[Tyson]

I've been wanting to give my system a workout.  I've already got very dynamic recordings of Mahler, Stravinsky, Beethoven, Bartok, etc... And I have the Kodo drum recordings along with the Master of Chinese Percussion recordings. 

I'm looking for something new.  What recordings should I listen to that will really smack me upside the head?

Only caveat is I really don't like hard rock or metal, so no rec's for that, please.

[Mag]

Try Far Above the Clouds- Tubular Bells 3- Mike Oldfield. It starts out normal until the bell kicks in, I love it, the sound of the bells.

I forgot to mention, the CD version plays it flawed-compressed. I've listen to the song on Amazon music and plays it uncompressed.

[FullRangeMan]

Pink Floyd - Final Cut have some dinamic moments a long the Clapton guitar.

[S Clark]

Manhattan Jazz Quintet "My Funny Valentine".   Excellent dynamics, and very good, occasionally great, jazz. 
Not the easiest to source on King Records out of Japan.   Several copies on cd at Discogs for $10-15.  Vinyl is even better, but I don't know if you are a vinyl addict...
Old but good... Thelma Houston and the Pressure Cooker on Sheffield labs.  Definitely not dull.   Again, vinyl rules but you should be able to find digital versions easily.   Come to Texas one day and I'll set up my DBX and play the encoded record... might have been my audiophile cherry experience so long ago... 

[WGH]

What format? A lot of my most dynamic recordings are in .dsf (DSD). I use dBPoweramp to convert the music to PCM to share when our audio club meets.

I mentioned the first two recordings in my latest Hapa Aero RCA review. The Faust is one of the most dynamic recordings in my collection, not bad for a 1959 recording. Good music too.

Gounod Faust/Bizet Carmen Suite with Alexander Gibson conducting the Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra, 1960 free sample and link to entire album which is very affordable.
https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=189326.msg1982609#msg1982609




David Cheskey's The Audiophile Society 2023 Music Sampler is a free 12 track hi-res download.
https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=186325.msg1953186#msg1953186





Duke Ellington - Jazz Party In Stereo (1959)
Steve Hoffman forum - "WOW ! What a sensational recording, what dynamics ! The percussion's Glockenspiel and Marimbas, Xylophone and kettle drums are a way to open that album!!!. Add the solos from clarinette and saxophone/trumpet the guests plus the genius of Duke Ellington and we have one of the best albums EVER."





Anything by Carmen Gomes, Inc and Sound Liason Records
https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=179870.msg1890465#msg1890465





Anything by 2L - The Nordic Sound
Unfortunately their sample downloads have disappeared but I grabbed all the hi-res and made a compilation recording.
The file is 7.23 GB. PM me your email and I'll send your personal Google Drive download link.







Zuill Bailey - Bach Cello Suites
https://www.psaudio.com/products/bach-cello-suites/

[FullRangeMan]

Plenty of dynamics on Classical Music.
+1 on Carmen.
Shostakovich symphonies after Nº5
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto
Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture
Tchaikovsky Ballet Music
Usually Ballet Music are pretty dinamics.

On Jazz:
Eumir Deodato - Prelude
John Tropea - NY Cats Direct

[dflee]

Hop, skip and wobble, period
Edgar Myer, Bach cello suites.

[Tyson]

Awesome stuff!  Thanks everyone 

[Phil_S]

All of the music I listen to is vinyl.

1812 Overture-TTLARC, Cincinnati Symphony
Bizet, Carmen, DG, Marilyn Horn & Metropolitan Opera
Keb Mo, self titled, MFSL
Janis Ian, Breaking Silence, Analogue Productions
Wagner, Die Meistersinger, Phillips Recording Live from the Bayrether Festspiele - This is one of the very few live recordings of an opera in an amphitheater.  You can track the singers as they walk across the stage.  Close your eyes and you are there.  It is remarkable

[simoon]

Classical recordings, even average ones, will have the best dynamic range. It is actually hard to find a classical recording with bad dynamic range.

My tastes in classical tend to be on the avant-garde, atonal, and "thorny" sounding, so your mileage may vary.

Ernst Krenek - Static and Ecstatic
Elliott Carter - Concerto for orchestra, Variations for orchestra,
Joan Tower - Concerto for orchestra
Magnus Lindberg - Sculpture
Beat Furrer - Piano concerto
Charles Wuorinen - Speculum Speculi, Chamber Concerto For Flute And Ten Players

Also, try anything on the ECM jazz label. They have a deservedly high reputation for great sounding recordings.
Eberhard Weber, Keith Jarrett, Ralph Towner, Enrico Rava, Gallery, Jack DeJohnette, Craig Taborn, Michael Formenak, and others.

The other nice thing about classical recordings, is that the majority have a great, natural sounding soundstage, created purely by proper mic technique. As opposed to phony, studio created soundstage, created by panning, overdubs, analog or digital delay, phase manipulation, etc.
All of the recordings I mention create a soundstage that is easy to imaging being able to get out of my listening chair, and walk among the musicians. It is a qualitatively different kind of soundstage from mainstream rock, pop, county, etc.

[Saturn94]

[Jazzman53]

Try this one:

Hugh Masekala - Stimela (the coal train)

https://youtu.be/mUU9tVScxzg?si=_zEjFUDqrk9BQ_js

[Delta77]

I've been streaming Brian Grey a lot lately. You might want to give it a try..!

Smooth Blues

[Aspirant Audiophile]

Now listening to Coldland Blues, thank you for the recommendation:)

[FullRangeMan]

Worth mention Beethoven n°9 and Egmont Overture.

[newzooreview]

There's a whole database of recordings that you can list by most dynamic range to least.

https://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list/1/dr/desc

The recommendations here might be more helpful since people have validated and enjoy the recordings, but the database could provide some areas to explore blindly.

I'm definitely intrigued by "Breakfast Wolf" by The Smudge!

[DannyBadorine]

If you're feeling at all adventurous and want to try what I consider to be a rock album, then listen to a band called Dredge and the album is called "El Cielo".  This rock album is a concept album about sleep paralysis and was recorded entirely to tape (but mixed digital).  It is my go to album to test sound systems and speakers.  It is much more dynamic than most rock stuff and that was purposefully done by the band.  Many of the lyrics are taken from studies done at a university in the 70's on sleep paralysis.  The band never made it huge because they always prioritized their art form.  I have been a mix engineer for 25 years and this is still my favorite mixed record.  Much of it was recorded at Skywalker Ranch and the tones are just perfect.  With a revealing system you can hear all kinds of little hidden stuff.  It might not be your cup of tea but there is a decent sized cult following of these guys based on this record. cheers!

[nlitworld]

Yeah, I second the Dredg album. Very well done, fun to listen to, and still the only band I've ever seen play a hand saw as a musical instrument. 

[dflee]

For some pretty dynamic female vocals try "tears of stone" by the Chieftains.

[Scott F.]

Tyson,

Try Pat Metheny, Imaginary Day and Blue Man Group, Audio.