# Do you have an obsession ? What is it ?



## Itullian

I have a few. 
Here are mine.

The Beethoven string quartets.
The Mozart piano concertos.
The Schumann symphonies.
The Brahms symphonies.

What are yours? 
:tiphat:

Classical music recordings only please.


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## Allegro Con Brio

Sibelius and Brahms symphony cycles and recordings of all Bach’s music I’m actually floating around the idea (not in the immediate future) of doing some Sibelius and/or Brahms cycle reviews and putting them on here similar to what Merl does for Beethoven. We’ll see though


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## Art Rock

Mahler, especially the 4th, the 9th, Das Lied von der Erde, and the three main song cycles.


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## adriesba

What exactly is meant by obsession here?


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## Merl

LVB symphony cycles (really, Merl?)
Schumann symphony cycles
Brahms symphony cycles
Dvorak symphony cyclrs
LVB SQ cycles 
Mahler 1st recordings

Bubbling under:
Schubert symphony cycles
Bach Cello Suites recordings
Holst Planets recordings
Sibelius symphony cycles
Manchester City
Guitars
Cats
Painting the garden fence*

(*due to lack of fence paint locally - its become a mission)


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## annaw

I guess I have to go with Wagner, though I'm periodically obsessed about Schumann symphonies and pretty much anything by Beethoven as well.


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## elgar's ghost

The closest I ever got was with the Bruckner and Mahler symphonies. I was regularly collecting different recordings and playing them more or less every day at the expense of virtually everything else. I realised that if I continued I would probably end up running them into the ground like I used to do with various rock albums so I drastically cut back.


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## Oldhoosierdude

adriesba said:


> What exactly is meant by obsession here?


That depends on what YOU mean by the word is.


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## Kiki

I collect these -
Martinů's symphonies
Mahler's Tenth

To a lesser extent -
Ravel's La Valse
Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances
Martinů's Paraboly, Frescoes, Estampes and the Double Concerto.

I'd deny I have any obsession with Boléro, but whenever I came across a new recording, I'd have to find out if I could hear the celesta and the harp.


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## annaw

elgars ghost said:


> The closest I ever got was with the Bruckner and Mahler symphonies. I was regularly collecting different recordings and playing them more or less every day at the expense of virtually everything else. I realised that *if I continued I would probably end up running them into the ground *like I used to do with various rock albums so I drastically cut back.


I'm also afraid of that, I wonder how some people manage to avoid it so effectively. It's almost paradoxical, I want to like the music that I like but I also want to listen to it. But when I listen to it [too much] then there's possibility that I won't like it anymore and thus don't want to listen to it. Stupid thing...


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## Barbebleu

Oh, musical obsessions! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


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## Barbebleu

Wagner, Mahler, Richard Strauss, Shostakovich, Britten, Schubert lieder, actually any lieder.


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## starthrower

Absorbing the gigantic sound worlds of all of the Mahler symphonies.

Same exercise for several Wagner operas. And all of my favorite 20th century composers.

Basically, music and learning through reading are my passions and the obsession is trying to balance this so I leave time for other things in life including the outdoors, exercise, relationships. But I can't lie. I've been obsessed with music since I was a young child.


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## Bourdon

annaw said:


> I'm also afraid of that, I wonder how some people manage to avoid it so effectively. It's almost paradoxical, I want to like the music that I like but I also want to listen to it. But when I listen to it [too much] then there's possibility that I won't like it anymore and thus don't want to listen to it. Stupid thing...


*Turning up the volume will give some temporary relief for a while....at least .*


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## annaw

Bourdon said:


> *Turning up the volume will give some temporary relief for a while....at least .*


I will keep that in mind when I reach the point  though I'm most likely to get a hearing loss if I put this into practice with Wagner...


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## Caryatid

If I had to name one composer, it would be Brahms. That hasn't changed in years.


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## D Smith

Since today is his birthday, I’ll start with Brahms Symphonies and Chamber music. Also Beethoven Symphonies, String Quartets and Piano Sonatas, Bruckner Symphonies, Shostakovich Symphonies and SQs and anything by Debussy. I listen to something by each of these composers at least once a week and haven’t reached burnout yet.


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## Bourdon

annaw said:


> I will keep that in mind when I reach the point  though I'm most likely to get a hearing loss if I put this into practice with Wagner...


 Wagner can be seen as a last refuge....


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## Bulldog

I listen to Bach's music every day of my life; some might call that an obsession; I see it as not settling for the next best thing. 

