Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (complete) / The Sleeping Beauty (highlights)
Antal Dorati was probably the great dance conductor of our age, and he  pioneered recording the complete Tchaikovsky ballets. He made an outstanding  stereoNutcrackerfor Mercury Living Presence, and that has been reissued  on CD. Fine as that version is, this one is even better because the Royal  Concertgebouw Orchestra simply plays the music more elegantly than the London  Symphony Orchestra on the earlier recording. In fact, this has been the version  of choice for a couple of decades now, and it's amazing that it took Philips so  long to get the thing onto CD. At two discs for the price of one, however,  you'll agree that it was worth the wait.--David Hurwitz