# Favorite Record label?



## avrile

Anybody who wants to share about their favorite record label and why?


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## opus67

I don't have any favourite as such, but my CD's are dominated by DG and EMI. EMI has some good CD's at low price.


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## Handel

Naxos because it offers sometimes great recordings, for a low price.
I used to like Harmonia Mundi for many of my baroque/classical period recordings. Good orchestras, good sound.


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## Morigan

Deutsche Grammophon usually rhymes with incredible quality and notorious performers (but also with higher prices...)


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## Lisztfreak

What do you consider a low price?


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## Handel

Lisztfreak said:


> What do you consider a low price?


For a single CD, 8-12 $ is a low price. I got recently a double CD pack of Boccherini's guitar quintets for 7.99 (Brilliant Classics). Good recording and awesome value.


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## Lisztfreak

Well yes, that's fine. It's about the same here in Croatia, when you convert the $ to _kuna_.

I've been buying a lot of Apex series CD-s lately. They're quite good, I think - the sound, the performers and everything. And they're very cheap (49kn = about 8$).

EMI classics are better though. And Naxos is fine, too.


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## opus67

Lisztfreak said:


> What do you consider a low price?


Almost all (western classical) CD's here have a standard price of Rs.445. That roughly converts to just over US$10. I consider those mid-range. There are some EMI(the ones with a picture of cupid, or some other mythological character) that are around $5-6 (at least at Amazon). Those cost Rs225 and 295. 2-CD sets, any label, are Rs890, except for a few from DG that cost Rs590. Those, of course, are my high range. But there some CD's, which are "imports" in the US, that are relatively cheaper here.


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## Krummhorn

I've found that the DGG recordings seem to be the cleanest, but most all of the CD labels are probably as good as another. Seemed the biggest difference in label names was in the pressing of vinyl.


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## avrile

I think most CDs focus on the artist rather than the composer. Notice that most front covers are portraits of artists sitting with their instrument or striking a pose. Naxos, on the other hand, focuses on the composer. Even the most unknown composer, i.e., contemporaries of Mozart, are featured!


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## captaintim

I enjoy labels that have lots of good but not necessarily famous performers on them - I think its much more interesting to find artists that you haven't necessarily heard of who still perform just as well as the very biggest names on the circuit.


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## Handel

Forgot to say Virgin Classics have nice quality reissues at fair prices


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## Mark Harwood

Naxos serves the classical guitar listener well. You can build a collection of discs by first-rate present-day performers for about £5 a time; the sound has natural reverberation, as they record in a church; the liner notes are adequate; and many composers and styles are represented. I have all of the Guitar Laureate series, and many others besides, and they have not let me down yet. Highly recommended.


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## avrile

Mark Harwood said:


> Naxos serves the classical guitar listener well. You can build a collection of discs by first-rate present-day performers for about £5 a time; the sound has natural reverberation, as they record in a church; the liner notes are adequate; and many composers and styles are represented. I have all of the Guitar Laureate series, and many others besides, and they have not let me down yet. Highly recommended.


Thanks for this Mark! Naxos really has a comprehensive catalogue of classical music. Way comprehensive that even the most unknown composers are featured, i.e., contemporaries of Mozart. Also, who could ever resist their historical recordings? I have this favorite recording - Historical pianists - featuring famous pianists of the 20th century. This is highly recommended!


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## Morigan

Just a question avrile : do you WORK for Naxos?


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## Handel

Morigan said:


> Just a question avrile : do you WORK for Naxos?


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## Badinerie

I think Naxos is a great label. I have seventeen Naxos CD's all great recordings. I have picked up quite a few from Amazon sellers for a couple of pounds each. Great Value. 
My Classical music collection is comprised of many different labels. Decca DG and EMI are strongly represented though. Hard to choose between any of them, but if pushed it would probebly be DG as most of my favorite recordings of all time are on DG....or Decca...no wait!


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## World Violist

DG for Mahler, BIS for Sibelius... EMI France for Ravel... SFS Media because it's just cool...

Overall, though??? RCA Victor.

Kidding! EMI. Period. (hey, that makes an ellipsis!) They have Jackie du Pre, John Barbirolli, Itzhak Perlman, Yehudi Menuhin... let's face it. They have old school. I like old school. 'Nuff said.


