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Favorite Classical Pieces


Anoushik

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Hello all :)

 

What is your favorite Classical piece/composition? Even if you don't have any favorite what do you like to listen to most? This includes any genre, form, (symphonic, chamber, solo instrumental, vocal, choral, even film music that's now considered to be classical, etc). Thanks!

 

My absolute favorite is J.S. Bach's Chaconne from Partita No. 2 for solo violin.

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My absolute favorite is Bach, but I can't single out a specific work of his. There are too many. The funny thing is I don't know the names. In Armenia I had bought German vynil disks without knowing what they were, as long as they were Bach. Over time they grew on me and I would listen very often. I now miss them so much, I would like to buy the same on CDs, but don't know what they were because I don't know German.

Perhaps you can help me Anoushik - those were relatively simple vocal pieces, but very beautiful. Some of the pieces I remember contained the word "Jesus" (that's the only thing I could understand in German).

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Yes, same way I can't single out any Glenn Gould performance of Bach. I love them all! (Even though sometimes his performance can be controversial.)

 

Sasun, those pieces were for solo voice or were they choral? Cantatas maybe? Oratorios?

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Yes, same way I can't single out any Glenn Gould performance of Bach. I love them all! (Even though sometimes his performance can be controversial.)

 

Sasun, those pieces were for solo voice or were they choral? Cantatas maybe? Oratorios?

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They were cantatas.

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Good :) Great taste!

 

Actually Sasun, I don't mean to be a hypocrite but there is a certain spiritual experience in listening to Bach. His music is very philosophical and very humane and one wonders how our human race was able to give birth to such a genius.

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but, yes, probably i'm baised and my opinion is not based on the classic part of the work but the folk part of it.

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No problem :) as long as you are satisfied by the music.

 

I love Spartacus ballet by Khachaturian.

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Good :)  Great taste!

 

Actually Sasun, I don't mean to be a hypocrite but there is a certain spiritual experience in listening to Bach. His music is very philosophical and very humane and one wonders how our human race was able to give birth to such a genius.

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I agree, and when I fell in love with Bach music I was an atheist. Maybe it helped me become spiritual on a subconscious level.

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'Moonlight Sonata' by Mozart, Part III. I don't like I and II, because in my best years I could play them :D

 

'Pictures at an Exhibition' by Modest Mussorgsky

 

Bach - everything!

 

Wagner 'Ride of the Valkyries'

 

And many others with varying rate of ear pleasure, depending on the mood!

 

Oh, I forgot the "winter" from Vivaldi's Seasons

 

 

Anoushik, I'm sure you are aware of this type of software but in any case check out this! It is really very helpful!

 

http://www.noteworthysoftware.com/composer/download.htm

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I listen anything by Bach but specially Glen Gould performances.

I love Gorgi Savall a viola player who plays early music.The soundtrack "Tous les Matins du Monde" is amazing and the movie is great.I had a opportunity to listen him life in a small library in French embassy in Boston and it was a special night more then one ways to remember.

http://www.musicolog.com/jordisavall.asp

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Anoushik and Armat, after being only a little exposed to Glen Gould's Bach performances I have a question: don't you guys think that he puts too much of his individual understanding/feeling? I am not at all sure that Bach meant many of the things that Gould is doing to his works.
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Hello all :)

 

What is your favorite Classical piece/composition? Even if you don't have any favorite what do you like to listen to most? This includes any genre, form, (symphonic, chamber, solo instrumental, vocal, choral, even film music that's now considered to be classical, etc). Thanks!

 

My absolute favorite is J.S. Bach's Chaconne from Partita No. 2 for solo violin.

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It's hard to tell, but if I have to chose one, right now, I would say:

Tabula Rasa of Arvo Part

In general, I enjoy minimalist esthetics in Arts - regardless of the discipline.

That is probably why I would enjoy Bach anytime! Also some of his contemporaries such as Marais and Sainte Colombe that Armat - indirectly - mentioned.

