speakers for classical music

Most any maggie, assuming you have the room to let them breathe, but that is true for any speaker. You need a good size room and room around the speakers to develop a proper sound stage. Add to them powered sub. Better still biamp and add a Behringer CX3410 crossover. Now you will hear classical as it should

My ultimate reference for what a system should sound like is live performances.

When I owned Maggies ($900/pair new in 1986) and was able to have them set up properly, they never disapointed with classical music. What I heard was a most accurate reproduction of what I heard when attending a live symphony.

The only other speakers I've owned that I can say that about are my current Ohms.

My ultimate reference for what speakers should sound like is what live performances should sound like. . . in theory. Unfortunately live performances I have attended never sound like what they should. But then, my experience is limited by the Teatro Alla Scala, the Sala Giuseppe Verdi at the Conservatorio DI Milano, The Royal Albert Hall, The Basilica Di San marco in Venice, Notre Dames in Paris, and the Tomsom Hall in Toronto. . . although I do admit that the 16th century portcature in Groznjan (Istra) near Trieste comes very close to sounding right.
So in the end. . . I just follow my ears and hope for the best.

I disagree with those who have said Quads ESL 57 are the perfect choice for classical music. I own a pair of them, I just love them, but I think their limit is that they can't play symphonic music right (meaning, reproducing as closely as possible live performance). I am not talking about chamber music...they are just sublime there. I am talking about symphonic pieces that require a fair amount of air to be moved. That's what you feel in real life concerts, at least in my experience, and this is Quads' main limitation, again, in my experience. Too bad: apart from this, they are just perfect speakers. My two cents.

Thanks for commenting about the Quads' limitations from an owners perspective. If you listen to chamber music and stay away from percussion, 20th century music, Mahler, Holtz, Stravinski, etc., then you'll be ok, and enthralled with the incredible midrange; however, just about anything by Mahler will crap them out, even with a sub, if you allow a realistic SPL, exceeding 100dB at the peaks.

I love them on certain things, but could never use them in my system with my listening preferences.

Dave