# Only 2 composers....



## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Do to an astral calamity we must all depart our planet and because the ark which will save us has limited room, you may only take along the complete works of two composers! 

Nothing of any other composers.

Whose work do you take? :devil:


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## Andolink (Oct 29, 2012)

This is easy-- J.S. Bach and L. van Beethoven.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Bach and Brahms. They are my #1 and #3 composer, but I pick Brahms over Mahler (#2) because of the wider variety in his output.


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## mikeh375 (Sep 7, 2017)

get thee behind me Satan...

Britten and...erm....annnnd...eeerrmmmm....



erm.....Bach

No wait...ermm...


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

Berlioz and Vaughan Williams - that would give considerable variety.


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## paulbest (Apr 18, 2019)

Maurice Ravel
Allan Pettersson. 
I'm more a Ravelian and Petterssonian than any other, -ian~~


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## MatthewWeflen (Jan 24, 2019)

Beethoven and Brahms.

Since I'm only being asked for my preference, and not some sort of historical preservationist perspective. In that case it might be Beethoven and Mozart.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

Bach and Mahler.


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## TheGazzardian (Nov 24, 2018)

Mozart, due to the sheer volume of works.

For the second, I'd probably stray as far from Mozart as I can so there's at least something different when I'm sick of Mozart. Probably Glass or Stravinsky. Leaning towards Glass for that, as I enjoy his works more consistently than Stravinsky.


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2019)

Beethoven and Schubert.


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## Totenfeier (Mar 11, 2016)

Bulldog said:


> Bach and Mahler.


You nailed it in one.


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

Tchaikovsky and Debussy


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## MatthewWeflen (Jan 24, 2019)

You should really stir the pot and ask which recordings


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## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

Shostakovich definitely, with either Hindemith or Britten on the flip of a coin - all three produced a large output covering all genres which would hopefully keep me occupied for as long as necessary. I would sorely miss the works of Mahler and Bruckner but their output is probably too slender to keep me going.


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

I'd go with Brahms and Prokofiev, but leaving behind so many other dear friends.......


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist (Jan 13, 2019)

Definitely Bach, can't decide between Beethoven and Mozart for the second choice. I think I prefer Beethoven, but Mozart wrote so much more...

However, despite the difference in prolificity, I still think there is at least as much "variety" within Beethoven's output as there is within Mozart's, so I think I'll go with Bach and Beethoven.

If "the big 3" are off the table, Brahms, Haydn, and Schubert would be my next 3 choices. I really don't know which 2 I'd take... Brahms is my favorite of the 3, but Haydn and Schubert were both far more prolific. Still, I'd probably take Brahms and Schubert.


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## Clouds Weep Snowflakes (Feb 24, 2019)

Beethoven and Tchaikovsky, which are among my favorites anyway, I just can't imagine life without Moonlight sonata and Swan Lake.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Bach and Debussy. Alternative choices would be Mozart and Ravel. Wish the two Frenchmen wrote more. I love Bach and Mozart but after a while I can tend to get real sick of Germanic music.

Pretty unbelievable that no one has said Wagner yet. I'm not a particular fan of his but I think he'd be a great choice.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Possibly Mozart and Bruckner.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

Locatelli and Hausegger, of course


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2019)

Jacck said:


> Locatelli and Hausegger, of course


Of course, any other pair would be quite stupid.


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## Brahmsian Colors (Sep 16, 2016)

Brahms and Mozart


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## annaw (May 4, 2019)

That’s very tough... possibly Beethoven and Wagner although Brahms and/or Mozart are also very tempting possibilities.


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## jim prideaux (May 30, 2013)

Sibelius and probably Brahms.....


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Haydn67 said:


> Brahms and Mozart


Make that two. I'll miss Bach though.


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## Swosh (Feb 25, 2018)

Beethoven and Chopin/Mendelssohn


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## Littlephrase (Nov 28, 2018)

Bach and Beethoven, with profound hesitation.