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## Mark Harwood

To build a good collection on a tight budget, look at Brilliant Classics. We have a few of their titles. They do box sets. Just this week we've got John Dowland's complete music for solo lute, played by Jakob Lindberg, and Handel's complete concerti grossi, played by the Academy of St. Martin-In-The-Fields. You don't get an impressive booklet, just top-class music in nice card covers. There's a complete Mozart on 170 CDs, a 155-disc edition of J.S. Bach, 40-disc Masterworks sets by major Classical composers, and so on. The prices are surprisingly low.
I especially recommend the Boccherini string quartets, played by La Magnifica Communita. They are twin-disc titles, three quintets per disc, and so far volumes I to V have been released.


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## Rondo

For the usuals, I have always found DG to have the more definitive recordings--at least slightly more than others. For soundtracks, however, Sony takes the cake. For classical music other than soundtracks, Sony is pretty good (i.e. the "Great Performances" anthology), however, they are really bad to produce a lot of the "Feel Good," "Thunderous," "Most Noisy," or "Most [insert your own adjective]" mixed grab-bag albums, as well.


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## Rondo

DG does _only_ classical music, which I think certainly contributes to why many people are mentioning it.


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## World Violist

Rondo said:


> DG does _only_ classical music, which I think certainly contributes to why many people are mentioning it.


And it makes sense, too: if they do only classical music, they will invariably go for (and have, I suppose) the best, because they have more focus on classical than other types of music. Thus they're inherently more mentionable.


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## Elaryad

I don't have a favourite record label. If certain composer played by certain performer is only available on DG, then I go for it. It depends.
But yes, I have a preference for DG, Decca, EMI (old school, like *World_Violist* said, yes I also prefer old school, old recordings with old performers).
Decca is stupidly expensive in Portugal, nearly touching 20€ on some albums. But it has wonderful booklets and packages (digipack), sometimes! 
Brilliant Classics is very good about low-pricing, but if I don't know the performers I don't buy until I listen to it first.


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## Elgarian

I don't think I have a favourite label, as such, but there are things that certain companies do which I admire. I admire the Chandos label, for instance, for taking the risk of publishing recordings of all Parry's symphonies. Since they're basically never performed, these recordings are the only way of getting to know the symphonies, at least three of which are now essential to my collection of recorded music.

I love those EMI boxed opera sets, with a double or triple CD case accompanied by a thoughtfully constructed booklet/libretto, all enclosed within an attractive cardboard slipcase. It all gives a sense of occasion to settling down to listen, and unpacking the contents. And really, I admire any company that tries to present its CDs in a way appropriate to the contents. The Bantock boxed set from Hyperion, for example, is exceptional - just wonderful to open up and handle - it puts me in a good mode even before the music begins, and gives Bantock a head start:


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## confuoco

No doubt, Deutsche Grammophon. I think this label has the greatest collection of significant recordings. And the sound quality use to be perfect.


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## SamGuss

Deutsche Grammophon
EMI
RCA

... are some of my favorite labels.


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## Yagan Kiely

None, record labels are counter productive to art.


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## opus67

Not entrirely.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> None, record labels are counter productive to art.


Will you tell us why you think this?


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## Yagan Kiely

Overly restrictive (understatement) copyright imposed and funded by record labels, majority of money go to record labels, the existentialism of the RIAA and international counterparts (ARIA in Australia), abuse of power.

Artists don't make money from CD sales any more, Artists actually tend to make more money out of bit torrent downloads. There is no use for them any more.

iTunes is worse, though it's concept is theoretically much better.

CC is almost perfect.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> Overly restrictive (understatement) copyright imposed and funded by record labels, majority of money go to record labels, the existentialism of the RIAA and international counterparts (ARIA in Australia), abuse of power.


I don't suppose many people would disagree that the system is deeply flawed in general along the lines you describe, but the efforts of the two labels I mentioned in my post above, for example (Chandos and Hyperion), surely are worthy of support?

But to return to the general situation: if I look at my CD collection, and contemplate the enormous quantity of superb music I have at my disposal, at very little cost (most of these masterpieces cost me no more than the price of a haircut), I find it impossible to agree that the system is 'counterproductive to art'. Under this system, for all its faults, my life is awash with great art.


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## Yagan Kiely

> my life is awash with great art.


Yes, but that art isn't a result of the record labels. It is only used by them.

(Current) Copyright promotes the wrong type of creativity it promotes quantity over quality. And discourages the art from being enjoyed. CC promotes sharing, and this is the sole purpose of all arts; to be watched, seen, heard or even felt. The current copyright situation discourages these as a rule, simply through it's over zealous money grabbing nature.

