Thanks Rameau for your feedback. A small detail: 'Les Elemens' is written without a 't' at the end for it's ancient French. The opening segment I was hinting at is also spelt in that ancient manner: 'Le cahos'.
I have the 1994 recording of this ballet suite by Reinhard Goebel/Musica Antiqua Köln but as it's over a year since last played I can't say I'm familiar with it ... let's see if I rectify that later today.
Two world famous purely symphonic pieces I do enjoy very much are Wagner's TANNHÄUSER's Overture and Nicolaï Rimsky-Korsakov's tone poem SHEHERAZADE. ...
Now Scheherazade, Op.35: this is very much more my cup-o'-tea ... I have 7 recordings of it and it's a delight. Technically a symphonic suite (I understand poem is a single piece, perhaps multiple themes played continuously, such as Richard Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op.30) it is, for me, truly wonderful concert hall music.
And mentioning Strauss: that piece is becoming better-liked by me with almost every play. Whilst the Opening~Introduction is the piece we all know, the rest of this tone poem is very captivating. I use Herbert von Karajan's 1974 recording with the Berliner Philharmoniker of that first piece to demonstrate my hi-fi streaming capabilities - it has superb clarity.
I'm pleased to see Wagner mentioned ... I can't say I'm a fan of his operas since I have little or no exposure, but his orchestral overtures, preludes and incidental pieces are highly enjoyable. Again, I have multiple recordings of Tannhäuser, WWV70: Overture but I would place Tristan und Isolde: Love Music (from acts II & III) somewhere higher in my list. The suite performed by Leopold Stokowski/Philadelphia Orchestra (1960) is simply gorgeous.
I'm amazed at the number of pieces mentioned which are not mainstream ... so many names I've either not heard of or, even if known, works still to be discovered.
Interesting thread considering for the past two weeks I've been reacquainting myself with all my classical CDs and buying tons of new things. I don't know about ten, because the list would change as I was writing it. Below are things I play over and over again. Not including any film music.
Rachmaninov Symphony No. 2 (my favorite symphony, period) ... and hundreds of others.
Ah, someone who agrees with me! November 2015 we went to Birmingham Symphony Hall to hear Vladimir Ashkenazy conduct the Philharmonia Orchestra ... a symphony I've enjoyed for many years on CD.
Back in the late 1990s we saw John Barry conduct two concerts and he remains my favourite composer to this day ... but that Rachmaninov symphony was the best single piece of music I've heard live. Absolutely incredible ...
... there's another performance in January (same location, different orchestra, different conductor) and I can't decide whether to go. I can't believe it will be as good and I don't want to spoil the memory ...
I see I left my favourite composer off my list...Handel (for my money the best composer ever), but that's mostly vocal, also two of Bach's sons J.C. Bach & C.P.E. Bach, I have tons of discs of their stuff (but nothing by their dad), but that's late Baroque, so it's generally shorter pieces (a bit like film music really). It's funny how your brain leads you to the stuff that you'll like, or your brain will like, well, your brain is you. Ah, best not to think about all this stuff, I need a drink!
Ives Symphony #4 Ives Central Park in the Dark Debussy Sonata for Flute Viola and Harp Debussy Engulfed Cathedral Bartok Music for Strings Percussion and Celesta Bartok Piano Concerto #3 Jarrett Celestial Hawk Hovhaness Mysterious Mountain Saint-Saens Organ Symphony Poulenc Concerto in G Minor for Organ, Strings and Timpani
there are many more pieces of music that I love including some by Barber etc.
I only include "classical composers" because if I list film score composers I would be here all day!
Such a wide topic. I have no idea where to start or stop.
Then why did you post? Nothing to add or contribute..
I could have, but my brain doesn't work unless there are specific parameters. So I guess I'd need some of those. What type of 'pieces for orchestra' are we talking about?
Fair enough. The type of orchestra piece doesn't really matter but it seems as though most people followed my cue and included concert works rather than film scores. I happened to include 1 film score because I think it holds up melodically, harmonically and developmentally with the other works on my list. Aside from that it's really just which 10 pieces I couldn't live without if I found myself stranded on an island or wherever with a limited number of pieces to listen to. My list covers all the bases for me. And it reveals where my head and personal tastes are now insofar as what I'm listening to lately. If it was a Top 10 desert island cds I could bring it would look more like this:
1. Song of the Earth- Mahler (Karajan cond Berliner Phil) 2. Turn of a Friendly Card- Alan Parsons Project 3. Herrmann-the film scores- ESA Pekka Salonen 4. Thief- Tangerine Dream 5. First Circle- Pat metheny Group 6. Superman the Movie- Williams 7. Papillon- Goldsmith 8. Shostakovich- The symphonies- cond Haitink * totally cheating here but it is a CD box set 9. Soil Festivities- Vangelis 10. Renaissance- Branford Marsalis
Einojuhani RAUTAVAARA: Cantus Arcticus, op. 61 (discussed in another thread, such poetry and mesmerizing harmonies in this piece for birds and orchestra)
What a wonderful work! I got the Naxos recording years ago and it's terrific. What a terrific composer. Pity he passes away recently. I've also been getting into Hanson especially his 4th symphony. I find his compositional style close to Rautavaara as well as Hovanness.
I love lists, I'm going to have to list my ten desert island discs later on, although this is probably the wrong forum, as I think there'll only be two soundtrack CD in it!
