Rating:  -
Yes, I'm a geek. I admit that I love the music on this CD. But in my own defense, the composers for the tracks on this CD are some of the most prolific, talented, and successful soundtrack composers in film today, or ever. They are all in a class by themselves.
That being said, Erich Kunzel and the CPO so beautifully deliver these tracks that the tracks are heightened even further.
But Telarc? Oh, they heighten the experience even FURTHER (is that possible??) The recording quality is phenomenal! (tip.. .if you want to REALLY test the subs in our car, let Ascent lead into Also Sprach Zarathustra, if you don't hear the <30Hz tone ALL the way through between tracks, your system sucks. Actually, it gets so low, you shouldn't HEAR it as much as FEEL it). :) But I digress, bass isn't what it's all about; however, the massive overall quality and dynamics of this disk make it not only a fantasitic musical joy to listen to, but also an incredible reference CD for really tweaking and testing your audio system. Now, I don't want to say "buy this for testing", but it's a very nice additional use to this great cd.
One word of caution: unless you REALLY (and I mean REALLY) know your system, be conservative with the output volume or you'll find your tweeters tweeting their last tweek and the foam surround on your subs suddenly deteriorated... or simply gone.
Best CD of the 'Sci-Fi' series from Telarc and the CPO.
Rating:  -
For most people, especially discerning classic music afficienados, they'd rather own the soundtrack with the entire suites included, than to own a compilation. This series by Telarc is an exception, since the performances, while not definative, are still spectacular. And being its a Telarc release, sound quality is always excellent.
Telarc has release a whole slew of these symphonic Sci-Fi themed CDs, and while all of them seem to have something to offer, they all fall short of feeling like a piece of art onto themselves. This CD comes closer to being an artistic statement as any in the series, and if not for the misstep of the overlong, boring rendition of the orginal Star Trek Menagerie suite done for the TV pilot, this could have been stellar. The rest is a near perfect compilation of classic works mixed with modern classical works. The inclusion of the Menagerie suite is unnecessary here, since the TV show was already covered on the Star Tracks series. Perhaps they could have included a work from Holst:The Planets, or any other sci-fi movie.
Over all, this the best in that it came relatively early in the series which has since worn out its welcome. This disc, along with the first two Star Track CDs, is a nice collection of symphonic works.
Rating: -
This older CD offers the true "Pure Digital" audio potential of CD's.
One can easily destroy an expensive speaker system using some of the selections provided.
So... keep your levels low the first time around.
You will enjoy this offering!
Cheers,
JC
Rating: -
I remember when I first purchased this CD. Compact Discs were hard to find (at least the kind of music I liked). Everything was still on vinyl. This sounded so incredibly powerful over my LPs. "The Menagerie: Suite" composed by Alexander Courage with Erich Kunzel conducting still sounds very impressive. This Compact Disc really demonstrates the prominent characterists of Digital recordings. I still love my soundtracks on LPs but this CD has now become a nostalgic part of collection of film music.
Rating: -
Time Warp brought together the best of the science fiction world. Everything on this cd is classic. The Alien closing title, "The Menagerie," and my favorite, "Also Sprach Zarathustra."
Although Strauss' renewed version of "On the Beautiful Blue Danube" isn't as good as the original, it is definatley great. I think only Dorsey's "Ascent" was a let down. I did not enjoy that piece.
Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra from "2001: A Space Odyssey" is brilliant. The entire cd is full of artistic minds.
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