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Hunter Johnson — On Beyond Peter |
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September 2006 update: A couple of big box sets, the complete works of Mozart and Bach, have been released for under a dollar per disc. These aren't narrated classics for children, but worthy of investigation nonetheless.
Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts are now available on DVD.
Peter and the Wolf, Prokofiev's popular children's tale for narrator & orchestra, is a wonderful introduction to the world of classical music. My sons, ages eight and four, both ask to listen to it, at dinner or other times. They haven't yet turned the TV off in order to listen to a CD, but maybe some day.
There are several other popular classical works for children, and often they are paired with Peter. Most kids, however, need only one version of any work. And once you've got the most popular (Britten's The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, Saint-Saëns Carnival of the Animals, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker), it can be hard to find out what else is out there. (Also, take care when ordering—I don't know of any unnarrated versions of Peter but versions of other works may or may not include narration.)
If you don't have Peter and the Wolf, I suggest you start with it. If you have no other guidance, go with a narrator that you recognize and like. Versions have been recorded with narration by
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| If you still can't decide, check the other works on the disc. Go with one that has other works also narrated. I have a CD with narration by Patrick Stewart, which I enjoy, but the coupling is an unnarrated The Toy Box. The second disc I bought was Marita and Her Heart's Desire which is coupled with an unnarrated A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Which means that the kids are ready to move on once the story ends. The list below is separated into two sections. Above the lines are discs I own (in addition to the Stewart-narrated Peter). Below the line are other discs I know of. If you'd like more details about the discs above the line, email me.
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 | Mozart: The Miracle Maestro Ms. Ann Rachlin was kind enough to send several CDs for review here on this page! Fuller reviews are coming, but this overview will do for now. Ms. Rachlin narrates three series of discs, and this disc represents the Great Composers series. In it, Ms. Rachlin tells the story of Mozart's life to excerpts from Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro, Piano Concerto No. 24, the Oboe Quartet, Requiem in D minor, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, The Hunt Quartet, String Quintet in B flat major, and Symphonies Nos. 40 & 41, along with music-only tracks of Mozart's first two works, Minuet in F major and Minuet in G major. | |
 | Sinbad and the Wizard Eagle This disc represents the Musical Adventures series. Using Rimsky-Kosakov's Scheherazade as the source, Ms. Rachlin weaves the story of one of Sinbad's many adventures. (Note that there is another disc based on this work below, entitled 1001 Nights. I have not heard it, but I believe it alternates the story and music instead of having the narration accompany the music.) | |
 | Cinderella And this disc represents the Russian Ballet series. Ms. Rachlin tells the familiar story of Cinderella to the music of Prokofiev's ballet, but don't rely on your memory of the Disney movie. The story here is unfamiliar in many ways too. | |
 | Marita and Her Heart's Desire Coupled with an unnarrated A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, previously released (and a standout performance, too). Actress Michele Mariana provides most of the voices and narration and Arielle Perlman (Itzhak's daughter) voices Marita. Itzhak Perlman, David Shifrin, David Taylor, Frank Morelli, Ransom Wilson, et al. | |
 | A Classical Tale: Music for Our Children includes Peter and the Wolf (Sharon Stone), A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Cher) and Lincoln Portrait (Samuel L. Jackson). If you've already got Peter and the Guide, other narrators of Lincoln Portrait include Henry Fonda, Gregory Peck, Adlai Stevenson, Carl Sandburg, Melvyn Douglas, and James Earl Jones, but they are not coupled with other children's works. | |
 | Lulie the Iceberg Adapted from the children's book by Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado with music composed by Jeffrey Stock. Narrated by Sam Waterston. Yo-Yo Ma, Pamela Frank, and Paul Winter are featured. | |
 | Peter and the Wolf (Dom DeLuise) The only disc with A Zoo Called Earth, children's piece for alien narrator and orchestra, this appears to be out of print, but you can order it from The Peter Schickele/P.D.Q. Bach Web Site. Coupled with Gerald McBoing Boing narrated by Carol Channing | |
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 | Peter and the Wolf / Wolf Tracks Sophia Loren narrates Prokofiev's familiar work, with Kent Nagano conducting the Russian National Orchestra. Bill Clinton narrates the new work Wolf Tracks composed by Jean-Pascal Beintus. Mikhail Gorbachev provides the introduction, intermission, and epilogue. | |