Composers who get my attention at least once a week:

Mahler - especially symphony 2 and 4 and Das Lied von der Erde.
Scriabin - only the solo piano works.
Louis Couperin - love those solo harpsichord and organ works.

My only other obsession is late-romantic and 20th century song cycles (preferably w/orchestra).

I do have anti-obsessions - Vivaldi, Hanson, Italian opera. I avoid them as best I can, but running games gets in the way.


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## Roger Knox

Faure's chamber music
Schumann's piano music
Schmidt's symphonies
Tippett's music up to c. 1960
Canadian folk and folk-rock
Art Tatum & Oscar Peterson


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## flamencosketches

The symphonies & songs of Gustav Mahler, in full bloom lately. This is an obsession that phases in and out—before April I think I went about 5 months scarcely hearing any symphony of his, though song cycles remained in rotation)—but an obsession nonetheless. I want to echo what Starthrower said, that it's an effort (an obsessive one) to get inside of the vast worlds & universes that he puts into the core of every symphony, and to try to wrap my head around it all.

The works of Anton Webern. It's amazing how he puts so much passion, sensation, & mystery into such tiny pieces, & his music hits my brain in all the right places. It's an obsession all right. 

The works of Morton Feldman, also in full bloom. Feldman is newer to me, & I don't know what it is about his music, but he seems to imbue all of his music with deep mystery, & his deceptively simple pieces are forces to be reckoned with. I'm obsessed with trying to understand it all and I discover something new with each listen. 

Classical music in general. I think about it from the time I get up in the morning, all throughout the day at work, & at the end of the day as I'm falling asleep, I hear music playing in my head. I get up for work an hour and a half earlier than I really need to so I can listen to a couple of symphonies, piano sonatas, or whatever the case may be, in the morning before work. 

There are more specific ones, but these come to mind currently...


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## Josquin13

I. My musical obsessions:

I have an obsession with classical music and early music in general, and especially Burgundian and Franco-Flemish Polyphony.

But if we can define an "obsession" as a person's need or set goal to hear every single note that a composer penned, then I have (or have had) a number of musical obsessions in my life. They are,

--Josquin Desprez--as I buy virtually every new recording of Josquin's music released each year.
--Guillaume Dufay--the same, I buy virtually every new Dufay recording that comes out, as well.
--Thomas Tallis--mission accomplished.
--J.S. Bach--still working on it.
--Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart--still working on it.
--Claude Debussy--mission accomplished.
--Maurice Ravel--mission accomplished.

G.F. Handel is currently under consideration as a possible future obsession, but I haven't launched into the goal of hearing every note that Handel composed. I might do so. But he's not quite an obsession yet. 

William Byrd is another candidate that could easily become an obsession for me, in the future. John Dunstable or Dunstaple and Eustache du Caurroy, as well, if more recordings of their music were ever to come out. I've long wished to hear every note that Dunstable composed, but I don't know what his prodigious opus even looks like, thanks to the destruction of his manuscripts during the English Reformation. (I'd mention Orlando di Lasso, too, but there's zero chance that all of his music will ever get recorded in my lifetime, or likely the next--since Lassus was so prolific.)

In addition, the music of Jean Sibelius borders on an obsession for me. However, I've found that his symphonies & tone poems stand out among his opus (apart from his violin concerto), and I have a tendency to become less obsessive when I explore Sibelius's non-symphonic works. So I don't think I'll likely hear every note that Sibelius penned. But yes, his symphonic works are definitely an obsession of mine. I've even got a visit to his home, Ainola, on my bucket list.

II. My non-musical obsessions:

--The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Plus, I used to be totally obsessed with the Royal Shakespeare Company when I lived in London during the 1980s.

--The art of Frederic, Lord Leighton--a trip to Leighton House is likewise on my bucket-list. I still kick myself today, because I once lived close to Leighton House & Holland Park, and I never went into the museum, though I walked by it almost every day--that is, before I knew who Leighton was.

--The plays of Molière--whenever I have the opportunity to see a first class production of a Molière play, I'll go multiple times. It's such a rare event, and he's my second favorite playwright after the Bard. The last time this happened was at the Stratford Festival in Canada with a remarkable production of "The Misanthrope", in 2011. 

--The Art of William-Adolphe Bouguereau--particularly his drawings, and religious and mythological paintings. I'm not quite as obsessed with all the peasant girls.

--Venetian Renaissance painting--Early & Middle period Titian, before his eyesight went, as well as Giorgione, G. Bellini, Veronese, Lotto, etc. I happen to love complex glaze painting. It's one of my goals to see all four of Titian's bacchanal paintings that he made for the bed chamber of Alfonso d'Este, in person (one of them with G.Bellini). So far, I've seen two of the four.

