Help! I need some badass classical music!

[Stonebow]

Hey all- I'm looking for a piece of music, and I figure here's the best place to ask.

I need a theme song. Yes, you heard me.

I know that this is silly, but try to keep an open mind. As I'm sure everyone knows by now, my wife and I do some medieval re-enactment. Part of our hobby is combat tournaments, in which I participate.

This year, the big local event is doing something a little different, in the spirit of fun. In an effort to do something a bit more exciting, we're loosening some of the 'period' strictures and holding a more 'modern' contest.

The site has an outdoor boxing arena, and we're going to use it at night for 'Friday Night Fights.' It will be a mixture of gladitorial contests, the WWF, and a Knight's Tale. It will be held by torchlight. The overall atmosphere is going to be like Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. Between bouts, we'll have women belly dancing, sword juggling, etc.

I'm wiring the place for sound. Each fighter is allowed to pick theme music for their entrance. The only restriction is that it not be totally modern ('Iron Man' in a no-no, as is 'Seven Nation Army'..I've asked).

So I'm looking for something done by a symphony, or on classical instruments. It doesn't have to be totally instrumental - an opera would work as well. But it needs to have percussion, and I need a good 20 second piece that will work for buildup and entrance.

So, what do you think?

[Ethilrist]

Also Spracht Zarathustra (the 2001 theme).

The William Tell Overture (Lone Ranger).

Darth Vader's theme. Helps if you paint your helmet black.

[tdn]

I don't think it has percussion, but Prokofiev's Dance of the Capulets from Romeo and Juliet sounds perfect. It's the Stairway to Heaven of the classical world.

[Terminus Est]

It's trite and cliche, but "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (aka theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey) sounds like what you're looking for. About 500 years too late to be medieval, though.

[reoch]

Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries, from Die Walküre

I think that was the one blaring from the helicopter while bombing the crap out of that village...should be a good entrance theme

Reoch

[Ludovic]

Well the obvious ones besides the ones that have been mentioned are "O Fortuna" from Carmina Burana and tracks 1 and (I think) 8 (the "Horse-riding" track) from Conan the Barbarian soundtrack.

Or, and I haven't heard this in awhile, what say everyone to certain parts of Mozart's Requiem? It certainly has a more medieval feel than a lot of classical music, and has buildup, just not sure if it has enough rhythm or not.

[Rufus Xavier]

There's some great percussive and majestic passages in Rite of Spring.
Also, some excellent martial passages in the Nutcracker Suite.

[Small Clanger]

Mars from Holst's Planet Suite.

But you'd better look pretty damn bad if you use that!

[Kizarvexius]

The Dies Irae from Verdi's Requiem.

The bad-assiest classical music ever written.

[Stonebow]

Thanks for all of the suggestions...keep 'em coming!

And also, thanks for refraining from pissing on my parade with this. It looks like it's going to be a very cool event, and I'm just happy to be part of it. A few 'purists' object, but everyone has a great time at these things. This is the first year we're doing a really elaborate production, though.

I also tend to think that, technology aside, it captures the spirit of the tourney (from a commoner's POV) better than many of our more formal events.


And I hope to look badass...I'm not very tall, but all of my armor is black and silver, and I might improv a cloak. my weapon of choice is the axe. *is so looking forward to this*

[Ephemera]

If this is going to be a mix of WWF/E amongst other things, I'd avoid Also Sprach Zarathustra as it is the theme music for one of the legends of pro wrestling, Ric Flair. It'd be a bit cliche to use his music if there're fans of his around. Maybe a bit blasphemous too.

My suggestion would be Bach's Tocata and Fugue in D Minor. It's a wonderfully dark and brooding piece and when I was briefly in a backyard fed back in '98, it was a song I considered using for my own music.

[Rufus Xavier]

Originally Posted by Stonebow

. my weapon of choice is the axe.

Have you learned nothing? Must I remind you that you have a superior weapon in your arsenal? Will no one stop me before I say 18"DHIBJD ?

oops too late.

