Can I get some recommendations from the more knowledgeable Dope? I’m already familiar with everything on this list, and have most of the songs already on my mp3 player.
What I’m particluarly interested in are thundering overtures like the 1812 Overture; tunes that are generally “fun” (for lack of a better choice of words), like Saint-Saenz’s Carnival of the Animals: Finale; classical music by more recent compposers; or unique interpretatioins of existing pieces (for example, Beethoven’s 5th interpreted by a Mariachi band, or something).
Tough one. I thought the request was too specific for me too just recommend anything I like but too generic for me to have a clear idea of what to recommend. But I think I have it now: what you want is the Turangalila Symphony, by Olivier Messiaen. The fifth movement, “Joy of the Blood of the Stars”, is as thundering as anything, there’s lots of fun moments along the way, it’s kinda, sorta recent (it’s from the 30s, which I guess is recent enough in classical music) and has a part for a very weird instrument, the Ondes Martenot, which would seem to appeal to the same sensibility that enjoyed “Mariachi Beethoven”. Naxos has a very cheap recording that’s also pretty good.
Looking at that list, I see it more as a “highlights” reel – do you listen to just the sections listed or the entire piece?
For instance, I see that Beethoven’s 7th symphony is listed, but only the 2nd movement – which is fairly dark and brooding. The oft-overlooked 3rd and 4th movements are quite high energy and, in my mind at least, “fun” romps.
Ditto Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Spring is on the list, but I find Summer and Winter to be rather intense and enjoyable as well.
Some other recommendations:
Mahler’s 2nd Symphony (“Resurrection”)
Berlioz’s Requiem (antiphonal brass is epic)
Brahms’s Liebeslieder Waltzes (piano + vocals, whimsical, romantic, and fun)
The obvious extension of this interest is movie scoring – Hans Zimmer and John Williams are obvious starting points!
J.S. Bach: the Goldberg Variations and the Brandenburg concertos.
Dmitri Shostakovich: The Fourth and Fifth Symphonies. (That was a good list, but I cannot understand the omission of Shostakovich.)
Wagner: The Ring Cycle
As for more recent works, I would recommend:
*Pavanne for a Dead Princess *and *Daphne et Chloe *by Maurice Ravel
The West Side Story suite by Leonard Bernstein
*Brown, Black and Beige *by Duke Ellington. Try to get the version with Mahalia Jackson doing the vocals.
Anything by Scott Joplin
*Symphony in F Major for Piano and Orchestra *by George Gershwin
*The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny *by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht
John (I think) Adams has done some good operas, including one about Nixon going to China
I don’t know who does it, but somewhere there exists a version of the Moonlight Sonata played on a toy piano.
I think what the list in my OP was going for was not so much “the best,” but more like “stuff the Average Joe is most likely to be familiar with.” Of course, I could be way off.
This isn’t quite what you’re asking for, but I’d highly recommend Horowitz’s recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor. His playing is superlative, and the orchestra isn’t too bad, either
Here’s a mix tape that I did recently for a friend… It was intended to be classical pieces that had a bit of “wow” factor in them.
Aida - Grande March and Ballet (Verdi).mp3
Bolero (Ravel).mp3
Canon and Gigue (Pachelbel).mp3
Carmina Burana - O Fortuna (Orff).mp3
Concierto de Aranjuez - Adagio (Rodrigo).mp3
Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg - Overture (Wagner).mp3
Die Moldau (Smetana).mp3
Die Walkure - Ride of the Valkyries (Wagner).mp3
Egmont Overture (Beethoven).mp3
Enigma Variations - Nimrod (Elgar).mp3
Fanfare for the Common Man (Copland).mp3
Finlandia (Sibelius).mp3
Gianni Schicchi - O Mio Babbino Caro (Puccini).mp3
Guitar Concerto in D - Largo (Vivaldi).mp3
Hungarian Dance No. 1 (Brahms).mp3
Karelia Suite - Alla Marcia (Sibelius).mp3
Les Pecheurs de Perles - Au fond du temple saint (Bizet).mp3
Les Preludes (Liszt).mp3
Lohengrin- Prelude to Act 3 (Wagner).mp3
Madama Butterfly - Un Bel Di (Puccini).mp3
Masquerade Suite - Waltz (Khachaturian).mp3
Nabucco - Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves (Verdi).mp3
Pictures at an Exhibition - The Old Castle (Mussorgsky).mp3
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini - Variation 18 (Rachmaninoff).mp3
Romeo and Juliet, Fantasy Overture (Tchaikovsky).mp3
Romeo and Juliet, Suite No. 2 - Montagues and Capulets (Prokofiev).mp3
Rusalka - Song to the Moon (Dvorak).mp3
Samson et Dalila - Bacchanale (Saint Saens).mp3
Songs of the Auvergne - Bailero (Canteloube).mp3
Suite for Jazz Orchestra No. 2 - Waltz (Shostakovich).mp3
Symphony No. 3 ‘Organ’- Finale (Saint Saens).mp3
Symphony No. 5 - Adagietto (Mahler).mp3
Symphony No. 7 - Allegretto (Beethoven).mp3
Tannhauser - March (Wagner).mp3
The Gadfly - Romance (Shostakovich).mp3
The Planets - Mars, the Bringer of War (Holst).mp3
Tosca - E Lucevan le Stelle (Puccini).mp3
Turandot - Nessun Dorma (Puccini).mp3
Valse Triste (Sibelius).mp3
Violin Concerto No 1 - Adagio (Bruch).mp3
Wagner: overtures to Tannhauser, Rienzi, Flying Dutchman
Rossini’s overtures are fun in a slightly different way. Try Semiramide, Barber of Seville (used in “Rabbit of Seville”), Thieving Magpie (cartoon “Pixie Picnic”).
The Swingle Singers did jazzy versions of Bach, Mozart and some other composers.
Also search this forum for the many threads with “classical” in the title.
Dvorak’s symphonies, especially the New World Symphony and Festival Overture
Bizet’s l’Arlesienne and (although you’ve heard it a bajillion times) the overture to Carmen
Gustav Holst’s The Planets Suite