--Flemish Renaissance painting--especially the paintings of Rogier Van Der Weyden (most of all), Gerard David, Hans Membling, Jan van Eyck, etc.

--The drawings and paintings of Raphael, which I've loved since I was a child.

--The Philadelphia Eagles Football team. Another childhood passion that never went away.

--Professional tennis. Though I'm not obsessed, I am a big Rafael Nadal fan. & I love to go to pro tennis tournaments, once a year, if I can. I also love playing tennis. Overall, I'd say it's a mild obsession.

Finally, I'm considering becoming obsessed with architecture & landscape design, which has become a late interest of mine.


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## Caesura

My current ones are Beethoven symphonies (specifically 7 & 9) and Handel oratorio/opera. I still want to get through all the operas and oratorios eventually, but there are ones that I listen to almost constantly. These ones are (in order of listening from most to least): Messiah, Giulio Cesare, Acis and Galatea, Theodora, and Joshua.

I used to have an obsession with Beethoven's Missa Solemnis (listening to it all day and night), but it wore off after a while. I still love it, but I listen more to other stuff now. There is the odd occasion when I play it, but it is definitely not an obsession anymore.

Another Handel piece I was obsessed with was his Dixit Dominus. I'd always listen to it for at least a little bit every day, but then I found more of his output and started listening to that instead. As with the Missa Solemnis, I still like the Dixit Dominus, but I don't listen to it as much anymore.


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## jim prideaux

Sibelius symphonies
Brahms Symphonies
Martinu Symphonies

'bubbling under' (to use a phrase from a previous post)

Beethoven Symphonies
Schumann Symphonies
Schubert Symphonies
Dvorak Symphonies

Partial and a move to a more complete understanding in the future....
Mahler 1 and 4
Bruckner symphonies
Shostakovich 5, 10

I am going to add my non musical obsessions later but Josquin13 I do hope you get to Ainola one day. My son and I visited the house fifteen years ago and it remains one of the most magical memories.


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## jegreenwood

Keeping my stereo systems working perfectly.

Backing up my music.

OVPP Bach Cantatas. (I'm waiting for the first complete set.)


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## Allegro Con Brio

Josquin13 said:


> I. My musical obsessions:
> 
> I have an obsession with classical music and early music in general, and especially Burgundian and Franco-Flemish Polyphony.
> 
> But if we can define an "obsession" as a person's need or set goal to hear every single note that a composer penned, then I have (or have had) a number of musical obsessions in my life. They are,
> 
> --Josquin Desprez--as I buy virtually every new recording of Josquin's music released each year.
> --Guillaume Dufay--the same, I buy virtually every new Dufay recording that comes out, as well.
> --Thomas Tallis--mission accomplished.
> --J.S. Bach--still working on it.
> --Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart--still working on it.
> --Claude Debussy--mission accomplished.
> --Maurice Ravel--mission accomplished.
> 
> G.F. Handel is currently under consideration as a possible future obsession, but I haven't launched into the goal of hearing every note that Handel composed. I might do so. But he's not quite an obsession yet.
> 
> William Byrd is another candidate that could easily become an obsession for me, in the future. John Dunstable or Dunstaple and Eustache du Caurroy, as well, if more recordings of their music were ever to come out. I've long wished to hear every note that Dunstable composed, but I don't know what his prodigious opus even looks like, thanks to the destruction of his manuscripts during the English Reformation. (I'd mention Orlando di Lasso, too, but there's zero chance that all of his music will ever get recorded in my lifetime, or likely the next--since Lassus was so prolific.)
> 
> In addition, the music of Jean Sibelius borders on an obsession for me. However, I've found that his symphonies & tone poems stand out among his opus (apart from his violin concerto), and I have a tendency to become less obsessive when I explore Sibelius's non-symphonic works. So I don't think I'll likely hear every note that Sibelius penned. But yes, his symphonic works are definitely an obsession of mine. I've even got a visit to his home, Ainola, on my bucket list.
> 
> II. My non-musical obsessions:
> 
> --The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Plus, I used to be totally obsessed with the Royal Shakespeare Company when I lived in London during the 1980s.
> 
> --The art of Frederic, Lord Leighton--a trip to Leighton House is likewise on my bucket-list. I still kick myself today, because I once lived close to Leighton House & Holland Park, and I never went into the museum, though I walked by it almost every day--that is, before I knew who Leighton was.
> 
> --The plays of Molière--whenever I have the opportunity to see a first class production of a Molière play, I'll go multiple times. It's such a rare event, and he's my second favorite playwright after the Bard. The last time this happened was at the Stratford Festival in Canada with a remarkable production of "The Misanthrope", in 2011.
> 
> --The Art of William-Adolphe Bouguereau--particularly his drawings, and religious and mythological paintings. I'm not quite as obsessed with all the peasant girls.
> 
> --Venetian Renaissance painting--Early & Middle period Titian, before his eyesight went, as well as Giorgione, G. Bellini, Veronese, Lotto, etc. I happen to love complex glaze painting. It's one of my goals to see all four of Titian's bacchanal paintings that he made for the bed chamber of Alfonso d'Este, in person (one of them with G.Bellini). So far, I've seen two of the four.
> 
> --Flemish Renaissance painting--especially the paintings of Rogier Van Der Weyden (most of all), Gerard David, Hans Membling, Jan van Eyck, etc.
> 
> --The drawings and paintings of Raphael, which I've loved since I was a child.
> 
> --The Philadelphia Eagles Football team. Another childhood passion that never went away.
> 
> --Professional tennis. Though I'm not obsessed, I am a big Rafael Nadal fan. & I love to go to pro tennis tournaments, once a year, if I can. I also love playing tennis. Overall, I'd say it's a mild obsession.
> 
> Finally, I'm considering becoming obsessed with architecture & landscape design, which has become a late interest of mine.


