# Which Composer Has the Most Recognizable Melodies in Popular Culture?



## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

I think it's Beethoven.

Moonlight Sonata.
The Main Motif of the 9th Symphony.
Fur Elise.
The Fifth Symphony Mvt. 1

I think that's it, but that's quite a bit for a composer I'd say.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Captainnumber36 said:


> I think it's Beethoven.
> 
> Moonlight Sonata.
> *The Main Motif of the 9th Symphony.*
> ...


Which movement?

As for which composer, I'd say Tchaikovsky. The Nutcracker Suite, alone, has at least four..


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Last mvt. Of the 9th.


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## maestro267 (Jul 25, 2009)

Gotta be Tchaikovsky

1812 Overture
A whole bunch of themes from all 3 ballets
Romeo and Juliet "love theme"
Opening of Piano Concerto No. 1

...to name but a few.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Also sprach Zarathustra


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## Lisztianwagner (2 mo ago)

An der schöne blauen Donau


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## pianozach (May 21, 2018)

eljr said:


> Also sprach Zarathustra


*Strauss*? No, I think not. Yeah, there's *Also Sprach Zarathustra*, and *Ride of the Valkyries*, but most typical folks wouldn't be able to come up with a third *R Strauss* tune.

No, while *Beethoven* may be a close second, I'd have to also say *Tchaikovsky*. 

I think that *Mozart* might be a distant third though. That notable tune from the Requiem, several tunes from his Overtures, maybe some aria tunes from the operas.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

pianozach said:


> *Strauss*? No, I think not. Yeah, there's *Also Sprach Zarathustra*, and *Ride of the Valkyries*, but most typical folks wouldn't be able to come up with a third *R Strauss* tune.
> 
> No, while *Beethoven* may be a close second, I'd have to also say *Tchaikovsky*.
> 
> I think that *Mozart* might be a distant third though. That notable tune from the Requiem, several tunes from his Overtures, maybe some aria tunes from the operas.


Ride of the Valkyries? 🙂

I'd say few would be able to come up with a second Strauss tune.


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## PeterKC (Dec 30, 2016)

Not the most tunes in popular culture. But the one most often used.

Orff: "O Fortuna"


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

PeterKC said:


> Not the most tunes in popular culture. But the one most often used.
> 
> Orff: "O Fortuna"


I don’t think that’s the one most used. That would probably be fur Elise, think about all those little music boxes


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## PeterKC (Dec 30, 2016)

Music boxes? Not immediately what comes to mind as popular culture today.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Wagner wins with Here Comes The Bride.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Rossini wrote the Lone Ranger theme. And a few other tunes borrowed by Bugs Bunny.

And Ponchielli has the double whammy of Disney and Allan Sherman for Dance of the Hours


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

I am so out of touch with today's popular culture that I don't know how to answer this. Cartoons aren't what they used to be, and classical music excerpts don't come up in movies like they used to. I'd guess Tchaikovsky, but not sure.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Obviously if you start letting the "fake!" composers in like John Williams then his rank on this list would be like negative 12.

1. Tchaikovsky
2. Beethoven
3. Pachelbel
4. Wagner
5. Mendelssohn
6. Sousa
7. Grieg
8. J. Strauss II
9. Liszt
10. Elgar
11. Rossini
12. Debussy
13. Chopin
14. Copland
15. Bizet
16. Handel


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## pianozach (May 21, 2018)

jegreenwood said:


> Ride of the Valkyries? 🙂
> 
> I'd say few would be able to come up with a second Strauss tune.


LOL, OMG. 

Hey, did you know that Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner were the same person?

Sorry, got my Richards mixed up. 

No, I think if you did a public poll on Facebook, asking "typicals" *if they could hum three tunes from some R Strauss music*, you'd get blank stares. People may know the tune to *Also Sprach Zarasthustra*, but few people would actually remember a single work attributable to R Strass (and if you instead asked the question _"Who wrote Also Sprach Zarasthustra"_, and even hummed the tune to them, very few would be able to name the composer. They would, however, remember it was from _"2001: A Space Odyssey"_). You're actually likely to get a few to hum _The Beautiful Blue Danube_ back at you, not even knowing that there are two Strausses.

No one is going to come up with a tune from Alpine Symphony, Elektra, or Metamorphosen.


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## ORigel (May 7, 2020)

Tchaikovsky for sure


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Moonlight Sonata.


