This two cd set is a good bargin for $16. It has good song selection including the chaconne by Bach, Concerto in D major by Brahms and Tchaikovsky, etc..

The remastering of the concerto's by brahms and tchaikovsky were not as good as what I had expected. If you are only looking for these two concertos, you may want to try the "living stero" version. The Scottish fantasy, chaconne, and sibelius in this recording sounds better than the brahms and tchaikovsky.

Overall, this is not the best cd for serious collections, but a good deal for those who want lots of songs for a bargain price.

Jascha Heifetz is the most influential violinist of the 20th century. No contest. He played the most difficult pieces with unnerving speed that most professionals today would prefer to slow down. In Jascha Heifetz: The Supreme, there is a select few of violin pieces that are very commonly played in his vast repertoire. Of this I particularly enjoyed the Bach Chaconne, Bruch Scottish Fantasy, Brahms, Sibelius, and Tchaikovsky Violin Concertos. I was most pleased when I heard Heifetz play Tchaikovsky for it is a piece I am currently playing and it was hard for me to find a recording of the Auer version, notably harder than the original score. Heifetz plays it flawlessly. The Finale is played in the style of Auer, his teacher. Auer merely took out parts the seemed repetitive in this fun movement. However, Tchaikovsky is not the only reason why I highly recommend you to buy this CD. The other pieces are performed at the usual Heifetz perfection. This select 2CD represents the top works of Heifetz, showing his supremacy.

In my humble opinion, there are only 2 truly great recordings of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D Major - Haifetz with the Chicago Symphony and Kung-Wa Chung's. These are the only peformers who capture for me the gypsy spirit of this magnificent piece. The CD mastering of the Heifetz version in this recording is terrible. Even on a good system, it is screechy and irritating. I have a Time-Life LP recording of this performance which is much better, crackles and all. Lovers of this masterwork who like to hear it played with a full range of emotion would be better advised to get the Kung-Wa Chung version which has been recorded with more up-to-date technology. This CD does no service to the great Heifetz.

This 2CD contains three of the five most popular violin concerti out there -- the Brahms, Sibelius, and Tchaikovsky. In addition, it contains Bruch's Scottish Fantasy, Glazunov, and two "extras" in the way of the Gershwin Three Preludes and Bach Chaconne (from Partita #2). And except for those two later pieces, they are all wonderful examples of highly romantic violin with orchestra music -- just the type of music Heifetz excelled at.

Suffice it to say, there are many people with opinions on might be considered the "best" of something. For me, the Chaconne from the Partita #2 for Solo Violin by J. S. Bach amoung the best of the best of any music anywhere. I don't think I'll ever tire of this piece, in its original or one of the number of arrangements. Heifetz here plays the piece very romantically, which may be a deterent to some purests, but this piece is simply of a timeless quality that oversteps any notions of Baroque that most of Bach's music has, and if nothing else, it's very emotional here and I for one love it.

While I'm not always too keen on Brahms, his Violin Concerto is one of those pieces that I do enjoy, especially the final movement. Heifetz does very well here, and you can really feel the Hungarian influence in the final movement. In the Tchaikovsky he doesn't quite push the same level, but it's still very good.

Bruch's Fantasy is another favorite of mine, especially the final movement. Once again, Heifetz really digs into the music and pulls out all the stops, closing out with a final movement that will have you humming along to the wonderful tune. Sibelius's Concerto is his only full-length concerted work, and it's justly popular. As with so much of his music, it contains moments that just 'hook' you, and forgive me for being repetitive, but Heifetz shines here as well. He never lets up in the first movement, which is a mistake that many make, and the finale goes along at the perfect rate.

The Glazunov concerto is slightly different from normal, being a shorter piece played without pause. The once again the highlight is the finale, with its fanfare and what must be incredibaly virtuosic pizzicato work that Heifetz of course pulls of wonderfully. The final work is his own transcription of the Three Preludes by Gershwin, and they show off a different side of his violin playing, and come off well.

So, unless you are allergic to a bit of hiss, which is pretty minor compared to many recordings from the era these were done in, or simply hate violin music, there's no reason not to get this if you don't own any of the recordings here. For the newbie and vet alike, one would be hardpresses to find 2CDs of violin music with as constant quality, both in music and musicality, as this set.

A wonderful collection of Heifetz playing. This 2 CD set if perfect for a young violinist who needs examples of the finest playing ever. For a cost minded buyer, this set offers a great number of pieces, played by the best ever, for a great price.
For the die hard collector of violin music, though, there is better.
For the Die hard, or anyone else who loves Heifetz, and will pay the price for better sound and more music, try getting the seperate components.
The two concertos are avaliable now in the remastered "livinvg stereo" format, which blows the socks off this CD version.
The Caccone from the Sonatas and partitas in this set is amazing, but so are the rest of the Sonatas and partitas, so buy the whole set of them, it is worth it.
The Glazunov, and Gershwin are not the greatest pieces, I think, you should try the Living Stereo Beethoven and Mendelssohn instead.
The Scottish fantasy is a great piece, but you could get it in another CD along with Bruch's concerto and Vieuxtemps, which make for one great CD.
You can buy all these separate recordings right here at Amazon, try them, you won't be diassapointed.