But yes, the smaller labels are better, but I still say that an iTunes equivalent is the future.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> Yes, but that art isn't a result of the record labels. It is only used by them.


I do understand that current copyright law is very imperfect. But we mustn't lose sight of the fact that despite the problems of the present system, we already have access to more great art, at a readily affordable cost, than any one person can hope to sample in a lifetime. As music collectors, I think we have musical riches beyond compare; and that astonishing rich availability has been achieved through the present system, despite all its shortcomings. If I compare what is available now with what was available just 40 years ago (at much higher relative cost), we are _incomparably_ better off. The present system _is_ getting art out to us listeners, in both quantity and quality, and amazingly cheaply. The CDs on my shelf amply demonstrate that, so I don't see the discouragement you speak of.


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## Yagan Kiely

They are only a result of technological advances, nothing else.

CDs aren't that cheap in relation to the humongous profit record labels make of other people's art.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> They are only a result of technological advances, nothing else.


I can't agree with that. If there had been merely technological advances and nothing else (that is, no recording companies to disseminate the art through the new media), we should have nothing at all. I don't think you're doing justice to the great, groundbreaking recording projects (like the Solti _Ring_, for instance, though there are countless other examples of less stature), which have been achieved under the umbrella of the recording companies.



> CDs aren't that cheap in relation to the humongous profit record labels make of other people's art.


But it's always possible to find a comparison that will show almost anything in a negative light. You compare the price of a CD with the record companies' profits. I compare it with the price of a haircut. The point is that in terms of the vast array of art that is available to us under the present system, we live like kings and queens.


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## periodinstrumentfan

Harmonia Mundi, Deutche Grammophon, Zig-Zag Territoires, Channel Classics, Dorian Records / Sono Luminus, Alpha, EMI, BiS and last but not least Magnatune


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## Chi_townPhilly

*Our survey says!*

On the strength of pretty much the entire Wagner canon twice-over, the lion's share of Puccini, other assorted operas, and complete symphony sets for Bruckner, Mahler, & Shostakovich, about one in every three discs in my classical collection is Decca/London. Based on personal distribution, that makes them the runaway winner in my "favorite record label" sweeps.

A distant second, at about 1 in 8 discs, is Deutsche Grammophon.

EMI & the Sony stable (including the the old Columbia catalog) are basically joint 3rd.


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## World Violist

I think BIS is pretty much my favorite label now... they're releasing some of the best recordings now (Osmo Vanska's stunning Beethoven cycle is now finished, they're releasing the same composer's complete piano works also to rave reviews, and they're still at the Sibelius Edition, as well as having Yevgeny Sudbin). I think that, even though they're rather expensive, they're very well worth it from what I've heard (which is the first volume of the Sibelius edition and two CDs of the Beethoven symphony cycle above mentioned). The sound is perfection itself as well.


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## opus67

World Violist said:


> I think BIS is pretty much my favorite label now... they're releasing some of the best recordings now (Osmo Vanska's stunning Beethoven cycle is now finished, they're releasing the same composer's complete piano works also to rave reviews, and they're still at the Sibelius Edition, as well as having Yevgeny Sudbin). I think that, even though they're rather expensive, they're very well worth it from what I've heard (which is the first volume of the Sibelius edition and two CDs of the Beethoven symphony cycle above mentioned). The sound is perfection itself as well.


Apparently, they're also going to release a budget box of Bach's sacred works, from, I think, the famous performances from Masaaki Suzuki and Bach Collegium Japan. As such, the prices of the individual (SA)CDs are pretty steep.


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## World Violist

opus67 said:


> Apparently, they're also going to release a budget box of Bach's sacred works, from, I think, the famous performances from Masaaki Suzuki and Bach Collegium Japan. As such, the prices of the individual (SA)CDs are pretty steep.


I wouldn't doubt they'd release that as a box... it'd be amazing. Yes, the prices are quite up there, but I haven't heard a better sound anywhere else either. And some of the artists are the best out there today, so... yeah.


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## periodinstrumentfan

periodinstrumentfan said:


> Harmonia Mundi, Deutche Grammophon, Zig-Zag Territoires, Channel Classics, Dorian Records / Sono Luminus, Alpha, EMI, BiS and last but not least Magnatune


Lately i've been collecting CDs and SACDs of Linn Records


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## Yagan Kiely

> I compare it with the price of a haircut.