Josquin, your obsessions (in music and in life) are uncannily similar to mine! I love early music too but sometimes I find it overwhelming trying to find which works from the great masters to prioritize listening to. It takes a bit more listening energy and devotion for me so I don't listen to it routinely, but when I do it's an amazingly rewarding experience. I too hope fervently that visiting Ainola is a realistic bucket list objective. I also share your passion for Shakespeare, Renaissance painting, and sports; even though, as you could probably guess based on my location, I can't approve of your preferred NFL team due to the 2017 NFC Championship Game


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## wkasimer

Bach cello suites
St. Matthew Passion
Dvorak Cello Concerto
Winterreise
Meistersinger


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## Bulldog

jim prideaux said:


> Sibelius symphonies
> Brahms Symphonies
> Martinu Symphonies
> 
> 'bubbling under' (to use a phrase from a previous post)
> 
> Beethoven Symphonies
> Schumann Symphonies
> Schubert Symphonies
> Dvorak Symphonies
> 
> Partial and a move to a more complete understanding in the future....
> Mahler 1 and 4
> Bruckner symphonies
> Shostakovich 5, 10


It looks like you have an obsession with symphonies.


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## Ekim the Insubordinate

Bach's Goldberg Variations - I'm always looking for new recordings (new to me, not necessarily new on the market) on any instrument. I'll listen to numerous harpsichord recordings, for example, to see which one is most pleasing to my ear.

Bach's Cantatas - not necessarily the depth of availability (the sheer number makes that hard) but I do have (thanks to Apple Music streaming) Suzuki's entire cycle


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## Joe B

edit: In November I traveled from northeastern CT to Chicago via train to attend a performance of this. Yes, the obsession goes beyond just listening.


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## howlingfantods

it changes over time, but at least for the past few years, Wagner (all 10 mature operas), Verdi (otello, don carlo, aida, the requiem, trovatore, ballo, rigoletto), pelleas et melisande, pretty near all chopin, bach's keyboard music, beethoven late sonatas and grosse fugue.

but there are times where i'll spend several months listening to nothing but backpack rap or early aughts post rock or roots reggae or hard bop or whatever.


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## jim prideaux

Bulldog said:


> It looks like you have an obsession with symphonies.


Need to add certain concertos and orchestral works such as tone poems...…..This is quite a challenge really.....was about to add my non musical obsessions and struggled to make sense of years of a haphazard accumulation of enthusiasms that might be described as obsessions...…….from being a long term season ticket holder for one of the biggest under achieving football clubs in the games history to wandering around various central and eastern European cities......


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## Ekim the Insubordinate

howlingfantods said:


> it changes over time, but at least for the past few years, Wagner (all 10 mature operas), Verdi (otello, don carlo, aida, the requiem, trovatore, ballo, rigoletto), pelleas et melisande, pretty near all chopin, bach's keyboard music, beethoven late sonatas and grosse fugue.
> 
> but there are times where i'll spend several months listening to nothing but backpack rap or early aughts post rock or roots reggae or hard bop or whatever.


Same here. I've just come back to classical (since COVID-19 shutdown and seeking more beauty in the craziness) after a significant period of 60s classic rock and 70s prog rock.


