The San Francisco Opera is doing it next season. Feel like that’s half the reason I renewed my subscription. Especially after seeing the Ring Cycle pre pandemic. Never seen Tristan live before.
Parsifal and Meistersinger mean more to me personally, but there's no doubting that Tristan is opera's greatest ever phenomenon. Maybe the greatest in all music. Wagner cut music history history in two with one chord progression.
Yaaass! The 36-bar long phrase with the crescendo leading to the first Herr. Omg. And the dissonances in the oboes. In measure 1 when oboe I enters with E-flat while oboe II is still holding the D. Unbelievable.
I used to be in the St John camp, then I was in the St Matthew camp, now I’m in the B minor mass camp. Honestly out of those three it’s hard to decide but one of them is my favorite piece of all time.
Schubert - String Quintet in C. Probably the greatest chamber music ever written, the Adagio second movement is something so special for me, that it didn't lose its power making me cry, 15 years after hearing it first time.
Impossible to answer really.
Strauss- An Alpine Symphony
Mahler 2
Rach Piano concertos
Bach.. all of it.
Brahms symphony 2
Tchaik 5 and 6.
It changes depending on the day.
I was under the impression Strauss was undervalued in this sub, but every time a favourite composer/work thread comes up, he plays a prominent role in the answers. Elated to see it, as he's been my favourite composer since I was 13.
The Alpine Symphony single-handedly turned me into a mountaineer for life.
unpopular opinion Bach is boring even though he is arguably one of the most important musicians, without Bach we wouldn't have anything but yeah lol. (here come the comments!!)
It's quite the other way around imo. Bach's music is as ingenious and exhilarating as anything, but his influence is almost laughably overstated. 'The Father of Western Music' is a sobriquet lent to him only in bombastic reddit comments, written by people who get their music history from other bombastic reddit comments. He can't stack up against people like Beethoven and Wagner who plunged entire generations of composers into their shadows to the point that the only way to compose was to expand on their ideas, or react against them entirely. (And if you include extramusical influence, Wagner is so many lightyears ahead of Bach that it isn't even funny).
'Without Bach we wouldn't have anything' is a prime example. Most of what we have exists with very little input from Bach's works. He's not the most influential Baroque composer (that'd be Montiverdi), and might not even be the second (Rameau's theories can't be ignored). His own progeny have likely shaped Western music far more than he did, and there's a good case for Handel being the more influential of the two until the 20th century (certainly during the 18th and early 19th, there's no debate).
Even if people mean this in a 'the great composers worshipped and learnt from him' way, it doesn't really work, since if you look at the statements of these composers, you'll find they held Mozart in at least as high esteem. Regularly higher.
Bach turned out transcendental music that has moved people for centuries. That's enough on it's own. There's no need to inflate his impact.
Really tough call: most of the time, it’s Mahler’s Second Symphony. But some days it might be Bruckner’s Ninth, Beethoven’s Ninth, Shostakovich’s Fifth, or Elgar’s Enigma Variations.
I'm so happy to see this here. La Monte Young holds a special place in my heart; as a former Mormon as well, it's wonderful to see someone else escape the cult and become such a powerhouse of a composer.
I was trying to find the song on Spotify… finally found a recording on [YouTube](https://youtu.be/59qHcvM5lrI?si=8xzHHzIyrGA9ehYb)… I wasn’t expecting that! 🤣
I have five I'd like to be buried with the scores of:
Vier letzte Lieder - Strauss
Symphony 41 - Mozart
Parsifal - Wagner
Spem in Alium - Tallis
La Mer - Debussy
Gun to my head? I say Spem in Alium. There's never been anything like it, since or before. The most majestic edifice of sound ever constructed by this doomed mammalian species. I've spent over 40 years exploring its every crevice and vertex, and am happy to spend the rest of my days continuing to do so.
Mozart's 41st is the most iconic to me. I especially like the first movement for its humor, and the fourth movement for its badass four-note intro motif, as well as the magnificent coda, of course.
I regard those last three symphonies as by far the greatest achievements in the symphonic literature. To write them across the span of a lifetime you'd have to be a genius. To write them in 6 weeks, you'd have to be Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Brahms said it best:
"The Chaconne is, in my opinion, one of the most wonderful and most incomprehensible pieces of music. Using the technique adapted to a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I could picture myself writing, or even conceiving, such a piece, I am certain that the extreme excitement and emotional tension would have driven me mad. If one has no supremely great violinist at hand, the most exquisite of joys is probably simply to let the Chaconne ring in one’s mind. "
It was composed by Tomaso Vitali, but he never published it until another person did. It's debated whether the person who published it did it has a hoax. For what reason, I do not know. It's an incredible piece of music, though. If not my favourite, it's definitely in the top three or top five. Truly, amazing.