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## Supersalmon (Feb 18, 2019)

Haydn and Respighi


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## paulbest (Apr 18, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> Bach and Debussy. Alternative choices would be Mozart and Ravel. Wish the two Frenchmen wrote more. I love Bach and Mozart but after a while I can tend to get real sick of Germanic music.
> 
> Pretty unbelievable that no one has said Wagner yet. I'm not a particular fan of his but I think he'd be a great choice.


I choose to take with me, 
Ravel and 1 other composer,,,
I will not miss Debussy, as I have Ravel with me.
But if perchance our planets, happen to cross orbits close enough,,,could you perhaps lend me some of your Mozart, and next time we again pass close enough,,,I will kindly return the Mozart collection? .Maybe I could Star Trek FEDEX* beam-it-up-scottie*, also,,,,,,depends on the Beam it up ship prices....,,,could get pricey,,,, light years and such.,,,,


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## Swosh (Feb 25, 2018)

Faure was so beyond Ravel haha.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Swosh said:


> Faure was so beyond Ravel haha.


 in what sense? Age?


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## Littlephrase (Nov 28, 2018)

Swosh said:


> Faure was so beyond Ravel haha.


Even as a Fauré fan, I can't see the reasoning here.


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## TapeMeasureTobias (Jun 14, 2019)

I'd have to take the complete works of J.S. Bach and Mozart along with me. There's a certain wit to their works which is seldom replicated in the world of music.


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## StrE3ss (Feb 20, 2019)

Vivaldi & Beethoven


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## poconoron (Oct 26, 2011)

Mozart and Beethoven.


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## Tero (Jun 2, 2012)

Lennon and McCartney.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Allan Pettersson and Iannis Xenakis on a Friday afternoon.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Salieri and Raff. The mediocrities I will leave behind to perish.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

Richard Wagner. Do we *have* to pick 2 composers? I'm fully ready to damn everything else to non-existence.


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## Schoenberg (Oct 15, 2018)

Bach and Beethoven, they have the most works that I believe that are essential and that I could not imagine living without.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Mozart and Beethoven.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

Beethoven and Dvorak, but I'll hide a CD of Marriage of Figaro somewhere.


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## jim prideaux (May 30, 2013)

Olias said:


> Beethoven and Dvorak, but I'll hide a CD of Marriage of Figaro somewhere.


when pondering the initial question I had also considered Dvorak alongside Sibelius.

(I am banking on choice in other 'genres' not being restricted in the same way and so alongside the two composers chosen I will still have access to all my other music of choice?)


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## Isaac McHelicopter (Jun 14, 2019)

Mahler way ahead of any other, then Bruckner..... or maybe Copland.....


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## Malx (Jun 18, 2017)

I'd probably take Beethoven and Mahler but my wife being my wife would insist on coming bringing along Mozart and J S Bach.

Just a small observation but did all previous posters mean J S or another member of the family


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Couchie said:


> Do we *have* to pick 2 composers? .


Yes.

.........................


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Malx said:


> I'd probably take Beethoven and Mahler but my wife being my wife would insist on coming bringing along Mozart and J S Bach.
> 
> Just a small observation but did all previous posters mean J S or another member of the family


Oh I meant WF Bach, obviously.


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## CrunchyFr0g (Jun 11, 2019)

Fun question.
Tippett and Prokofiev.
Ask me again tomorrow for a different answer


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## CrunchyFr0g (Jun 11, 2019)

Malx said:


> I'd probably take Beethoven and Mahler but my wife being my wife would insist on coming bringing along Mozart and J S Bach.
> 
> Just a small observation but did all previous posters mean J S or another member of the family


You're lucky. My wife would bring Maria Carey...


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

The Master and Herge Bortkiewicz. No surprises thought...:lol:


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## Colin M (May 31, 2018)

Like Eljr Definitely *Shostakovich*... And I would give R Strauss and Dvorak some deep thought before settling on *Sibelius*


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## Hugo9000 (Aug 6, 2018)

Handel and Verdi.