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## jegreenwood

Joe B said:


> edit: In November I traveled from northeastern CT to Chicago via train to attend a performance of this. Yes, the obsession goes beyond just listening.


Wonderful music for the Christopher Wheeldon's ballet, "The Winter's Tale." Just put the Blu-Ray in my cart.


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## flamencosketches

howlingfantods said:


> but there are times where i'll spend several months listening to nothing but backpack rap or early aughts post rock or roots reggae or hard bop or whatever.


A man after my own heart.


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## Helgi

Great thread. I love the "contact high" of other people's obsessions 

As for myself I've been obsessed with classical music in general since I (re)discovered it last fall, and will probably develop more specific interests as I spend more time with it. I have more Brahms and Beethoven symphony cycles than I really need and am always tempted to get more, so I guess that's a bit obsessive. And I'm now getting into Schumann symphonies in the same way.

Oh, and then there's opera! At the moment I am well and truly obsessed with opera and _the voice_.


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## Malx

Whatever I am listening to at the time is the flippant answer, but giving it a bit more thought I'd say Mahler Symphonies particularly the 2nd and 9th, Beethoven Piano Sonatas and Richard Strauss 'Four Last Songs' - well these are the works most heavily represented in my collection but I am generally a bit of a magpie* and will collect anything I like the sound of. 
My maxime is simply - music is for enjoying.


*I'll say sorry to Jim Prideaux, no offense intended


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## Merl

Malx said:


> ... I am generally a bit of a magpie* and will collect anything I like the sound of.
> My maxime is simply - music is for enjoying.
> 
> *I'll say sorry to Jim Prideaux, no offense intended


Haha!... 
... 
...


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## DLOinQUEENS

For me, it's Joachim Raff symphonies, or, more specifically, trying to convince myself that I actually _do_ enjoy them more than a majority of the standard repertoire. I never tire of the 7th, and it's sunny, cheerful ending. It has brought many a smile to my face.


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## StlukesguildOhio

J.S. Bach
Mozart's Operas & Piano Concertos
Haydn's Creation, Masses, and Symphonies
Beethoven's Symphonies
Schubert's Winterreise
Wagner
French Mélodies
Richard Strauss' Four Last Songs and Operas
Mahler's DLvdE
Hänsel und Gretel
Scheherazade
The Rite of Spring
Peter Lieberson Neruda Songs
Maria Callas 
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
Fritz Wunderlich
Vocal Music
etc...
Dante
Shakespeare
William Blake
Baudelaire
Rilke
T.S. Eliot
Kafka
J.L. Borges
Botticelli
Early Italian Renaissance Art
Persian Illuminations
Japanese Art
Michelangelo
Mannerism
Rubens
Boucher
Ingres
Degas
Gauguin
Bonnard
Vuillard
Matisse
Yasunari Ikenaga
and much more......................


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## Marc

Oh yes, I can fall in love completely and entirely (and even thorougly) with the music of a composer (J.S. Bach), with certain compositions (Bach's Passions and Clavier-Übung III, Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Rachmaninov's Vespers), with an instrument in general (organ, human voice), or with a very _specific_ instrument, like the Schnitger et al organs in Noordbroek and Groningen (Martinikerk), Netherlands, or the soprano voices of Lucia Popp, Nancy Argenta and Carolyn Sampson (sigh)… but... are these _obsessions_? I hope not, even though I sometimes realize that I'm kinda into these/them like obsessions, when I want to hear those works, instruments and voices again and again… and again... (sigh again, and again, and...)


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## Itullian

i now have to add the Beethoven piano sonatas to my list.


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## VitellioScarpia

Itullian said:


> i now have to add the Beethoven piano sonatas to my list.


They have been one of my obsessions for many years... I am particularly obsessed with #15, #21, #30, #31 and #32 these days. It changes with the season but the two that seem to be remaining in the list are #21 and #32. Other compulsions are Strauss, Mahler, Schubert, Bach, Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, Stravinsky... OMG. I will need another lifetime to satisfy them all!


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## Sonata

Shocked that Wagner operas were not listed Itulian!


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## Itullian

^^^That's because I have them all.


