Intro to Classical Music*

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by john greenwood, Jan 13, 2012.

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  1. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

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    I love The Rite of Spring. But no.....I think it is a risky title for a true beginer.
     
  2. Zephyr

    Zephyr Active Member

    Location:
    Kitchener, Ontario
    Just stay away from Mahler and you should be fine.
     
  3. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    See? This is exactly what I mean--to one poster, the Rite of Spring is especially apt for a beginner due to its malevolent, shocking nature. To another poster, those are probably the very aspects that make the music "risky" for a "true" beginner. Who is right? They both are, of course. It depends on who the beginner is. Someone who likes rock, for example, might be more likely to agree with BlueRoseSpeedway, whereas someone coming from easy listening or pop might be more likely to agree with Scott W. As Greg M said, you can't just refer to an abstract "beginner" or "true beginner"; first, you have to determine where their musical tastes lie.
     
  4. john greenwood

    john greenwood Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    Anyone who's seen "Oceans 11" has heard some Debussy.

    :)
     
  5. john greenwood

    john greenwood Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    Which is why I made the "heretical" suggestion of listening on shuffle. There are a lot of different sounds on the list. If you don't care for what you're listening to fast forward.
     
  6. This is a nice idea for a thread.

    I personally got into Classical music a good two years ago or so. For me, it would have been very difficult to start with such a broad scope. I had to enter Classical music with a few pieces that I liked, that sounded familiar. Then I proceeded very slowly into other styles from there.

    Some of the pieces/works I really enjoyed in the beginning (and still do) are:

    Dvorak: Symphony No. 9 "From the New World"
    Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2
    Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
    Schubert: Impromptus (=> Manfred Mann's Earth Band's "Questions")
    and so on

    It is helpful if you listen to some samples on Amazon. Of course, you can't grasp a piece of Classical music with short samples, but it can give you a first impression of the kind of style and sound.

    For very beginners, a too broad list can really be overwhelming. But once you have had some exposure, the above list is great for further explorations (I have to check out some of the works mentioned which I am not familiar with yet).
     
  7. *Zod*

    *Zod* Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England
    I think you should change the Mahler from Symp. 2 to Symp 1. 1 is more approachable to a newbie and gives an easier entry into Mahler's sound idiom. Symp 4 would also fit this bill, though ideally you want 1.

    I would also suggest the addition of the Dvorak Cello Concerto Rostropovich/Karajan (ugh...can't believe I'm recommending a Karajan thing!). The 9th on there is absolutely correct if you're only doing one thing, but I think this gem can slide in there. Also, Tchaikovsky needs ballet representation there. How about the great Rostropovich/BPO disc of the suites?
     
  8. jebjebitz

    jebjebitz Member

    Location:
    New Jersey
    This is GREAT!! Thanks for putting this together. I've been getting into classical recently and started by digging in with the RCA Living Stereo SACD titles. I also purchased the Mercury Living Presence Box. This is a great way to see what lies outside these titles. Thank you.
     
  9. Rmac58

    Rmac58 Member

    Location:
    Hopewell, VA USA
    Those are excellent recordings, Mercury LP and RCA LS.
     
  10. Lloyd

    Lloyd Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cleveland, OH
    I am a novice regarding classical music, but tend to appreciate the darker material more. I enjoy Mahler's Symphony No. 6 quite a bit.
     
  11. *Zod*

    *Zod* Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England
    +1.....Mahler's 6th was an early favorite after first hearing Mahler. Mahler is a lot easier (and better) than other composers because there are "songs" in his symphonies.....catchy melodies which repeat and develop. Whatever one is looking for, it can be found in Mahler. And, unlike a lot of other composers, he is rarely, if ever, boring
     
  12. john greenwood

    john greenwood Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    But somehow you got to know the pieces you identified above. The intent of the list is to give a new classical listener a sense of the range of classical music. (FWIW - there are some works on the list that I don't especially care for, but that others nominated.) Each listener can then determine what (s)he likes and find other works by the same composer or in the same style.

    As for Amazon.com, please remember that the list is linked to a MOG playlist, so all of those recordings are available for streaming in full to anyone with an account. (Is MOG still offering free accounts?)
     
  13. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

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    But rjstauber's point was this "For me, it would have been very difficult to start with such a broad scope." Since he knows himself we really can't argue with him about that point.

    That is the reaction I would expect to get from most newbies and that is why I would probably offer a much shorter list with titles very similar to the ones rjstauber listed.
     
