This stunning turnaround in classical music's marketing power did not come out of nowhere, though. Celestial Harmonies helped set the stage for it with its Adagio (Complete Edition) (19908-2) series. Since 1981, long before the current interest in classical music began, Celestial Harmonies' compilations have been used worldwide for relaxation, meditation and even music therapy. And in a stunning reversal of music industry rules, absolutely no advertising or promotion was needed to achieve substantial sales figures. And while the rest of the classical world scurries around looking for the next big hit, Celestial Harmonies has released an updated digital version of an already proven winner: The Adagio series, a total of seven double–CDs. With sales of over 300,000 units in the past decade, the reason for the series' success is no mystery. As modern life has become increasingly complex and stressful, listeners have turned to music as a source of relief—especially the timeless, contemplative sounds of classical music. It seems that as the pace of our lives gets progressively faster, the music that many listeners are seeking is increasingly slow. The Adagio series, presents over seventeen hours of the world's finest slow music, making it the largest such collection anywhere.

the music

Classical music enthusiasts will be delighted to find impressionist, atmospheric excerpts from Federico Mompou's Impresiones Intimas and Leos Janácek's On the Overgrown Path in the Largo compilations; but even classical music newcomers will be able to hum along to Debussy's Clair de lune and Chopin's Nocturne in B Flat Minor. Largo I (14056) is slightly more impressionist or atmospheric, featuring works by Debussy, Ravel, and Skryabin. Largo II contains some of the beautifully distilled, elegant classicism of Erik Satie, Chopin, and Beethoven.

the musicians