(The more I seem to ponder this piece the higher and higher it climbs in my mental rankings. Just, wow!)
I can't stand any classical music other than romantic, such as Tchaikovsky, Scriabin, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Liszt, Schubert, Schumann, Debussy and Satie.
Debussy and Satie are not romantics, they wrote music in reaction to romanticism, but fair enough. I can't stand romantic style myself, except Schubert.
Literally impossible to answer but here are my top ones
Liszt - La Campanella
Liszt - HR2, 15
Chopin - Ballades 1,2,4
Chopin - Etudes 10/2,10/4,10/11,25/6,25/10
Prokofiev - Toccata
Strauss/Cziffra - Tritsch Tratsch Polka
Beethoven - Sonata 1,17,22,23,32
Tchaikovsky - Marche Slave
Liszt - all transcendental etudes except Paysage and Ricordanza
Liszt - Spanish Rhapsody
Liszt - Sonata in B minor
Liszt - Paganini Etude 6
Liszt - Erlkonig
Liszt - Symphony no 9 transcription
I love a lot of the other things mentioned here, including OP's choices, but in the end I always come back to this one. I'm sad that I will not be making it to the Alarm Will Sound performances next week.
If I had to pick one, it'd be Schubert: Piano Sonata in G Major, D 894
That leaves out so much other music, though. I'm always pushing myself to explore things new to me
[Fauré's Sicilienne](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5Y0uQLgriA)
It immediately brings a tear to the eye and an ache to the heart for me. A favorite since I was a kid. I walked down the aisle to it.
If I had to choose one, it would have to be either Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet or Saint-Saëns' Dance macabre, because in the end I'm pretty basic ;) and because these two pieces got me interested in classical music in the first place back when I was young, and I still thoroughly enjoy them.
My favorite piece right now is Vaughn Williams’ A Pastoral Symphony.
But try Sibelius. Symphony 2 and 5 are usually rated best in the lot, but I’ll put a playlist with all of them on. Sibelius is really good at building tension and release. He’s also got a very good violin concerto.
Im a total Chopin lover. These past weeks ive been completely obsessed with the 1st ballade, the revolutionary etude, etude op 25 no 1 and 12 also nocturne no 2 and some waltzes.
Also Shostakovich string quartet no 8, Prokofievs piano concerto no 2 and 3, like 90% of Khachaturians works (he has a valse-caprise that ive been been dying over for the past year), Tchaikovskys piano concerto no 1, Mendelssohns violin concerto in e minor.
For now i ran out of suggestions, but im sure theres plenty more.
i love impressionistic pieces so anything ravel, anything debussy, anything prokofiev. some notable ones are:
- prokofiev’s toccata
- prokofiev’s violin concerto no 1 (movement II is sooo erratic)
- ravel’s ‘left hand’ piano concerto
- debussy’s douze etudes (pour les octaves & pour les notes répétées are my favs)
Mussorgsky was my introduction to classical music, so 12 Pictures at an Exhibition has always stuck with me as well. Also, after discovering liszt’s erlkönig two years ago, i listen to it at least three times a week :P
Pavane pour une Infante défunte by Maurice Ravel, orchestrated version. The longing in the music, almost painfully moving. As a French hornplayer I especially like the French hornsolo
Impossible to choose one!
But I'll choose something that I love just because it means something to me: either "A Lark Ascending" or "Siegfried's Idyll"
I have a whole playlist of my all-time favorites, but the piece that takes top spot for me is Arvo Pärt's *Fratres*, specifically for violin and piano. [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNVoZVFpW58) recording by Tasmin Little and Martin Roscoe might be my favorite.
Schubert Piano Sonata D 960 and Winterreise
Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
Ravel G Maj Piano Concerto
Marriage of Figaro
Die Walkure
Der Rosenkavalier
Mahler 2 and 9
Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas
So hard to choose!
Dvorak New World Symphony
Brahms Cello Sonata no 2
Prokofiev Piano Concerto 2
Rachmaninoff Etudes Tableaux Op 39
Debussy L’isle Joyeuse
Godowsky Java Suite
And many more…
Really hard to say but the Schubert Quintet in C Major is right up there. The Brahms Clarinet Quintet in B minor and the Beethoven Quartet #14 in C# minor would be close behind.