[Terminus Est]

Originally Posted by Stonebow

And also, thanks for refraining from pissing on my parade with this. It looks like it's going to be a very cool event, and I'm just happy to be part of it. A few 'purists' object, but everyone has a great time at these things.

You realize the purists will also object to your using 'classical' music, which as invented about 300 years after the Middle Ages.

[Coelacanth Soup]

For a badass character:
Stravinsky - the very end of Part I from Symphony of Psalms
Verdi - Dies Irae - Requiem
Verdi - from Il Trovatore - Anvil Chorus.
Mozart - Dies Irae - Requiem
Beethoven - the very end of Part I (allegro) from the 9th.
Wagner - Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walkure.
Prokofiev - from Romeo and Juliet - the Montagues and Capulets.

or if your character is the goofy sort try:
Bernstein - Battle Music from Candide.
or some Offenbach.

or if your character is the arrogant, regal type try any baritone aria from any Rossini opera.

[Lute Skywatcher]

Musical theatre? Dark & brooding? Try something from the Sweeney Todd soundtrack.

[av8rmike]

Are "medieval-sounding" movie soundtracks OK? If you come bursting out to the march from Lord of the Rings, it might sound a tad pretentious, but there are other soundtracks. Dragonheart leaps to mind for some reason, even though I haven't heard the music in a while.

[Mycroft Holmes]

Well, one piece almost no one ever mentions is the anthem they play in Turandot every time the emperor shows up. It is very majestic and just plain "imperial". Once I have my own country I'm making it my national anthem. It's called "Gravi, enormi ed imponenti" or "Diecimila anni al nostro imperatore".

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by av8rmike

Dragonheart leaps to mind for some reason, even though I haven't heard the music in a while.

Here it is, though the soundtrack from A New Beginning might be better. "Terragoth Ambush!" and "Dragon Fight!" in particular.

[Stonebow]

Originally Posted by Terminus Est

You realize the purists will also object to your using 'classical' music, which as invented about 300 years after the Middle Ages.

Well, yes, I knew that, silly. They tend to object to the use of any music that's not live performance. But this is a halfway measure to keep if from going totally WWF.

Hell, the King of a neighboring kingdom hit some guy with a chair last year!

[Kizarvexius]

Aye, the purists may criticize you for choosing music that is OOP. However, if you use any setting of the Requiem, at least your text will be properly period. The same with Carmina Burana.

[stpauler]

Here's an "if-you-can-find-it" one:
Flamma Flamma from the Fire Requiem by Nicholas Lens.

I used to play the video when I was a VJ 6 or 7 years ago. It was mostly voice driven but the tension that was built into it was AMAZING.

Flamma Flamma features six soloists with trained voices, operatic in nature, as well as three singers with striking, ethnically distinctive voices recruited from the Bulgarian womens' choir that created such a sensation with the bestselling recording Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares. The six trained voices speak for the "gods," the higher consciousness of man, and they virtually obsess over the meaning of death in the continuum of life. The trio of ethnic voices represents a more primitive view: death is to be scoffed at and ridiculed, especially because the "gods" take its meaning so seriously in their "sublime state."

[Chefguy]

Mussorgsky: Night On Bald Mountain

[brane damaj]

Originally Posted by Chefguy

Mussorgsky: Night On Bald Mountain

Or his Great Gates of Kiev That was a cool one, too. Great for an entrance.

Also, someone mentioned the Conan The Barbarian soundtrack before. I don't know if you're allowed to use soundtracks, but is without a doubt one of the greatest symphonic movie soundtracks ever. Just make sure you don't get Conan the the Destroyer by mistake. It wasn't as good.

[MaxTheVool]

Many excellent suggestions so far. A few more:

Finlandia by Sibelius. (Used in Die Hard 2 to great effect)
In the Hall of the Mountain King by Grieg
Shostakovitch's Symphony #5, beginning of the 4th movement
In addition to the Dies Irae, the Confutates from Mozart's requiem is excellent. A little less bangy, a little more moody.
Mahler has lots of great stirring stuff, although I can't think of a movement that has a snippet right from the beginning that would make it easy to use. Certainly, the climactic parts of Symphony #1 or Symphony #2 would both work great.