But if you just want a nice collection of Heifetz music for a person who has none, this is a perfect start.

For those who love violin music, this 2 CD set offers a great variety of music. From Bach to Gerswin, this set covers it all. The Sound quality is great, and the performer is Heifetz, what mnore needs to be said. You will never hear these pieces performed better by any other violinst, unless you have some secret recording of paganini.
Buy it now!
For those who have never heard violin music, or are not familiar, buy this set. The pieces here are not just wailing virtuoso pieces, they have all the emotion, magnitude, and tonal wonder of the greatest orchestral pieces ever written, especially Tchaikovsky's concerto, which is only given justice by the skill of Heifetz.

I'll admit the first time I heard Heifetz, his formalistic and restrained sound came as a then-unwelcome surprise. But my first encounter came almost two years ago, and now it is the violinists of today who I look at with a critical, unforgiving eye. This is completely due to these 1950s recordings of the grestest violinist of this century. Heifetz's charm and warmth is subtle, but he has a power of technique, perfection, and overall grace that is unmatched by other violinists of the recorded age. This disc, representing Heifetz in his mature, arguably rushed approach, holds a distinct advantage over his earlier, more relaxed, sweeter self because of the sound quality--so necessary to hear all the subtleties of his playing present in all 6 decades of his magic. Honestly, though, Heifetz was perfect as a child prodigy in 1917 and was just as perfec when he retired in 1972. You can't ask perfect to get better.
Note: Most famous in Heifetz is in the Tchaivoksky: the build-up to the first orchestral rendition of the theme in Movt. 1 where instead of playing double-stops (two strings at once) leading into the theme as every other recorded violinist does, he plays three notes together--adding a bottom drone. This is what Tchaikovsky wrote, and Heifetz is the only violinist gifted enough to play it.

I'll admit the first time I heard Heifetz, his formalistic and restrained sound came as a then-unwelcome surprise. But my first encounter came almost two years ago, and now it is the violinists of today who I look at with a critical, unforgiving eye. This is completely due to these 1950s recordings of the grestest violinist of this century. Heifetz's charm and warmth is subtle, but he has a power of technique, perfection, and overall grace that is unmatched by other violinists of the recorded age. This disc, representing Heifetz in his mature, arguably rushed approach, holds a distinct advantage over his earlier, more relaxed, sweeter self because of the sound quality--so necessary to hear all the subtleties of his playing present in all 6 decades of his magic. Honestly, though, Heifetz was perfect as a child prodigy in 1917 and was just as perfec when he retired in 1972. You can't ask perfect to get better.
Note: Most famous in Heifetz is in the Tchaivoksky: the build-up to the first orchestral rendition of the theme in Movt. 1 where instead of playing double-stops (two strings at once) leading into the theme as every other recorded violinist does, he plays three notes together--adding a bottom drone. This is what Tchaikovsky wrote, and Heifetz is the only violinist gifted enough to play it.

What can I say, it's Heifetz! His playing is simply incredible. The tone and intonation are virtually perfect, and the power with which he plays is rivaled almost by none. From the greatness of the Brahms and Tchaikovsky concertos to the more intimate Glazunov and Gerschwin preludes, Heifetz shows that he truly is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, violinist ever.

Even if you find his unique style of playing somewhat offensive, it must be admitted, his playing offers a different style of playing which only he can provide. He gives a new perspective on some passages in the violin repertoire. Perhaps the most controversial selection on this CD is the Chaconne, from Partita No.2 by Bach. It plays almost 50% faster (yes, 50% faster) than several other recordings, and it is here that Heifetz shows his characteristic style of playing best. Although I would not go so far to say as his style of playing the Bach is the best way to go about it, it certainly makes you think about the music.

This is a collection of incredible music. If you love great music, buy this!

This CD is truly definitive of the legendary Heifetz. For the price of the usual CD, you get 5 full length concertos + masterful other works. The quality of the recording is superb. All of the recordings were made at the peak of Heifetz's career (if there is such a thing) so they are guaranteed to be of the most exquisite quality. This is the perfect addition to any violin aficionado's collection or even anyone for that matter. From Bach to Gerswhin, this CD demonstrates Heifetz's tremendous contribution to music during the 20th century.

If ever there was a Grabbit, this one is it. The recent RCA Victor release (74321-63470-2) is a two-for-the-price-of-one CD set featuring the Master in seven major works for violin: Bach's "Chaconne," Bruch's "Scottish Fantasy," and the violin concerti of Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, and Glazunov. Then as a special treat, we have Heifitz' own arrangements for violin and piano of Gershwin's "3 Preludes." It doesn't get better than this.

These recordings span the years 1955 to 1970 and feature such orchestras as the Chicago Symphony (for the Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Sibelius), the New Symphony Orchestra of London (for the Bruch), and the RCA Symphony Orchestra (for the Glazunov).

The critics at the time had some quibbles with the recorded sound on one or two of these pieces, but they were all lavish in their praise of the performances: "incomparable," "this disc is a must," and so on. So what if you probably have all these selections on other recordings? At mid-price to get all this is heaven. And what a gift for discerning friends!