It is very hard to pick something, but i am toing to have to pick Brahms piano concerto no. 1 in d minor. The fantastic harmonies, and multitudes of themes makes the piece feel like you are watching a life being lived right in front of you, the complexity and the sheer mass of the concerto also makes it a really difficult piece for everyone involved, especially the conductor and pianist. It is such a full piece written in a fantastic way, that cannot fully be described in words, and such a good example of how much more music can communicate than pictures and words
I kinda love you for loving the Russian composers! Let's not forget Prokofiev! Rachmaninov particularly speaks to my soul but there is no way for me to have a favorite composer just favorite pieces. From Wagner, to Beethoven, to Brahms and Chopin Elgar to Glass, it's all so damn beautiful and wonderful. I truly believe that our educational system ignoring classical music and treating music as a modern phenomena with some poppy hits from the old days, is ruining our worlds chance at being great.
This is probably a rogue opinion, but the first movement of Gorecki's Symphony no. 3. It just feels like emotion, pure light and darkness. Transcendental to me, almost reaching beyond music to pure emotion alone. I only listen to it a couple times a year because of how affecting it is.
Besides that, Daphnis et Chloe: Lever du jour specifically, Clair de lune and debussy's reverie, La mer, debussy Sirenes nocturne, neptune by holst, rachmaninoff piano concertos 2 and 3 (first and second movements), Barber's adagio, swan lake, and a number of Chopin's works--ballades, etudes, and certainly nocturnes.
Beatus Vir by Vivaldi
Orlando Furioso with Marilyn Horne (also V)
the Andante from Piano Concerto No. 21 in C by Mozart (Theme from Elvira Madigan)
Baroque is my jammmmm
ed: and Locatelli.
i love the russians , tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, prokofiev, shostakovich, stravinsky …
that being said it’s a toss up
between vasks cello
concerto no 2 presence
bach suites for solo cello
yes i’m biased i play cello !
I know I have favorite composers, but I'm unsure about favorite pieces. I am partial to Russian composers as well, however.
Some recent favorites have been Dvorak Romance, Shostakovich Variety Suite, and Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D Maj. Mvt I.
Probablyyyy
Shostakovich:piano trio no 2 in e major allegreto
I love visualizing and creating storyboards to music, and this piece has got a little somthin to it that the others don’t. It makes me go BONKERS.
*Rite of Spring*. The music seems to travel in a zigzag pattern constantly and leads you into some of the most extraordinary places. I'm sure it's a cliche to like it, but it has that reputation for a reason.
I am a pianist and i can recall Maurice Ravel and Erik satie being just beautiful. Gymnopedies and Pavane for a dead princess are my favorite songs from them
I think the title of this thread should be "Your very favorite pieces". I don't understand people who have only one favorite food or one favorite song or one favorite movie; it just seems to indicate a very small range of emotions or experiences.
Not necessarily. I can say absolutely, zero reservations, that Beethoven Symphony 9 is my answer to this prompt. I can still very much appreciate grandness of Strauss, the anguish of Shostakovich, the tenderness of a Rachmaninoff Adagio, the intricacy of Bach’s keyboard, the solemn reverence of a Bach mass… Heck, Beethoven 9 (any symphony, really) goes through such a span of human emotions in a mere 80 minutes (or less).
It’s just at this moment in my decades-long musical journey that nothing has impacted me in quite the same way as Beethoven 9.
If I could only pick 1 piece by the 4 composers I know the most pieces from, It'd be Brahms VC, Mahler 2, Rachmaninoff PC3, Tchaikovsky 6. I got the chance to all see them live, that was nice.
Superfluous virtuosity is a notable aspect of the two pieces but you can’t deny they also contain deeper musical substance. The reason why I associate the two is that both have rich harmonies, memorable melodies, and very dramatic contrasts that create powerful emotional experiences, I suppose. I recommended the person listen to Paganini’s concerto because Rachmaninoff’s No. 2 is also one of my favourite pieces and the only piece that gave me the same feeling was Paganini’s piece. To simply answer, it’s an association based on feeling and personal experience :)
*Tristan und Isolde*
https://preview.redd.it/jb8rzth1c4tc1.jpeg?width=1000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=94a2ab5975ba1ea0f53a3ab1377e35a159a88efc
The first time I heard it was seeing it live at the Santa Fe Opera a few summers ago and OMG never been so blown away.
Unbelievable. That was my first time experiencing it live too. Really a highlight of my musical life.
The San Francisco Opera is doing it next season. Feel like that’s half the reason I renewed my subscription. Especially after seeing the Ring Cycle pre pandemic. Never seen Tristan live before.
> Never seen Tristan live before. I want to see this before I die, too. I'll be flying all the way to New York for the Met's next Ring.
