A few thoughts on the SOBoxed....
I just happened upon this set of reviews on Amazon (although I had reviewed the original SOB separately years ago), and was delighted at the multitude of very favorable reviews by others. But then came the weeds amongst the fruit, namely those few reviews by people who just did not 'get it'. The Amazon 'editorial reviewer' should get an award for the most ignorant and condescending review ever given a classical album...."wacky and goofy" indeed...what a fool. Then there was a review that dismissed the entire set of recordings because the music was 'mechanical'. My God, Carlos' performances are anything BUT mechanical...the main reasons that Wendy's performances outshine the competition are that she skillfully orchestrated the original music to sound best given the limitations of the non-polyphonic, primitive, analog synthesizer, AND her great efforts to give the musical performance life and expressiveness. I can only gather that the reviewer must have been having a bad day. Finally, I can understand why someone might find Carlos' lectures to be annoying or an interruption to their listening enjoyment. However, there are a few things to remember about this boxed set:
- the same recordings are available individually without all the commentary...this is mostly a bonus found in the boxed set version...you can have it either way.
- a large part of the buying audience consists of people who have been Carlos fans since 1968, or they are devoted synth-heads (aka synthfools) who love Carlos's work, and these people have been waiting for years to hear these descriptions...dislike the additions if you will, but it is very unfair to dismiss the entire set because of it.

All in one box set
I have been looking for these albums for a long time but never wanted to purchase them individually because of the cost. This is the perfect box set and the included book really gives insight in to the difficulty Wendy had and the hard work she put in to these albums. Recommeded!

GREAT remaster of a HISTORIC Recording
Year 2008 is the 40th anniversary of Switched-On-Bach. I wanted an special edition release in honor of the ocassion, BUT this edition was released for the 30th anniversary (1998). Perhaps, I got the bug too early and we may yet see a 40th anniversary edition.

As far as the music itself...This was and is a HISTORIC RECORDING. And this is a great remaster and a tricky digital conversion of ANALOGUE computer music.

When you consider HOW this music was created (analogue systhesis) and how it was recorded (track on track with analogue recording equipment) it is absolutely AMAZING. I truly love it!!!

Awesome!
One of my favorite cd sets Ever! Its hard to describe, but I'm so glad I found this.. Huge fan of her work.. The music is timeless.. If you have never heard this, do yourself and pick it up, worth every penny..

Love it! - A great summary of electronic music's baroque period.
Switched-On Bach I sounds better than the ten year old CD I have (better engineering?). The Well-Tempered Synthesizer (my favorite from the days of vinyl) features Scarlatti, Monteverdi and Handel as well as Bach. SoB II is a masterful extension of the original. Each of the above has its own Brandenburg Concerto (3, 4, and 5 respectively). The remaining three concerti are on the fourth disc. Extensive printed materials and a few extra cuts fill out this exceptional set. A must have for anyone who enjoys Bach and/or Electronic Music!