Reviewed by Simon Carpenter

At a time in Britain when to be married is now, according to the latest official statistics, to be a member of a minority social grouping, it might seem strange to be producing a boxed set of wedding music. However, undeterred by current social trends, that is what Golden Stars have done: on first impression, an impressive three CD collection containing a total of 40 classical pieces of music suitable for playing during the ceremony. But on closer inspection, this is not so much of a bargain. To start with, on my copy at least CDs 2 and 3 were mixed, so when I was expecting to hear Mozart's overture to the "Marriage Of Figaro" what I got instead was Mendelssohn's wedding music from "Midsummer Night's Dream". And then the quality of the reproduction leaves much to be desired. Many of the recordings themselves have central European origins and none of them is dated but I suspect many must be long out of their first flush of youth. The selection also has some slightly eccentric choices in it but found no place for the Widor "Toccata", surely in most people's top 40 for wedding music?

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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