Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with classicalmusic

Classical composers who sang instead of played instruments?

mediareport — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:56:33 -0800

Are there well-known classical composers who aren't trained on a particular instrument? An acquaintance is a young singer who's interested in composition (mostly for voice), but in talking to him I get the sense that he feels a little inadequate compared to his fellow students who are accomplished on at least one instrument like piano or violin. Can you give me examples of classical composers whose work is respected but who weren't primarily instrumental players? Modern or otherwise. Thanks!

Recommend me some stirring music.

vraxoin — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:57:53 -0800

I'm looking for stirring, uplifting, poignant orchestral music. I was just watching Love, Actually with the wife, and was really moved by the orchestral theme during the big lovey happy-ending parts. So I'm looking for more big, melodic music with poignant melodies and counterpoint. The music reminded me a bit of the Ode to Joy maybe--I'm not a classical music buff at all so I don't know where to begin here.

Suggestions?

Cost- and effort-effective way to end up with a large HD full of lossless classical music, legally.

Your Time Machine Sucks — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 04:58:22 -0800

Cost- and effort-effective way to end up with a large HD full of lossless classical music, legally. Well, after my question here, I'm still not quite satisfied with the quality of my worktime music listening. I'm over my requirement for enjoyable-to-listen-to DJs, which isn't happening in combination with playlists I like, but I'm starting to get annoyed by the digital compression of internet radio. So, I was wondering if it is possible to provide my own classical radio, to myself, by stocking my work HD with large amounts of music I'm likely to enjoy hearing but haven't heard all of before, at lossless or near-lossless quality. Given the following conditions:

1. My fantasy: I would be happy to hear any non-symphonic, non-opera composition written by any European composer known or unknown during the centuries 12-19. Rather than excluding anything out of hand that fits those conditions, I would love the opportunity to hear it and if I hate it I'll take it out of the queue. Hearing some symphonic music or opera isn't a problem, but getting it into the playlist is not a goal of this undertaking. Non-operatic vocal music and proto-opera like Camerata is fine.

2. I'd like to do it legally, without individually purchasing vast amounts of CDs and ripping vast amounts of CDs. I don't have the time or money to build up a new digital music library one CD at a time. I also can't afford to pay for a big classical music library recording-by-recording on iTunes. I don't want to specify what would be too expensive, other than to say that a retail per-album payment approach to creating a radio-station-sized playlist or bigger will be too expensive.

3. Any top-tier performers, any high-fidelity recordings are fine with me. I'm OK with quirks of analog recording, so I guess that pretty much any high-quality recording after the late 50s is going to fit the bill. Please restrict commentary on my total lack of standards about important things combined with freakish pickiness about unimportant things to Memail.

4. I'm up to the task of getting any sound format into one I need for my own setup in an automated fashion. If something is available in a country that I'm not in, I'll do the legwork of figuring out whether it's an option.

OK. So, obviously what I've just described is not even remotely possible. There is no "legally purchase an enormous hard drive full of a single good example of every non-operatic, non-symphonic composition written by a European composer between the 12th and 19th century, performed by anyone acknowledged to be good, recorded decently, in lossless format" product. I doubt it would fit on even a 2TB drive in any case.

My question: what is the closest I can get (even if it's very, very far away), for the least money, as a result of investing the least effort? Examples I could imagine would be: sources of lossless (or at least top-quality lossy) public domain recordings (lots of link-clicking is not excessive effort), labels that sell drives full of their back-catalog releases for much less than the cost of purchasing them at retail, download services that have bulk download deals of recordings that are not the latest and hottest with lossless (or at least top-quality lossy) formats. Thank you for any suggestions!

I want to be a Prommer

rose selavy — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:24:31 -0800

I've never been to any of the BBC Proms. Recommendations / general advice? I really want to go to one or more of the BBC Proms this year, both for the experience and as a starting point for learning more about classical music, which I'm pretty ignorant about. If I were to pick one though, it would be no more of a conscious decision than just throwing a dart at the schedule and seeing where it lands. Can anyone recommend something good and accessible for a first timer?

The programme is here.

Also, general Prom tips please. eg. Best vs cheapest tickets? I don't know if I'll want to stand for over an hour..

Thank you Prommers!

Majini in Flames

Ziggy Zaga — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:00:25 -0800

I'm looking for other classical music that sounds like the "Majini IX - In Flames" track from Resident Evil 5. Not being a music scholar I have a hard time explaining what it is about the song that I like. I do like the tempo; it's got a really "driving" pace to it, it feels like it's constantly building up to something grand and the little tune that the string instruments play just makes me shiver with excitement :)

If anybody can recommend any other artists or songs that I might like based on similarity to the linked song, I'd appreciate it.

