# Baroque Listening Project



## sethmadsen (Jan 29, 2019)

I'm fairly new at this, but love music and love history, so I'm trying to have a "brief" survey of about 500 works across early music until today (before the album era) of "classical" music.

Here's my current Baroque listing list... anything you'd say is a must for a beginner I'm missing here? Any fantastic recordings you've found to be much better?


J. S. Bach: Die Kunst Der Fuge In Der Fassung Von H.E. Dentler	Ensemble L'Arte Della Fuga	1750
Handel: Water Music; Music For The Royal Fireworks	Jordi Savall / Le Concert Des Nations	1749
Handel: Solomon	Nicholas McGegan / Festspielorchester Gottingen	1749
J. S. Bach: Mass In B Minor	Otto Klemperer / New Philharmonia Orchestra	1749
Handel: Messiah	Sir Neville Marriner / Academy Of St Martin-in-the-Fields	1742
J. S. Bach: Goldberg Variations; Italian Concerto	Trevor Pinnock	1741
Vivaldi: Musica Per Mandolino E Liuto	Rolf Lislevand	1741
Rameau: Pieces De Clavecin En Concerts	Aapo HÃ¤kkinen / Petri Tapio Mattson / Mikko Perkola	1741
J. S. Bach: 3 Concerti	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1740
Domenico Scarlatti: Sonatas	Ivo Pogorelich	1740
J. S. Bach: Harpsichord Concertos	Andreas Staier / Freiburger Barockorchester	1739
Handel: Xerxes	Ivor Bolton / Bayerische Staatsoper	1738
Handel: Complete Organ Concertos	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1738
Domenico Scarlatti: Thirty Sonatas For The Harpsichord	Joseph Payne	1738
Rameau: Castor Et Pollux Suite / Purcell: 3 Fantasias	Frans BrÃ¼ggen / Orchestra Of The 18th Century	1737
Pergolesi: Stabat Mater	Claudio Abbado / London Symphony Orchestra	1736
Rameau: L'Orchestre De Louis XV	Jordi Savall / Le Concert Des Nations	1735
J. S. Bach: Organ Works / Toccata & Fugue	E. Power Biggs	1735
J. S. Bach: The Coffee Cantata	Johannes Somary / Baroque Orchestra / Amor Artis Chorale	1734
J. S. Bach: Weihnachtsoratorium	Rene Jacobs / RIAS-Kammerchor / Akademie FÃ¼r Alte Musik Berlin	1734
Handel: Concerti Grossi Op.3; Sonata A 5	Richard Egarr / The Academy Of Ancient Music	1734
J. S. Bach: Cantata BWV 140, Magnificat BWV 243	Karl Richter / MÃ¼nchener Bach-Orchester / MÃ¼nchener Bach-Chor	1733
Telemann : Recorder Sonatas & Fantasias	Frans BrÃ¼ggen / Anner Bylsma / Gustav Leonhardt	1730
J. S. Bach: "Double" Concerto For 2 Violins In D Minor	Zubin Mehta / New York Philharmonic	1730
FranÃ§ois Couperin: Pieces De Clavecin, Book 4	Mitzi Meyerson	1730
Telemann: Tafelmusik	Musica Antiqua Köln, Reinhard Goebel	1733
Pergolesi: Concerto Di Violino Con PiÃ¹ Strumenti; Sinfonia Per Violoncello E Basso Continuo	Fabio Maestri / Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana	1730
J.S. Bach: MatthÃ¤us-Passion	Rene Jacobs / RIAS-Kammerchor / Akademie Für Alte Musik Berlin	1729
Awake The Trumpet's Lofty Sound: Music For Trumpets & Organ	Wolfgang Hannes / Berhard LÃ¤ubin / Simon Preston	1729
Handel: Coronation Anthems; Concerti A Due Cori	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert / Choir Of Westminister Abbey	1727