That isn't comparative at all. More comparative (though still contentious) would be the scissors and comb company making money out of the Barber's work.



> The point is that in terms of the vast array of art that is available to us under the present system, we live like kings and queens.


Yes, but if CDs (etc.) hadn't been invented we wouldn't have the vast amount of art. CD companies have taken advantage of the technological advances.

The Solti was 50 years ago, I'm looking at the record industry of the last 30-40 years, when things really started hotting up and becoming very mass industry.


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## purple99

I'm hoping for great things from this new label: Orchestral Concert CDs. Only two releases so far -- they're emerging I believe at the rate of one per month -- but I listened to both last night and they're superb. Tremendous depth and dynamic range, well placed microphones, no darn computer fiddling afterward by 'Kevin' in his sound lab, only live concerts recorded so there's the excitement of real music, not some scrubbed, bastardised, 'product' from a studio where a recording engineer has subverted the conductor's authority. Really excellent stuff and, hopefully, a growing threat to the established labels who have done so much damage to classical music.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> That isn't comparative at all.


Well, it looks pretty comparative to someone who reaches the end of the month and has a bit of cash to spare and a choice to make, so let's consider:

*Price of my last haircut: £6*
The result wasn't bad I suppose, but its impact on my life is nearly zero, and it'll need doing again quite soon.

*Price of the last CD I bought: £6*
The result was enormously life-enriching - potentially a source of deep pleasure and satisfaction for the rest of my life.

So the comparison is indeed absurd (though perhaps not in the way you meant).


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## Zombo

I like naXos, they usually try to bring out CDs to promote underrated composers.

Hyperion is also very good, I like their romantic piano concerto series very much.


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## Isola

I mostly go for DG, RCA and EMI, occasionally some small labels. I found EMI to be very productive and the prices can be incredibly cheap - some are even cheaper than your last haircut, Elgarian. 

Regarding recording business, only recently I came across this Greg Sandow's article _*The Death of Classical Music?*_, thought you guys might find it interesting:

http://www.artsjournal.com/sandow/2007/04/the_death_of_classical_music.html


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## Elgarian

Isola said:


> I found EMI to be very productive and the prices can be incredibly cheap - some are even cheaper than your last haircut, Elgarian.


With just a little push, Isola, we could get 'the haircut' accepted as international currency, don't you think?

Thanks for the link - very interesting, though what it truly means for the future is still impossible to decide. Whatever may be going on under the economic surface, we've truly never had it so good as classical record-collectors. When I bought my first classical LP (on a budget label), there was virtually no choice about the version available of the work I wanted. I had to spend many weeks' savings, and it was many more weeks before I could buy another one. (It cost about 10 times the price of a haircut, I think.) Given also (in addition to the cheapness) the vast choice available to us today, it does seem quite strange to be talking about the death of classical music, even though I acknowledge all the rather scary points made in the article.


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## Isola

Elgarian said:


> With just a little push, Isola, we could get 'the haircut' accepted as international currency, don't you think?


You bet! Time like this, financial crisis and all......

Yes that article does sound a bit grim. Some observers say that the classical music is making a coming-back, which I tend to (or wish to) believe. At least from the concerts I've attended recent years, I can see more young people among the audience especially in the UK. There may be some deeper reasons behind this phenomenon but yes, record companies and internet have definitely made classical music much more accessible to all. Which is great.


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## Yagan Kiely

> The result was enormously life-enriching - potentially a source of deep pleasure and satisfaction for the rest of my life.


How is that the record companies help?


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> How is that the record companies help?


How do you imagine I could have bought this CD (for the mere price of a haircut) without their efforts?


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## Yagan Kiely

Well, development in the ease and cost of production of a CD is of no relations to the record industry. It is electronic companies that do that, not them.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> Well, development in the ease and cost of production of a CD is of no relations to the record industry. It is electronic companies that do that, not them.


No, you're missing my point - how do you suppose I could have bought this CD without someone taking it upon themselves to organise the recording sessions, engage the necessary engineers and artists, and organise the manufacture, advertising, and distribution of the CD, managing the cost of all this in such a way that I can be presented with such a bargain?

A recording company did all that. There may be better and more efficient methods of getting it done (I'm not arguing that there aren't), but the fact remains: it _was_ done. And without it, there would be no CD for me to buy. That's self-evident, surely?


