Sounds for the Soul, a budget compilation in Berlin Classics' multi-volume Moods series, contains 10 selections from Baroque, Classical, and Romantic works that are intended to elevate the spirit or at least brighten one's day. Some of the music is slow and relaxing, as found in the slow movements by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,
Frédéric Chopin, and Ludwig van Beethoven, while other excerpts are a bit faster and more upbeat, such as the Allegros and Allegrettos by Johannes Brahms,
Maurice Ravel, Domenico Cimarosa, Antonio Vivaldi, Franz Joseph Haydn, and Georg Philipp Telemann. Depending on one's needs, this varied collection will either soothe or energize, so choosing appropriate tracks is perhaps more important here than with other titles in the series, which are generally more consistent in mood and tone. However, this CD is fairly even in sound quality, with balanced remastering of ADD and DDD tracks that date from 1962 to 1992, and the high level of musicianship is constant, with such esteemed orchestras as the
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the
Kammerorchester Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, and the Kammerorchester Berlin, and such dependable conductors as
Kurt Masur,
Václav Neumann,
Hartmut Haenchen, and
Helmut Koch, among others. Because of its great musical variety, listeners seeking a true "chill-out" CD should pass on this album, but others seeking a well-rounded sampler of uplifting classics may find it quite enjoyable.