 

I also appreciate the works of the "Second Viennese School" members such as Alban Berg, Anton Webern and the founder Schoenberg.

 

Thanks to my friend, I have also developed a taste for "Serial Music" such as Stockhausen, Zimmerman, Nunes and to a lesser degree Boulez.

 

I would not ignore Malher!

 

Last, but not least, I can appreciate medieval Madrigals and some Gregorian chants...including Armenian Medieval Music that I have recently discovered.

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Anoushik and Armat, after being only a little exposed to Glen Gould's Bach performances I have a question: don't you guys think that he puts too much of his individual understanding/feeling? I am not at all sure that Bach meant many of the things that Gould is doing to his works.

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Well, Glenn Gould's performance is definitely controversial and no other pianist should try to imitate him. The reason it's acceptable for Glenn Gould to interpret Bach's music the way he does is because he does it so well. His performance is not unique because it's aesthetic but because it's so well thought out and philosophical. There are other great pianist that play Bach - Andras Schiff and Angela Hewitt are my favorites - and they play Bach very beautifully and tastefully, but their performance doesn't resemble the performance of someone that's asking the univesal question of who we are, what are we doing here, where are we going, what's our purpose, especially after listening to Glenn Gould. Of course, this is only my own interpretation of Glenn Gould.

 

Needless to say, there has been sometimes when I've really not accepted some of Glenn Gould's playing of Bach. I asked (begged really :P ) my teacher to let me work on Prelude and Fugue in B minor from Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 this coming semester and a week ago I accidentally listened to Glenn Gould's performance of that. I had a complete different interpretation in mind of that beautiful, thought-provoking piece.

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Hullo,

 

Anoushik, Sona told me that you post in hyeforum :)

 

I love Johan Sebastian Bach, and his [Christianity] related music. Currently I enjoy his Choral Prelude in F minor, BWV 639; Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ (I call out you, Jesus Christ).

 

I heard this piece of music in movie Solaris (1972) by Andrei Tarkovsky. The movie is about love and respect. In that movie Tarkovsky shows that in 21st century people will not respect and love each other, and later when the relationship is gone, they regret.

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Yes Anoushik, of course I meant Bethoven! :D  Mozart is my favorite though, but I simly cannot play anything by him except some early menuettes. :)

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You still play the piano? Do you practice daily, once in a while, occasionally? :) Do you play jazz? I'd love to play jazz but I'm not familiar with the jazz chords.

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Well, Glenn Gould's performance is definitely controversial and no other pianist should try to imitate him. The reason it's acceptable for Glenn Gould to interpret Bach's music the way he does is because he does it so well. His performance is not unique because it's aesthetic but because it's so well thought out and philosophical. There are other great pianist that play Bach - Andras Schiff and Angela Hewitt are my favorites - and they play Bach very beautifully and tastefully, but their performance doesn't resemble the performance of someone that's asking the univesal question of who we are, what are we doing here, where are we going, what's our purpose, especially after listening to Glenn Gould. Of course, this is only my own interpretation of Glenn Gould.

 

Needless to say, there has been sometimes when I've really not accepted some of Glenn Gould's playing of Bach. I asked (begged really :P ) my teacher to let me work on Prelude and Fugue in B minor from Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 this coming semester and a week ago I accidentally listened to Glenn Gould's performance of that. I had a complete different interpretation in mind of that beautiful, thought-provoking piece.

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Anoushik, thank you for the explanation. Maybe if I listened Glen Gould long enough I will start appreciating his interpretation. Maybe it is because of habit and attachment that I can't listen to his performances of Bach. To me, a layman in classical music, some parts of his interpretation sometimes seems outright wrong. But perhaps I must be more openminded, I will give him a try again. I certainly want to be more familiar with somebody's work who asks the same question that I do ;)

 

P.S. Why do you have to ask your te4cher to be able to work on something that you wish? Can't you just work without your teachers approval?

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