Fill my ears with more of this!

February 26, 2015 12:24 PM

I recently heard the Kronos Quartet play this piece ("The Beatitudes", Vladimir Martynov) live as their encore to a concert, and I was absolutely floored by it. Shaken and opened and all of the things that wonderful music does. If I liked this, what else will I like?

My knowledge of modern classical music (is that even what you call it?) is not completely zero, but is scattered and haphazard, mostly consisting of bits and pieces that have entered my awareness through my involvement with dance.
Other things I also love that vaguely remind me of this piece which may help your suggestions: minimalist Arvo Part, this Sigur Roos track, almost everything Olafur Arnalds has ever made, and Robert Moran's "Music from the Towers of the Moon".

What else should I listen to? Looking for suggestions of specific pieces, but also composers, "genres", keywords, etc. Help me fill my brain and soul with things of pure beauty!

posted by Dorinda to Media & Arts (10 answers total)

Modern Classical music is the correct term, as far as I know, and I am living it in, teaching it, and composing in it--that is what we all call it.

Anyway, check out Lera Auerbach, for starters. Search YouTube.
posted by TinWhistle at 12:51 PM on February 26, 2015

Arvo Pärt, Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten, perhaps?
posted by a fiendish thingy at 1:14 PM on February 26, 2015

as soon as I posted, I saw your earlier knowledge of Arvo Part, SORRY.

Here is another song that I thought of while listening to your link.
posted by a fiendish thingy at 1:15 PM on February 26, 2015

Based on your other examples, I'm not sure if this is modern enough, but the "Beatitudes" reminds me a lot of the second movement of Bach's Double Violin Concerto in D Minor
posted by Mchelly at 1:17 PM on February 26, 2015

You may well also like Martynov’s piece Come In!. And possibly some of Georgs Pelēcis’ work, such as Flowering Jasmine or Concertino Bianco.
posted by misteraitch at 1:30 PM on February 26, 2015

Best answer: Their arrangement of Thomas Tallis's "Spem in Alium" might be up your alley. Benjamin Britten's cello suites. Charlemagne Palestine's "Piano Drone" (that's part one of two). Gavin Bryars, maybe also "The Sinking of the Titanic". Kyle Gann's The Light Summer Land which I think is on his website.


I thought "contemporary classical" was more the term. But if you dig this sort of lush classical-by-way-of-post-rock stuff, you might also check out Balmorhea, the Boxhead Ensemble, Clogs (try Thom's Night Out), the John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble (jazzy, but should count), Johan Johannsson's IBM 1401 A User's Manual, Max Richter's Blue Notebooks. And now maybe I should get back to work.
posted by kenko at 1:37 PM on February 26, 2015 [3 favorites]

Best answer: You might like the group Town & Country, and, as further explorations into the Kronos Quartet go, you could do worse than to check out their Terry Riley stuff. You might also like Brooklyn Rider's work playing Philip Glass music, and the Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble doing almost anything they've done. For genre labels, you might also look into ambient, cosmic, drone, minimalism and new age (though not everything, in any of those labels, will appeal to you, it's a place to jump off).
posted by box at 2:08 PM on February 26, 2015

Best answer: How about:

Judd Greenstein
Nico Muhly
John Luther Adams
Anything Nadia Sirota plays (and she has a podcast, Meet the Composer, too)

* Source: Someone who also likes The Beatitudes.
posted by MrBobinski at 7:33 PM on February 26, 2015

This piece appears on the soundtrack to the film La Grande Bellezza. You might enjoy some of the other work on that soundtrack as well.
posted by judith at 1:13 AM on February 27, 2015

Rachel's – Music for Egon Schiele maybe.
posted by zadcat at 6:33 AM on February 27, 2015