Vivaldi: La Dorilla In Tempe, Opera En 3 Actes	Gilbert Bezzina / Ensemble Baroque De Nice	1726
Vivaldi: The Four Seasons	Gil Shaham / Orpheus Chamber Orchestra	1725
Telemann: Concerto In D Major; La Bouffonne; Grillen-Symphonie; Alster Overture	Simon Standage / Collegium Musicum 90	1725
The Complete Keyboard Works Of J.S. Bach, Vol. 6	João Carlos Martins	1725
J. S. Bach: Johannespassion	Mathias GrÃ¼nert / Kammerchor Der Frauenkirche / Ensemble Frauenkirche Dresden	1724
J. S. Bach: The 6 Unaccompanied Cello Suites	Yo-Yo Ma	1723
J. S. Bach: The Well Tempered Clavier (Books I & II)	Sviatoslav Richter	1722
Zelenka: Trio Sonatas Nos. 1-6	Burkhard Glaetzner	1722
J.S. Bach: 6 Brandenburg Concertos / 4 Orchestral Suites	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1721
Handel: The Complete Sonatas For Recorder	Marion Verbruggen / Ton Koopman / Jaap Ter Linden	1720
J. S. Bach: 6 Partitas	Trevor Pinnock	1720
Durante: XII Duetti A Soprano E Contralto	Roberto Gini / Ensemble Concerto	1720
Vivaldi: Concerti	Fabio Biondi / Europa Galante	1720
Vivaldi: Cello Sonatas	Marco Ceccato / Accademia Ottoboni	1720
Telemann: Trumpet Concertos	Iona Brown / Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields	1720
Marais: PiÃ¨ces De Viole Du QuatriÃ¨me Livre	Jordi Savall	1717
Domenico Scarlatti: 12 Sonatas For Guitar	Luigi Attademo	1715
Rebel: Les Elements / Destouches: Les ElÃ©mens	Christopher Hogwood / Academy Of Ancient Music	1715
Albinoni: Complete Oboe Concertos	John Georgiadis / The London Virtuosi	1715
Vivaldi: Gloria In D Major RV 589	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1715
Marcello: 6 Concertos La Cetra & Concerto In D Minor For Oboe And Strings	Giorgio Sasso / Insieme Strumentale Di Roma	1715
Albinoni: Adagio / Corelli: Christmas Concerto / Vivaldi: L'amoroso	Herbert Von Karajan / Berliner Philharmoniker	1714
Corelli: 12 Concerti Grossi Op. 6	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1714
Tartini: Concerti Per Flauto; Sonate; "Trillo Del Diavolo"	Massimo Mercelli / Marco Rogliano / Ensemble Respighi	1713
Vivaldi: Stabat Mater; Nisi Dominus; Salve Regina	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1712
Handel: Rinaldo	RenÃ© Jacobs / Freiburger Barockorchester	1711
Vivaldi: 12 Concertos, Op. 3 "L'Estro Armonico"	Brecon Baroque / Rachel Podger	1711
Campra: Cantates FranÃ§aises	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1710
Albinoni: Concerto Op. 9,2; Concert A 5; Concerto For Organ & Strings; Adagio	Various Artists	1708
Cavalli: Requiem & Antiennes Ã La Vierge	FranÃ§oise Lasserre / Ensemble Vocal RÃ©gional De Champagne-Ardenne / Akademia	1705
Alessandro Scarlatti: Cantate E Duetti	Rinaldo Alessandrini / Concerto Italiano	1700
Caldara: Cantatas / Stradella: Motets	Il Seminario Musicale / GÃ©rard Lesne / Sandrine Piau	1700
Pachelbel: Hexachordum Apollinis	John Butt	1699
Gverav: Poema Harmonico	Hopkinson Smith	1694
