"classical" music

[METALMAN]

there's relatively little discussion about this here so I thought I might as well start by asking what everyone likes.

Basically brought on by me reading "The Rest Is Noise" recently which is a really rather fantastic book about 20th century classical music.

Anyway, as for stuff I like -

Nixon in China by John Adams - particularly Chairman Dances - has been one of my favourite pieces of music for years now.

Penderecki is amazing. I remember first hearing threnody... in music class and it was like nothing I'd ever heard before in my life. Amazing.

Bach - obvious one I know. I really love Brandenburg Concertos. Mainly because I have really vivid memories of messing about with the midi file of it on cubase when I was about 6 or something. I didn't make it sound too great as you might imagine.

I like a whole slew of avant-gardish people like Stockhausen, Steve Reich

Holst - Planets is amazing.

Pictures at an Exhibition is brilliant, despite ELP's best efforts to ruin it.

I like turandot by Puccini. Another obvious one, but that doesn't make it any less brilliant.

Pomp & Circumstance by Elgar. I've always loved music with some special historical significance - and this suite really is the British Empire set to music.

Dvorak - Symphony #9 is amazing.

I like most really but I like Wagner, Adams, Dvorak, Stravinsky and Varese best of all. I generally prefer stuff from 1850s onwards. Because it either sounds really big/strange/really big and strange.

And a burning question I have for those of you with classical music on your music library - do you make the artist the composer or the orchestra/soloist that actually performed it?

[YI]

Pretty shocked you have no love for Mahler #3.

[EddieRuckus]

Some great choices there.

Haven't been on much of a kick as I could be(kinda happens when you're not pursuing music as a degree), but I still try to find some music to play and listen to. I really prefer opera stuff at the moment, particularly Puccini. I love how a lot of his songs build and build to a huge climatic unison between three singers who, for the most part, sing their own deal.

Currently I'm on a kick of Chopin and Shostakovich, particularly the string quartets Shosta did.

As for the artist, I usually have the performer/symphony/what have you labeled instead of the composer as I tend to download the same song. It's interesting especially in some of the Shostakovich pieces to hear what I prefer in each rendition I have.

1850s onwards was a great time for "classical" music. More composers took risks, birth of the Romantic movement, just a fascinating time for music as form/melody/harmony all evolved into something greater and bigger. It's nice to listen to the pre-romantic era stuff, mainly for the historic aspect and to get the basics of form/etc.

[ADG]

'The Lark Ascending' by Vaughan Williams is a piece I adore. Same with 'Adiemus' by Karl Jenkins.

I echo Holst's Planets and 'Pomp and Circumstance', it is just the epitome of the British Empire.

'Nessun Dorma' is epic, heard that in the car going to work yesterday and remembered how much I dig it.

'Fur Elise' and 'Moonlight Sonata' obviously are really good. Tchaikovsky's '1812 Overture' as well.

'The Minute Waltz' because of its association with 'Just A Minute'.

'Piano Concerto in A Minor' by Grieg has quite possibly the most recognisable opening ever and I love it. Perhaps only bettered by Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.

[Skummy]

Penderecki is incredible - Threnody blew my mind when I first heard it. If you haven't already, check out his collaboration with Don Cherry.

Stravinsky and Varese are wonderful. Have you listened to much LaMonte Young? I always file him and Varese together in my mind for some reason, though they're not really that similar.

Stockhausen's the main one for me...I like bits of John Cage too, but Stockhausen is wonderful. One of the most intense listening experiences I've ever had was the first time I ever heard Four String Quartets and a Helicopter, in the middle of the night, half-awake. I could feel it in my teeth, and I wasn't sure if it was the music, or if it was even really happening at all.

Mostly I love minimalism, though. That side of John Cage, along with Steve Reich, Michael Nyman, and fair bits of John Adams.

Harry Partch is an absolute God.

As for "tagging" classical music, I usually go with the composer. I don't know enough about the performers most of the time, and wouldn't know where to find the stuff.

[Mick]

I love Mozart's Requiem, at least the parts of it people know he wrote

Beethoven's works that I love are the Emperor Piano Concerto, Third Movement and the allegro from Pathetique.

Chopin's Polonaise in A major Op. 40 No. 1 is awesome.

My favorite Liszt work is Hungarian Rhapsody #2, though when I listen to it it has to be done a certain way; I'm not a fan of some of the liberties I've seen taken with it.

One piece I really loved but can't listen to objectively is the Dies Irae by Verdi, and it's probably obvious why

The great thing about Beethoven over Mozart is that most of Mozart's work seems to have a happy feeling to it, while Beethoven's was just epic.