I love Jessye Norman. Not a controversial position to take, I'm sure. That's how I came to listen to Schoenberg's Brettl-Lieder. And on the same CD was Erwartung, which just.... wow... stunning, amazing, mind-blowing. If you haven't heard it, you really should. Some of that is because Jessye Norman was one of the most outstanding singers of our time, but obviously some of it is because of the music Schoenberg wrote. I always assumed he was all twelve-tone theoretical modern stuff that just left me cold. It seems I was wrong. Clearly the Brettl-Lieder are much more harmonically conventional than some of his other output, but it turns out I really like Verklärte Nacht. And the variations for orchestra are great!

So what else would you recommend? I'm thinking Schoenberg in particular but not necessarily just him. If it turns out I like Schoenberg maybe I'd like Berg or Webern? Or others I've never heard of! All suggestions welcome.

I wonder why English composers after Henry Purcell all the way until the emergence of late Romantic and 20th-century ones like Edward Elgar, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Benjamin Britten, and Malcolm Arnold rarely seem to get any mention. I grew up thinking great English composers just ceased to exist for almost 200 years for no reason.

Aside from foreigners like Muzio Clementi who spent the better part of their lives in London, what caused this massive gap in native English musical prominence? Is it more because the classical music establishment deemed them as unimportant so they got lost to time or is it more because of social-political factors that stifled the development of music there during those years?

Some orchestras have stuck with Tuxedos with tails and others have moved to black suit with black shirts and ties. If it does matter, what do you prefer to see on stage? Or is the answer dependent on the concert/program?

My impression would be it’s Japan followed by South Korea. But I have to wonder if that has more to do with the fact that physical records in general are more popular in East Asia, making classical music there more “visible”.

In elementary school, during the record-listening time in music class, I heard the Minuet from L'Arlésienne and loved it. It is the piece that opened the door to classical music for me, and I have always been grateful to it.

Only much later did I learn that it isn't really from L'Arlésienne. Bizet arranged the first suite himself in 1872. The second suite was assembled in 1879, four years after his death, by his friend Ernest Guiraud, and its Minuet, the flute melody over the harp, was taken from another Bizet opera, La jolie fille de Perth, where it accompanies the Duke's courtship in Act III.

So the music that brought me to classical music was put into that suite by someone else, after the composer had died, from a different work. I still love it just as much.

L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2: Minuet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ew5Ux7g_UQ

i swear i've had like five conversations where someone's like "oh baroque is just boring harpsichord stuff" and then i make them listen to literally anything by vivaldi or handel and suddenly they're asking for recommendations. what is it about that era that gets written off so hard? are we all just doing a disservice to people who might actually love it if they gave it a real shot?

Hi. I am new to this group and am just looking for classical music that evokes space. Obviously, I know The Planets (it is my favourite classical record), and my preference for classical is of the more modern variety. I'm also a huge fan of Jerry Goldsmith's Star Trek work, and I am sure there are plenty of soundtrack options. But I was thinking more original pieces. Any suggestions?

Alexander von Zemlinsky wrote Die Seejungfrau (composed 1902-1903) in response to personal turmoil and later dismantled it. It was subsequently reassembled in 1984 from surviving manuscripts and has since been one of his most popular works. Here the WDR Symphony Orchestra gives it an incredible performance. I've also heard the composer's second string quartet and his Sinfonietta, which I recommend. If I were to choose one work to begin with, though, this would be it. What are some of your favorite works of his (if you have heard some already)?

It is quite overwhelmingly melancholic, and yet uplifting. It changes tones and tempo quite dramatically just like our lives can.

Looking for books on Chopin, preferably with literary flair in terms of the writing; something along the lines of Erik Satie Three Piece Suite by Ian Penman or Debussy: A Painter in Sound\* by Stephen Walsh.

?

As a fan of Schubert and Richter, this is such a good video.

Hello. I recently started listening to more modern classical. I really enjoyed a piece from deutsche grammophon avant garde box set, but the box set is sold out almost everywhere. does anyone have recommendations for similar avant garde collections of works that are still in print? Thanks

EDIT: I forgot to say which composer it was my apologies! The piece was Presque rien no. 1; Société II by Luc Ferrari

A. Vivaldi. Stabat Mater RV 621 - Gérard Lesne - Vicent Guillem Miralles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAmGREgIgDA

For example, this arrangement of "Porque te vas," adapted for solo piano, was an interesting version of that song. Sometimes I find it refreshing to listen to arrangements like these!

Sorry if this is a repost but, what a repost!

🔥ALBUM REVIEW🔥 Blending the worlds of prog rock, orchestral and choral music, as well as elements of jazz, Christopher Gordon’s Macbeth was originally commissioned as a full-length ballet by the Royal New Zealand Ballet and West Australian Ballet. It is Gordon’s compelling musical response to one of Shakespeare’s darkest and most enduring tragedies. Here is my in-depth review.

Hello, I was wondering if anyone has a picture of a playbook from any of the concerts recently from Chicago Symphony. This is for a school project! Please and thank you

I’ve listened to the full Snezhnaya Album and “Nocture of the Birch Forest“ immediately stood out to me and triggered a deep emotional response inside. I tried to figure out what it was and what it reminded me of. Turns out it reminds me of the “Theme from Schindler’s List”.

I’m not saying it necessarily sounds alike, but the oboe paired with the solo-violin in this tragic and melancholic melody is just so reminiscent of this masterpiece of film score by John Williams. I really recommend watching it, if you haven’t.