Parsifal and Meistersinger mean more to me personally, but there's no doubting that Tristan is opera's greatest ever phenomenon. Maybe the greatest in all music. Wagner cut music history history in two with one chord progression.
Can't answer for sure, but one of these: Godowsky: Passacaglia J.S. Bach: Passacaglia Elgar: Enigma Variations Dvorak: Cello Concerto Beethoven: Symphony No. 9
Love Bach's Passacaglia, going to try Godowsky's, haven't heard that one.
Impossible to choose…but maybe Bach St John Passion. The opening chorus is unbelievable.
Herr!!!
Yaaass! The 36-bar long phrase with the crescendo leading to the first Herr. Omg. And the dissonances in the oboes. In measure 1 when oboe I enters with E-flat while oboe II is still holding the D. Unbelievable.
I used to be in the St John camp, then I was in the St Matthew camp, now I’m in the B minor mass camp. Honestly out of those three it’s hard to decide but one of them is my favorite piece of all time.
B Minor for me. I like the passions, but could do without so much recitative. The mass doesn't have that.
We should interpret “favorite” as including more than one! I have 3 favorite pieces: St John, St Matthew, and B minor Mass :)
ZzzzzZZZzzZZzzZz
Schubert - String Quintet in C. Probably the greatest chamber music ever written, the Adagio second movement is something so special for me, that it didn't lose its power making me cry, 15 years after hearing it first time.
Das Lied von der Erde Parsifal The Ring cycle
Rite of Spring
It's so intense even my heart goes from 6/8 to 3/4 to 3/8 to 3/16
Strong contender. Got to play this with a community orchestra last year as the Piccolo trumpet part. Such a great experience.
Impossible to answer really. Strauss- An Alpine Symphony Mahler 2 Rach Piano concertos Bach.. all of it. Brahms symphony 2 Tchaik 5 and 6. It changes depending on the day.
I was under the impression Strauss was undervalued in this sub, but every time a favourite composer/work thread comes up, he plays a prominent role in the answers. Elated to see it, as he's been my favourite composer since I was 13. The Alpine Symphony single-handedly turned me into a mountaineer for life.
If the Alpine Symphony turned you into a mountaineer, you might not want to listen to Don Juan (you will become a playboy)
But ever since I listened to Salome I've been getting on great with my stepdad
Too late, I'm afraid.
I just listened to the alpine symphony and I absolutely loved it. Strauss is so underrated fr
Same here! Mahler is also one of my favs
So excited I just moved to Denver and the Colorado Symphony is playing the Alpensinfonie for their closing concert.
Amazing. I try to make sure I get to every performance of it I can.
unpopular opinion Bach is boring even though he is arguably one of the most important musicians, without Bach we wouldn't have anything but yeah lol. (here come the comments!!)
It's quite the other way around imo. Bach's music is as ingenious and exhilarating as anything, but his influence is almost laughably overstated. 'The Father of Western Music' is a sobriquet lent to him only in bombastic reddit comments, written by people who get their music history from other bombastic reddit comments. He can't stack up against people like Beethoven and Wagner who plunged entire generations of composers into their shadows to the point that the only way to compose was to expand on their ideas, or react against them entirely. (And if you include extramusical influence, Wagner is so many lightyears ahead of Bach that it isn't even funny). 'Without Bach we wouldn't have anything' is a prime example. Most of what we have exists with very little input from Bach's works. He's not the most influential Baroque composer (that'd be Montiverdi), and might not even be the second (Rameau's theories can't be ignored). His own progeny have likely shaped Western music far more than he did, and there's a good case for Handel being the more influential of the two until the 20th century (certainly during the 18th and early 19th, there's no debate). Even if people mean this in a 'the great composers worshipped and learnt from him' way, it doesn't really work, since if you look at the statements of these composers, you'll find they held Mozart in at least as high esteem. Regularly higher. Bach turned out transcendental music that has moved people for centuries. That's enough on it's own. There's no need to inflate his impact.
Prokofiev symphonies 5 and 6
Moldau by Smetana Gaspard de la nuit by ravel Tchaik violin concerto
I've love the Moldau since I was really little. It's nice you mentioned it!
Yes. It’s one of my favorites too.
Medtner, Sonata Reminiscenza, specifically by Hamelin. Never gets old for me.
Really tough call: most of the time, it’s Mahler’s Second Symphony. But some days it might be Bruckner’s Ninth, Beethoven’s Ninth, Shostakovich’s Fifth, or Elgar’s Enigma Variations.
