So far, smaller scale things. I’m digging some orchestral pieces, but not the ones that are too grandiose. I appreciate the simplicity of just a few instruments doing something really well.
Indeed. (Seriously!)
Even more seriously, Ives deserves a place, even if only with The Unanswered Question. Conveniently, short enough to be on Youtube.
Ives’ Symphony #2 is a masterpiece, but for shorter works I think I’d choose Central Park in the Dark over the Unanswered Question. It’s not on Youtube, though.
I’m also partial to Beethoven’s Symphony #1 “Where Do These Notes Go?”, also
Beethoven Symphonies #2,#4 and #8 “I’m Not At My Best With Even-Numbered Works”.
I’m sorry, I can’t keep it brief when I talk about classical music. The subject is too large and my passion for it irrepressable. I beg your indulgence, or skip down a bit.
Well, first off, I’d like to offer some practical advice. Look for free and inexpensive ways to explore classical music first, and that will help you to decide what you need to buy, and what you don’t.
I don’t know specifically what part of Ontario you’re in, but first off, listen to some CBC Radio 2 while it still offers classical music. (There’s a whole other thread…) Check your local library and see what’s in their collection. Are you near enough to a University that you could get a research reader’s card? Some university libraries allow you to sign out CDs, others, like U of Toronto, will only allow you to listen in the library. At any rate, that may be worthwhile.
I’d also encourage you to check for opportunities to hear classical music live. There are many fine orchestras throughout Ontario, and lots of chamber music groups, festivals, etc., etc. If money is an issue, see about volunteering - particularly for things like the Elora Festival, the Guelph Spring Festival where they need local volunteers. Live classical music is different from the artificial perfection of modern recording. Precision may be harder to achieve, but it’s easier to follow the thread of a musician’s approach to a piece. If you are near enough to a University that has a music faculty, student recitals are usually free. Hit or miss, I grant you, but it’s kinda cool to be able to say in 15 years that “I heard Russell Braun when he was in third year.”
There are so many ways into classical music, that it’s hard to know where to start. Assuming you have access to a lot of different music by a lot of different composers (either through purchase or borrowing), now what? I like to focus on the different ways pieces of music can connect.
Consider - there’s the period in which a composer was writing, and that’s how a lot of people look at classical music. It can be misleading, though - Ives wrote using ideas that no one else would think of for years to come; Bach wrote dance suites based on dances no one had danced to for decades. Sibelius wrote in a late romantic style long into the twentieth century.
For fun, think about following other connections. Think about following a particular instrument through its development - the piano, for example. How did Mozart and Haydn approach the instrument, and what was different about Beethoven’s piano works? Not to mention the leap to Chopin, and from there to Liszt, and from there… There’s a whole tapestry of threads to follow within just the development of that instrument.
Classical guitar is sometimes referred to as being in the trailer park of music history because it was such a specialty instrument - difficult for non-guitarists to write well for, and coming into its own at the same time as the piano. (side plug - Naxos records features budget recordings by lesser-known orchestras - I don’t recommend them for most of the standard rep., but the guitar series is superlative, and is the best collection of classical guitar going! Okay, that’s only my opinion, but it’s fervently held.) CG has its own heroes, its own composers, its own nationalisms and its own folk influences.
The number of ‘threads’ to follow is huge - instrumentation, nationality, cities (consider following what was written in Vienna, or Paris, or Venice at various times), groups (‘Les Six’, the ‘New Vienna School’, ‘The Impressionists’, etc.), literary or artistic influences, particular performers (why did Glenn Gould record the Haydn and Sibelius that he did? How did that fit in his mind with the Bach for which he was famous?), take the same piece and explore different performances of it (how is Die Winterreise different when it’s performed by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, or Thomas Allen, or Olaf Bär, or Dave who is in 4th year of a Bachellor of Music and is doing this for his Grad Recital and who is in way over his head, or Hans Hotter at 65?), influences of Folk music, influences of Popular music - the list is endless, and the repertoire is huge.
So, start from what you like, and add to it one small step at a time - say, from a string quartet by composer X to a woodwind quintet by the same composer. There is enough music out there to thrill and inspire you for more than one lifetime, but don’t let it overwhelm you - just let it embrace you.
I disagree. Number 4 is a corker.
BTW, jovan, the fifth is untitled, and the “‘fate’ motif” thing is almost certainly not Beethoven’s idea.
I guess I’d take the cheap approach and look under composers names in youtube. See what you like, and what you don’t. Maybe you like certain instruments, or opera, or choral music. Maybe there are certain periods you already lean toward. Search under the big names; lesser composers can wait. Don’t take it too seriously. This stuff was written to entertain; if it doesn’t entertain you, move on. Don’t worry if you don’t like someone you’re supposed to like; it happens (I personally can barely tolerate Beethoven). Your tastes will probably change radically over time anyway.