If you want your character to come off as hilariously egotistical, you could throw in The Hallelujah Chorus. (Actually, parts of it would work pretty well in any case... "King of Kings" (forever, and ever) "And Lord of Lords" (Hallelujah, Hallelujah) (and so forth))

Another somewhat humorous choice would be Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. You could beat your chest in time with the cannons, or something.

[jsc1953]

Even badder bad-ass Wagner would be Siegfried's Funeral March If it was good enough to be Arthur's theme music in Excalibur, it's good enough for you.

[1010011010]

I thought of two pieces of music...

Montagues and Capulets by Prokofiev, which a couple people have already mentioned.
AND
Entry of the Gladiators by Julius Fucik. Definitely check this one out.

The Firebird Suite by Stravinsky appears to have been overlooked, so far. And there are probably some good bits from Rite of Spring, too.

There's probably a fair bit of instrumental soundtrack music that would fit the bill, but I don't know if that would fail for being "totally modern". Hans Zimmer has written some good stuff for the likes of Crimson Tide and other movies. Matt Uelmen also has some stuff written for Blizzard, the video game company, that would probably fit. The Batman and Terminator movies also had music that might work... but might fail for being too recognizable. What exactly is "too modern"?

[rowrrbazzle]

Lotsa good suggestions so far.

Liszt's Les Preludes.

The very end of Debussy's La Mer. There are other spots as well.

From Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe, the "Danse guerriere" ("warrior dance") and its lead-in. It's included at the end of the suite #1 from the ballet. Also the "Danse general" at the very end of the ballet (included in suite #2).

The middle of Debussy's nocturne for orchestra, Fetes. The section I have in mind starts with soft brass (in the distance), then crescendos from there.

[ioioio]

There have been some great suggestions here. I would suggest that when making your choice, you consider the text and context of the music. Requiems are works of mourning for the dead. based on Biblical texts. Although the "Dies Irae" from the Verdi "Requiem", among others, has been abused for commercial purposes, it is still a piece that has meaning for many people. For me, it is associated with the deaths of 9/11. Likewise, use of the "Hallelujah Chorus" for your purposes might be offensive to some.

Please let us know what you choose (or we may be forced to come after you with an 18"DHIBJD ).

[aruvqan]

http://www.wolgemut.net/

From the album Schauspeluden
Goddesses, 2:51
Michaeleska, 2:12

Of course if you were Edward Beerslayer, a nice drinking song Tummel Dich, gutes weinlein =)

Go for period music=)

samples of the first 2 are on the site...

Of course there is a nice processional from their album Danza=)

[MovieMogul]

Throwing in another Wagner/Ring cycle selection: Magic Fire Music. It's both menacing and heroic without all the pop culture baggage so many (but not all) of the other selections listed above have. This version (play Track 3) omits the singing if you prefer the symphonic version for maximum effect.

[MaxTheVool]

Originally Posted by 1010011010

The Firebird Suite by Stravinsky appears to have been overlooked, so far. And there are probably some good bits from Rite of Spring, too.

The Firebird is one of my absolute favorite pieces, but the most obviously ass-kicking part has much more of a "A ha, triumph has been achieved" feel than a "I'm here to kick ass and chew gum, and I'm all out of gum" feel, imho

Plus it's in 7


Of course there the mad king's mad dance... but that would be, well, mad

[Ranchoth]

Could it be written "recently," but still classical sounding? If it does, I might suggest...

•Inquisition Symphony, by "Apocalyptica," a Metalica-tribute band of...cellists.

•Or maybe [the=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006GOHM/qid%3D1090040965/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/102-5555246-9613700]The String Quartet Tribute to Black Sabbath,[/url] if you really want "Iron Man."

•Or the obvious, Dead Can Dance's Aion. I'd reccomend "Saltarello" from the latter—which, as it happens, is based from a 14th Century Italian dance.

•That, or maybe something peppy by the Medieval Baebes, like Kinderley or Gaudete. If you have any "Amazons" fighting, they might like it.

•Or Jupiter from Holst's The Planets. Hail to the king, baby.