It would be difficult to exclude Rachmaninov, but I'd have to have Verdi in order to have Leontyne Price's recordings of his Requiem, _Aida_, _Ballo_, _Forza_, and _Trovatore_. I'd almost be tempted to choose Puccini as second to Verdi in order to also have Leontyne Price's _Butterfly_, _Tosca_, and _Il tabarro_, but the sheer number of glories by Handel would sway me.


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist (Jan 13, 2019)

Malx said:


> I'd probably take Beethoven and Mahler but my wife being my wife would insist on coming bringing along Mozart and J S Bach.
> 
> Just a small observation but did all previous posters mean J S or another member of the family


Do you mean Wolfgang or Leopold Mozart?


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## Malx (Jun 18, 2017)

BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist said:


> Do you mean Wolfgang or Leopold Mozart?


I don't know you will have to ask my wife


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## Cadenza (Sep 24, 2012)

Brahms and Dvorak.


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## samm (Jul 4, 2011)

On the assumption that there are other people on this ark who will probably take Mozart, Bach & Co I'll bring Francis Poulenc and Haydn. Hopefully, like in the film Fahrenheit 451, there will be others who have brought or memorized all the great works.


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## EddieRUKiddingVarese (Jan 8, 2013)

Edgard & Varese


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist said:


> Do you mean Wolfgang or Leopold Mozart?


Hey, there's Frans Xaver too.


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## 1996D (Dec 18, 2018)

Can you not take a laptop with you? I could re-compose most of the music with software--a large enough crew would have in their memories almost every piece composed. The hardest to recreate would be Brahms and Mahler so I'll take those.


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## Agamenon (Apr 22, 2019)

*Bach and Wagner*. Supreme brains!

(of course, I love Mozart, Monteverdi and Shostakovich :lol


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## CypressWillow (Apr 2, 2013)

Chopin and Mozart
or
Chopin and Bach
or
Chopin and Beethoven
or
Chopin and Schubert
or


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

CypressWillow said:


> Chopin and Mozart
> or
> Chopin and Bach
> or
> ...


Great choices all. Giving up Chopin would be tough, but I can only stomach so much solo piano, I think..


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## Guest (Jun 18, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> Great choices all. Giving up Chopin would be tough, but I can only stomach so much solo piano, I think..


The thing is though that most of the top composers wrote a lot of good piano solo, so it would be somewhat difficult to avoid repetition.

If one is a Wagner fan, the problem doesn't exist. Tchaikovsky is another who didn't write a great deal of piano solo, but all the other big name composers did.

I chose Beethoven and Schubert for my Ark rescue, partly because I like their piano work, and it's so different from each other.


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## NLAdriaan (Feb 6, 2019)

I join forces with the Bach & Mahler team.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Partita said:


> The thing is though that most of the top composers wrote a lot of good piano solo, so it would be somewhat difficult to avoid repetition.
> 
> If one is a Wagner fan, the problem doesn't exist. Tchaikovsky is another who didn't write a great deal of piano solo, but all the other big name composers did.
> 
> I chose Beethoven and Schubert for my Ark rescue, partly because I like their piano work, and it's so different from each other.


Don't get me wrong, I LOVE solo piano music. I love Beethoven's sonatas especially. But with Beethoven, there is much more than "just" the 32 piano sonatas. With Chopin, outside of a few piano/orchestra works and even fewer piano/cello works, it's nothing but solo piano. Variety is a factor here in my choice. It's the reason why I wouldn't choose someone like Mahler, Wagner etc who composed mainly in one form.


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## Guest (Jun 18, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> Don't get me wrong, I LOVE solo piano music. I love Beethoven's sonatas especially. But with Beethoven, there is much more than "just" the 32 piano sonatas. With Chopin, outside of a few piano/orchestra works and even fewer piano/cello works, it's nothing but solo piano. Variety is a factor here in my choice. It's the reason why I wouldn't choose someone like Mahler, Wagner etc who composed mainly in one form.


My choices were based on the same considerations as you.