The third movement is also popular





42,492,698 views





35,045,667 views


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

I prefer Beethoven's over them all, except Puccini and Chopin.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

pianozach said:


> *Strauss*? No, I think not.


The Blue Danube and Die Fledermaus overture


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

I think with Beethoven, people would be able to name the works I listed in the OP upon hearing it and identify the composer. That's a huge accomplishment IMO.

It doesn't say anything about quality, imo, that's a personal appraisal.


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## pianozach (May 21, 2018)

hammeredklavier said:


> The Blue Danube and Die Fledermaus overture


Not _Johann_ Strauss. _Richard_ Strauss.

But even if we had been talking Johann Strauss, that's still only two.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Ask someone to name this song and hum Somewhere Over The Rainbow, and people only know because the lyrics are the melody. It may be different that anyone can name music by Williams (lots of it), Joplin, Beethoven, the Tetris or Greensleeves theme if you just whistle it, but some of these yet are still engrained because of watching movies and culture, while few are carried through pure music. Oh boy let's not start a thread about the miracle of Chopsticks.


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## BBSVK (10 mo ago)

I am out of touch with the current pop culture, but my kids like the cartoon "Blaze and the Monster Machines", where one episode contains the tune of "La donna e mobile" from Rigoletto by Verdi. The lyrics is about meatballs, though


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

BBSVK said:


> The lyrics is about meatballs, though


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Johan Strauss in cartoons so does Bizet, ( Tom and Jerry)


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## PaulFranz (May 7, 2019)

Grieg gets two from the Peer Gynt suite, and Bizet at least two from Carmen. Tchaikovsky probably wins out, with Beethoven and Mozart close behind.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Mozart is the winner.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

pianozach said:


> LOL, OMG.
> 
> Hey, did you know that Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner were the same person?
> 
> ...


Although they might whistle _Tales From the Vienna Woods._


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Last mvt. Of the 9th.


It occurs to me that for my generation or older, the answer might be the second movement. It was the theme for NBC's nightly news show for many years.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

I didn't see Gershwin mentioned. _American in Paris, Rhapsody in Blue_ and at least half a dozen melodies from _Porgy and Bess._


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

PaulFranz said:


> Grieg gets two from the Peer Gynt suite, and Bizet at least two from Carmen. Tchaikovsky probably wins out, with Beethoven and Mozart close behind.


Beethoven has 4: moonlight sonata, 5th symphony fate motif, 9th symphony ode to joy theme and of course fur Elise
Mozart has 3: Turkish March piano sonata, requiem lacrimosa and eine kleine nachtmusik. Tchaikovsky probably wins, then Beethoven and then Mozart and I don’t think anyone has mentioned bach who has 3 like Mozart does
Bach:
1st cello suite
Toccata and fugue
The well tempered clavier book 1 prelude no. 1


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

EvaBaron said:


> Mozart has 3: Turkish March piano sonata, requiem lacrimosa and eine kleine nachtmusik.


How about the main theme of the first movement of the 40th symphony, the adagio from the clarinet concerto and the slow movements of the 20th and 21st piano concertos?


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

Art Rock said:


> How about the main theme of the first movement of the 40th symphony, the adagio from the clarinet concerto and the slow movements of the 20th and 21st piano concertos?


I would say those are well known, but not at the same level as the others mentioned. My friends don’t know any of these, I know because I introduced them to some of these and they hadn’t heard it before. They are not really that popular mainstream, but popular under casual classical music listeners I think


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Must be a generation thing. The 40th was a huge hit in a pop version (Waldo de los Rios, 1971), and certainly two of the concertos' adagios became famous after they were used in films.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Art Rock said:


> Must be a generation thing. The 40th was a huge hit in a pop version (Waldo de los Rios, 1971), and certainly two of the concertos' adagios became famous after they were used in films.


With Super Bowl-like viewer numbers, the final episode of M*A*S*H in 1983 was the most watched TV episode in U.S. history. One of the plots has Major Winchester teaching the _Mozart Clarinet Quintet _to a group of Chinese soldiers.

Given its predominance as on-hold music and the like, I wonder if Vivaldi gets 12 for _The Four Seasons._


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## perempe (Feb 27, 2014)

Verdi arias like La donna è mobile?


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

neoshredder said:


> Mozart is the winner.


I can think of two - the opening to the 40th symphony (popular ringtone) and A Little Night Music ...


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

Art Rock said:


> Must be a generation thing. The 40th was a huge hit in a pop version (Waldo de los Rios, 1971), and certainly two of the concertos' adagios became famous after they were used in films.