Sorry if this seems like a really weak question but I know less than nothing about classical music.

Help me understand atonal music

Frankieist — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:38:46 -0800

I've been trying to branch out my musical tastes, and have started recently to listen to atonal and serialist music (Boulez, Schoenberg, Webern). There is something about it that I like, but I'm not quite sure what it is, and I feel like if I knew more about the music in question I could better appreciate it. I have a fair amount of knowledge about music theory, but really only from texts on traditional harmony (including Schoenberg's Theory of Harmony). While the music isn't structured around harmony, there must be other structures because it sounds better than when I randomly smash keys on my piano. What should I be listening for? Repeated motifs? Rhythms?

I imagine that each artist might be fairly idiosyncratic with regard to how they structure their own music. If that's the case I'm more interested in Boulez and Schoenberg, as I like both of them far more than I like Webern.

More generally, if you are someone who listens serialism or atonal music, what do you like about it and how do you process it?

How do you pronounce Charles Wuorinen?

mediareport — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 20:00:44 -0800

How do you pronounce composer Charles Wuorinen's name? Which syllable is accented?

Please help me find the fifth in my weird list of classical music composers.

quarantine — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 18:57:52 -0800

My list of favorite classical composers makes sense to me intuitively but not logically, and I don't know how to continue the list. Can anyone help? I tried to list my five favorite composers for someone the other day. What I got was:

1. Rameau (b. 1682)
2. J.S. Bach (b. 1685)
3. Chopin (b. 1810)
4. Ravel (b. 1875)
5. ???

I cannot find an n-space in which these four are all close to each other, but if anyone can parameterize this and tell me who #5 is, I'm all ears. If someone could do so in a way that convinces me I'm not insane for grouping these four, all the better.

I am not fond of Beethoven or Mozart, as far as "usual suspects" go, but I would think that someone who could say that would fall on one or the other side historically -- not just jump a couple of centuries.

A percussion-only Pachelbel's Canon

liketitanic — Wed, 13 May 2009 16:30:07 -0800

I once heard a really lovely version of Pachelbel's Canon that was performed by a percussion ensemble--the whole thing was drums, tympani, etc. I think it was a University ensemble, maybe University of North Texas? I heard it around 2000, so it's not exactly new, but I have been unable to find it again. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

Classical Guitar Tab Recommendations

starman — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:52:47 -0800

Suggestions for classical guitar tab? I'm looking for some "standards" of classical music that are fun to play on guitar. For example, these two from Bach are recognizable but I'm not saavy enough to have searched for them by name.

Thanks!

Free online collection of avant-garde classical music?

mediareport — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 20:19:07 -0800

Please help me find an online avant-garde classical music site that posted full pieces you could listen to for free. The site let you browse by composer, genre and instruments. I think "america" may be in the URL, but I'm not sure. I do recall that it was almost entirely unusual repertoire 20th century stuff. Does this ring a bell? This is driving me nuts, I used to spend lots of time at this site but can't remember or search properly so that I find it again. Thanks in advance.

Need New-to-Me Classical Music!

orrnyereg — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 08:02:58 -0800

I have 400 classical music tracks on my MP3 player, and I'm sick of all of them. Help me find more! I'm looking for classical music recommendations to add to my collection. I'm bored of listening to the same stuff.

Here's a small sampling of what I already have, and like:

Stile Antico, Music for Compline
Les Witches, Nobody's Jig
The Cardinall's Musick, Early Latin Church Music & Propers for Lady Mass
Trio Mediaeval, Stella Maris

Anything by the Tallis Scholars; JS & CPE Bach's violin concertos and chamber and choral works; and Chopin.

Can you MeFites suggest some other works or artists that I might enjoy? A thousand thanks in advance!

To Be and Not To Be

Gyan — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:43:23 -0800

Looking for examples of 'happy' and 'sad' renditions of a work within the western classical repertoire. In many Bollywood movies, and probably Hollywood musicals too, there's a phenomenon where the signature song of a movie is first shown in a "major key" during happy times (exposition, err... first act) and then a melancholic version rendered during a sad or nostalgic scene later on. Also common with leitmotives in TV/movies. Are there examples of this from within the instrumental works of the western classical canon? Note: I'm not referring to themes in transition during development, or a movement of theme & variations, but longer complete movements or sections (of, say, operas) rendered differently.