In any case, be sure to report back with us on how things went at the fight. Pictures too, if you can manage.

[RobuSensei]

Here's a suggestion from left field:

I'd check out the soundtrack from Princess Mononoke. More specifically, I'd find a copy of the Princess Mononoke: Symphonic Suite CD, and check out track 7, "The World of the Dead - Adagio of Life and Death." Lots of different spots that you could grab 20 seconds of.

[Contrapuntal]

"The Hall of the Moumtain King" from Pier Gynt (Grieg)

[rowrrbazzle]

Berlioz, "Tuba mirum" from Grande Messe des Morts. I'm not too familiar with this piece, and other parts may be useful.

Also parts of Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique, especially "March to the Scaffold".

[Cockatiel]

The fourth movement of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 in D Minor. It starts out with a bang right away and it's got a great tune.

One of the Bad-Assiest pieces ever, IMO .

[Cockatiel]

Oy, dammit, didn't see that MaxTheVool already mentioned Symphony No. 5 .

Another suggestion: Try this one piece from Prokofiev's The Love for Three Oranges Symphonic Suite. IIRC, it's called "Magician Celio and Fata Morgana Play Cards."

[BrotherCadfael]

I might suggest Amilcare Ponchielli's Dance of the Hours...

[Cisco]

Wow, this event sounds incredibly, embarassingly geeky. Just the way I like my entertainment . Where is this taking place at?

[FaerieBeth]

Diamond Wars XX near beautiful, scenic Hot Springs, AR!

[Paladud]

Bizet: Beginning of the Patrie Overture. This is likely your best pick. It's a hell of an entrance, and given that it hasn't been mentioned yet, it's not all that well-known.

Heroes of Might and Magic 2, Price of Loyalty expansion: Warlock castle theme. Grim percussion and brass foreshadow lots of destruction. It's not the greatest piece of all time. For a brief opening theme, however, it cannot be beat - the problem lies in finding a copy of the disk.

Other than these, I also vote for Shostakovich's Fifth, beginning of fourth movement. The two above are far more medieval-sounding though.

[Ranchoth]

I've got it. Song of the Volga Boatmen. You know, the "Ohh [i ]oh[/i] eiiiie, ohh..." tune. Perfect for Viking longships, slave galleys, and leaky Russian submarines.

Either that, or "The Kiss" or "Promentory" from the soundtrack to The Last of the Mohicans soundtrack. Both use this killer fiddle theme, though Promentory's use of it is a bit more "hard edged." (And, on a related note, the scenes in the movie where it's used actually feature quite a few battle ax-ings. )

[cornflakes]

Hope this isn't too modern...

[Kizarvexius]

Originally Posted by BrotherCadfael

I might suggest Amilcare Ponchielli's Dance of the Hours...

Oh, that one's perfect. If you're going to make your entrance in a tutu.

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by FaerieBeth

beautiful, scenic Hot Springs, AR!

Would you believe that's where my parents live?

[YoudNeverGuess]

[quote=1010011010]

Entry of the Gladiators by Julius Fucik. Definitely check this one out.
QUOTE]

Yes do check it out. I'm sure you'll find it's very appropriate

But seriously the first piece that came to my mind was also

Montagues and Capulets by Prokofiev. Very rousing.

And a great one, I hadn't thought of till an inspired poster mentioned it, if you are an heroic 'good' knight would be the Great Gate at Kiev from Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky (get Ravel's orchestration of it as the original is a piano piece). That would be cool. It would also make great exit music if you win your fight.

[FriarTed]

for a Darth Vaderish type entrance, the Title Music to Coppola's DRACULA

[ioioio]

So, Stonebow, have you made a decision?

[Stonebow]

Still working on it...was very impressed by Mars from Holst's Planet Suite., but am not sure i am badass enough for it.

will probably get a few songs...there are so many good suggestions! Trying to avoid LoTR, even though it's perfect, though.

[MaxTheVool]

I'm not sure if you've categorically banned movie music, but the martial theme from Gladiator is also quite stirring and (obviously) appropriate.