I thought Mr.  Sherwood's remarks spot-on.  I do have a few remarks on the
remarks, however.

>-Skip Schoenberg.  Substitute Tchaikovsky: ...  his violin concerto is one
>that even people who detest Tchaikovsky respect, and audiences have been
>thrilled by it for over a century:  Kyung-Wha Chung's recording of this is
>wonderful.

Wise words, indeed.  FWIW, I really like Kyung-Wha Chung's playing.  (Keep
your original list, though; when you're ready to experiment more, that's a
good place to find ideas.)

>-You need Brahms ever so much more than you need Janacek or Hindemith ...
>Brahms' first symphony- a mature work, unlike many first symphonies- is
>deservedly one of the war horses of the concert hall.

I second this.  Brahm's First is a potential favorite for anyone.  He wrote
only four, so here's an opportunity for knowing *all* a composer's
symphonies!

>His violin concerto is similarly masterful and approachable. I have
>a recording by the late Emil Gilels that was recommended to me,

I think L. S. missed a stitch here; Emil Gilels played the Brahms *piano*
concertos, which certainly are among the greatest ever written.  For the
violin concerto, try Kreisler (EMI) or Heifetz (RCA Victor) or Menuhin or
almost anybody.  It's a difficult concerto to destroy.

>-No collection should be without Beethoven.  I'm personally not a great
>fan of his symphonies, but his piano concertos and sonatas are another
>matter. ...

However, if it so happens that you go the symphony route, Beethoven will be
a natural beginning.  No 3 (Eroica) and No 5 (C minor) are sine-qua-non's
of the symphonic repertoire.

>I think what I most want to say to you, however, is do not be content with
>recordings: they are only a pale reflection of a good live performance.

Words to live by.  (Go for it!)

My two cents:

cent 1: Try Mozart.  Even if you don't like him, it gives you
something to talk about.  Borrow the Amadeus soundtrack
from your local library; it's a smorgasbord of the best of
Mozartiana

cent 2: Try concertos.  These are so much fun, you run the
small risk of never going beyond them.  But it's important
to have fun in this business, imo.

Concertos:
Bach (Double and Triple concertos, and the Brandenburgs)
Mozart (5 violin concertos, all good, 25-odd piano concertos,
    the last 5 are immortal.  Clarinet concerto- -to die
    for.   Also Horn, Bassoon, Flute & Harp concertos and more
    Sinfonia concertante: for violin and viola- -incredibly romantic)
Beethoven (1 wonderful violin c, and 5 incredible piano concertos)
Schumann (1 violin, 1 piano)
Brahms (2 piano, 1 violin, violin & cello double concerto)
Mendelssohn (violin.  You're in for a treat.)
Dvorak (violin, cello)
Tchaikovsky (as stated above)

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