Barr, are you saying that sticking to the usual Grammy suspects can leave a person musically unfulfilled??? :gasp:
Speaking as a jazz lover, it seems there is a certain affinity between jazz fans and Bach. You probably couldn't go wrong with most Bach compositions. Or Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Schubert or Mahler for that matter.
After that, I'd go for recordings from known quantities, like Horowitz, Gould, Rostropovich, Ashkenazy, Heifetz, etc. Because SF has such a robust public library system, I used their CD collection over the last 5 years or so to educate myself on classical. That, coupled with hearing live performances have helped me to calibrate what an orchestra should sound like.
Speaking of libraries, since you're local we can always do a lending library type of thing. Or chat in person about it too. Sounds like a Mill Valley Music or Amoeba outing is in the works...
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