Favorite classical piece?

[blackhorse]

What's everyones favorite cassical piece? I actually have two of them; 'Toselli's Serenade', by Enrico Toselli, and 'Time to Say Goodbye' with Sarah Brightman and Andre Bocelli. I get the feel-good goosebumps whenever I listen to them.

Edited December 29, 2006 by blackhorse

[jordanz]

What's everyones favorite cassical piece? I actually have two of them; 'Toselli's Serenade', by Enrico Toselli, and 'Time to Say Goodbye' with Sarah Brightman and Andre Bocelli. I get the feel-good goosebumps whenever I listen to them.

It depends what you mean by "classical". In everyday language, it refers to music written for orchestra and written in a "serious" (i.e. non-popular) format. 'Time to Say Goodbye', while a wonderful pop song, is not "classical".

For me:

Opera: Anything by Puccini

Symphony: Rachmaninoff's Concerti

I guess, musically, I'm orthodox Objectivist ;)

[Chris Grieb]

Nessua Dorma sung by Pravatti. I have seen a quote by Ayn Rand that she didn't want to meet anybody who didn't respone to Puccini.

[Rodney]

These two links should answer that question:

Evaluating Music -- and Franz Lehar by Rodney Rawlings

Franz Lehár Considered from the Objectivist Point of View by Rodney Rawlings

[PalePower]

You actually ask me to name one!?!

Anything by Tchaikovsky or Rachmaninoff. . . most of the piano pieces by Debussy. . . Khatchuturian's Masquerade Waltz, Shostakovich's Russian Waltz . . . Beethoven's Tempest Sonata. . .

Sarah Brightman is absolutely gorgeous - I have pretty much every album, but she's not classical, except for the strict opera pieces. More like. . . neo-classical. . . *shrug*

But, although I LOVE it to pieces, I only listen to classical like. . . 40% of the time. C'mon guys - there is GOOD, I mean AWESOME modern music out there. They just don't play it on the radio. You have to hunt for it. Skillfully. Like they were elusive, tasty little woodland creatures for the evening stew. Mmm. Music.

And that's that.

~Elizabeth

[Chris Grieb]

Sara Brightman was on TV Tuesday performing at the Kennedy Center Honors for her former husband Andrew Lloyd Webber and was very good. I love the Three Tenors but with Pravotti's illness I guess they will not be performing.

[Rich Engle]

""It depends what you mean by classical is right.

Classical is a period. But I think the question was more like "What's your favorite piece that isn't rock or pop or blues or or or or?"

Too painful to answer. You have to go to the what if I'm trapped on a desert island scenario.

Also, like other threads we have tried, only a few posters give one, mostly they give 3 or so. It just ain't natural!

So if I don't do all that and go trapped on an island, quickly, I think...

dammit

Probably Mozart. And that's not even a piece, that's just a composer. I don't know which one, it might be the Requiem but most likely not. Heh. The attraction of an unfinished piece by one of the core 3 masters, written about death. And it just barely qualifies (at least in my mind) as being truly of the classical period.

I was thinking of his Requiem. Last summer, one of my roomie-musicians sang in the chorus for The Cleveland Orchestra when they did it. I had free tickets for me and my baby. You know, we just got lazy and took advantage of the apartment while everyone was out there. I heard it was fabulous. I'm not sure which ending they did; I heard it was a new one.

Which just goes to prove that sometimes culture is important and sometimes it is not, even our beloved Amadeus.

rde

These threads make me all ginchy, but somehow the evil attraction pulls me to them.

Edited December 30, 2006 by Rich Engle

[PalePower]

Sara Brightman was on TV Tuesday performing at the Kennedy Center Honors for her former husband Andrew Lloyd Webber and was very good. I love the Three Tenors but with Pravotti's illness I guess they will not be performing.

