Discovering Classical Music: Suggestions Welcome!

[Dooga Blackrazor]

I'm starting to listen to a bit of Classical Music. I'm unsure what's good so does anyone have any favorites or a site that lists great songs perhaps?

Right now I have four songs: The Requiem by Mozart, Fur Elise by Beethoven, Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven and Allegro Concerto #3 by Bach. My favorite is The Requiem if that helps determine my listening style any.

Thanks to anyone who helps me out.

 

[Ebolamonk3y]

Beethoven. Sym. #7 Allegretto.

 

[motai]

Bach's 3rd Brandenburg Symphony

 

[Njorl]

I believe Fur Elize was Beethoven?

Tchaichowsky is my favorite. I like his 4th, 5th, and 6th, Marche Slave, Capricci Italien and 1812 overture.

Beethoven's 9th is probably the one piece of music most often acclaimed as "the best" ever.

Orff's Carmina Buranna is very good.

Bizet's Carmen is the only Opera I like.

Lizst's Hungarian Rhapsody's are good.

I like Mahler's 5th symphony, but most people find it depressing.

Njorl

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

Fur Elise was Beethoven. Your correct, my mistake.

 

[selfAdjoint]

Try Schubert Trout Quintet, Beethoven Violin Concerto, Tchaikovski 4th 5th and 6th Symphonies, Rachmananov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

Added. I currently have in my 5-CD player, the Partitas and Sonatas for unaccompanied violin, by J.S. Bach, and the late piano sonatas of Beethoven, played by Afred Brendel. These are old recordings remastered by Phillips. I have been digging into them and have recently been tempted to pay $139 for an online Music Theory class to understand them better and maybe move on to a Beethven Cello Sonata analysis course I also found online. Each of those is two discs. The 5th disc is a suite arranged from Prokofiev's music for the ballet Romeo & Juliet.

 

[Janitor]

Nothing heavy for me.

I keep it light with Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Pachelbel's Canon in D Major.

More often, though, I pull out my Herman's Hermits stuff.

 

[zoobyshoe]

I don't know the Mozart Requiem, but I don't guess it is typical since most of his music is upbeat. I happen to have a collection of all his 21 piano concertos. I never listen to them.

For beginners, you almost can't go wrong with the Beethoven 5th Symphony. It is the ultimate heavy, dramatic piece of music.

Beethoven was considered the greatest symphonist, and I agree with that. The odd numbered ones are the best: 3, 5, 7, and 9. However 6 and 8 are also not to be missed. 1 and 2 are dissapointments by comparison.

Beethoven's piano concertos are also excellent. He only wrote five. The best are 3-5. (Again, 1 + 2 are not so hot by comparison.)

Pachelbel's Canon, I agree, is a great piece for beginners. It is extremely serene and pretty and accessible.

All of the Brandenberg Concertos by Bach are wonderful. Even more accessible, though, is Handel's Water Music - a suite of extremely pleasant, funny, energetic little pieces that gets your toes tapping and brings a smile.


-Zooby

 

[Chrono]

New World Symphony by Dvorak. It's unbelieveablely good. We played it in marching band my senior year.

 

[Hurkyl]

Dvorak's 7th is pretty darned good too. Some of my other favorites that others haven't mentioned are, in no particular order:

Sorcerer's Apprentice, by Dukas
Bacchanale (from Sampson and Delilah), by Saint-Saens
A few of the Slavonic Dances, by Dvorak.
The Planets, by Holst
Symphony #5, by Shostakovich
Symphony #2, by Sibelius
Finlandia, by Sibelius
Symphony #8 (unfinished), by Schubert
Pictures at an Exhibition, by Mussorgsky
Night on Bald Mountain, by Mussorgsky
Romeo and Juliet, by Tchaikovsky

www.classicalarchives.com is a pretty good online source for classical music.

 

[Chrono]

Dvorak's 7th is pretty darned good too. Some of my other favorites that others haven't mentioned are, in no particular order:

Sorcerer's Apprentice, by Dukas
Bacchanale (from Sampson and Delilah), by Saint-Saens
A few of the Slavonic Dances, by Dvorak.
The Planets, by Holst
Symphony #5, by Shostakovich
Symphony #2, by Sibelius
Finlandia, by Sibelius
Symphony #8 (unfinished), by Schubert
Pictures at an Exhibition, by Mussorgsky
Night on Bald Mountain, by Mussorgsky

I don't know about the rest of y'all but...I say it's time to start downloading.

 

[zoobyshoe]

New World Symphony by Dvorak. It's unbelieveablely good. We played it in marching band my senior year.