As you will have gathered, I like piano solo a great deal but my overall favourite genre is chamber music, and here both Schubert and Beethoven stand supreme in my estimation. I don't know how far you've got with chamber music, but I'm pretty sure you'll find lots to admire with these two composers. The "trouble" is that Mozart, Haydn, Brahms, Schumann, Dvorak wrote lots of excellent chamber music, which I would sadly miss.

You mention Mahler and Wagner being one-trick ponies (I know you didn't quite say that). When I started out on my classical music journey roughly ?? years ago, I thought Mahler was great but I didn't care all that much for Wagner. That has been turned virtually upside down over the years, but even so I still wouldn't take Wagner since there is inadequate variety, with no lieder, no piano solo or chamber works, and nothing much in the way of purely orchestral work.


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## DBLee (Jan 8, 2018)

Beethoven, then play "rock, paper, scissors" to decide between Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, or Dvorák.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Partita said:


> My choices were based on the same considerations as you.
> 
> As you will have gathered, I like piano solo a great deal but my overall favourite genre is chamber music, and here both Schubert and Beethoven stand supreme in my estimation. I don't know how far you've got with chamber music, but I'm pretty sure you'll find lots to admire with these two composers. The "trouble" is that Mozart, Haydn, Brahms, Schumann, Dvorak wrote lots of excellent chamber music, which I would sadly miss.
> 
> You mention Mahler and Wagner being one-trick ponies (I know you didn't quite say that). When I started out on my classical music journey roughly ?? years ago, I thought Mahler was great but I didn't care all that much for Wagner. That has been turned virtually upside down over the years, but even so I still wouldn't take Wagner since there is inadequate variety, with no lieder, no piano solo or chamber works, and nothing much in the way of purely orchestral work.


Interesting, I recently came around on Mahler after more or less active dislike for however many years (though most of those years I knew nothing at all about classical music outside of a handful of occasional favorites). Wagner I still have yet to make the turnaround. I recognize his greatness. In fact I'd put him on any top 5 of all time list despite not caring for his music. But I'm just not all that drawn to it at the moment, and have plenty others to work through for now.

Anyway, while neither is a one trick pony, Mahler wrote in more or less only two genres, symphony and song (though he turned each of them on its head). Wagner wrote a few symphonies, a few symphonic poems, and maybe other stuff too. I don't know. But obviously, the bulk of his work is in opera. With either of them on my desert island team, I would find myself desperately missing solo piano music. And chamber music, as you mentioned. I'm not as well versed in the chamber repertoire as I am in solo piano (and more recently, orchestral music) but I definitely appreciate it quite a bit. Looking back on my choices, it would be REALLY hard to give up Beethoven and Schubert, too... but I just don't think either would win out over Bach or Mozart, in the end, and I am not giving up my Frenchmen.

Bah, putting too much thought into this hypothetical. :lol:


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## Guest (Jun 19, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> ... And *chamber music*, as you mentioned. I'm not as well versed in the chamber repertoire as I am in solo piano (and more recently, orchestral music) but I definitely appreciate it quite a bit.


In case you haven't seen this part of the Forum, it's well worth a look into:

Compilation of the TC Top Recommended Lists

It contains a number of sections listing recommended works based on T-C members' preferences as expressed in a sequence of voting rounds that were carried out a few years ago. You'll discover all the main genres are listed, including several relating to chamber music. For each section, I would suggest you take each list only as a guide to the best works, and treat the actual order with a slight pinch of salt:

The chamber music items are:


The TC Top 50 Recommended String Ensembles 
The TC Top 50 Recommended Piano Chamber Works 
The TC Top 100 Recommended Chamber Duos 
The TC Top 200 Recommended String Quartets List 
The TC Top 125 Recommended Piano Trios List 
 There is a little overlap between some of these lists as they were done at different times. For someone not all that familiar with chamber music, I would suggest that if top 50 works in each section were acquired they'd be quite well stocked. 

Chamber music is where I've been most "picky" about the choice of artists, as there is quite a lot of variation in style. I have tons of this stuff and would be more than happy to discuss further separately.