That could be the case, there are some classical pieces that are popular now and they weren’t before. So it probably changes per generation


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

EvaBaron said:


> Beethoven has 4: moonlight sonata, 5th symphony fate motif, 9th symphony ode to joy theme and of course fur Elise
> Mozart has 3: Turkish March piano sonata, requiem lacrimosa and eine kleine nachtmusik. Tchaikovsky probably wins, then Beethoven and then Mozart and I don’t think anyone has mentioned bach who has 3 like Mozart does
> Bach:
> 1st cello suite
> ...


Bach - Air on a G String,


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## pianozach (May 21, 2018)

There are plenty of non-Classical composers that would qualify, as *jegreenwood* points out with their mention of Gershwin.

A contemporary, *George M. Cohan*, also has dozens of songs that are familiar. And you could add composer *Richard Rodgers,* who wrote many memorable songs with Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II.

Of course, there's also *Carole King, Randy Newman, Bob Dylan*, and, of course, the songwriting team of *Lennon/McCartney*.


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## toasino (Jan 3, 2022)

jegreenwood said:


> Which movement?
> 
> As for which composer, I'd say Tchaikovsky. The Nutcracker Suite, alone, has at least four..


Also, Chopin?


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## Second Trombone (Jan 23, 2020)

Rossini's William Tell Overture has been used pervasively in everything from cartoons to TV commercials.
Glazunov's "The Seasons: Autumn" --the principal theme was borrowed for the John Williams main theme in Star Wars.
Beethoven: The Moonlight sonata's most famous theme became, in inversion, the tune of John Lennon's "Because"
Beethoven: Meredith Wilson's 'The Music Man' relies pervasively on Beethoven's Minuet in G
Borodin: the song Strangers in Paradise is a direct rip off of one of the Polovetsian Dances
Mozart: The pop song "Somewhere, My Love Waits for Me" borrowed its tune from Mozart's Piano Sonata 16

These are just few of many, many example of pop music's borrowings from classical


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

jegreenwood said:


> Bach - Air on a G String,


Again maybe more of a generation thing, most people in my youth orchestra actually hadn’t ever heard it before when we played it and I only know it because of my dad, who didn’t listen to classical music before I started doing so


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Second Trombone said:


> Rossini's William Tell Overture has been used pervasively in everything from cartoons to TV commercials.
> Glazunov's "The Seasons: Autumn" --the principal theme was borrowed for the John Williams main theme in Star Wars.
> Beethoven: The Moonlight sonata's most famous theme became, in inversion, the tune of John Lennon's "Because"
> Beethoven: Meredith Wilson's 'The Music Man' relies pervasively on Beethoven's Minuet in G
> ...


Borodin is credited for _Stranger in Paradise_. It's from _Kismet__. _I did think of listing him as well as Grieg for _Song of Norway _(and other works)._._

Meredith Willson (two L's) has Harold Hill humming the Minuet in G and the band playing it - very badly - at the end, but I wouldn't describe that as pervasive. Are you saying there are songs in the score that are based on it?


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

pianozach said:


> There are plenty of non-Classical composers that would qualify, as *jegreenwood* points out with their mention of Gershwin.
> 
> A contemporary, *George M. Cohan*, also has dozens of songs that are familiar. And you could add composer *Richard Rodgers,* who wrote many memorable songs with Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II.
> 
> Of course, there's also *Carole King, Randy Newman, Bob Dylan*, and, of course, the songwriting team of *Lennon/McCartney*.


I consider some of Gershwin's work as classical (as did most record stores when they existed). It seems to me _Porgy and Bess_ is more likely to pop up in an opera house these days than in a theatre.

Of course if you add the songs for Broadway and Hollywood, his number would skyrocket.


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## Second Trombone (Jan 23, 2020)

Regarding Beethoven's Minuet in G in "The Music Man," I referred to it as pervasvie in the musical not so much because of the frequency with which we hear the tune, but because of the minuet's importance in the plot as a reference point. It's a very easy classical piece whose tune is known by almost everyone. Because it's a classic, Harold Hill's Boys Band can play it, it will prove him a success as a music teacher. Hill does sing the song in rehearsal the song, using his think method, with his untrained band, and he sings is at other times as the plot unfolds. And the band does finally play it, as jegreenwood puts it, "very badly," at the musical's climax. Still, played badly or not, the fact the band does play it at all keeps Hill from being torn limb from limb by the River City townspeople.

