The Most Expensive Classical Records Ever Sold on Discogs

Discogs regularly rounds up the priciest items sold each month in the Marketplace. These lists are characterized by classic rock vinyl and a few coveted cassettes, CD box sets, and other limited releases.

We’re taking a deeper dive into a specific genre: classical. Here are the most expensive classical albums ever on Discogs.

While the term “classical” can be used to describe practices across many regions and time periods, as a style, it more specifically refers to music rooted in Western culture of the 1700s-1800s. The records below are representative of the Classical era as defined by European composers like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. You’ll see those names alongside modern musicians who performed and further popularized their work, including Johanna Martzy and Leonid Kogan. However, some of the pieces reach into tangential eras under the classical music umbrella, such as Johannes Brahms from the Romantic period and Giuseppe Tartini from the Baroque.

The format can be pretty much divided into two categories: older vinyl and recent box sets, some of which include CDs and DVDs. You’ll notice a lot of repeats of the exact same titles because multiple copies of the same release sold for similarly high price tags. Unlike the lists that we compiled for prog-rock and soul, the ranking of the most expensive classical records can easily be considered a playlist of essential listening for the style, especially since there are so many compilations.

Do you have any classical records or CDs in your collection? What about these specific releases? What are you playing them on? If we had one of these lovelies — specifically the older releases— we would have to spin them on something as quality as the direct-drive Technics SL-1200GR (an upgrade on the SL-1200G).

Most Expensive Classical Albums

Johanna Martzy – Radio Recordings

Sold for $813.95
Label: Coup D’Archet
Format: 8 × Vinyl, LP, Box Set, Compilation, Reissue, Mono
Country: UK
Released: 2011
Бетховен / И. Брамс, В. Фуртвенглер ‎– Симфония № 9

Sold for $837.21
Label: Melodija
Format: 2 × Vinyl, LP, Mono
Country: USSR
Released: 1962
Ludwig van Beethoven / Munich Philharmonic Orchestra / Rudolf Kempe ‎– Beethoven: The Nine Symphonies

Sold for $850.00
Label: Esoteric Company, EMI Classics
Format: 5 × SACD, Hybrid, Stereo, Album, Box Set, Compilation, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered
Country: Japan
Released: 2012
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1-4

Sold for $872.09
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Paavo Järvi, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen ‎– Beethoven Sinfonien Zyklus

Sold for $883.72
Label: Acousence Records
Format: Vinyl, LP, Special Edition, Stereo, 9 LP Box
Country: Germany
Released: 2010
Mozart ‎– Mozart 225: The New Complete Edition

Sold for $906.98
Label: Deutsche Grammophon, Decca, Stiftung Mozarteum Salzburg
Format: 200 × CD, Box Set, Compilation, Limited Edition, Numbered
Country: France
Released: 2016
Бетховен / И. Брамс, В. Фуртвенглер ‎– Симфония № 9

Sold for $929.07
Label: Melodija
Format: 2 × Vinyl, LP, Mono
Country: USSR
Released: 1962
Л. Бетховен / И. Брамс* В. Фуртвенглер ‎– 9-я Симфония Ре Минор, Соч. 125 / Вариации На Тему Гайдна Соч. 56а

Sold for $930.23
Label: Melodija
Format: 2 × Vinyl, LP, Reissue, Mono
Country: USSR
Released: 1962
Johanna Martzy – The EMI Recordings

Sold for $951.06
Label: Coup D’Archet
Format: Vinyl, LP, Reissue, Mono, Box Set, Compilation
Country: UK
Released: 2010
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Complete Mozart Edition

Sold for $988.29
Label: Philips
Format: 180 × CD, Compilation
Country: Europe
Released: 2000
Johanna Martzy – Radio Recordings

Sold for $988.37
Label: Coup D’Archet
Format: 8 × Vinyl, LP, Box Set, Compilation, Reissue, Mono
Country: UK
Released: 2011
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1-4

Sold for $999.99
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Schubert / Johanna Martzy, Jean Antonietti ‎– Rondeau Brillant In B Minor, D.895 (Op. 70) / Fantaisie In C Major, D.934 (Op. 159)

Sold for $1,000.00
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: UK
Released: 1957
Herbert von Karajan – Complete Recordings On Deutsche Grammophon And Decca

Sold for $1,005.81
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Format: 330 × CD, 24 × DVD, 2 × Blu-ray, Box Set, Compilation, Limited Edition, Numbered
Country: N/A
Released: 2017
Richter – The 100th Anniversary Edition

Sold for $1,009.99
Label: Melodija
Format: 50 × CD, Compilation, Deluxe Edition, Limited Edition, Numbered, Remastered, Stereo, Mono, Box Set
Country: Russia
Released: 2015
Herbert von Karajan – Complete Recordings On Deutsche Grammophon And Decca

Sold for $1,017.44
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Format: 330 × CD, 24 × DVD, 2 × Blu-ray, Box Set, Compilation, Limited Edition, Numbered
Country: N/A
Released: 2017
Herbert von Karajan – Complete Recordings On Deutsche Grammophon And Decca

Sold for $1,040.70
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Format: 330 × CD, 24 × DVD, 2 × Blu-ray, Box Set, Compilation, Limited Edition, Numbered
Country: N/A
Released: 2017
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Complete Mozart Edition

Sold for $1,040.70
Label: Philips
Format: 180 × CD, Compilation, Deluxe Edition, Limited Edition
Country: Germany
Released: 1990
Tartini / Mozart, David Oistrakh ‎– “Devil’s Trill” Sonata / Sonata In B Flat, K. 454

Sold for $1,046.51
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Mono
Country: UK
Released: 1956
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1-4

Sold for $1,161.63
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Beethoven, David Oistrakh,Orchestre National De La Radiodiffusion Française, André Cluytens ‎– Violin Concerto In D Major, Op. 61

Sold for $1,200.00
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
Country: UK
Released: 1960
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1 – 4 (6xLP, Ltd, Box)

Sold for $1,299.00
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1 – 4 (6xLP, Ltd, Box)

Sold for $1,333.72
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1 – 4 (6xLP, Ltd, Box)

Sold for $1,336.05
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Mozart, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra – Le Nozze Di Figaro

Sold for $1,337.21
Label: Decca
Format: 4 × Vinyl, LP, Stereo, Box Set
Country: UK
Released: 1959
Johannes Brahms, Sir Simon Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker – Symphonien 1 – 4 (6xLP, Ltd, Box)

Sold for $1,394.19
Label: Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings
Format: 6 × Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition, Box-Set
Country: Germany
Released: 2016
Clara Haskil, Arthur Grumiaux, Mozart – Sonaten Für Klavier Und Violine

Sold for $1,395.35
Label: Philips
Format: Vinyl, LP, Stereo
Country: Netherlands
Released: N/A
Beethoven, Leonid Kogan and Paris Conservatoire Orchestra Conducted by Constantin Silvestri – Violin Concerto

Sold for $1,569.77
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
Country: UK
Released: 1959
Beethoven, Leonid Kogan and Paris Conservatoire Orchestra Conducted by Constantin Silvestri – Violin Concerto

Sold for $4,069.77
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
Country: UK
Released: 1959
Beethoven, Leonid Kogan and Paris Conservatoire Orchestra Conducted by Constantin Silvestri – Violin Concerto

Sold for $4,999.99
Label: Columbia
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
Country: UK
Released: 1959