I got to see her in concert at the MCI center. It wasn't fantabulous, though, we were far away, and every song just sounded exactly like the album recording (the Harem tour). I prefer my power metal concerts for the full live music "these-awesome-musicians-are-straight-up-in-your-face-and-it-is-now-your-quest-of-honor-to-get-as-humanly-close-to-the-stage-as-possible-without-getting-squashed-in-the-mosh-pits" experience. It's like a concert and a battle against death combined. But we did get to hear her speak instead of sing. Her voice. . . really. . . sounds like that. It's bizarre. She's also extremely tall.

And I'm so depressed that she and ALW ever divorced. They were like the couple from Utopia.

Classical is a period.

(Upcoming music-nitpicking. Fun fun!) Well, true, but it's also a genre, based on using the "classical" instruments. Like, you don't hear the radio station announcing "Thank you for listening to WGUD, your one and only for Rennaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionistic, and 20th Century listening." It's classical! Short and sweet.

~Elizabeth

Edited December 30, 2006 by ENonemaker

[BAMF]

LMAO. Spinnin' tha hits from the '80s, 90's, and...the early 1800s. I wonder if there's a classical station somewhere that has a DJ named Mancow.

My main artist would have to be Mozart, and the piece that comes to mind is Symphony No. 40. *extends arms to the heavens*

[Ross Barlow]

If I have to choose one piece, make it Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.

In moving to Thailand, one thing I dearly miss is the 24-hour all Classical commercial-free radio station out of Buffalo, NY. WNED-FM. Every radio in my house was tuned to it, as was my car.

-Ross Barlow.

[Rich Engle]

Mozart's 40th. THAT was the one! Yes!! I just couldn't dredge it out of my head, which has been full of R&B and jazz (Jimmy Smith a lot, lately).

Ludwig V's 9th, oh yes. What a powerhouse.

Funny, as much as I love the third of the triumverate, Bach, he didn't make the cut. I guess I just take him for granted or something.

[Judith]

Dear god, where to start?

All four of the Rachmaninoff piano concerti and the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and the Second Symphony.

Vaughan William's Fifth Symphony, especially the third movement, his Third Symphony, especially the last movement, the entire First (Sea) Symphony, the Sinfonia Antarctica, Sancta Civitas, Dona Nobis Pacem, Prelude to 49th Parallel, Five Variants of "Dives and Lazarus".

Mahler's Second and Eighth Symphonies.

Holst's "Hymn of Jesus" and Psalm 86.

Britten's War Requiem.

Widor's 6th organ symphony.

That's a good start.

Judith

[cjsmall]

In addition to Rachmaninoff, I suggest anything by Edvard Grieg, Maurice Ravel, or the American composer Howard Hansen. In particular, check out the two Piano Concerti for the Left Hand by Grieg and Ravel or Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor. I recommend the Complete Piano Works of Ravel by Philippe Entremont and the Complete Orchestral Works of Ravel by Pierre Boulez, both distributed by Sony Classics. All of Hansen's work has been recorded by the Seattle Symphony on 7 CDs. If you haven't heard him before (and few people have) I strongly recommend you give him a listen. His work follows in the great Romantic tradition. You might be able to explore his work by borrowing CDs from your library. This is how I discovered him.

--

Jeff

[Dragonfly]

In particular, check out the two Piano Concerti for the Left Hand by Grieg and Ravel or Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor.

Piano Concerto for the left hand by Grieg? As far as I know the only Piano Concerto by Grieg is the Concerto in a min. Ravel did write a Concerto for the left hand and a "normal" Piano Concerto.

[Wrighty]

So much music - so many categories - so many composers......

On that "desert island" I'd have to have the following

Beethoven 3, Mahler 2, Elgar 1, Bruckner 8

Rachmaninov Paganini Rhapsody, Prokofiev 3rd concerto

Bach English suite 2, Beethoven sonatas 3,21,31, Schumann Fantasy in c,

Brahms Rhapsody 1, Rachmaninov Preludes, Stravinsky Petrushka,

Chopin Nocturnes, Schubert Impromptus....

but do I have to stop there??