So it's the continuing plot-importance of the song, also well as its repeated appearance in the musical, even such a capella, and the tune's cultural status as a classic, that led me to term the song pervasive. BTW, I don't recall that Beethoven is ever mentioned as the composer of the piece. It's so well known to the townspeople that Hill can simply call it the Minuet in G.

John Williams use of Glazunov seems to me by contrast, a bit of a stealth appropriation. Glazunov's piece is, compared with Beethoven, comparatively little known. I just happened to be listening to Glazunov's "Seasons" for the first time a few years ago, and when I heard the music, I instantly said "Star Wars"! Then I googled it and found that there was indeed some online discussion of the appropriation. Williams tweaked the tune and many feel he improved it. Still, this counts in my book as a recognizable classical melody that has become a standard in popular culture. This thread has a good discussion: More Great Moments in Tune Theft History

A point to consider is that Willson is emphasizing the classical source of his tune while I don't think John Williams particularly wants us to notice. It can function both ways.


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## Chant (17 d ago)

Depends on what you mean by recognizable. Some pieces, like the William Tell Overture, would not commonly be recognized by name or even nickname, but the melody will still be remembered. Other pieces like Beethoven's 5th 1st movement or scenes from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker would usually be recognized for both the composer and title.


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## brahmsderonincourt (1 mo ago)

Captainnumber36 said:


> I think it's Beethoven.
> 
> Moonlight Sonata.
> The Main Motif of the 9th Symphony.
> ...


It's Beethoven, for sure. All the ones you listed are recognizable melodies, and more obscure Beethoven tunes pop up in movies and ads, as well-- the main theme of the Kreutzer Sonata 1st mvt, and the main theme of the first movement of the Archduke Trio are also sometimes heard.


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## brahmsderonincourt (1 mo ago)

Ethereality said:


> Obviously if you start letting the "fake!" composers in like John Williams then his rank on this list would be like negative 12.
> 
> 1. Tchaikovsky
> 2. Beethoven
> ...


It's notable that three of the most highly regarded composers, Bach, Brahms and Mozart, are missing from this list.

Apparently all these three did was write great music, without producing any catchy tunes.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Leroy Anderson. After having played Sleigh Ride some 18 times since Thanksgiving, I'm convinced that it has become a second national anthem. Everyone knows it, expects it. It's all over TV for commercials; just saw a new ad for BMW that uses it. There are a zillion pop arrangements for singers. It's become so popular that orchestras don't even need to bring a whip crack along anymore - the audiences know when to do it. The Anderson estate must be making a fortune off of it.


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

Second Trombone said:


> John Williams use of Glazunov seems to me by contrast, a bit of a stealth appropriation. Glazunov's piece is, compared with Beethoven, comparatively little known. I just happened to be listening to Glazunov's "Seasons" for the first time a few years ago, and when I heard the music, I instantly said "Star Wars"! Then I googled it and found that there was indeed some online discussion of the appropriation. Williams tweaked the tune and many feel he improved it. Still, this counts in my book as a recognizable classical melody that has become a standard in popular culture. This thread has a good discussion: More Great Moments in Tune Theft History.


The Star Wars tune is based on the Korngold's Main Title fanfare from his score to "Kings Row". Lucas used the Korngold fanfare as a temp track..


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## brahmsderonincourt (1 mo ago)

mbhaub said:


> Leroy Anderson. After having played Sleigh Ride some 18 times since Thanksgiving, I'm convinced that it has become a second national anthem. Everyone knows it, expects it. It's all over TV for commercials; just saw a new ad for BMW that uses it. There are a zillion pop arrangements for singers. It's become so popular that orchestras don't even need to bring a whip crack along anymore - the audiences know when to do it. The Anderson estate must be making a fortune off of it.


Leroy Anderson is a popular, not "classical", composer. Many his compositions were major pop hits in the early 1950's, including "Blue Tango", "Belle Of The Ball" and "The Syncopated Clock." Those have since fallen out of favor, but "Sleigh Ride" is an enduring holiday standard and many successful recordings have been made of it; the most notorious of these include versions by The Ronettes, Johnny Mathis and Amy Grant.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

brahmsderonincourt said:


> It's notable that three of the most highly regarded composers, Bach, Brahms and Mozart, are missing from this list.
> 
> Apparently all these three did was write great music, without producing any catchy tunes.