You need to be more Romantic

NemesisVex — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 02:44:46 -0800

Romantic-era classical music for someone who is not fond of Romantic-era classical music? Most of my collection consists of 20th Century composers, or music from the Classical era and before. The big gap is in Romantic-era works, intentionally so. Back in college, I thought I would go into composition, so I concentrated mostly on listening to modern works.

As such, I developed a big chip on my shoulder about the Romantic era. (That is so 19th Century!) I figured, why be just another expert in composers everyone already listens to when I can explore the ones who aren't yet in the canon? That was 15 or so years ago.

Now I have an eMusic account with which I use to grab more music than I could realistically consume. As much as I still like modern works, I feel the need to branch out. The 19th Century is still pretty much undiscovered country for me, one I feel ready (finally) to explore.

For reference, composers to whom I regularly listen: Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (of course), Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Dmitri Shostakovich, Igor Stravinsky, anyone who's ever written anything for Kronos Quartet.

The closest I've gotten to Romantic music in my collection: Anton Dvorak's Symphony No. 9, the symphonies of Jean Sibelius (which are technically 20th Century), and the Moldau by Bedrich Smetana.

I've so far ruled out Hector Berlioz. To paraphrase Will Rogers, I never listened to a work of his I ever liked.

Playing the 'Unplayable' Concerto

spamguy — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:20:38 -0800

I want to learn to play the opening bars of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto #1...without being able to play the piano. Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto #1 in B Flat Minor is easily my favourite piano concerto, and by my favourite composer to boot. Rubenstein called it 'unplayable.' Despite that I'd love to learn how to play the famous opening solo. There's just one problem...I can't play the piano.

I play the violin reasonably well, have good background in theory, and even compose for full orchestra. When it comes to piano, though, I can only punch out simple melodies with one hand. To make things harder, I have baby hands, well under average size for an adult male.

Despite all this, learning the solo part would be the ultimate tribute (not to mention the ultimate party trick). The orchestral score is already in my possession, and a copy is available online too. I don't want to have to go through piano lessons, at least not for the sake of a lark.

Any pianists here have tips or tricks for learning complicated music, especially those directed at a newb? Also welcome are indications that I'm out of my mind.

For your trouble, a topical Monty Python YT.

Identify this series of Boulez lectures

monkey closet — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:52:30 -0800

I'm trying to identify this series (and, possibly, find a copy): At some point in the late 80's/early 90's, someone videotaped a series of Boulez lectures on twentieth-century music for me. He was talking through one piece in each programme, and had an ensemble on hand to play the musical examples, and the whole piece at the end. I don't remember all the pieces - the one that grabbed me was Messiaen's Oiseaux Exotiques - I'd heard it and struggled, but remember Boulez making it crystal clear, and opening up a whole new load of music to me.

Random acts of violins

spamguy — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 14:17:20 -0800

What music written after 1830 is playable by an amateur violinist? I've played violin for about 11 years, most of them in a school orchestra. I took private lessons as well. Once I got to college (as a computer sci major, not music), orchestra became more of a loathsome chore than the recreational fun it was supposed to be: no competitive events, rehearsals of 2.5 hours, no parties. I stopped playing entirely.

Now that I have a salaried job and my own apartment, I have the time and inclination to play again, and it feels pretty damn good. My job gives me access to UTexas' library system, its massive library included, so any music I want to play, I can get.

I am, of course, limited by talent. I play acceptably, but I'm sure no virtuoso. The body of 'playable' repertoire lies in the Classical and Baroque eras, when music as a whole was much simpler. That's why much of Suzuki method is made up of Handel/Mozart/Bach works.

Under my own training Bach's Violin Concerto in E Major (legally free score) is the current pinnacle of my abilities. Still, after years of Suzuki, I am so very sick of Handel/Mozart/Bach music and I'd love to experiment in Romantic and 20th century. These are the eras in which composers take liberties and let loose, which unfortunately results in a prohibitive difficulty for amateurs. Bartok = ouch, Elliott Carter = arm rape.

To the violinists in the house: what solo music (accompaniment OK) do you know written after 1830 (Beethoven died in 1827) that would be playable by a mediocre amateur? I tend to enjoy Romantic more than contemporary music, but will gladly try both. Because I'm a prude, I would strongly prefer composers I've heard of. I know enough modern music that anyone with an ounce of credibility to his name will likely ring a bell, so all ideas are welcome.

Mini-question: I've always wanted to play in a quartet, but my high school could only train one group, so it was sort of the 'awsum kidz only' club that I wasn't in. Any ideas how I could join/start a recreation-only quartet in Austin?