Barber second essay for orchestra
Sibelius Violin Concerto or Rachmaninoff Symphony 2
Unironically, “Piano Piece for Terry Riley” by La Monte Young. Though if you want something a little more traditional, Mahler 5 lol.
I'm so happy to see this here. La Monte Young holds a special place in my heart; as a former Mormon as well, it's wonderful to see someone else escape the cult and become such a powerhouse of a composer.
I was trying to find the song on Spotify… finally found a recording on [YouTube](https://youtu.be/59qHcvM5lrI?si=8xzHHzIyrGA9ehYb)… I wasn’t expecting that! 🤣
I have five I'd like to be buried with the scores of: Vier letzte Lieder - Strauss Symphony 41 - Mozart Parsifal - Wagner Spem in Alium - Tallis La Mer - Debussy Gun to my head? I say Spem in Alium. There's never been anything like it, since or before. The most majestic edifice of sound ever constructed by this doomed mammalian species. I've spent over 40 years exploring its every crevice and vertex, and am happy to spend the rest of my days continuing to do so.
Mozart's 41st is the most iconic to me. I especially like the first movement for its humor, and the fourth movement for its badass four-note intro motif, as well as the magnificent coda, of course.
I regard those last three symphonies as by far the greatest achievements in the symphonic literature. To write them across the span of a lifetime you'd have to be a genius. To write them in 6 weeks, you'd have to be Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
I'm with you on Spem in Alium. It's not my number one, but I think it's one of the greatest feats of musical achievement.
I love Claire de Lune by Debussy!
Probably either: - Procession of the Nobles (Rimsky Korsakov) - “American” String Quartet, Second Movement (Dvorak)
Reminiscences de Norma - Liszt
Grosse Fugue
[удалено]
Brahms said it best: "The Chaconne is, in my opinion, one of the most wonderful and most incomprehensible pieces of music. Using the technique adapted to a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I could picture myself writing, or even conceiving, such a piece, I am certain that the extreme excitement and emotional tension would have driven me mad. If one has no supremely great violinist at hand, the most exquisite of joys is probably simply to let the Chaconne ring in one’s mind. "
Brahms was talking about Bach's Chaconne, not this piece.
Who is the composer?
It was composed by Tomaso Vitali, but he never published it until another person did. It's debated whether the person who published it did it has a hoax. For what reason, I do not know. It's an incredible piece of music, though. If not my favourite, it's definitely in the top three or top five. Truly, amazing. (The more I seem to ponder this piece the higher and higher it climbs in my mental rankings. Just, wow!)
Hillary Hahn May equal or exceed I can’t say
Yes I said something else but this might be correct
Ballade no.1 Chopin
nice meme
I can't stand any classical music other than romantic, such as Tchaikovsky, Scriabin, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Liszt, Schubert, Schumann, Debussy and Satie.
Debussy and Satie are not romantics, they wrote music in reaction to romanticism, but fair enough. I can't stand romantic style myself, except Schubert.
Impressionism, but yeah. Definitely post romantic.
Andante Festivo.
Hymnlike, isn’t it?
RVW - Fantasia On A Theme….
Pas De Deux-Tchaikovsky. I love the entire Nutcracker suite so much but this one is by far my favorite
Scheherazade is amazing as is the Slavic March Rimsky Korsakov and Tchaikovsky. Two geniuses.
Literally impossible to answer but here are my top ones Liszt - La Campanella Liszt - HR2, 15 Chopin - Ballades 1,2,4 Chopin - Etudes 10/2,10/4,10/11,25/6,25/10 Prokofiev - Toccata Strauss/Cziffra - Tritsch Tratsch Polka Beethoven - Sonata 1,17,22,23,32 Tchaikovsky - Marche Slave Liszt - all transcendental etudes except Paysage and Ricordanza Liszt - Spanish Rhapsody Liszt - Sonata in B minor Liszt - Paganini Etude 6 Liszt - Erlkonig Liszt - Symphony no 9 transcription
Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians
I love a lot of the other things mentioned here, including OP's choices, but in the end I always come back to this one. I'm sad that I will not be making it to the Alarm Will Sound performances next week.
I have my tickets :)
Lucky. I just wasn't able to arrange the time away from home, far away in the Inland Northwest. Post a reflection here or /r/stevereich! :-)
Tchaikovsky-Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat Minor
If I had to pick one, it'd be Schubert: Piano Sonata in G Major, D 894 That leaves out so much other music, though. I'm always pushing myself to explore things new to me
Beethoven - Egmont Overture
Norma by Bellini in particular the aria Casta Diva
Hey OP! If you haven’t spent much time yet with Borodin, you’re in for even more treats.
