 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Baby Einstein: Music Box Orchestra
- Genre: Classical
Common Sense Media says
Compilation of re-orchestrated classical pieces.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the pleasing instrumentals of classical compositions by the Music Box Orchestra beg the question: Why not listen to the real thing? Still, your kids could do a lot worse.
What's the story?
MUSIC BOX ORCHESTRA includes 17 classical instrumental compositions selected from the Baby Einstein Music Collection (the renditions are short -- the longest playing out at 3 minutes, 11 seconds). An orchestral tune-up begins the CD, followed by the tapping of a conductor's baton signaling a five-second fanfare based on Mozart's "The Magic Flute." Selections include the first movement of Mozart's familiar "Piano Sonata in C," a Bach "Brandenburg Concerto" and a canon from his "Goldberg Variations," "On the Beautiful Blue Danube" by Strauss, Jr., a nocturne by Chopin, more Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and Handel.
Is it any good?
The music is precise to a note, with accomplished musicians, but at times has a mechanical feeling due to reliance on synthesized instrumentation. When real instruments are introduced into the mix, compositions stand out, as in Beethoven's "The Ruins of Athens" and "Sonatina in G." The CD is marketed as "A Concert for Little Ears" and most of the pieces are sonically pleasing. But little ears can also benefit from richly orchestrated recordings, and families may prefer listening to the real thing.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why these classical compositions are tunes for the ages. What makes them timeless? How do family members feel about classical music as opposed to modern-day tunes?
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