Listen up!

Have you vowed to put more Mendelssohn into your mornings in 2003? To get a better take on Tchaikovsky? To brush off Berlioz no longer?

Monitor writer Greg Lamb asked six professional musicians, conductors, and music administrators around the country to name their top five picks for new fans of classical music. While some named specific recordings by a favorite artist, and others reminisced about personal memories attached to their choices, no two picked the same piece.

bass trombonist,

Boston Symphony Orchestra

Claudio Monteverdi:

'Vespers of 1610'

Boston Baroque;

Martin Pearlman, conductor

The sumptuous sound of Monteverdi's magnificent "Vespers" is simply breathtaking. Boston Baroque's performance captures all of the elegance and mystery of this stunning masterpiece, which is played expertly on period instruments - the ancient instruments it was composed for, including cornetto (the precursor to the trumpet) and sackbut (an early trombone).

Hector Berlioz:

'Symphonie fantastique'

Orchestre Révolutionnaire

et Romantique;

John Eliot Gardiner, conductor

This was a revolutionary work in terms of form, message, and orchestration, and when played in its original version with original instruments (the 1830 edition, performed with instruments we rarely hear today, including serpent and ophicleide), the effect is even more revealing. Gardiner's recording is shocking in its clarity and insight, and has the added advantage of being recorded in the venue where the piece premièred, the Old Hall of the Paris Conservatory.

Johann Sebastian Bach:

'Six Suites for Violoncello'

Anner Bylsma, cello

It is difficult to make a single recommendation of the music of J.S. Bach, as so much of his inspired output (his several hundred church cantatas, the monumental biblical "Passions," volumes of keyboard music, and orchestral suites and concertos) represents towering achievements in the history of Western music. But if only one could be had, it surely must be this. By paring musicmaking down to its most essential component (melody), Bach gives performer and listener alike a transcendent look into the soul; Bylsma's interpretation ranks among the finest of many excellent recordings.

Gustav Mahler:

'Symphony 5'

Vienna Philharmonic;

Pierre Boulez, conductor

The symphonies of Gustav Mahler are towering achievements of late 19th and early 20th century music but still speak freshly to our postmodern, 21st-century world. Poetry, angst, triumph, struggle, and redemption can all be found in his Symphony 5; this recording of Mahler's former orchestra has all of the drama, beauty, and excitement one could hope for in a performance.

Anton Bruckner:

'Motets'

Corydon Singers;

Matthew Best, conductor

While Anton Bruckner is best known for his towering symphonies, his sacred "Motets" are inspired miniatures of faith and devotion. The Corydon Singers represent the very best of the great English choral tradition, and they deliver performances of exceptional purity on this fine recording.

Benjamin Britten:

'War Requiem'

London Symphony

Orchestra and Chorus;

Benjamin Britten, conductor

Galina Vishnevskaya, soprano;

Peter Pears, tenor; Dietrich

Fischer-Dieskau, baritone.

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