Buxtehude: Trio Sonatas, Op. 1	Jonathan Cohen / Arcangelo	1694
Pachelbel: Canon & Gigue / Handel: The Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba	Trevor Pinnock / The English Concert	1690
Charpentier: Te Deum, H.146, Litanies De La Vierge & Missa "Assumpta Est Maria"	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1690
Purcell: Dido & Aeneas	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1689
Purcell: Ten Sonatas In Four Parts â€¢ Twelve Sonatas Of Three Parts	London Baroque	1683
Lully: Grand Motets, Vol. 1	HervÃ© Niquet / Le Concert Spirituel	1684
Purcell: Fantasias For The Viols	Hesperion XX / Jordi Savall	1680
Buxtehude: Membra Jesu Nostri / SchÃ¼tz: O Bone Jesu	John Eliot Gardiner / English Baroque Soloists / Monteverdi Choir	1680
Lully: PsychÃ©	Paul O'Dette / Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra & Chorus	1678
Heinrich Biber: Sonaten Ãœber Die Mysterien Des Rosenkranzes	Gunar Letzbor / Ars Antiqua Austria	1674
Bologna 1666	Julia SchrÃ¶der / Kammerorchester Basel	1666
Lully: Atys	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1676
Buxtehude: Abendmusiken	Ensemble Masques / Vox Luminis	1670
Dieterich Buxtehude And The Mean-Tone Organ, Volume 1	Hans Davidsson	1670
Storace: Selva Di Varie Compositioni D'intavolatura Per Cimbalo	Rinaldo Alessandrini / Concerto Italiano	1664
Cavalli: Xerse	RenÃ© Jacobs / Concerto Vocale	1654
Matthew Locke: Consort Of Flower Parts	Jordi Savall	1650
Legrenzi: Venice Before Vivaldi	El Mundo	1650
Rossi: Orfeo	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1647
Rossi: Oratorio Per La Settimana Santa	William Christie / Les Arts Florissants	1641
Carissimi: Duets & Cantatas	RenÃ© Jacobs / Concerto Vocale	1640
Frescobaldi: Works For Harpsichord	Gustav Leonhardt	1640
Allegri: Masses, Miserere & Motets	David Trendell / The Choir Of King's College London	1638
Merula: Arie E Capricci A Voce Sola	Jordi Savall / La Capella Reial De Catalunya / Montserrat Figueras	1633
SchÃ¼tz: Symphoniae Sacrae I, Op. 6	Hans-Christoph Rademann	1629
Monteverdi: Motetti E Madrigali A 2 Soprani	Ilaria Geroldi & Marina Morelli	1615
Gabrieli: Sonate E Canzoni "Per Concertar Con L'Organo"	Concerto Palatino / Bruce Dickey	1615
Monteverdi : Il Sesto Libro De Magrigali	Rinaldo Alessandrini / Concerto Italiano	1614
Monteverdi: Vespro Della Beata Vergine	John Eliot Gardiner / English Baroque Soloists / Monteverdi Choir	1610
Monteverdi: Missa In Illo Tempore	Philippe Herreweghe / Ensemble Vocal EuropÃ©en De La Chapelle Royale	1610
Airs De Cour	Ensemble Orinda	1610
Monteverdi: L'Orfeo	Jordi Savall / La Capella Reial De Catalunya	1607
Caccini: Le Nuove Musiche	Ars Antiqua Ensemble / Candice Gautier / Arkadiy Volkov	1602
Vecchi: L'Amfiparnaso	Ensemble ClÃ©ment Janequin / Dominique Visse	1597
Monteverdi: Il Secondo Libro De' Madrigali	Rinaldo Alessandrini / Concerto Italiano	1590
Luzzaschi: Concerto Delle Dame Di Ferrara	Cristina Miatello / Helena Afonso / Marinella Pennichi / Sergio Vartolo	1580