Hehehehe. Yeah, there's nothing like a transcription of a good symphony for marching band!

 

[Chrono]

Hehehehe. Yeah, there's nothing like a transcription of a good symphony for marching band!

Oh, hell yeah, man! I still have the sheet music. If I recall, it was the only year in my six that we've done classical.

 

[Evo]

Bizet's Carmen is the only Opera I like.Njorl

That was my mother's favorite opera, and so I also like it.

I love Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" as done by Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd in "Kill da Wabbit".

I have always liked Shubert's "Unfinished Symphony".

 

[zoobyshoe]

I have always liked Shubert's "Unfinished Symphony".

I'm partial to P.D.Q. Bach's "Unbegun Symphony", as well. Consists of a third and fourth movement.

 

[Math Is Hard]

Zooby! How could you not mention Rachmaninoff! He is our fellow April fool!

Dooga -Concerto #2 and symphony # 2 will be instantly recognizable to you. They have been popular as movie themes(Groundhog's Day) and even as the basis for some pop-music songs. Both are absolutely wonderful.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Zooby! How could you not mention Rachmaninoff! He is our fellow April fool!

He betrayed us. Not one funny bagatelle.

 

[Math Is Hard]

Au Contraire! I believe he ate bagatelles on a regular basis. Didn't he live on France for a while to escape communism?
I have heard he liked his bagatelles with raspberry jam, pickled herring, and swiss cheese. Not funny, mind you, but still amusing.

 

[Adam]

I really like Albinoni's funky Adagio. :D

 

[Math Is Hard]

And oops! sorry, that was Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini by Rachmaninoff that was used in Grounghog day.
When you first put it on it will sound scattered and panicky and angry, but it settles down into a romantic theme.
Rachmaninoff was manic-depressive so I guess that's why that appealed to him.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Au Contraire! I believe he ate bagatelles on a regular basis. Didn't he live on France for a while to escape communism?
I have heard he liked his bagatelles with raspberry jam, pickled herring, and swiss cheese. Not funny, mind you, but still amusing.

It sounds quite delicious but I'm still not laughing. Could he not have included some jellyfish on his bagatelle?

 

[Math Is Hard]

I really like Albinoni's funky Adagio. :D

I love that piece too, but it's like a dirge for a funeral. Good for when you're feeling the blues.
Speaking of the blues, Ravel had some blues and jazz elements going on way before that style of music evolved. Listen to his Pavanne sometime and you'll definitely hear it!

 

[Math Is Hard]

It sounds quite delicious but I'm still not laughing. Could he not have included some jellyfish on his bagatelle?

Definitely not, I'm afraid. Jellyfish are known to interfere with manic-depression medication, so his doctor probably did not allow that in his diet

 

[zoobyshoe]

Definitely not, I'm afraid. Jellyfish are known to interfere with manic-depression medication, so his doctor probably did not allow that in his diet

Hah! Beethoven was manic-depressive and he ate jellyfish all the time. After he wrote the Bagatelle Furry Lisa he wrote that one Jelly Jennie.

 

[Adam]

I love that piece too, but it's like a dirge for a funeral. Good for when you're feeling the blues.
Speaking of the blues, Ravel had some blues and jazz elements going on way before that style of music evolved. Listen to his Pavanne sometime and you'll definitely hear it!

I like to listen to it when watching storms.

 

[Math Is Hard]

I envy you, Adam. Australian storms must be magnificent. California storms are weak and puny. Maybe our actor/muscle-man governor will PUMP THEM UP! ha ha

Chopin is nice for rainy days, too.

oh, yeah, Zoobie - I forgot about the 9th symphony, Ode to Jellyfish.

 

[Adam]

Ode to Jellyfish is funky.

Also Winter allegro from Vivaldi.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Ode to Jellyfish is funky.

Ode an die Jellyfische

von Friedrich Jellyfischer

Jellyfishy! Jellyfishy!
Daughter of the briney deep.
Here we flounder,
Drunk and stupid,
Much like cattle,
or like sheep.

Then your magic
Binds together
What old customs
Parted wide.

All mankind
Is reunited
When upon
The waves you ride!

 

[cragwolf]

I don't to listen to music anymore, but when I did, I was almost exclusively a classical music fan. Almost anything by Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Mahler will satisfy. Don't restrict yourself to symphonies, though. Trios, quartets, sonatas, concertos, etc should be the targets of your exploration. And that's another thing: explore. Read a few books about classical music. Learn about the different styles. Then try out 20th century music. Or medieval music. Or renaissance music. There's a lot to learn and enjoy.

 

[chroot]

I just got introduced to Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique by a friend, and I think it's definitely a new favorite.

- Warren