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What is the last piece of classical music you listened to?


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I was watching a video on YouTube about making decorative candles.  (It's what one does at 4:30 AM). ANYWAY, The had the 1812 Overture playing as the artist worked on the candle.

 

Now, The 1812 is one of the pieces that got me (then a young kid) into classical music.  I mean... CANNONS.  So I'm listening to it, just about ready to geek out to the finale, and it stops dead.

 

So, here's what I listened to last, with a link to one of my favorite recordings of it.  Conducted by the late, great, Erich Kunzel.

 

 

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This morning:

Herbert Von Karajan conducts Beethoven's 7th, 8th and 9th symphonies.

 

This afternoon:

Hungarian Philharmonic Orchestra plays Beethoven's 2nd and 6th symphonies.

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Currently listening to a very interesting Finnish composer I've never heard of before now.  Ilkka Kuusisto (b. 1933).  I'm probably not the target of your question.  I listen to classical music every day.

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1 hour ago, Ii2 said:

The Messiah. By Handel

The greatest choral work ever written. Good show!

 

1 hour ago, SteveMc said:

On a Schumann exploration myself.

When it comes to my favourite piano works, it's a hard choice between Frederic Chopin and Robert Schumann. Both were such masters of the piano. In terms of Schumann I would highly recommend: Kinderscenen, Waldscenen, Fantasiestucke, Manfred, the twelve songs (Liederkries) and the Piano Concerto.

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Curious.

 

I just listened to Bela Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra:

I. Introduzione: Andante non troppo: Allegro vivace

II. Presentando le coppie: Allegro scherzando

III. Elegia: Andante non troppo

IV. Intermezzo interrotto: Allegretto

V. Finale. Presto

 

The fourth movement is the most famous.

Conducted by Marin Alsop and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

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One of my favourite pieces by Alkan. Alkan had a distinctive creative flair, and despite what people say about his pieces not reaching the artistic heights of those of Beethoven, Liszt, Chopin etc...it certainly can't be said that he was a boring composer!

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I just finished listening to Shostakovich's first piano concerto, with Yefim Bronfman on the piano and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Esa-Peka Salonen. 

 

Shostakovich has always amazed me with his fun, jazzy sound which very much contrasts his andante side, which holds a different beauty. His two piano concertos are a great introduction to his music.

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2 hours ago, The Illustrious Jerry said:

His two piano concertos are a great introduction to his music.

 

👍

22 minutes ago, Ii2 said:

But today when I heard the whole Hallelujah piece, only then did I realize the majesty and magnificence of the piece. 

👍

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1 hour ago, Ii2 said:

As you can imagine I heard the Messiah’s most known melody, the “Hallelujah” chorus, more than once as it is widely used.  But today when I heard the whole Hallelujah piece, only then did I realize the majesty and magnificence of the piece.   One of if not the best choral work in history.  Maybe the best religious piece of music of all time.           :music:

I always liked the excerpt: "For unto us a child is born!". 

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13 hours ago, Ii2 said:

The Messiah. By Handel

It's MESSIAH; no definite article.

Was that the 4-part, or the 5-part version?

 

7 hours ago, Ii2 said:

As you can imagine I heard the Messiah’s most known melody, the “Hallelujah” chorus, more than once as it is widely used.  But today when I heard the whole Hallelujah piece, only then did I realize the majesty and magnificence of the piece.   One of if not the best choral work in history.  Maybe the best religious piece of music of all time.           :music:

Whenever I've sung the HALLELUJAH chorus, it's always been with a sense of relief, as it meant that we were into the home stretch.

The AMEN chorus is still the best.

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9 minutes ago, The Illustrious Jerry said:

CARMINA BURANA is another one of the great choral works ever written. 

 

Have you checked out Vivaldi's Gloria? He's got at least two works named that, but only one is awesome:

 

 

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I went to see CARMINA BURANA live a few years back with the Canadian National Academy Orchestra conducted by Boris Brott. That was the appropriately named Choral Spectacular concert event for that year in my city. It was a very good concert. I believe they also performed Bernstein's Chichester Psalms.

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2 hours ago, The Illustrious Jerry said:

I believe they also performed Bernstein's Chichester Psalms.

 

I love the Chichester Psalms!


I go through phases when listening to music. I listen to a lot of soundtracks and a lot of classical music, but sometimes I lean more strongly towards one or the other. I might not listen to soundtracks for a few weeks. And in fact, I only listened to my first classical work of the year tonight (unless you count the Williams fanfares on American Journey, or a few Bach and Schützt cues on Spotify as references to our new choir rehearsal programme). It was Shostakovich's 11th - probably my favourite work of his.

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Harvey had an incredible sense of form and color.  Never fell into the excesses of either that often plague new music.  This has the obligatory big percussion group, but it's deployed wisely.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I also had a big Tchaikovsky weekend:

Claudio Abaddo and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra playing Symphony No. 6 and Marche Slave.

Itzhak Perlman on the violin with the London Symphony Orchestra for his Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.

 

As well as Edvard Grieg's Holberg Suite.

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57 minutes ago, The Illustrious Jerry said:

I also had a big Tchaikovsky weekend:

Claudio Abaddo and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra playing Symphony No. 6 and Marche Slave.

Itzhak Perlman on the violin with the London Symphony Orchestra for his Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.

 

As well as Edvard Grieg's Holberg Suite.

 

I too was listening to Abaddo CSO for my Tchaikovsky this weekend. 

 

The 6 CD purple box right?

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1 hour ago, Jurassic Shark said:

I like Maazel's and Jansons'.

Mariss Jansons holds my favourite Scheherazade recording still. It's on an EMI album along with another Rimsky-Korsakov work, Cappricio espagnol. He's up there with my favourite conductors.

 

And speaking of Slatkin @Bespin, he has some Tchaikovsky recordings that aren't that bad either, good Nutcracker and Swan Lake recordings.

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