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## Xisten267 (Sep 2, 2018)

eljr said:


> Do to an astral calamity we must all depart our planet and because the ark which will save us has limited room, you may only take along the complete works of two composers!
> 
> Nothing of any other composers.
> 
> Whose work do you take? :devil:


I would take Wagner's and Beethoven's. If somehow I could have a third choice, it would be Bach's.
These three composers are very special and dear to me. They are my personal music "gods".


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## Open Book (Aug 14, 2018)

If you had said three composers I could almost be completely happy with Beethoven, Mozart, and Schubert and no one else. 

Two composers, and something will be sorely missing no matter whom I choose.

I will have to go with Beethoven and Mozart. I would then have most of the best quartets, symphonies, piano sonatas, operas, and concerti ever written. And some fun divertimenti and contradanses as well. That's hard to beat on paper. But the special bittersweet melancholy only Schubert's intimate works have on me would be missed.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

flamencosketches said:


> Don't get me wrong, I LOVE solo piano music. I love Beethoven's sonatas especially. But with Beethoven, there is much more than "just" the 32 piano sonatas. With Chopin, outside of a few piano/orchestra works and even fewer piano/cello works, it's nothing but solo piano. Variety is a factor here in my choice. It's the reason why I wouldn't choose someone like Mahler, Wagner etc who composed mainly in one form.


I don't find that variety plays much of a role in my musical preferences; it's just the way I'm built.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Bulldog said:


> I don't find that variety plays much of a role in my musical preferences; it's just the way I'm built.


Do you listen obsessively to a single genre for hours, days, weeks at a time? As far as that goes, as close as I'll come is piano music. There are days where I listen to little else. But with the way I'm built, I just have to break up the monotony every few hours or so of listening and change it up to a new genre, style, composer, etc.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

flamencosketches said:


> Do you listen obsessively to a single genre for hours, days, weeks at a time?


Yes I do, but I consider it natural.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Bulldog said:


> Yes I do, but I consider it natural.


Certainly nothing unnatural about it!


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

To get a wide range, including much must-have music: Beethoven and Vaughan Williams.


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## Guest (Jun 25, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> Do you listen obsessively to a single genre for hours, days, weeks at a time?


Not without the occasional sleeping break and meeting other such natural requirements.

I tend to get focused on one composer at a time. This week so far it's been E J Moeran (English composer 1894-1950). He wrote such a lot of calming music without being in any way boring.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Partita said:


> Not without the occasional sleeping break and meeting other such natural requirements.
> 
> I tend to get focused on one composer at a time. This week so far it's been E J Moeran (English composer 1894-1950). He wrote such a lot of calming music without being in any way boring.


Never heard of him. Sounds like that could be great or, well, boring. What's a work of his you'd recommend?

*Take my requests for recommendations with a grain of salt; I've only yet scratched off a few entries from your Elgar recommendations from last week... really liked the violin sonata, though.


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## Guest (Jun 26, 2019)

flamencosketches said:


> Never heard of him. Sounds like that could be great or, well, boring. What's a work of his you'd recommend?


You can read up about Ernest John Moeran in wiki, so I won't attempt to summarise much about him except to say that he wrote music across several genres and was much influenced by countryside scenes in some of the music he wrote.

I have most of Moeran's work. It's all straightforward tonal music written between 1919-47. Don't expect anything like Bartok or Shostakovich or any of that crowd on the other side of the English Channel. Perish the thought. This is straightforward English music of the period par excellence. Moeran wrote in much the same tradition as Ralph Vaughan Williams, but is less well known. Generally, I prefer Moeran to RVW.

The CD I'd recommend for starters is the one below covering some of his chamber music. In my opinion it's all delightful material, and not in the least boring. It's not in the slightest earth-shatteringly rumbustous, but the opposite in terms of serving ideally the purpose of having something pleasant to listen to in the background at lowish volumes whilst perhaps reading or revising for exams etc.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Moeran is one of my favourites. I'd recommend starting with this gorgeous Chandos CD:










For me, his cello concerto is the first pick in the genre, ahead of usual candidates like Dvorak and Elgar.