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## NLAdriaan

Well, obsessed:
Mahler's work (to a lesser extent DLVDE and excluded the completed #10)
JS Bach
Hildegard von Bingen
late Beethoven
Hugo Wolf
Schumann & Schubert: Piano, Lied, Chamber works 
Carlos Kleiber recordings
late Sviatoslav Richter
Cathy Berberian
Bernard Herrmann
Carl Stalling
Frank Zappa
Weather report/Jaco Pastorius 
Oscar Peterson/NHOP
Bill Evans (piano)
Mingus
Charles Lloyd
Coldcut
Dr Dre

In waves:
Messiaen
Bruckner 
Ravel
Webern
Berg
Bartok
Shostakovich string quartets and symphonies
Prokofiev
Takemitsu
Monteverdi
Rameau
Purcell
Chopin
Liszt
Wagner
Berlioz
Art Pepper
DJ Food
Johnny Cash
Adrian Belew
John Zorn
Snarky Puppy/Cory Henry 

Recent discoveries:
Buxtehude
Josquin
Dutilleux
Miaskovsky
John Adams
Robert Glasper
Mos Def

And:
F1
Heavy gardening
Rhodesian Ridgebacks
Chagall
Matisse
Van Gogh
Mies van der Rohe
Le Corbusier

Quite obsessed, when I look at it


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## Hermastersvoice

I have for a time been obsessed with the Czech Philharmonic, in particular the sound it made under Ancerl and onwards. After c 30 years of collecting, your taste broadens, but there can be a sameness to the sound of most big orchestras. Can you really point out the Chicago Symphony from the Berlin Phil? But you can pick out the Czech Phil, it’s burbling woodwind, burnished string sound, the never failing rhythm, from the competition.

Take Beethoven 3, a piece recorded by orchestras from Japan to the United States. Now, put it in the hands of Paul Kletzki and the Czech Phil and you get to understand why it’s world music, and not just German music played by a Japanese or US orchestra. It’s Beethoven, no doubt , but spoken in another language and it reveals accents to alert you to what you thought you knew. This sound reached a high point under Ancerl, Kletzki, Matacic, Sejna, Fournet, Pedrotti, to name some maestros who recorded them during the 60s , and it is in particular that era that I have an obsession with - because it has invigorated my view of the old well warn war horse. I must now have everything recorded by them.


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## DLOinQUEENS

Hermastersvoice said:


> I have for a time been obsessed with the Czech Philharmonic, in particular the sound it made under Ancerl and onwards.


Thanks for the tip! I will be delving into their catalog now. I never even considered this.


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## Animal the Drummer

Hermastersvoice said:


> I have for a time been obsessed with the Czech Philharmonic, in particular the sound it made under Ancerl and onwards. After c 30 years of collecting, your taste broadens, but there can be a sameness to the sound of most big orchestras. Can you really point out the Chicago Symphony from the Berlin Phil? But you can pick out the Czech Phil, it's burbling woodwind, burnished string sound, the never failing rhythm, from the competition.
> 
> Take Beethoven 3, a piece recorded by orchestras from Japan to the United States. Now, put it in the hands of Paul Kletzki and the Czech Phil and you get to understand why it's world music, and not just German music played by a Japanese or US orchestra. It's Beethoven, no doubt , but spoken in another language and it reveals accents to alert you to what you thought you knew. This sound reached a high point under Ancerl, Kletzki, Matacic, Sejna, Fournet, Pedrotti, to name some maestros who recorded them during the 60s , and it is in particular that era that I have an obsession with - because it has invigorated my view of the old well warn war horse. I must now have everything recorded by them.


Nice to see Lovro von Matacic namechecked. He was a distant ancestor of mine (my granddad's cousin) and of course I have a number of his recordings, including the marvellous "Eroica" with the Czech Philharmonic, frequently featuring that magnificent woodwind section.

On the subject of obsessions: I get them from time to time, most often in terms of collecting recordings (which I've been doing since the age of about 8) but they tend to pass. My most fundamental musical loyalties, above all my unshakeable love for Mozart, are enthusiasms rather than obsessions in my book.


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## Marc

NLAdriaan said:


> Well, obsessed:
> […]
> 
> (_Followed by 7 pages of names and activities_)
> 
> Quite obsessed, when I look at it


Nah, you're doing just fine.


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## Flamme

No, I dont really...I still have lot 2 learn about CM compared 2 some here and I can enjoy almost anything equally depending on current mood.


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## Hermastersvoice

Just listening to Jean Fournet conducting Cesar Franck. I would rarely listen to Franck, I don’t even like his most recorded orchestral work, the D Minor symphony. But the sororities of the more obscure works, played by the Czech Philharmonic in their inimitable way has kept me captivated for several evenings. Give Jean Fournet in Prague a go. You won’t regret it. Next, Pedrotti in Prague, also on Supraphon.


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## adriesba

I do have a few obsessions.

