# Classical Music ID **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2011, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185 "2011-07-24T16:52:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/1 "2011-07-24T16:52:48Z")
I have it stuck in my head, but I can’t remember what it’s from. It sounds like the end of a big Russian orchestral piece. It’s a bit like the end of The Great Gate of Kiev, but it’s NOT the same theme. It consists of the same phrase repeated three or more times, each time with different orchestration and becoming grander: Dum-dum-dum … da-dum-duh … dum-dum-dum … da-duh Bum-bum-bum … ba-bum-buh … bum-bum-bum … ba-buh DUM-DUM-DUM … DA-DUM-DUH … DUM-DUM-DUM … DA-DUH! Then it turns into drawn out rising bit: daaaaahhh … Daaaaahhh … DAAAAAAAH. There are bells in there too. Ideas? ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/2 "2011-07-24T16:59:17Z")
Try Rachmaninov - The bells? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/3 "2011-07-24T22:45:25Z")
Does it include vocal, or is it entirely instrumental? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/4 "2011-07-25T00:14:54Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Does it include vocal, or is it entirely instrumental? The part I have stuck in my head is entirely instrumental. I haven’t had time today to listen through The Bells to see if that’s it, but its choral nature makes me dubious. ---
**Author:** ![raspberry\_hunter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@raspberry\_hunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raspberry_hunter)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/5 "2011-07-25T16:57:24Z")
Maybe Shostakovich’s Symphony #7 (Leningrad)? The first movement has a theme that repeats a bazillion times, starting with a single instrument and adding more in. The theme doesn’t quite seem to fit your rhythmic structure, though, so I’m doubtful. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/6 "2011-07-25T16:58:58Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > I have it stuck in my head, but I can’t remember what it’s from. It sounds like the end of a big Russian orchestral piece. It’s a bit like the end of The Great Gate of Kiev, but it’s NOT the same theme. > > It consists of the same phrase repeated three or more times, each time with different orchestration and becoming grander: > > Dum-dum-dum … da-dum-duh … dum-dum-dum … da-duh > Bum-bum-bum … ba-bum-buh … bum-bum-bum … ba-buh > DUM-DUM-DUM … DA-DUM-DUH … DUM-DUM-DUM … DA-DUH! > > Then it turns into drawn out rising bit: daaaaahhh … Daaaaahhh … DAAAAAAAH. > > There are bells in there too. > > Ideas? The first thing that came to mind was one of the themes from the 1812 overture by Tchaikovsky. But assuming you’re an American I figured you’d already know that note for note… ETA: You wanna whistle it into a mic? That would help so much with this! ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/7 "2011-07-26T03:50:34Z")
If you can tell whether a note rises or falls relative to the previous note, Try [by Melodic Contour: Musipedia Melody Search Engine](http://www.musipedia.org/melodic_contour.html). ---
**Author:** ![BDoors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BDoors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BDoors)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/8 "2011-07-28T11:36:14Z")
Any news? These kind of threads always nag at me. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/9 "2011-07-28T13:12:36Z")
> [@BDoors](#): > > Any news? These kind of threads always nag at me. Ditto. Dums and Bums especially. The first part could either be the 1812, or Beethoven’s Egmont overture. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/10 "2011-07-28T14:00:17Z")
> [@BDoors](#): > > Any news? These kind of threads always nag at me. Sorry, ive been slammed at work this week and haven’t had time to follow up on listening through the suggestions. ---
**Author:** ![Pitchmeister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pitchmeister/32/3459_2.png) [@Pitchmeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pitchmeister)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/11 "2011-07-28T20:59:42Z")
Are you maybe talking about the theme to _[2001: A Space Odyssey](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWnmCu3U09w)_, or as it’s known to some people, _Also sprach Zarathustra_? ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2011, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/12 "2011-07-29T19:57:05Z")
Shostakovitch Symphony #5, [4th movement](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogJFXqYEYd8#t=7m40)? No bells, though - perhaps you heard an arrangement… ---
**Author:** ![bodde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f4b2a3/32.png) [@bodde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bodde)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/13 "2013-12-04T06:12:39Z")
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 - Allegretto I don’t know really, just a guess. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/14 "2013-12-07T23:42:50Z")
It’s two years later and I’m standing by 1812 overture. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/15 "2013-12-08T00:12:20Z")
[Maybe the 1712 Overture?](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ICY8a9Qyt8) ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/16 "2013-12-08T02:11:52Z")
I compliment the OP’er 2 years later for what was a terrific ‘verbal’ description of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. ETA: **bodde** : How did you find this? You registered just to respond to this one question? ---
**Author:** ![Yayitsme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/77aa72/32.png) [@Yayitsme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yayitsme)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classical-music-id/590185/17 "2017-12-13T23:16:19Z")
Check out In the hall of the mountain king by Edvard Grieg [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2s-Kz8S4dYw/hqdefault.jpg "Edvard Grieg: In the Hall of the Mountain King") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s-Kz8S4dYw)