I need suggestions in classical music.

[Arkitech]

I'm looking for suggestions on good classical music, preferably more current work but I'm not opposed to hearing opinions on older pieces.

I was listening to the classical station in Chicago last night and there was a really beautiful piece that was primarily piano. There was a lot of space and minor keys were mostly utilized, I have no idea what the piece was entitled but I'd love to hear more like it. Any suggestions based on that description?


Also I'd like to find some suggestions on music similar to the kind found in the game Total Annihilation. Jeremy Soule is the composer and he really did a great job on the music. Here's a few links:

Total Annihilation - Charred Dreams
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxy4LUPwA1E

Total Annihilation - Licking Wounds (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ormnmIE_aLY

Total Annihilation - On Throughout The Night (I really LOVE this piece. It's so dark and moody, a great song to play while reading. Any suggestions based on this one would be greatly appreciated)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1v3wZ1ZTiM


One last question are there any good classical music forums or review sites that you know of?

 

[yankeesfan]

Yes, it is the best genre.

 

[nakedfrog]

Listen to Beethoven's 5th, 7th, and 9th, and Mozart's 40th.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I'm a fan of guitarist Sharon Isbin - the departed - especially her Bach CD.

Another favorite is Vivaldi's works for lute performed by Jakob Lindberg - Amazon.com ASIN: B0000016BR - try the track 2 sample. Tthe low-bitrate samples don't do the gorgeous sound credit, and buying or p2ping lossy MP3 would be a shame.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Holst

 

[Colt45]

tchaikovsky

 

[ni0v]

Shostakovich

 

[ethebubbeth]

Hmmm, I'm not a huge fan of classical era composition. I tend to favor music from the romantic period onwards

I recommend the following composers:

Gustav Mahler
Anton Bruckner
Dmitri Shostakovich
Igor Stravisnky
Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Rachmaninoff

 

[Billb2]

Gregorian chants

 

[Mo0o]

I'm a big Chopin fan.

But honestly, early 90s gangsta rap: best genre ever

 

[sandorski]

Not the "Best", but probably the most sophisticated/refined. I still prefer my Alternative Rock, but enjoy listening to Vivaldi's 4 Seasons on occassion.

 

[Arkitech]

Are there any pieces that every classical music fan should hear?

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Arkitech
Are there any pieces that every classical music fan should hear?

I can't guarantee that these are the best versions of the pieces, but they'll give you an idea:
Dvorak - Largo from the New World Symphony
Pachelbel - Canon in D
Bach - Fugue in G Minor (Watch the guy play this)
Mendelssohn - Fingal's Cave Overture

 

[Anubis]

Toccata & Fugue in d minor - Bach

if you have a really decent sub on a home stereo this will make your house shake, if you have a high quality recording

 

[aphex]

I love classical because it can totally envelop you, bringing you away to a different time, era, or even place. I also love how varied each piece can feel, from a simple piano piece to a huge orchestral symphony, each beautiful in their own right.

My favorites?

Lincolnshire Posy - Horkstow Grange (Fennell)
Armenian Dances (Alfred Reed)
Clair de Lune (Debussy)
Song Without Words (Mendelssohn)
Pictures at an Exhibition (Mussorgsky)
Song to the Moon (Dvorák)
New World Symphony, Mvt. 2 (Dvorák)

Sit down with a nice pair of headphones and a high quality recording of the above, and I am in HEAVEN.

EDIT: Almost forgot. I can sit down and enjoy pretty much ANYTHING performed by Yo-Yo Ma. My favorite cd's of his are Appasssionato, Solo & Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...UeV0WI&feature=related

STUNNING. Gives me chills every single time.

 

[Lurknomore]

Beethoven violin concerto.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v..._ffws8&feature=related

The most noble piece of music ever created.

 

[Lurknomore]

Originally posted by: Arkitech
Are there any pieces that every classical music fan should hear?

Chopin and Liszt piano, Rachmaninov preludes and concertos, Mendelssohn symphonies and violin concerto, Bach counterpoint, Beethoven symphonies, chamber music, piano sonatas- EVERYTHING, Mozart, Wagner, Verdi, and some medieval music- Dufay and Machaut. That's a start!

 

[hiromizu]

sorry but classical is bleh. hip hop is the best. it is a way of life.

 

[Evander]

Well I consider world-fusion to be the best genre of music, but classical is good too. I like music with a strong melody- here are a few recommendations:
Peter & the Wolf - Prokofiev
SPARTACUS, Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia (Suite II No. 1) - Khachaturian
MASQUERADE, Waltz - Khachaturian
The Mysterious Barricades - Francois Couperin

I recommend going to the library and checking out random classical albums (might be good to start with a compilation of mixed artists) and listen to the first minute of each track - if you like it, make it and keep listening. Otherwise, skip to the next track. This way you'll be able to discover your own style w/o having to feel burdened by listening to boring stuff. No need to eat a full course meal when you can decide if something new is good just by tasting it.

Also, when you find composers you like, enter them in the lastfm radio website (or get the nifty firefox toolbar extension), and listen to free netradio broadcasts of that artist and similar artists (it's actually good at finding similar music).

Check out the free classical mp3 sections of the Peabody Institute:
http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/psorecordings
http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/pcorecordings

there are many classical mp3 files on archive.org, though I find that site to be very difficult to navigate. Here for example, is an arrangement of Canon for piano:
http://www.archive.org/details/PachelbelsCanoninD

also my favorite site for free legit mp3's is download.com, here is there classical section:
http://music.download.com/2001....html?tag=MDL_nav_dir&

free album of classical played in Japanese surf rock (yeah, that's right):
http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/...9/japanese_surf_v.html

 

[djheater]

Rimsky-Korsakov - Scheherazade (w\ harp)
Holst - The Planets
Vivaldi - The Four Seasons
Berlioz - Requiem
Debussy - Suite bergamasque

 

[theMan]

as a violinist, i have to say violin concertos are the best form of classical music. my suggestions:

Tschaikovsky violin concerto. Here's the 3rd movement: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...J4cU4I&feature=related
Brahms Violin Concerto (the most beautiful in my opinion). Here's the beginning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mfq1-0feaCQ
Beethoven violin concerto
Bruch violin concerto
Sibelius violin concerto (makes me cry every time) Beginning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SvAf-QbuvQ
Wieniawski violin concerto no. 2
Shostakovich violin concerto. Here's the cadenza (a section composed by the performer, in this case David Oistrakh) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jk786KRIkQw

those are the basics i'd say. they are amazing. absoutely amazing.

this can't hurt either:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IG05yLlt_FA

or this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...8GeP2w&feature=related

or this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ymjvm48NRY8

or this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPcnGrie__M

Other amazing music, Beethoven (anything pretty much, all the symphonies for sure), J.S. Bach was an amazing composer, check out the Brandenburg Concertos. Anything by Mozart definitely.

 

[uhohs]

epic playing is epic

 

[Dumac]

Sergei Rachmaninoff
Frédéric Chopin
Robert Schumann
Johannes Brahms
Igor Stravinsky

All great composers, IMO. I didn't list the normal Beethoven/Mozart/Bach since I figure you know about them.

 

[Albatross]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...VKUERg&feature=related