 | Gerald McBoing Boing / The Musicians of Bremen / The Fairy's Gift Three works composed & narrated by Kubik & Werner Klemperer, Rogers & Carl Reiner, and Stern & Alecia Grebner, respectively. The only place to get either of the second two, and one of only two discs (the other is above, with the ubiquitous Peter) for Gerald McBoing Boing. | |
| Three discs with Poulenc's The Story of Babar. The top disc, Babar the Elephant is narrated by Meryl Streep and coupled with Ravel's Mother Goose Suite, also narrated by Streep. The second disc, Poulenc: Complete Chamber Music Vol. 5 has two versions. One is narrated in English by Natasha Emerson, the other is narrated in French by François Mouzaya. Also includes unnarrated works Léocadia and L'invitation au chateau. The last disc, Babar: The Little Elephant, includes a version arranged for piano, played and narrated by Catherine Kautsky. It includes other narrated works: Shiver Me Timbers by Deak and Childish Small Talk, Picturesque Child's Play, and Games and Diversions, all by Satie. Apparently, the sound levels are uneven, making some of the narration hard to understand. Other narrators include Pierre Bernac (French version), Janet Bookspan, Dame Edna Everage, Evelyn Lear, Mario Martinez (Spanish version, with Tubby the Tuba), Mildred Natwick, Tony Randall, Dirk Schortemeier (German version, with The Toy Box), and Peter Ustinov. | |
 | Happy Birthday, Mr. Beethoven | |
 | Mr. Handel's Firework Party | |
 | Papa Haydn's Surprise | |
 | Once Upon the Thames | |
 | The Firebird | |
 | Nutcracker And more narrated Nutcrackers can be found below. | |
 | Romeo & Juliet | |
 | Sleeping Beauty | |
 | Swan Lake | |
 | Mandy and the Magic Butterfly | |
 | The King Who Broke His Promises | |
 | Love for Three Oranges | |
 | Seasons' Greetings from Vivaldi | |
 | Childhood Classics Three works by Van Dijk: Follow That Flute! and Musicians of Bremen narrated by Richard Cock and The Selfish Giant narrated by Keith Grenville. Note that this is a different Bremen than the Rogers version above. | |
 | Tales Told in the Winds, coupled with The Turnip, Clock and the Kid — new works commissioned by the Rainier Chamber Winds. | |
 | The Frog Princess, composed, performed, and narrated by harpsist Deborah Henson-Conant. | |
 | Welcher: Haleakala-How Maui Snared the Sun, etc | |
 | Listen to the Storyteller - Marsalis, Meyer, Doyle | |
 | Wind, Sun, and Stars ($11.98) She Who Sees The Wind and The Boy Who Taught His People a Dance, two Native American folktales, with narration and music by Kenneth Little Hawk. A shorter disc, about 46 minutes long. | |
 | Seal Maiden: A Celtic Musical ($14.49) Irish singer Karan Casey and friends (including Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill) retell the traditional tale of a selkie, or seal maiden, who marries a human. | |
 | Voices from Spoon River / Moll, Bacon, Graber, Golden Horn | |
 | Peter Schickele: Bestiary, Quartet / Calliope, et al | |
 | Song of Wisdom from Old Turtle / Turtle Creek Chorale, et al | |
 | Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker /Lea Salonga, Russian Federation Other merchants ($9.99) | |
 | Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker / David Zinman, Kevin Kline Other merchants ($13.88-17.98) | |
 | Tchaikovsky: Nutcraker; Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve, etc | |
 | Nutcracker (Janet & Martin Bookspan) Other merchants () | |
 | Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet Other merchants ($8.29-11.49) Narration by Jeffrey Buehl | |
 | 1001 Nights - Rimsky-Korsakov / Bernard Cribbins | |
 | Musical Fairytales by Hans Christian Andersen | |
 | Mother Goose & More | |
 | Beethoven's Wig Kid-friendly sing-along lyrics added to classics such as Beethoven's Fifth, Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody, and Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, followed by the same selections without words. | |
 | Mozart Was a Kid Like You and Me Taken from the diary of Anna-Marie Mozart with narration by Laura Benanti. Over an hour running time.It appears to be a story (with some Mozart music in the background) followed by an unnarrated performance of Mozart's Symphony No. 40. | |
 | Music for Young People - 3 Russian Fairy Tales / Makarova | |
 | Bill Moyers Narrates... The Story of Percussion / Nexus | |
 | Poems to Music | |
 | Sneaky Pete and the Wolf | |
 | Thurber's Dogs / Voices from the Gallery | |
 | Word & Song Bible A multi-disc set with storybook by Stephen Elkins illustrated by Tim O'Connor. Voices provided by Dr. Lloyd Ogilvie, Jerry Falwell, Twila Paris, Reggie White, Joni Eareckson Tada, Max Lucado, Steve Green, Annie Chapman, Steven Curtis Chapman, Larnelle Harris, Steve Camp, et al. | |
 | Remmy and the Brain Train A bedtime book by James B. Maas illustrated by Guy Danella with a CD of music by Suzanne Schenman. | |
 | Dinosongs Poems read by Susan Sarandon to music by Russ Landau, with a book by K. M. Crotty illustrated by Kurt Vargo. | |
 | Stravinsky: The Soldier's Tale, Dumbarton Oaks / Northern CO A story not for little kids. A soldier sells his soul to the devil. | |
 | Marsalis: A Fiddler's Tale / Marsalis, de Shields, et al A jazz adaptation of A Soldier's Tale (also not for little kids). This time a musician sells his soul. | |
 | Walton: The Bear / Hickox, Northern Sinfonia | |
 | Britten: Paul Bunyan / Hickox, Cranham, Gritton, et al | |
 | Schuman: The Mighty Casey, A Question of Taste / Schwarz | |
| Trout Fishing in America | ||