Maybe so to a degree. These great composers wrote very catchy tunes, but it seems there's much competition in the comprehensive melodic memorability of modern culture. Mozart would make the top 25 and I mistakenly forgot Joplin in the top 15 but mentioned him. I can't have it my way either... Puccini's not even on the list!


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## Chant (17 d ago)

Here's a list I came up with. I give more weight to the composer being recognized along with the melody and if the work has multiple famous melodies. Also, someone can have fewer melodies but get rated higher if their melodies are more well-known. For this list, I'm leaving out film scores and military marches. (Edit: Enter the Gladiators is actually a military march, but I'll leave it in)

*Tier 1
Beethoven* - 5th Symphony, Fur Elise, 9th Symphony (Ode to Joy), Moonlight Sonata, 7th Symphony (Allegretto)

*Tier 2
Tchaikovsky* - Nutcracker (At Least 6 Very Famous Melodies), Swan Lake Theme, 1812 Overture, Piano Concerto 1
*Mozart* - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Requiem (Dies Irae, Lacrimosa), 40th Symphony, Queen of the Night Aria, Figaro Overture, Rondo Alla Turka, Piano Concerto 21 (Andante)
*Bach* - Cello Suite 1 (Prelude), Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Prelude in C, Air

*Tier 3
Wagner* - Ride of the Valkyries, Bridal Chorus
*Vivaldi* - Four Seasons
*Pachelbel *- Canon in D
*Rossini* - William Tell Overture, Barber of Seville
*Chopin* - Piano Sonata 2 (Funeral March), Nocturn Op 9 No 2, Prelude in E Minor

*Tier 4
Handel *- Messiah (Hallelujah Chorus, For unto us a child is born)
*Schubert* - Ave Maria
*R Strauss* - Also sprach Zarathustra
*Joplin *- Entertainer, Maple Leaf Rag
*Dvorak* - 9th Symphony (2 Themes)
*Haydn *- Emperor String Quartet (German Anthem)
*Mendelssohn* - Wedding March
*Offenbach* - Orpheus in the Underworld Overture
*Elgar* - Pomp and Circumstance
*Brahms *- Hungarian Dance No 5
*Debussy* - Claire de Lune
*Bizet* - Carmen Overture
*Orff* - O Fortuna
*J Strauss II *- Blue Danube
*Puccini* - Nessun Dorma
*Fucik* - Enter the Gladiators (Circus Music lol)
*Greig* - Peer Gynt Suite (Hall, Morning)
*Verdi* - Dies Irae
*Giazotto *- "Albinoni" Adagio in G Minor

It's nice that so many styles have made it into the public consciousness, and I'm definitely forgetting many more. I put Beethoven on top due to his 5th being basically synonymous with "Symphony", and Fur Elise for classical piano music. Tchaikovsky has many famous melodies, maybe even more than Beethoven, but they haven't quite become as ingrained as the opening of the 5th. Also as famous as Mozart and Bach are, their melodies are much less famous than Beethoven's. Having said I believe Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is what many people hear in their heads when they think about classical music.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Second Trombone said:


> Glazunov's "The Seasons: Autumn" --the principal theme was borrowed for the John Williams main theme in Star Wars.


That's interesting; I've never considered that relation before but you're right there are similarities. But even more striking is to compare Star Wars main theme to the main theme from Korngold's Kings Row.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Don’t get me wrong. I prefer Beethoven over Mozart. But when I think of Pop music with Classical, I think Mozart wins.


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## Sir Dan Fortesque (10 mo ago)

Hi, I usually just lurk about, but since I've recently made a list on the subject I'll just drop it (I'll just copy/paste parts of Chant's list when they overlap):

*Beethoven* - 5th Symphony (1st), Fur Elise, 9th Symphony (2nd - Ode to Joy), Moonlight Sonata, 7th Symphony (2nd)
*Tchaikovsky* - Nutcracker (7 Melodies, basically Disney Fantasia's), Swan Lake (Main Theme, Waltz, Cygnes' dance) 1812 Overture, Piano Concerto 1, Romeon and Juliet (Love Theme), The Sleeping Beauty (Waltz), Slavonic March
*Mozart* - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Allegro - Romanza), Requiem (Dies Irae, Lacrimosa), 40th Symphony, Queen of the Night Aria, Figaro Overture, Rondo Alla Turka, Piano Concerto 21 (Andante)
*Bach* - Cello Suite 1 (Prelude), Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Prelude in C, Air, Suite No. 2 in B minor, The well-tempered clavier 1 (Prelude), Brandeburg Concerto no. 3

