One of the first classical music recordings we owned in our youth was Franz Schubert's Symphony #8 in B Minor (the "Unfinished Symphony"), as performed here by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Fritz Reiner, recorded at Chicago's Orchestra Hall on March 26, 1960. The lyrical tone and pastoral melodies (not to mention the album cover), the leitmotif of overcoming Winter's grip, all have evoked the beginning of Spring to us ever since. It's why it's become a Hackwhackers tradition to offer it at this time of year when the daffodils, forsythia and cherry blossoms are at peak. Take 24 minutes off and enjoy some of the most beautiful music ever created.
