I listen almost exclusively to classical music as well.
Around ten years ago I spent countless hours ripping around 1000 or so of my CDs using EAC, saving everything as FLAC. I painstakingly retagged everything using a system that worked for me for classical. 'Genre' is the most stupid tag IMO, so I used that for composers instead, making a custom "genre" for each composer, using last name followed by first initial (there are a few composers sharing a last name, Strauss, Charpentier, Bach, to name a few for those who don't listen to classical lol). I made individual opus numbers or work titles "albums" instead of using the CD album the music was extracted from, which worked better for me. In my music folders, though, the "albums" were contained within a folder for the actual CD, so I could still find content by that method if I wished. Naturally, I have multiple versions (as many as 35 for some works) of many compositions, so I didn't want sorting to give me groupings of movements from the different interpretations, so I included the major artist or conductor and year as part of the title in the tagging to prevent that. Classical is complicated with a large collection if you want it done right and to sort logically in foobar or whatever player. For operas, I made acts or scenes into one track to simplify things, rather than follow the track points on the CDs themselves. This worked for me as I listen to a full opera anyway, so there was no reason to be able to pinpoint a specific aria. My system after careful thought and planning worked flawlessly for me. I also made certain to have multiple backups on extra hard drives. Then I would occasionally find a tiny playback glitch in what had been flawless files previously, and it was so frustrating fixing those files from the backups, that eventually I gave up and went back to just listening to the CDs. A pity, as my system allowed for really easy comparisons of details in different remasterings or interpretations of any given composition.
Other than doing comparisons (usually only when I've acquired a new recording) I mostly listen to entire CDs anyway. If an artist/performer doesn't have entire albums that are worthwhile, I generally won't waste my time with them and will find superior artists haha! One reason I don't bother much with popular music. Too many have albums of crap with one okay song. The only consistent rock performer I can think of is Chris Isaak. I like every song on every album he has recorded, so I'll listen to him occasionally. I have around 3000 CDs so I don't have time to waste on music I don't love haha! I also give my music my full attention. If it's not good enough to occupy my mind fully, I won't bother with it at all in general.
My solution on shelving location for CDs has always prioritized the reason I bought the CD. So Leontyne Price recordings all go together. If there isn't a favorite artist, then the CDs are grouped by composer. I don't alphabetize. Everything is by its value to me. Leontyne Price before all else. So I alternate artist groupings sometimes with composer groupings. A stranger would have difficulty locating particular composers or works in my collection, but no one has any business looking through my things but me haha! A stranger could probably find Wagner pretty easily, as most people would expect his works to be near the end, going alphabetically. He is at the end, but only because he comes last in my priorities haha! (Mozart would actually come after him, but the only reason I even have Mozart CDs in my collection at all is because a number of my favorite artists recorded things by him. Thus those CDs go in an artist grouping--and at the end of that particular grouping, naturally lol.) If I ever become senile or otherwise experience a failing memory, my shelving system will also be useful, as it means I'd be more likely to listen to favorites simply by their position on the shelves and easy access. Otherwise I might listen mostly to Albinoni in my dotage haha!
Oh, to make this rambling post on topic, I do have a few LPs. I have three full operas with Leontyne Price that I acquired, factory sealed, a number of years ago (I opened them to read the booklets and scan the pictures onto my computer). The only other LPs I currently own are Mariah Carey's Butterfly 20th anniversary reissue, and Chris Isaak's Beyond the Sun double-lp set. I listen to the CDs, though, as these few LPs are decorative/collectible for me. My cheap turntable didn't survive my last move a couple of years ago haha!