Wagner - My favorite composer. I have all of his operas on CD, at least two recordings of every opera except _Die Feen, Das Liebesverbot_,and_ Parsifal _of which I currently only have one each. His operas were the first things in music recordings I ever decided to seriously collect.

Prokofiev: _Alexander Nevsky _- Love it! I'll most likely pick up a recording if it's there. Some don't like his original film score, but I like that too.

Orff: _Carmina Burana_ - Another thing I like to compare performances of.

And my latest obsession - _Le Sacre du Printemps_! I can't get enough of this piece. And yes, it's definitely worth listening to two, three, four, fifty, however many different performances! I'm rather new to Stravinsky's music, but the more I listen to, the more interested I become in his music.


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## BenG

I'm completely obsessed with the Goldberg Variations at the moment - I've been listening to multiple performances every day (My favourite is still Gould 1981, but I love Leonhardt and Perahia). I'm mildly obsessed with Telemann also - Baroque music is just so good!


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## Merl

Whatever the Weekly String Quartet listening project is in the solo and chamber thread. I tend to get a bit carried away and binge-listen multiple recordings. The Ravel SQ, in particular (one of my fave SQs), was ridiculous. I must have listened to over 50 recordings of the same work (and there are over 100). Im dreading someone picking Beethoven.ut: I may end up imploding.


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## annaw

Merl said:


> Whatever the Weekly String Quartet listening project is in the solo and chamber thread. I tend to get a bit carried away and binge-listen multiple recordings. The Ravel SQ, in particular (one of my fave SQs), was ridiculous. I must have listened to over 50 recordings of the same work (and there are over 100). *Im dreading someone picking Beethoven*.ut: I may end up imploding.


Don't give me ideas :devil:


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## Merl

annaw said:


> Don't give me ideas :devil:


Dont even think about it!


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## Malx

Merl said:


> Dont even think about it!


:devil::devil::devil: remind me which is the longest?


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## Merl

Malx said:


> :devil::devil::devil: remind me which is the longest?


#15, if I recall.


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## annaw

Merl said:


> #15, if I recall.


You're making this way too easy for us...

I wonder, shouldn't we start a weekly symphony thread? :devil:.


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## Ras

I have two obsessions: 
1. Bach's Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin.
2. Beethoven's "Emperor Concerto" 
I strive to hear all new recordings of these works.


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## realdealblues

I don't know that I'm obsessed, but there are certain works I always seem to collect recordings of:

Bach - Brandenburg Concertos, Sonatas & Partitas For Solo Violin, Cello Suites
Beethoven - Symphonies, Piano Concertos, Piano Sonatas
Brahms - Symphonies, Piano Concertos, Cello Sonatas
Bruckner - Symphonies
Chopin - Ballades, Fantaisie In F Minor
Dvorak - Symphonies, Tone Poems
Elgar - Cello Concerto
Franck - Violin Sonata
Holst - The Planets
Mahler - Everything
Mozart - Operas, Symphonies, Piano Sonatas, Piano Concertos
Schubert - Symphonies, String Quintet In C
Sibelius - Symphonies, Tone Poems
Strauss (R) - Tone Poems
Tchaikovsky - Symphonies, Overtures, Piano Concerto 1
Vivaldi - Four Seasons
Wagner - The 10 Mature Operas

Probably a lot of other things I'm just not thinking about right now.

I'm probably more obsessed with collecting recordings from specific performers/conductors which is why I have so many huge box sets.


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## Oldhoosierdude

I am told that I am obsessed with coffee.


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## Kiki

Another obsession of mine is Mravinsky's discography. 

It's a gold mine, but also a hell, for collectors; because in many re-issues of his recordings, there have been incorrectly attributed recording dates/venues, incorrect tape playback speed during mastering, added audience noise/applause etc.

I've done it a few times to hunt down recordings in order to find out if those alleged mistakes were real. I should stop doing this. It's not economical as a hobby.


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## JAS

At one point, I was obsessed with trying to acquire all of the CD releases in the Russian Symphony Music series (using the grammatically incorrect title that they used) on Melodiya. A fair number are pretty common, but several are hard to come by (and in some instances I just missed out on a copy on eBay, which was infuriating). It took some time to establish that some numbers were left as gaps, but never actually issued. For these, for the most part, there are other releases (sometimes on the Olympia label, which had a deal with Melodiya) that could essentially fill the gap. The series, including some of the gaps, has also been subsequently released in other forms, which I was able to acquire but still wanted the original CD forms. I think I have all of them now, so I am, temporarily, cured. (And I was not really even tempted to buy the newest big box versions.)