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## Guest (Jun 26, 2019)

Art Rock said:


> Moeran is one of my favourites. I'd recommend starting with this gorgeous Chandos CD.


Certainly that's an excellent choice. It's the version I have, and I quite often play it. It would be well worth acquiring too.

The reason I suggested some of Moeran' chamber music is that I thought that this might be preferred to orchestral music initially, given that my earlier suggestion of Elgar's Op 82 violin sonata seemed to be liked.


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## Iota (Jun 20, 2018)

I must say I have much sympathy with mikeh375's Britten post #4. There are so many moments in his music that inhabit the miraculously expressive zone for me, that to not take him, would seem like a personal act of cultural self-harm too far. 

Choosing only one other seems to be beyond me at the moment. Sorry. Though it might be Bach, Mahler, Monteverdi or, as mikeh375 so succinctly puts it, ... erm ..


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

As we have so many new members since I first posted this thread I was wondering if they would like to contribute to this thread.

the question was:

Do to an astral calamity we must all depart our planet and because the ark which will save us has limited room, you may only take along the complete works of two composers!

Nothing of any other composers.

Whose work do you take?


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## golfer72 (Jan 27, 2018)

Wow tough question. Since my main interest is Piano i probably have to choose Schubert and Beethoven. With them you also get the chamber, orchestral works etc. Beethoven slightly edges out Brahms but very close


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## ORigel (May 7, 2020)

Beethoven and...Dvorak, maybe? The latter is not the greatest composer, but I listen to him a lot, and he was versatile.


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

I don't think I responded to this thread when it came out. I'd go with Mozart and Bach. I probably enjoy Beethoven slightly more than Bach, but there's simply so much wonderful music from Bach. The cantatas alone might make it worthwhile.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Never mind.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Sibelius and Tchaikovsky.


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## TwoFlutesOneTrumpet (Aug 31, 2011)

Beethoven, no question. And the 2nd is most likely Bach (keyboard works alone), maybe Sibelius.


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## SanAntone (May 10, 2020)

Verdi and Mozart


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

I am still with Mozart;


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## Chilham (Jun 18, 2020)

Tchaikovsky and Beethoven.


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## MatthewWeflen (Jan 24, 2019)

Beethoven and Sibelius.


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## Montarsolo (5 mo ago)

Three is very easy: Bach, Mozart, Beethoven. But two... That's mission impossible.

I would say Mozart and Beethoven. But then, as a Christian, I would be without Bach's cantatas. Then Bach and Mozart and no Beethoven. But I'd pay bribes to get Beethoven along.


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## Waehnen (Oct 31, 2021)

MatthewWeflen said:


> Beethoven and Sibelius.


 I echo that. Those two composers mean the most to me by far.


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## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

Very tough question...

I think I'd have to go with 2 Americans:

Elliott Carter
Charles Wuorinen

But ask me again in a week, and I may have different choices.

Bartok has a hard time not making my top 2.


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## Scherzi Cat (8 mo ago)

Cage and Varese.

Just kidding.

Mozart and Bach.


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## Bernamej (Feb 24, 2014)

Bach and Mozart, but this is an absolute calamity, no romantic composer...why oh why do you have to destroy planet earf !!!!


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## Bernamej (Feb 24, 2014)

Simon Moon said:


> Very tough question...
> 
> I think I'd have to go with 2 Americans:
> 
> ...


clever way to cheat !


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## Prodromides (Mar 18, 2012)

neoshredder said:


> Sibelius and Tchaikovsky.


These 2 should satisfy the 'pair of swans' requirement for this Noah's Ark scenario.

When's the next flood?


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Ethereality said:


> There's also a slight variant of this thread here, where the question is more comprehensive.


If anyone wants to give that one a shot too, I noted you don't have to post 10 composers, some people only did 3.

I'm still trying to put my list together


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## Animal the Drummer (Nov 14, 2015)

Heartbroken as I would be to have to go without so much deeply treasurable music by others, I would have to add my name to the Mozart and Bach list.


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## HansZimmer (11 mo ago)

Mozart for sure. The second choice is probably Mendelssohn.