A good, but not overly thick, music appreciation book can help. I’d recommend Listen by Kerman and Tomlinson, which is a set of cds and a book; it’s pricy new, but you can pick it up used from Amazon pretty cheap.
Thanks for all the feedback. You’ve given me a great starting point. jovan, I appreciate the time you spent on your list.
So far my collection includes a version of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, the 5 CD Baroque Collection, and the various pieces featured in Little Einsteins that we got from iTunes for the 5 year old. So I have a long way to go.
I’ll make my way through the suggestions here, check them out for free where I can, and gradually add the ones I like to my collection.
I’m happy to chime in, as long as you don’t take this as coming from anyone more than an untrained enthusiast with a love for music.
A lot of folks have recommend JS Bach, and I heartily agree. He is extraordinarily accessible when first starting on your musical journey, but complex enough that you can have years of music listening and still love him.
A lot of on line places will have samples you can listen to. For example, I went into Wal Mart’s site.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5622176
Having problems getting wma to play it, though.
Here’s amazon.com, though;
Listen to #10…that’s the Nimrod IX. You may recognize it. Powerful, beautiful stuff.
Or Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherezade. Beautiful violin solo in #1:
Beethoven, listen to number 7
I hope you don’t mind me clarifying the way Elgar titled the movements of this piece. In this case it’s the ninth variation, and most listings follow his use of Roman numerals, with the subtitle simply being ‘Nimrod’. It’s well-known solely by that name, as a standalone piece.
Well I know that, but it’s often referred to that way.
MrFantsyPants, if you give us titles of pieces you liked and didn’t like maybe we can give you better pointers. With the pieces mentioned so far, you have a good sample of the styles and genres out there.
The motif, or the symphony? I’m not sure I’ve ever heard the piece given a title in that way.
I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps it’s a regional thing. Does **jovan ** live in Japan?
jovan’s two lists are great. I appreciate the time and effort that went into compiling them, especially the second list with all the YouTube links.
So far, the only Brahms piece is the Academic Festival Overture. (Did you notice it, **GorillaMan ** … )
I would go with:
Symphony No. 1
Violin Concerto
Six Pieces for Piano
Also (and this is a topic for another thread), the particular *performance * can make a huge difference in the enjoyment of a composition, which, after all, is just a bunch of notes – appreciated by experts in musical theory – until it is “brought to life” by the performers.
I am not knowledgeable enough to recommend one specific performance over another but I know that the orchestra, conductor, soloist, or ensemble can make a big difference.
For example, anyone can appreciate the first eight notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, whether they are performed by Kleiber and the Vienna Philharmonic or by a high school orchestra. But, to really appreciate and enjoy the wonderful transition from the third movement to the fourth, well … the difference can be between “Oh, that’s nice” and “OMG, I’ve got goosebumps!”
Hmmm … actually, the impact of even the first eight notes can be very different, too, so maybe my example is not great, but the point is still there.
I tried to ignore it, as I normally do with that piece of drivel 
How about the Alto Rhapsody, instead? Any excuse to hear Kathleen Ferrier in action…
Big second on Kathleen Ferrier! Or the solo piano music, the piano trios, the quintets and quartets, the symphonies (I’ve always preferred 2 through 4, I’ve never been that enthusiastic about the first.), the songs, the German requiem… I love Brahms, I could listen to or play or sing his music all day.
I wonder if the OP would benefit from some explanation of nomenclature. Dopers will correct me but as I understand it:
I mentioned “Danse Macabre” by Saint-Saens. IIRC that’s often labeled Op40 or Opus 40. A composer’s works are often numbered and you can make sure you get the piece you’re looking for by checking that. Beethoven wrote several sonatas, for example…sometimes the key will differentiate. But maybe some are even in the same key, so then you have the opus to verify.
Symphonic stuff is in movements. We could be talking about Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony…colloquially, the “New World Symphony,” but maybe you’re thinking of the third movement and I’m thinking of the fourth. So, some will state the number of the movement but others will call it by tempo: Allegro Con Fuoco. Ah the fast one!
And a point to consider:
If I were buying a Beatles compilation CD, I would look at the contents. If it had “A Day in the Life,” I would think, ‘Wait, I have that on Sgt. Pepper’s already.’
In contrast, I was buying a classical compilation that had Pachelbel’s Canon in D. Well, I already had that but I wanted some of the other pieces. I was glad I got that disc because the interpretation of Pachelbel was very different than the one I had. Already had: a heavy harpsichord interpretation. New addition: smooth, nice violins, soothing.
My point is that often you’re really buying something different, since it’s a different orchestra’s (or ensemble’s) interpretation of the original material. Really really serious classical buffs compare this recording of piece X to a different recording of the very same piece. Differences may be subtle or not.
My knowledge of classical music is dwarfed by some of the experts here. But even I can tell a fantastic performance from one that’s, umm, less fantastic.