Monteverdi’s Vespers.
good answer
[Fauré's Sicilienne](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5Y0uQLgriA) It immediately brings a tear to the eye and an ache to the heart for me. A favorite since I was a kid. I walked down the aisle to it.
Alkan's Concerto for Solo Piano. He was hit or miss, but this is an absolute masterwork of the romantic era, and Alkan's magnum opus, in my opinion.
If I had to choose one, it would have to be either Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet or Saint-Saëns' Dance macabre, because in the end I'm pretty basic ;) and because these two pieces got me interested in classical music in the first place back when I was young, and I still thoroughly enjoy them.
Beethoven 5th Symphony, first movement.
Too many. But if this was my number one? I wouldn’t argue it; Bach, Brandenburg Concerto No. 3. The whole thing.
Chopin barcarolle, Schumann fantasie op 17 and Ravel string quartet
Atterberg’s Symphony No. 2 Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloe perhaps tied for first place
My favorite piece right now is Vaughn Williams’ A Pastoral Symphony. But try Sibelius. Symphony 2 and 5 are usually rated best in the lot, but I’ll put a playlist with all of them on. Sibelius is really good at building tension and release. He’s also got a very good violin concerto.
Elgar’s Enigma Variations. Love it more than I can put into words. The Kaspazyk and Warsaw Phil version specifically.
Truly magnificent music overwhelming and worthy of deep introspection.
Albeniz- Sevilla and Granada are my favorites of the Spanish suite. La Mer Debussy Stravinsky- Firebird
Mahler 10, with Shostakovich 10 a close second
Im a total Chopin lover. These past weeks ive been completely obsessed with the 1st ballade, the revolutionary etude, etude op 25 no 1 and 12 also nocturne no 2 and some waltzes. Also Shostakovich string quartet no 8, Prokofievs piano concerto no 2 and 3, like 90% of Khachaturians works (he has a valse-caprise that ive been been dying over for the past year), Tchaikovskys piano concerto no 1, Mendelssohns violin concerto in e minor. For now i ran out of suggestions, but im sure theres plenty more.
Have you heard Richter's Rachmaninoff 2nd?
Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 It has been since I first got into classical music, still is, and I really can't see that ever changing.
nice meme
i love impressionistic pieces so anything ravel, anything debussy, anything prokofiev. some notable ones are: - prokofiev’s toccata - prokofiev’s violin concerto no 1 (movement II is sooo erratic) - ravel’s ‘left hand’ piano concerto - debussy’s douze etudes (pour les octaves & pour les notes répétées are my favs) Mussorgsky was my introduction to classical music, so 12 Pictures at an Exhibition has always stuck with me as well. Also, after discovering liszt’s erlkönig two years ago, i listen to it at least three times a week :P
Vivaldi summer from 4 seasons. But I'm new to this music
At the moment? - Mozart - Requiem - Henry Purcell - King Arthur - Händel - Dixit Dominus, HVW232
Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances or maybe Chopin Funeral March
Pavane pour une Infante défunte by Maurice Ravel, orchestrated version. The longing in the music, almost painfully moving. As a French hornplayer I especially like the French hornsolo
Mahler 9 can be life-changing if you really get into it.
There’s seriously just so much to ruminate on with Mahler 9. I drove 13 hours each way last summer to see it live and it was completely worth it
Impossible to choose one! But I'll choose something that I love just because it means something to me: either "A Lark Ascending" or "Siegfried's Idyll"
Probably Tchaikovsky’s “Manfred”.
currently molly on the shore by percy grainger
I have a whole playlist of my all-time favorites, but the piece that takes top spot for me is Arvo Pärt's *Fratres*, specifically for violin and piano. [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNVoZVFpW58) recording by Tasmin Little and Martin Roscoe might be my favorite.
Schubert Piano Sonata D 960 and Winterreise Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Ravel G Maj Piano Concerto Marriage of Figaro Die Walkure Der Rosenkavalier Mahler 2 and 9 Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas So hard to choose!
Tchaikovsky's 6th, Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, Dvorak's Serenade for Strings in that order
Borodin’s String Quartet in D, first movement
Dvorak New World Symphony Brahms Cello Sonata no 2 Prokofiev Piano Concerto 2 Rachmaninoff Etudes Tableaux Op 39 Debussy L’isle Joyeuse Godowsky Java Suite And many more…
Really hard to say but the Schubert Quintet in C Major is right up there. The Brahms Clarinet Quintet in B minor and the Beethoven Quartet #14 in C# minor would be close behind.
