The Classical Music Thread

[Philip Adams]

Have to agree with your comments on Williams, Holst and Delius, DavidRaphael.

All three produced some very enjoyable music.

 

[Mark D]

Just to be clear, you are not referring to Haydn as Baroque, are you?

Oh Yeps, don't...if you have a preference for naming the transitional period between late baroque and early classical you're free to apply it . Pre-classical?...Rococco perhaps? I don't care.

For the purpose of my post I tossed him in there to mark the end point of a period range.

 

[TraditionalFrog]

I like just about any thing by J.S. Bach. I would say my favourites are The Well Tempered Clavier, Musical Offering, and Brandenburg Concertos. Of course it would really be hard to pick favourites as I love so much classical. I was raised on it from about nine years of age on (with a healthy dose of Big Band and some folk from older relatives). Whilst most children my age were listening to the latest Top-40, I was listening to classical/Big Band on Public Radio or record. When Michael Jackson's Thriller album was all the rage (80's), I was going "Michael... who?".

 

[Dr Kilroy]

My favourite composers are Ravel, Debussy, Schumann, Gershwin and Satie (in this order I think).

Best regards, Dr

 

[Philip Adams]

I watched the New Year's Day concert from Vienna on the BBC last night.

The Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Mariss Jansons put on a lovely show.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

Liszt -- Les Preludes I

[video=youtube;THheG67sUwU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THheG67sUwU&feature=related[/video]

 

[lolly_loisides]

Bizet - The Pearl Fishers duet - Jussi Bjoerling and Robert Merril
[video=youtube;nDn_t4tEWiQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDn_t4tEWiQ&feature=fvst[/video]

 

[Dr Kilroy]

Olivier Messiaen - Oiseaux Exotiques (Boulez is conducting):

[video=youtube;ht5qqE_e1UE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht5qqE_e1UE[/video]

[video=youtube;wMG07mv4Jyw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMG07mv4Jyw&feature=related[/video]

In case you were wondering - yes, I do find that pleasant.

Best regards, Dr

 

[Flicka]

I honestly do not care for classical music written after 1800, and I prefer the stuff written before 1750. Händel, Bach, Corelli, Albinoni... Those are my favourite composers.

[video=youtube_share;CA3jITb8yDo]http://youtu.be/CA3jITb8yDo[/video]

[video=youtube_share;MKKItegAdWQ]http://youtu.be/MKKItegAdWQ[/video]

[video=youtube_share;S6yuR8efotI]http://youtu.be/S6yuR8efotI[/video]

That's what I'm talking about!

 

[Son_of_Atropos]

[video=youtube;SiqwIsArSf0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=SiqwIsArSf0[/video]

 

[Dr Kilroy]

There should be more discussion about classical music on the Lounge. Here is the first movement of the great Sinfonia Antartica by Ralph Vaughan Williams - one of his pieces that do not sound British-rustical.

[video=youtube;IcHDtutZ4UQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcHDtutZ4UQ&feature=relmfu[/video]

Best regards, Dr

 

[Son_of_Atropos]

[video=youtube;LnG8HDDrY4w]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnG8HDDrY4w&feature=relmfu[/video]

 

[Yeps]

Far from my favorite singer, but he really delivers this beautifully.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKkLNVmvsqw[/video]

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

Chopin, Bach, and Tchaikovsky are my very favorite, but I have been trying to find some more "modern" golden era composers... any suggestions?

I don't know if I've posted it here in this thread before but one of my favorite of the "modern" classical music composers, which I take to mean orchestral music, is Albert W. Ketelbey (1875-1959). I consider this to be one of his most beautiful compositions.

In A Monastery Garden
composed in 1915

[video=youtube;q2aYDWb676Q]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2aYDWb676Q[/video]

 

[Dr Kilroy]

[video=youtube;cd3nWm2PitI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd3nWm2PitI&feature=plcp[/video]

Best regards, Dr

 

[davidraphael]

Thanks for the Vaughan Williams.

I agree with other posters. I often find it quite odd that classical music is not more of a hot topic in these forums. The early 20th century is rich with some of the greatest music ever composed: Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Britten, Ravel, Prokofiev, Delius, Holst, Debussy, and yes, Vaughan Williams. And some of the Era recordings are legendary.

This issue is also reflected in the rare-music-collecting world that I move in. Everyone collects rock and jazz, but classical always seems to have the least interest.

Is interest in classical music waning? If it is I don't understand why. As I say, much of this stuff is the best your ears will ever experience.
Are some people intimidated by classical music? Or does it simply no longer feel relevant to people's lives?

Stravinsky is consistently one of my favourite composers and he stands out from all the rest. People often post The Rite of Spring or The Firebird, which are indeed truly incredible, but I thought I'd post something by him that's a bit different: Orpheus, which has one of the most wonderful openings:
[video=youtube;R1ZI4SIAuMA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1ZI4SIAuMA[/video]

 

[Dr Kilroy]

I was on Stravinsky's Le Rossignol recently and I really enjoyed it.

Best regards, Dr

 

[Dr Kilroy]

Messiaen's Turangalila-Symphonie!

[video=youtube;8PjyCpRKDrk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PjyCpRKDrk[/video]

Best regards, Dr

 

[dhermann1]

Last December I had the privilege of hearing the world premiere of a brillaint Jazz Concerto, written by a young man named Kyle Athayde, and played by the Anserson Twins, Will and Pete, accompanied by the New York Concierti Sinfonietta, a 28 member chamber orchestra, here in New York. Just wonderful. Enjoy:

[video=youtube;ULVgjMtm4y0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULVgjMtm4y0[/video]

 

[Son_of_Atropos]

I love the Orpheus piece. Thanks, davidrapheal. Love the Vaughn Williams too.

[video=youtube;EFwt6exTne4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFwt6exTne4[/video]

I found this while watching Romeo and Juliet featuring Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer as the respective leads. Always liked the Pavane from this.

Here lies Warlock the composer

Who lived next door to Munn the grocer.

He died of drink and copulation,

A sad discredit to the nation.