Beethoven: Piano Sonatas : Philips

- $3.26

Beethoven Edition: Complete Works (85CD Box Set) : Brilliant Classics

From the people who brought you the Complete Works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 250th Anniversary Edition and the Complete Works of J. S. Bach Edition now bring out the Complete Works of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Brilliant classics has spared no expense to get the best possible performances of the music of Beethoven. The list of artists reads like a who's who of classical music.

Kurt Masur, Gewandhaus Orchestra, Friedrich Gulda, Vienna Philharmonic, Henryk Szering, Royal Concertgebouw, Bernard Haitink, Stanislaw Skroaczewski, Minneapolis Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, David Zinman, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Theo Adam, Helen Donath, Herbert Blomstadt, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Guarnari tring Quartet, Arthur Grimaux, Clara Haskil, Heinrich Schiff, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Zoltan Kocsis, Alfred Brendel, Pewter Schreier, London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Colin Davis and many more! - $101.03

Ludwig van Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies - Arturo Toscanini / NBC Symphony Orchestra : RCA

- $14.88

Beethoven: Complete Masterpieces (Germany) (60 CD Limited Edition Box Set) : Sony / BMG Import

60 CD Box Set. Selection of Ludwig Van Beethoven Works Recorded by David Zinman and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich (Symphonies), Yefim Bronfman, David Zinman and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich (Piano Concertos), Pinchas Zuckerman and Marc Neikrug (Violin Sonatas), Anner Bylsma and Jon Van Immerseel (Cello Sonatas), Seraphin Trio (Piano Trios), Alexander String Quartet (String Quartets), Yukio Yokoyama, Robert Casadesus, Justus Frantz, Vladimir Horowitz, Gerhard Oppitz and Charles Rosen (Piano Sonatas), Eugene Ormandy and Philadelphia Orchestra (Christ on the Mount of Olives), Wolfdieter Maurer and Tokyo Oratorio Society (Mass in C Major), David Zinman and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich (Missa Solemnis) and Many Other Great Artists. - $31.95

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 / Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra : Deutsche Grammophon

This performance is also available on Deutsche Grammophon in an earlier, mid-price incarnation, but this version is clearly the one to own, since the remastered sound is a definite improvement over previous issues. Herbert von Karajan always did a good job with this symphony, and his performances are quite consistent, even down to the very backward-balance of the chorus. By general consensus, though, this is the best of them. --David Hurwitz - $7.26

25 Beethoven Favorites : Vox (Classical)

- $1.69

Beethoven: Greatest Hits : Sony

- $5.71

Beethoven: Symphonies 5 & 7 : Deutsche Grammophon

Long regarded as the quintessential interpretation of the most popular and best-loved symphony ever written, this performance of the Fifth has everything: passion, precision, drama, lyric beauty, and a coiled fury in the first movement that sets your pulse racing from the very first note. Carlos Kleiber has made very few recordings in his distinguished career, but almost all are special. If you own no other copy of this symphony, this is the one to get. It comes with an exceptional performance of the Seventh--not quite as gripping as the Fifth, but definitely one of the great ones. There is classical music, and there are classic recordings of classical music. This one's a classic. -- David Hurwitz - $7.11

Essential Beethoven : Decca

- $7.31

Beethoven: The Complete Symphonies and Piano Concertos : EMI Classics

Otto Klemperer's Beethoven is one of the towering achievements in the history of recordings. By today's standards, these performances are hopelessly old-fashioned: dark, heavy, and frequently very slow. But they are also the grandest, most unsentimental, most purposeful versions in the catalog. In addition, the relatively slow tempos (only in the fast movements--the slow ones are pretty swift) and forward wind balance permit more detail to be heard than in most original-instrument performances. At budget price and with the entire piano concerto cycle thrown in for good measure, this is greatness incarnate. --David Hurwitz - $43.19