RHAPSODY IN BLUE (Gershwin -- Earl Wild & Arthur Fiedler/ Boston Pops)
And then in alphabetical order :
CONCERTO N°2 (Rachmaninov) DAPHNIS ET CLOE (Ravel) EL SOMBRERO DE 3 PICOS (Falla) HARMONIELEHRE (John Adams -- especially Part II THE ANFORTAS WOUND) HUAPANGO (Moncayo) JEUX (Debussy) LE SACRE DU PRINTEMPS (Stravinsky -- Dir. Markevitch) THE PLANETS (Holst -- favorite one : NEPTUNE) TIMBRE, ESPACE, MOUVEMENT (Dutilleux) tied with TURANGALÎLA SYMPHONIE (Messian)
As others have said, there is way too much great orchestral music out there to do an all-time favorites list of a mere ten selections. So instead, I'll simply list my ten favorite symphonies that I've been studying/enjoying the hell out of over the last three to four months:
Malcolm Arnold - 4th Sym - (There is a lot more beyond his film work.) Balkauskas - 1st Sym - (Modern Lithuanian composer who has become a new favorite of mine.) Bruckner - 9th Sym (Can't believe I hadn't heard this until recently. The 2nd movement is thrilling!) Dvorak - 4th Sym (Witold Rowicki/LSO on Philips. Not one of Dvorak's more celebrated works [his 7th is my favorite of his nine symphonies], but I can't stop listening to the damned thing!) Dutilleux - 1st Sym (After hearing part of it in the French film Sous le soleil de Satan earlier this fall.) Haydn - several of his symphonies, especially the final twelve. (I'm really taking the plunge into Haydn this autumn.) Milhaud - several of his 12 symphonies (I also heard his "Blue Train" ballet music for the first time this year [Thank you, YouTube] and a lovely piano work, "The Household Muse" which I found on an old used Turnabout LP.) R. Schumann - 3rd Sym - (A famous chestnut of a symphony, but a pleasure to revisit. I've been getting into some of Schumann's piano music as well.) Shchedrin - 2nd Sym (I've been listening to a wide range of Shchedrin lately. This work is quite experimental compared to some of his more well-known tonal pieces.) Shostakovich - 15th Sym (I've known it for years, but have only now studied it closely for the first time. Maxim S's original 1972 recording remains my favorite of the several I listened to.)
Nice to find someone else who loves this piece of music. One of my absolute favorites. Since you like this you might also like Carlos Chavez's Sinfonia India, and Aaron Copland's El Salon Mexico.
I'm loving the responses. Great pieces! It's very interesting to see what resonates with people to the point where they will add it to their Top 10 list. I like the insights behind the choices.
I'm loving the responses. Great pieces! It's very interesting to see what resonates with people to the point where they will add it to their Top 10 list. I like the insights behind the choices.
Keep 'em coming!
It's a great thread, David. Thanks for starting it.
Nice to find someone else who loves this piece of music. One of my absolute favorites. Since you like this you might also like Carlos Chavez's Sinfonia India, and Aaron Copland's El Salon Mexico.
Nice to find someone else who loves this piece of music. One of my absolute favorites. Since you like this you might also like Carlos Chavez's Sinfonia India, and Aaron Copland's El Salon Mexico.
I love this piece since discovering it at a Carnegie Hall performance...but you can't waste a pick on a seven minute piece!
Haydn - several of his symphonies, especially the final twelve. (I'm really taking the plunge into Haydn this autumn.)
Shostakovich - 15th Sym (I've known it for years, but have only now studied it closely for the first time. Maxim S's original 1972 recording remains my favorite of the several I listened to.)
I went to the London (UK?) premier of the 15th conducted by Maxim (I think the great man was supposed to be there, but I don't remember seeing him). There were two recordings at the time Maxim on HMV/Melodyia & Ormandy on RCA. I bought & loved the Maxim, but as far as I can see it's never ever been released on CD
For the Haydn London symphonies, Colin Davis conducting the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra on Decca (used to be Philips) is a must have (& very cheap these days), unless you're going down the authentic instruments route.
Glass Symphony No.8 Kilar Symphony No.3 (or 4) Hovhaness Symphony No.50 Mt St Helen Korngokd Symphony in F# Shostakovich 13 Babi Yar Adams Harmonielehre Goldenthal Symphony in G# Minor Mahler 9 Goldsmith Music for Orchestra Sibelius 7 Picker Old and Lost Rivers Nyman MGV John Williams Elegy Ifukube Symphonic Fantasia no.1 Gorecki 3
Haydn - several of his symphonies, especially the final twelve. (I'm really taking the plunge into Haydn this autumn.)
Shostakovich - 15th Sym (I've known it for years, but have only now studied it closely for the first time. Maxim S's original 1972 recording remains my favorite of the several I listened to.)
I went to the London (UK?) premier of the 15th conducted by Maxim (I think the great man was supposed to be there, but I don't remember seeing him). There were two recordings at the time Maxim on HMV/Melodyia & Ormandy on RCA. I bought & loved the Maxim, but as far as I can see it's never ever been released on CD
For the Haydn London symphonies, Colin Davis conducting the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra on Decca (used to be Philips) is a must have (& very cheap these days), unless you're going down the authentic instruments route.
I found the Maxim Shostakovich/Melodiya performance on YouTube. I would love for it to be released on CD. (I own the Haitink London label CD, which is also very good, but the Maxim S. recording is truly special.)
That's fantastic that you were able to see the world premiere of this great symphony. I can only imagine what that was like.
The Davis/RCO/Decca CDs are the ones I'm listening to for the Haydn London symphonies. I've also been listening to some of the other symphonies on YouTube; primarily the Decca Antal Dorati/Phil Hung recordings from 45 years ago.
- it has superb clarity.