What was the music used in the introduction of this French wildlife series?

Auden — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 04:05:15 -0800

Help me identify the classical musical piece used as an introduction to a wildlife series shown on French TV (more inside) I lived and studied in France around 1998-99 and watched a lot of french TV.

There was one wildlife series - similar to the old US series Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, I suppose - which had brief introduction, a wildlife montage featuring lions running across the plains, zebras in herds and so forth.

The classical music used during this intro was very fast paced (I would say "rousing") and sounded appropriate for a hunting/safari/martial piece. It reminded me of works written by Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky or Rimsky-Korsakov.

I know this is a long shot, but... What was that series, and what was the music used in the introduction? (I've been wondering this for many, many years) Thanks much

Display composer information on the iPod?

KirkJobSluder — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 16:57:12 -0800

How can I get my iPod to display the composer tag? About half of the music on my iPod consists of classical music, and because I sometimes pick up artist compilations and some weird stuff that I didn't perform back in High School, sometimes I don't know my Bach from my Haydn, much less the names associated with the Kronos album I picked up last week. So I click on my iPod, and find that I can get just about all the information about a song except for the composer.

Is there a way to hack the iPod to show composer information? And if that fails, I notice that I can see podcast notes as a text document by clicking the select button a few times is there a way that I can add that information (perhaps using an applescript?). Would that be the comments or lyrics field?

Sing in Me, O Hivemind

greekphilosophy — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 09:25:35 -0800

What should a modern, semi-professional a capella choral group wear as concert attire? I sing with a relatively new a capella choral group in Philadelphia. Our repertoire is focused on performing secular works both ancient and modern. Our most recent concert was a collection of works commissioned by local composers that focused primarily on great modern poetry. But our upcoming concert is primarily one of English madrigals and other partsongs, to be followed by a performance of Monteverdi's Fourth Book of Madrigals.

We need to look "classic," but with (at least) a nod to our additional modern focus.

Some have suggested "loud" shoes with otherwise black attire. Scarves were used to accent the black attire worn by the women. And most recently, we took pictures wearing a hodgepodge of modern "business casual" attire. None of these things has really suggested the right image for the group. So what will?

Classical music conundrum

docpops — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 18:50:50 -0800

Please guide me toward more classical music... Lately I have been listening to one of only a few classical CD's on my hard drive, a collection of Faure I pinched from my Pop that I almost never used to play. One track in particular, Requiem, Op. 48 - In Paradisum, keeps coming up as a favorite, primarily because of the vocal section. Here's where I'm lost - How does I specify what I'm hearing? It sounds like a falsetto choir. Every so often I'll hear music like this on NPR but by the time the announcer runs the set list I have no idea what track it was I heard in the set.

Anyone out there willing to try to enlighten my dim mind would be welcomed.

Looking for name of a dirge I played in high school.

ZaneJ. — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 13:43:31 -0800

I played a piece in orchestra in high school that I think was named Aces Däd, but I can't seem to find that anywhere. In high school I played a dirge called, I think, Aces Däd. It's a Germanic named dirge about a person named Aces, but I can't seem to find any reference to it anywhere. I may have the diphthong in the wrong place, or the Däd spelled incorrectly. The 'dad' is pronounced 'daad', with the long 'a' sound.

Classical music for Christmas

medusa — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:21:48 -0800

Please recommend classical music related to Christmas/birth of Jesus - preferably including comments on specific recordings. I would like to listen to classical music with a Christmas or birth-of-Jesus theme, such as Handel's Messiah. There are two obstacles: first, I don't know classical music very well. Second, even when I do have a piece in mind (like Messiah) I don't know how to choose a particular recording.

If you can suggest specific recordings, that would be great. Bonus points for explaining what is so great about your favorite recording.

Name that composer!

tomble — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 04:43:03 -0800

Name that composer! I was listening to a lovely piece of music by a composer who I think was from about the 15th or 16th century. I thought the name sounded like Joscan Dupre but either my spelling is woeful or I have remembered the name incorrectly because searching has yielded nothing! If I have remembered the name poorly, then I have given very little information to go on.

Help, Ask Mefi!

I like Sigur Ros. What modernist composers should I listen to?

KokuRyu — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 17:32:37 -0800

What modernist classical music should I listen to? I am a big fan of Sigur Ros, especially Takk and (), and I'd like to listen to something similar. I also like Amnesiac by Radiohead quite a bit. I also like Bjork, Mum, Boards of Canada, Tet, Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Godspeed! You Black Emperor...I dislike prog rock. I also listen to jazz, mostly Hard Bop.