Haydn at Esterhaza, Including Symphonies 23, 28 & 29

Joseph Haydn wrote 80 of his more than 100 symphonies for his employer, Prince Nikolaus Esterhazy. Here Christopher Hogwood and his Academy of Ancient music ensemble perform three of those pleasant symphonies on original instruments in the room for which they were composed, at Eszterhaza Palace in Hungary. The concert is preceded by a 50-minute documentary on Hogwood and Haydn that's easy to digest and whets the appetite for the symphonies themselves. Watching attractive young musicians play this elegant music in a beautifully restored palace may seem almost sinfully elitist, but in the privacy of your own home theater, this disc offers the pleasure guilt-free. A