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## thejewk

I'm in deep with Shostakovich, and I only started listening to him with the Borodin Original Quartet on Chandos a few weeks ago. I'm just coming to the end of a chronological listen through of his symphonies and quartets intermixed, and I only got the symphony set a few days ago. I also purchased a copy of the Fitzwilliam Quartet set yesterday, and I am already hovering over the 'buy' button of the Shostakovich Quartet recordings for very little money. 

I really don't have the need for any more music at the moment, but I keep finding myself spending time browsing through pages of recordings of his music, planning what to get, and although I recently stocked up on some excellent history books which will occupy my reading time for a few months at least, I am compiling a list of books on Shostakovich that I will inevitably order shortly.


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## CnC Bartok

^^^ Do get those Shostakovich Quartet Shostakovich Quartets! Well worth hearing, a really excellent set and an excellent group.


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## thejewk

CnC Bartok said:


> ^^^ Do get those Shostakovich Quartet Shostakovich Quartets! Well worth hearing, a really excellent set and an excellent group.


Stop enabling me haha!

Purchased and now downloading....


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## musichal

I have only three CM obsessions:

One: Deepening my collection.

Two: Widening my collection.

Three: Acquiring better recordings of some I already own.

Just three. Is that so bad? Nay, saith I. Wifey not fully on board, though it isn't the money (we have yours, mine and ours), it's about storage. I threaten to kick her country out of the 1200-disc changers.


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## elgar's ghost

musichal said:


> I have only three CM obsessions:
> 
> One: Deepening my collection.
> 
> Two: Widening my collection.
> 
> Three: Acquiring better recordings of some I already own.
> 
> Just three. Is that so bad? Nay, saith I. Wifey not fully on board, though it isn't the money (we have yours, mine and ours), it's about storage. I threaten to kick her country out of the 1200-disc changers.


Re: point three:- fine - but possibly to augment, rather than replace? Keeping inferior recordings can still provide interesting comparisons, and it gives a few of those underdog recordings some kind credibility because that's where you may have heard the works first.


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## musichal

elgars ghost said:


> Re: point three:- fine - but possibly to augment, rather than replace? Keeping inferior recordings can still provide interesting comparisons, and it gives a few of those underdog recordings some kind credibility because that's where you may have heard the works first.


Agree. Yes, I still listen to the "inferior" recordings, too. They usually have some good points, some strengths. Not the least of which is they brought me enjoyment, sometimes for many years, prior to my acquiring a better recording.


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## SanAntone

I am defining "obsession" as a desire to hear every recording of a certain work, and figure out which I think is the best, or my favorite, and so on.

There are three works for which I have managed to do this since there are a manageable number of recordings, and it is relatively easy keeping up with new ones.

*Duruflè* - _Requiem_
*Debussy* - _Pelleas et Melísande_
*Bernstein* - _Mass_

I used to be obsessed with the *Liszt* _B Minor Piano Sonata_, but not so much anymore - there's just too many recordings. I've listened to about 100, and ranked them according to my preference, but that leaves at another 150 which I have tracked down on YouTube, Spotify or purchasing the CD.

If I am honest, I am still obsessed with this work since in the back of my mind I continue to think that one day I'll complete this project.

So four works. But _Via Crucis_ is lurking around trying to get more and more attention ...


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## Subutai

I've had my fair share of musical obsessions and currently it's Tzarist Russian music, consisting of the Mighty 5 and everyone who followed them and then stopping when the Soviets took over. My obsession is so large that I even wanted to purchase the 2 huge Svetlanov Russian Anthology boxes, but found them way too pricey. I thought I'd wait until the price dropped. It didn't, they all sold out!
But in a round about way I have aquired quite a few of what I like including a bunch of Svetlanov. Composer's include Glinka, Rubinstein, Mussorgsky, Borodin, Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov, Lyadov, Lyapunov, Arensky, Kalinnikov, Taneyev, Glazunov, Kopylov, Ippolitov-Ivanov, Gretchaninov and Gliere. Along with their various symphonies there's also the wonderful orchestral works. No matter how much I try I just keep going back to Imperial Russia.


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## premont

SanAntone said:


> I am defining "obsession" as a desire to hear every recording of a certain work, and figure out which I think is the best, or my favorite, and so on.


This is my definition too, synonymous with completist. However I do not compare the recordings that much but listen to them in their own right.

I am completist as to a number of Bach works, but caused by the wealth of recordings I do not think I shall succed. Other works among still more works where I try to collect all existing recordings are Machauts mass, Ockeghems sacred music, Pierre DuMage's organ music and Hindemith's Ludus Tonalis.


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