*Vivaldi* - Four Seasons
*Rossini* - William Tell Overture, Largo al factotum della città, La gazza ladra (Overture)
*Puccini* - Nessun Dorma, O mio babbino caro, Un bel dì, vedremo
*Bizet *- Carmen (Prelude – Habanera), L’Arlesienne suite no. 2 (Farandole)
*Verdi* - Dies Irae, La donna è mobile, Va pensiero, Libiamo ne’ lieti calici
*Handel *- Messiah (Hallelujah Chorus, For unto us a child is born), Keyboard suite no. 4 (Sarabande)

*Wagner* - Ride of the Valkyries, Bridal Chorus
*Grieg*: Peer Gynt (Morning Mood – In the Hall of the Mountain King)
*J Strauss II *- Blue Danube, Voice of Spring
*Brahms *- Hungarian Dance No 5, Symphony no. 3 (3rd Movement)
*Delibes*: The Flower Duet, Coppelia (Slow Waltz)
*Stravinsky*: The Firebird Suite (Infernal Dance), Rites of Spring

*J Strauss I*: Radetzky March
*Chopin* - Piano Sonata 2 (Funeral March)
*Pachelbel *- Canon in D
*Schubert* - Ave Maria
*R Strauss* - Also sprach Zarathustra
*Dvorak* - 9th Symphony (1st Movement- 4th Movement)
*Mendelssohn* - Wedding March
*Offenbach* - Orpheus in the Underworld Overture
*Elgar* - Pomp and Circumstance
*Debussy* - Claire de Lune
*Orff* - O Fortuna
*Fucik* - Enter the Gladiators
*Giazotto *- "Albinoni" Adagio in G Minor
*Rimsky-Korsakov*: Flight of the Bumblebee
*Mussorgsky*: Night on the Bald Mountain
*Dukas*: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
*Mascagni*: Cavalleria rusticana (Intermezzo)
*Kachaturian*: Sabre Dance
*Ravel*: Bolero
*Ponchielli*: Dance of the Hours
*Boccherini*: String Quintet no. 5 (Minuetto)
*Prokofiev*: Romeo and Juliet (Dance of the Knights)
*Shostakovich*: Jazz Suite no. 2 (Waltz 2)
*Smetana*: The Moldau
*Charpentier*: Te Deum
*Saint-Saens*: Carnival of the Animals (Aquarium)
*Gounod*: Funeral March of a Marionette
*Liszt*: Liebestraum no. 3


As for the Star Wars’ main theme, they always mention Korngold but nobody ever remembers this one:


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Sir Dan Fortesque said:


> Hi, I usually just lurk about, but since I've recently made a list on the subject I'll just drop it (I'll just copy/paste parts of Chant's list when they overlap):
> 
> *Beethoven* - 5th Symphony (1st), Fur Elise, 9th Symphony (2nd - Ode to Joy), Moonlight Sonata, 7th Symphony (2nd)
> *Tchaikovsky* - Nutcracker (7 Melodies, basically Disney Fantasia's), Swan Lake (Main Theme, Waltz, Cygnes' dance) 1812 Overture, Piano Concerto 1, Romeon and Juliet (Love Theme), The Sleeping Beauty (Waltz), Slavonic March
> ...


Elgar is the winner with and Pomp and Circumstance.


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## Nate Miller (Oct 24, 2016)

Bugs Bunny has performed many classics. Aside from opera, he has also performed Beethoven solo piano works. His interpretation of "Fur Elise" comes to mind. Bugs' playing is subtle and charming until Yosemite Sam starts shooting up the place. Surely, Bugs Bunny is an ambassador of serious music in pop culture. Here he is performing Wagner opposite Elmer Fudd...


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Second Trombone said:


> Rossini's William Tell Overture has been used pervasively in everything from cartoons to TV commercials.


Someone beat me to this:


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## cybernaut (Feb 6, 2021)

Paul McCartney?


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

For Rossini in addition to William Tell, I would add Largo Al Factotum and the overture to Barber. Maybe several other overtures. Check out this list, which is lengthier than I expected.



https://www.victorianopera.com.au/behind-the-scenes/where-have-i-heard-that-overture-the-barber-of-seville


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Rogerx said:


> Johan Strauss in cartoons so does Bizet, ( Tom and Jerry)


Sadly with the zoomer generation, those cartoons that even I as a millennial knew, are fading out of the popular consciousness.


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