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## Yagan Kiely

> No, you're missing my point - how do you suppose I could have bought this CD without someone taking it upon themselves to organise the recording sessions, engage the necessary engineers and artists, and organise the manufacture, advertising, and distribution of the CD, managing the cost of all this in such a way that I can be presented with such a bargain?


The only reason it is cheap is because of technology _not_ because of some work some people not associated with the record company did. They didn't "do all that" they organised other people to do it, while raking in the enormous profits and giving almost nothing to the artists. Remember, the artist has to PAY for the costs of all that 'work' that you said the record company does BEFORE they get any money at all.


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## Elgarian

Yagan Kiely said:


> They didn't "do all that" they organised other people to do it,


You seem to be saying that organising is the same as doing nothing, which seems absurd to me: without organisation, there's only chaos. But I think we're failing completely to understand each other, so I think I'll wish you well in your quest to improve the system (which in itself, I'd gladly support), and bow out of the conversation at this point.


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## Yagan Kiely

I never said it was nothing, you seemed to be suggesting that it is a lot of work. It isn't. These are huge companies, it isn't much work, the work is in the people they 'organise'.

But either way, the artist has to PAY for all of that to happen before they get any money from the CD,


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## periodinstrumentfan

there's this site magnatune.com ... it's fairly successful but i'm not sure to what extent. The owner tells the story of her wife who used to be an 'artists' ... everything is on the site. I think both parties have a point. One in the perspective of the buyer, the other on the side of the artist.


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## Vaneyes

periodinstrumentfan said:


> there's this site magnatune.com ... it's fairly successful but i'm not sure to what extent. The owner tells the story of her wife who used to be an 'artists' ... everything is on the site. I think both parties have a point. One in the perspective of the buyer, the other on the side of the artist.


Just buyer and artist? Artist, agent, manufacturer, CD presser, distributor, media, retailer, and buyer. I probably missed someone. It's a multi-faceted dynamic industry, largely based on talent, marketing, and economy. The power of individuals and corporations ebb and flow. The buyer has always the easiest job of simply assessing value, then rejecting, or buying. Not to say he doesn't get ripped off now and then, but it's been pretty good for him or her since the 90's, and has never been better than now. New artists suffer the most. Lean concert and recording times and back catalogues are their worst enemies. The rest of the food chain will always be there...until new demands or technology eliminates facets.


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## Seth

I really like Lovitt Records and Dischord. I am also a fan of anything from Polyvinyl Records.


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## Conor71

Hmmm, probably about 80% of my classical recordings are from Universal Classics or EMI and i also have a few Hyperion.
Probably my favourite label is DG from the universal group .


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## Vaneyes

Conor71 said:


> Hmmm, probably about 80% of my classical recordings are from Universal Classics or EMI and i also have a few Hyperion.
> Probably my favourite label is DG from the universal group .


DG & EMI are 24% of my collection. With Decca & Philips added, it's 34%. Sony added, makes the old days Big 5 42%. Virgin added to EMI's total, and Warner, and miscellaneous licensed material added to the others, would likely bring the old days majors total to 50%. So, 50% "majors" and 50% indies.


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## Ukko

My 'favorite record labels' are _all_ indies - Bis, Centaur, Hyperion, etc. They record good music that is new to me, performed by musicians who are competent, if also new to me.


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## Guest

For me, there are probably 3 that I absolutely love - Harmonia Mundi, BIS, and Hyperion. Being a huge fan of HIP recordings, these 3 labels are excellent. Lately, though, I have also been acquiring more Naxos recordings, as well as Supraphon. I don't have anything, per se, against the larger labels, like DG and EMI - in fact, I have several beloved recordings on both. But I just really enjoy these others more.


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## World Violist

If I look at the CDs that are on my shelf full of my favorite stuff, there's this black slab at the beginning of it that demarcates John Eliot Gardiner's Bach Pilgrimage on Soli Deo Gloria. My SDG CDs constitute 24 discs so far, whereas the next in line is Chandos (7), then Naxos (4)... I suppose honorable mention must go to Teldec (14), though those 14 discs are the Barenboim Ring cycle...

Even taking out the numerical factor, SDG is probably my favorite record label. It's one of the only labels that doesn't have cookie-cutter liner notes; they're personal, and I deeply admire that about them. Even if it is just an ego trip and "f-you" to DG, it's a good one.


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