movement is a true concerto for timpani and orchestra!). It depicts the main characteristics of Abendroth’s art of conducting with all the «pleasures of excess».” – Tahra.com

“Welcome to the return of the “ayu-mi-x” series, and to kick things off its time for a simulataneous two album release series. Gold version includes songs from “Memorial adress” up through her latest album “Guilty”, all remixed by the world's top electronic producers. Includes works from Armand Van Helden, Coldcut, Young Punx, Shinichi Osawa, DJ Kentaro, and more. Featured tracks “Greatful Days (Para One remix)”, “ourselves (Coldcut remix)”, “Inspire (Armand Van Helden remix)”, “Moments (DJ Kentaro remix)”, “Happy Ending (Mad Professor remix)”, “Step you (The Young Punx! remix)”, “Ladies Night (Afra & Incredible Beatbox Band remix)”, “Startin' (Shinichi Osawa remix)”, “Blue Bird (7th Gate remix)”, “Beautiful Fighters (MSTRKRFT remix)”, “Glitter (Soul Central remix)”, and “talkin'2 myself (Stonebridge remix)” for a total of 12 tracks (subject to change).” – CDJapan.co.jp

“Japan's Queen of Pop is back and so are some of her best-loved hits in all-new remixes that cover the period from her 2003 mini album Memorial Address all the way to her latest album GUILTY. This latest entry in the ayu-mi-x series arrives as a follow-up to ayumi hamasaki RMX WORKS from ayu-mi-x 5 non stop mega mix that was released over four years ago. Fans can look forward to the latest trendsetting sounds from and beyond the spheres of the electro/house music scene. Providing addictive material underlined by the likes of YOJI, Carl Craig, and BLACK STROBE, ayu-mi-x 6 -SILVER- features 12 remixes including CAROLS, alterna, and JEWEL.” – YesAsia.com