  14. yasujiro

    yasujiro Senior Member

    Location:
    tokyo
    Then possibly you'll enjoy Shostakovich a lot.
     
  15. yasujiro

    yasujiro Senior Member

    Location:
    tokyo
  16. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    Exactly. I agree with your perspective here. Some other posters are assuming that the stuff they liked as beginners will therefore be the stuff other beginners like--but I am skeptical about that, to say the least. If one could have a shorter list tailored specifically to one's taste, maybe that would work, but I wouldn't want to be stuck with someone's interpretation of my likely preferences as a beginner. A broadly representative list that includes samples from all the really major periods and composers makes the most sense to me. It is sort of what I went to as a beginner by ordering the Decca Sound set.
     
  17. crickbob

    crickbob Member

    Location:
    Lansdale, PA, USA
    Recommendations of your particular favorite CDs from these?
     
  18. Thanks for re-directing me here John!:righton: I'm actually, and somewhat surprisingly, familiar with some of the recommendations you posted, so this is a good step forward for me. I'll have to check into MOG, although I'm not sure I want my Facebook account linked to it.

    In any event, thanks for a great list and well done!:)
     
  19. yasujiro

    yasujiro Senior Member

    Location:
    tokyo
    Dvorak: Ivan Fischer (Phillips) SACD
    Rachmaninoff: Byron Janis (Mercury) SACD
    Tchaikovsky: Svjatoslav Richter (DG)
     
  20. Stone Turntable

    Stone Turntable Independent Head

    Location:
    New Mexico USA
    Thanks for the list — it’s great. I love using the “playlist” approach to exploring new classical works. I’ve got around half of these 69 works, and it’s going to be fun to work through the three dozen or so I haven’t heard.

    I live in a city with many classical aficionados who deaccessioned their vinyl collections over the past decade and a half, so the thrift stores and garage sales and used record shops have been full of brilliant classical recordings for pennies. (And unlike rock fans, classical fans tend to not abuse their records.) It’s been a great way to work throught he canon.

    I’m going to try to set up a Spotify version of this playlist. Again, thanks!
     
  21. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    One really general pattern I notice as a beginner is that I seem to respond best to concertos, rather than symphonies or solo works, as they seem to offer the best of both worlds (a strong sense of an individual, expressive voice as well as group interaction). So far (with my very limited exposure), I've especially enjoyed the first piano concerto by Brahms (Freire/Chailly), the 2nd Piano concerto by Rachmaninov (Ashkenazy/Fistoulari), Tchaikovsky's violin concerto (Campoli/Argenta), and the Beethoven violin concerto (Heifetz/Munch). I'm curious as to whether this is just a personal quirk, or something that other beginners have noticed as well?
     
  22. wolfram

    wolfram Slave to the rhythm

    Location:
    Berlin, Germany
    I'm pretty sure my first pieces were symphonies by Beethoven (9th, 5th, 3rd), but I remember enjoying Beethoven's 5th Piano Concerto and Tchaikovsky's 1st Piano Concerto very much early on. So your approach might make sense.
     
  23. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    Thanks for the response! It isn't actually an "approach," in that I'm listening to quite a few symphonies as well--I just notice that the concertos have tended to "click' with me on a more intense level. I'm wondering whether this is especially common with beginners in general, or just me. I actually have yet to hear the Beethoven symphonies, though. My listening experience so far has been limited to a few avant-garde works and Living Stereo SACDs I's picked up over the years (totaling about a dozen) and the Decca Sound box that I got a couple of weeks ago and am patiently working through.

    Interestingly, what I respond to least intensely thus far is any kind of vocal music (operas, cantatas, lieder). I usually am impressed by the vocalists' abilities, but rarely feel tempted to listen a second time. Actually, that's not entirely true--I respond least positively to flashy "pops" style performances (including Viennese waltzes, "Billy the Kid" kind of stuff, the 1812 Overture, etc.). I may just have too many kitschy associations between that stuff and various TV and movie scenes to enjoy it. With the vocal music, my response is more "neutral" than negative (one exception being Britten's War Requiem--I will definitely be listening to that again at some point).
     
  24. yasujiro

    yasujiro Senior Member

    Location:
    tokyo
    It was amusing that Ritchie Blackmore revealed the bridge with triplets in his solo for Highway Star was inspired by Mozart. :cool:
     
  25. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

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    Concertos are great. IMO if you really want to connect then seeing is believing. Here is one that *I* highly recomend

    http://www.amazon.com/Mendelssohn-Verbier-Piano-Sextet-Cto/dp/B0040Y7EXI
     
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