If you could ONLY listen to classical music (see limitations) for a year, what would you listen to?

CommonRule

in case they took any away, I’d start with:
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 - Bach
Symphony #7, especially 2d Movement - Beethoven 
Peer Gynt Suite, especially 2d Movement - Death of Åse - Grieg
Brahms’ Requiem
Yo Yo Ma playing Bach Cello Suites 1-6 (live BBC recording)
Arthur Rubinstein playing Chopin (heard him once)
Sviatoslav Richter (pianist) playing Beethoven
Beethoven String Quartets
Segovia playing guitar - anything (heard him 3 times!)
I’d be there with you for the Brandenberg Concertos (kinda fond of the harpsichord solo in #5)
- First few days anyhow

curmudgeoness

So, no Korngold, Brian? :-)

Music parent here, late to the conversation. My desert island classical playlist would include:

Beethoven: collected string quartets; Symphonies 9  and ESPECIALLY 7. Getting kicked out of a concert hall for dancing in the aisles during Beethoven 7 is on my bucket list. The Emperor Concerto. The violin concerto.

Bach: Cello suites, preferably played on viola

Dvorak: Symphony 9, violin concerto, and the Czech Suite, played as often as possible. I am irrationally, exuberantly fond of the Czech Suite. Chamber music, especially the "American" string quartet.

The Mendelssohn octet

Bartok, Concerto for Orchestra

The Sibelius violin concerto, ideally the recording by the divine Augustin Hadelich

Mahler 3, Mahler 9

Rachmaninoff piano concertos

Hindemith viola concerto

Elgar, Enigma Variations and cello concerto

Prokofiev, String Quartet No. 2

 

Dohnanyi Serenade in C Major

Leezestarr313

I was born where Händel was born, so it's gotta be some Händel, like the Feuerwerksmusik (Music for the Royal Fireworks). Also, Vivaldi's Four Seasons, that has always been one of my favorites. There is a version out there played by Nigel Kennedy that is really awesome. And I know opera may sound like goat sex to aliens but I do love me some opera too. I have been subtitling many in the past, and sometimes things just hit you and you get goosebumps. My favorite is Fidelio, I think. I am very drawn to intense voices and quirky vocalizations, I guess. Counter tenors are very fun to listen to if they are good. A great tenor (mmmmh Pavarotti...) can make you shiver with joy, and some sopranos have ranges that do not seem human (Joan Sutherland is fun, but I also love La Callas). One of the more memorable operas/ plays I was lucky to subtitle was a version of Purcell's Dido & Aeneas. Here is a trailer, it was also visually enjoyable. I love the pronunciation and the humor in this one but it may be because I remember the university courses in historical English Phonetics that were a love-hate thing for me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx-AUGcj9Aw

curmudgeoness

Also, Brian, how do you know what goat sex sounds like??

CommonRule

These are wonderful! I will just have stuff those in my desert isle trunk, as well! The fun of this thread will be actually putting all of these on a Spotify playlist
Thanks!

brianlux

curmudgeoness said:

So, no Korngold, Brian? :-)

Music parent here, late to the conversation. My desert island classical playlist would include:

Beethoven: collected string quartets; Symphonies 9  and ESPECIALLY 7. Getting kicked out of a concert hall for dancing in the aisles during Beethoven 7 is on my bucket list. The Emperor Concerto. The violin concerto.

Bach: Cello suites, preferably played on viola

Dvorak: Symphony 9, violin concerto, and the Czech Suite, played as often as possible. I am irrationally, exuberantly fond of the Czech Suite. Chamber music, especially the "American" string quartet.

The Mendelssohn octet

Bartok, Concerto for Orchestra

The Sibelius violin concerto, ideally the recording by the divine Augustin Hadelich

Mahler 3, Mahler 9

Rachmaninoff piano concertos

Hindemith viola concerto

Elgar, Enigma Variations and cello concerto

Prokofiev, String Quartet No. 2

 

Dohnanyi Serenade in C Major

Korngold?  Ah- another one to check out!  I have (forever) much to learn still!  Thanks for the tip.

Yes, Beethoven Symphonies are so great. My first classical record (which I still have!) was given to me in the early 60's is Beethoven's 5th, Bernstein and NY Philharmonic, Columbia Masterworks.  I came with a bonus 7" record, "How a Great Symphony Was Written".  I will always keep that old record, but really should get a better copy of it to play.  The one I have has a LOT of miles on it, lol!

And Beethoven's 8th is a favorite of mine as well.  A shorter, but dynamic and powerful!

curmudgeoness said:

Also, Brian, how do you know what goat sex sounds like??

I can only imagine! 

curmudgeoness

I mentioned Korngold because he wrote both orchestral pieces and soundtracks. When I first heard his violin concerto, I thought it sounded like a mid-century movie soundtrack -- turns out there was a reason for that!

brianlux

It occurred to me that I had nothing by the composer Iannis Xenakis, so I recently picked up this intriguing LP:

Iannis Xenakis / Krzysztof Penderecki, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Lukas Foss – Akrata, Pithoprakta / Capriccio For Violin & Orchestra, De Natura Sonoris

	Here's the first cut.  I really like intriguing music such as this:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nobcr2xOIvI

curmudgeoness

A contemporary composer I was introduced to a few years ago, Peteris Vasks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhIa_7PgkjM 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jUifMz7aNM  ("Lonely Angel")

ETA: I think the aliens would like these!