[Chris Grieb]

Peter; It is a desert island. One can't have everything.

[Wrighty]

Fans of English composers - have you heard any symphonies by George LLoyd? Highly recommended for all late romantics.....wonderfully original and such a use of the orchestral palette.

[Wrighty]

OK - One keyboard piece.....Beethoven Sonata 31 and one orchestral piece ...Mahler 2. I'd just have to try and remember what the rest sound like!!

[Judith]

All of Hansen's work has been recorded by the Seattle Symphony on 7 CDs. If you haven't heard him before (and few people have) I strongly recommend you give him a listen. His work follows in the great Romantic tradition.

Yup, I'll second that recommendation.

I had the privilege a few years back of singing Hanson's "Lament for Beowulf" as a member of the chorus under the baton of Gerard Schwarz of the Seattle Symphony. It's a great piece. Hanson's piano concerti and symphonies are fantastic pieces of music as well.

Judith

[cjsmall]

Piano Concerto for the left hand by Grieg? As far as I know the only Piano Concerto by Grieg is the Concerto in a min. Ravel did write a Concerto for the left hand and a "normal" Piano Concerto.

You are correct. Although there are a number of other concertos for the left hand, Grieg didn't write one. I was going on memory here and got confused because the Ravel concerto is often paired with Grieg's, and I happen to have a CD with the two together. My faulty memory thought that both concertos were for the left hand. Thanks for correcting me.

--

Jeff

[John Dailey]

~ Hmmm...'favorite'?

~ How do I say 'I love you'? Let me count the ways...

~ 'Favorite': that which I'd listen to and not get tired of doing so, more than any other.

~ Firebird Suite, I Can't Get No Satisfaction (R-S), Sheherazade (complete), White Rabbit (Jefferson Air), Ride of the Valkyries, Singing in the Rain, Beethoven's 7th Symphony (2nd movement), Dark Lady_Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves_Bang, Bang-HalfBreed_The Beat Goes On (all 'Cher'), Rhapsody in Blue_Summertime (or anything by Gershwin; even his old ditty-songs), Fever (Peggy Lee's ver), In-a-gadda-da-Vida, Cry Me a River (Julie London's; loved it before V), Tubular Bells (Oldfield's original, not his remake)_Hergest Ridge, Mars (Holst), We Have All the Time in the World (Satchmo), Koyannisqatsi (or anything by Philip Glass), anything by Abba --- This is getting as bad as my movie-list. Gotta stop.

~ Decisions, decisions; 1 'only'...does-not-compute...

LLAP

J:D

[John Dailey]

P.S. As someone said: "It depends on what you mean by 'Classical'."

LLAP

J:D

P.P.S. I forgot to mention To The Unknown Man and Spiral (Vangelis), not to forget to have mentioned Claire De Lune. Then there's...oh, nm.

Edited January 1, 2007 by John Dailey

[Judith]

Mars (Holst)

Oh, yeah. That one really gets the blood stirring.

Anybody else notice that Holst begins and ends "The Planets" with pieces in 5/4?

Judith

[John Dailey]

Judith:

~ If you do like Holst, then may I suggest Tomita's version/interpretation: The Planets.

LLAP

J:D

P.S. Did I mention Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (we're talkin' bach-a-ways), Ghost Riders in the Sky (V. Monroe, of course), Swan Lake, Help Me Make It Through The Night (S. Smith), or Vangelis' Antarctica? Well, if not, then done. (Gah-h-h; I gotta stop this. This is addicting. Almost feels like Pon Farr, fer Vulcan's sakes.)

Edited January 2, 2007 by John Dailey

[jordanz]

Mars (Holst)

Oh, yeah. That one really gets the blood stirring.

Anybody else notice that Holst begins and ends "The Planets" with pieces in 5/4?

Judith

Anyone notice how big an influence Holst was on John Williams? Listen to the Star Wars music and then listen to the Planets.