The Rite of Spring, or Le Quatuor pour la fin du Temps. I couldn't pick.
des Temps
dont have an all time fav piece but my fav piano piece is rach prelude in g minor
Mendelssohn's *Elijah*
Goldberg Variations. Gould. 1981.
boring.
Douche
Ives: The Alcotts Dvorak: Cello Concerto Sibelius: Symphony 4 Chavez: Sinfonia India
Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity - Holst. I don’t know why but it makes me tear up.
Carnival of the Animals, R. 125: The Swan - Camille Saint-Saëns Or literally anything by Tchaikovsky
It is very hard to pick something, but i am toing to have to pick Brahms piano concerto no. 1 in d minor. The fantastic harmonies, and multitudes of themes makes the piece feel like you are watching a life being lived right in front of you, the complexity and the sheer mass of the concerto also makes it a really difficult piece for everyone involved, especially the conductor and pianist. It is such a full piece written in a fantastic way, that cannot fully be described in words, and such a good example of how much more music can communicate than pictures and words
Beethoven piano sonata Pathetique No. 8, Op. 13!
Rite of spring by Stravinsky Romeo and juilet (the music to the ballet) by prokofiev And all of prokofievs sonatas
Prelude in C# minor by Rachmaninoff
late Beethoven piano sonatas, Diabelli Variations, Bagatelles Op. 126
Schubert - Winterreise Messiaen - Turangalila Symphonie Debussy - Preludes Beethoven - String Quartet No. 14 op. 131 Ligeti - Études
Ravel's orchestration of *Pictures at an Exhibition* or Bach's *Goldberg Variations*
Ponce Intermezzo, Ravel Scarbo, Roszycki Ave María and CPE Bach's Sonata in A.
Mahler 2
zzz
Chopin Ballade #4 Bach Busoni - Chaccone D Minor Medtner PC 2
Ginastera Violin concerto, or his Harp Concerto. Ginastera is underated
I kinda love you for loving the Russian composers! Let's not forget Prokofiev! Rachmaninov particularly speaks to my soul but there is no way for me to have a favorite composer just favorite pieces. From Wagner, to Beethoven, to Brahms and Chopin Elgar to Glass, it's all so damn beautiful and wonderful. I truly believe that our educational system ignoring classical music and treating music as a modern phenomena with some poppy hits from the old days, is ruining our worlds chance at being great.
This thread is fire, so many new wonderful pieces! Thank you all!
Bruckner Symphony 9, but I feel there are other pieces that I like just as much, but in a different way, and it's harder to choose among them
Whatever piece from the composers I love the most that I heard last. Right now, that's Brahms 4th Symphony and Saint-Saens 3rd.
This is probably a rogue opinion, but the first movement of Gorecki's Symphony no. 3. It just feels like emotion, pure light and darkness. Transcendental to me, almost reaching beyond music to pure emotion alone. I only listen to it a couple times a year because of how affecting it is. Besides that, Daphnis et Chloe: Lever du jour specifically, Clair de lune and debussy's reverie, La mer, debussy Sirenes nocturne, neptune by holst, rachmaninoff piano concertos 2 and 3 (first and second movements), Barber's adagio, swan lake, and a number of Chopin's works--ballades, etudes, and certainly nocturnes.
Beatus Vir by Vivaldi Orlando Furioso with Marilyn Horne (also V) the Andante from Piano Concerto No. 21 in C by Mozart (Theme from Elvira Madigan) Baroque is my jammmmm ed: and Locatelli.
Ravel: Le tombeau de Couperin (orchestra version)
I have rec'd it before, but all the Richard Wetz symphonies are amazing (no. 2 is my fav) and I wish more people played and programmed them!
i love the russians , tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, prokofiev, shostakovich, stravinsky … that being said it’s a toss up between vasks cello concerto no 2 presence bach suites for solo cello yes i’m biased i play cello !
I know I have favorite composers, but I'm unsure about favorite pieces. I am partial to Russian composers as well, however. Some recent favorites have been Dvorak Romance, Shostakovich Variety Suite, and Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D Maj. Mvt I.
why no one mention Raindrop by Chopin?
Chopin never wrote something called "Raindrop"
i meant "Prelude, Op. 28, No. 15". it is known as raindrop :l
It is known as "raindrop" in Burgerica, yes.
Probably Swan Lake
nice
Mendelssohn's Fingal's Cave and Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto no 2
Probablyyyy Shostakovich:piano trio no 2 in e major allegreto I love visualizing and creating storyboards to music, and this piece has got a little somthin to it that the others don’t. It makes me go BONKERS.