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## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

Tchaikovsky and Beethoven, and weep over all the Dvořák I left behind.

I would happily listen to Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Dvořák and no one else for the rest of my life.


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## lele23 (Sep 1, 2016)

Haydn & Handel


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## Prodromides (Mar 18, 2012)

haziz said:


> I would happily listen to Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Dvořák and *no one else* for the rest of my life.


Stop listenin' to Shaughnessy, Bulldog & Art Rock, will ya?


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## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

Prodromides said:


> Stop listenin' to Shaughnessy, Bulldog & Art Rock, will ya?



???

Bulldog seems to hate Tchaikovsky with a passion. I am of course referring to Pyotr, he seems to like Boris. Of course Bulldog is also a great polls/games organizer and is a very nice guy!


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## Nakulanb (4 mo ago)

Satie & Chopin. I love piano music, and I’d want both cycles recorded with Lang Lang.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

haziz said:


> Bulldog seems to hate Tchaikovsky with a passion. I am of course referring to Pyotr, he seems to like Boris. Of course Bulldog is also a great polls/games organizer and is a very nice guy!


Yes, I always favor Boris over Pyotr. As for polls, I think I've only started one over the years, and I was sorry I did that one.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

Nakulanb said:


> Satie & Chopin. I love piano music, and I’d want both cycles recorded with Lang Lang.


Satie's music tends to be understated, and Lang Lang prefers the "larger than life" approach. I think this is not a good match.


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## Nakulanb (4 mo ago)

Bulldog said:


> Satie's music tends to be understated, and Lang Lang prefers the "larger than life" approach. I think this is not a good match.


Yet, he knows how to play tenderly too. Listen to his Fur Elise and/or Claire de Lune.


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## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

Nakulanb said:


> Yet, he knows how to play tenderly too. Listen to his Fur Elise and/or Claire de Lune.



I don't mind his playing, although he is far from being my favorite living pianist. It is his "emoting" and mannerisms that drive me up the wall.


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## Nakulanb (4 mo ago)

haziz said:


> I don't mind his playing, although he is far from being my favorite living pianist. It is his "emoting" and mannerisms that drive me up the wall.


I find them descriptive of his phrasing.


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## Nakulanb (4 mo ago)

Edit:

I really just love Chopin. I’m making a playlist of my favorite albums.


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## pianozach (May 21, 2018)

BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist said:


> Definitely Bach, can't decide between Beethoven and Mozart for the second choice. I think I prefer Beethoven, but Mozart wrote so much more...
> 
> However, despite the difference in prolificity, I still think there is at least as much "variety" within Beethoven's output as there is within Mozart's, so I think I'll go with Bach and Beethoven.
> 
> If "the big 3" are off the table, Brahms, Haydn, and Schubert would be my next 3 choices. I really don't know which 2 I'd take... Brahms is my favorite of the 3, but Haydn and Schubert were both far more prolific. Still, I'd probably take Brahms and Schubert.


I'm in this boat.

Bach, and Beethoven or Mozart.

Fine. Bach and Mozart. You see, with the accumulated works for these two, the rest of the tonal catalog of Classical Music is merely an extension.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

This thread model is different from the one I use to select favorite composers, since under this model you get to have 2 composers instead of 1, so I wouldn't even need to bring Brahms because I wouldn't need the ultimate composer. I would have more diversity so I'd definitely bring Mozart! and one of my other two.


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## Andante Largo (Apr 23, 2020)

Sibelius and Respighi


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## EvaBaron (Jan 3, 2022)

Beethoven and Mozart for sure


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## Artran (Sep 16, 2016)

Joseph Haydn - wast oeuvre, which is more even, than Mozart's.
Iannis Xenakis - the second composer was much harder... I hasitated between Orlando di Lasso, Monteverdi, Telemann, J.S. Bach, Schoenberg, Janáček, Bartók, Ligeti and Xenakis. But I've chosen Xenakis, because he's totally different.

Btw, do you know why Mozart couldn't find his teacher?
Because he was Haydn


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