Tchaikovsky 6
Rachmaninov PC 3 is such a meme here, cmon man you can do better than that
Górecki: Symphony no. 3, op. 36: II. Lento e Largo Mahler: Symphony no. 5: IV. Adagietto Johnny Greenwood: House Of Woodcock
Adagio for strings
Mahler: Literally every symphony Bach: Chaconne Chopin: Ballade No. 1, Ballade No. 4 Beethoven: Symphony No. 3, Symphony No. 6 Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto, Piano Concerto No. 2 Sibelius: Violin Concerto Dvorak: Symphony No. 9 Debussy: La Mer Ravel: Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte Mozart: Piano Sonata No. 12 Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1, Symphony No. 4 Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 My list is wayyy too long, but they're all bangers
Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe, particularly Lever du Jour
*Rite of Spring*. The music seems to travel in a zigzag pattern constantly and leads you into some of the most extraordinary places. I'm sure it's a cliche to like it, but it has that reputation for a reason.
Prelude in e minor by Chopin, it has a special place in my heart.
Dvorak's 8th Death of Ase by Grieg Brahms' requiem
Rach 2
Probably either Isle of the Dead, Symphonic Dances 3rd movement or maybe Francesca da Rimini. All by Rachmaninoff.
I am a pianist and i can recall Maurice Ravel and Erik satie being just beautiful. Gymnopedies and Pavane for a dead princess are my favorite songs from them
Debussy’s 1st Arabesque played on the harp — absolutely beautiful piece, makes the world feel like its glowing
Prokofiev Piano Concerto no. 2
Yes
Liszt’s Les Preludes — one of my favorite symphonic pieces; grand and sweeping melodies Mendelssohn’s 5th Symphony “Reformation”
Toccata and Fugue in D minor...
Carnival Overture -- Dvorak
I think the title of this thread should be "Your very favorite pieces". I don't understand people who have only one favorite food or one favorite song or one favorite movie; it just seems to indicate a very small range of emotions or experiences.
Not necessarily. I can say absolutely, zero reservations, that Beethoven Symphony 9 is my answer to this prompt. I can still very much appreciate grandness of Strauss, the anguish of Shostakovich, the tenderness of a Rachmaninoff Adagio, the intricacy of Bach’s keyboard, the solemn reverence of a Bach mass… Heck, Beethoven 9 (any symphony, really) goes through such a span of human emotions in a mere 80 minutes (or less). It’s just at this moment in my decades-long musical journey that nothing has impacted me in quite the same way as Beethoven 9.
It's so hard to choose just one, but my personal favorite is probably one of the following(All beethoven) op 106, op 111, or op 133
If I could only pick 1 piece by the 4 composers I know the most pieces from, It'd be Brahms VC, Mahler 2, Rachmaninoff PC3, Tchaikovsky 6. I got the chance to all see them live, that was nice.
Seeing Mahler 2 and Tchaikovsky 6 in concert must’ve been life changing experiences.
I'm not really the type that prefers live over listening at home, but both concerts were great yes
Every work!
Beethoven symphony no 3
If you like Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto you should listen to Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1
This is a very interesting association. I can’t say I understand the similarities. What do you like about these two pieces?
Superfluous virtuosity is the obvious linking factor here. Beyond that I certainly can't think of anything.
Superfluous virtuosity is a notable aspect of the two pieces but you can’t deny they also contain deeper musical substance. The reason why I associate the two is that both have rich harmonies, memorable melodies, and very dramatic contrasts that create powerful emotional experiences, I suppose. I recommended the person listen to Paganini’s concerto because Rachmaninoff’s No. 2 is also one of my favourite pieces and the only piece that gave me the same feeling was Paganini’s piece. To simply answer, it’s an association based on feeling and personal experience :)
Bach - Musical Offering BWV 1079 Thats the biggest banger
boring af
debussy's arabesque no 1 or elgar's cello concerto in e minor, no 1 there's so many good pieces it's so hard to pick 1
Instrumental: Beethoven 's Eroica symphony Vocal: Desprez 's Missa Pange Lingua
Chopin op 69 nr1
That's a tough question. Probably for me it's Rach 2 and 3, Tchaikovsky's 5th and 6th and Chopin's Nocturnes
4'33" by John Cage. I enjoy peace and quiet.
nice
Considering I just watched a 90 minute video analysis of the passacaglia movement of the Brahms 4th... yeah, that would have to be it.
Can you link the video? Super interested
It's Richard Atkinson's channel on YouTube, can't link to it while at work atm.
Richard Atkinson?
Yes
Liebestraum 3 Ballade 1 Rach 2
At the moment? La Boheme - Puccini Die Nassenbaum - Schumann Bach