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

this is a huge undertaking covering several centuries of music. You have a good selection. There was a game on this site some time ago, where users selected some of their favorite baroque pieces, you might find some inspiration there
Our Most Prized Works of the Baroque Era


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

The list is too long for me to think about properly but after a quick glance it looks as though it doesn’t focus enough at the start of baroque, composers like Sweelinck and his pupils, and Chambonnières and Vieux Gaultier and Trabaci.

Gverav is normally written Guerau by the way! Francisco Guerau.


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## sethmadsen (Jan 29, 2019)

Jacck said:


> this is a huge undertaking covering several centuries of music. You have a good selection. There was a game on this site some time ago, where users selected some of their favorite baroque pieces, you might find some inspiration there
> Our Most Prized Works of the Baroque Era


Fantastic! Thank you! I'll have to check it out. It's been a lot of work picking which works to listen to to be an even sample of both the "best works" as well as maybe less known composers, but not wasting too much time on esoteric composers as time is limited and that's really not the focus of my project.

*Very interested in hearing about how people have processed this themselves either as students of music or otherwise. *

It's been a lot of work and sampling multiple recordings and making quick decisions. I'm finding with classical music the recording is massive because a work can be a huge turn off if you have the wrong recording. Sometimes less often than others. But something as simple as "the wrong" tempo, how it was recorded, etc. can really take a great work and make it less appealing.

This will easily take me at least a year to go through (500 albums roughly worth of music) - and only so quickly because I'm familiar enough with some of them.


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## sethmadsen (Jan 29, 2019)

Mandryka said:


> The list is too long for me to think about properly but after a quick glance it looks as though it doesn't focus enough at the start of baroque, composers like Sweelinck and his pupils, and Chambonnières and Vieux Gaultier and Trabaci.
> 
> Gverav is normally written Guerau by the way! Francisco Guerau.


Thanks for the spelling tip. Likely doing the whole Latin alphabet thing. I probably copied that from somewhere and wouldn't have noticed, so thank you very much.

Also thank you for pointing me to earlier baroque music I couldn't find. I'm struggling to find a balance between "historically representative" and "the best works of baroque music". Would you consider those artists historically significant or producers of the best baroque music? I realize both of those "terms" are subjective, but still curious/respect your take on the subject.

Thanks!

EDIT: Also speaking of spelling, I apologize for the weird export of non-English language characters. I hope to fix that once I can.


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## Portamento (Dec 8, 2016)

You may consider mimicking the approach Trout takes to his _Contemporary Composers and Their Works_ project, which covers composers who have had a significant body of works in the years proceeding c. 1975. Entries for each composer are further subdivided as "fairly important" and "essential" (designated with ⋆⋆ and ⋆⋆⋆, respectively).


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## Gallus (Feb 8, 2018)

Froberger is missing. Needs more Froberger!
Tafelmusik honestly bores me to tears. I think half of the reason Telemann has such a poor reputation is that everyone listens to that first. His recorder concertoes, the cantatas and the Darmstadt overtures are what I've listened to from Telemann which I like the most. 
Where's Purcell's Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary? One of the most powerful and affecting works of music ever written IMO.
Bach's Coffee Cantata is a meme. There's like 100 better ones, e.g. BWV 61, BWV 80, BWV 1, BWV 147...


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

I couldn't name individual pieces, but for the sake of how Baroque music developed, some of the antiphonal works by the likes of Heinrich Schutz and Samuel Scheidt should be included.


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## sethmadsen (Jan 29, 2019)

Thanks for the input everyone! It's much appreciated!


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## sethmadsen (Jan 29, 2019)

Portamento said:


> You may consider mimicking the approach Trout takes to his _Contemporary Composers and Their Works_ project, which covers composers who have had a significant body of works in the years proceeding c. 1975. Entries for each composer are further subdivided as "fairly important" and "essential" (designated with ⋆⋆ and ⋆⋆⋆, respectively).


This is great as past 1890 seems to be an explosion of stuff, and I think this will help me pare down to the essentials while still allowing me to discover more if I want.


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## larold (Jul 20, 2017)

I didn't see many of Bach's cantatas. Certainly BWV 56, 82, 78 and 147, along with his Orchestral Suites, would be included in any introductory Baroque project.

May also with to include Jeremiah Clarke's Trumpet Voluntary and Henry Purcell's Indian Queen, Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary and Dido and Aeneas. The list of Handel should include Solomon and Israel In Egypt.

The list seems loaded with minor composers while nothing by Torelli. Throw in the Sonata No. 5 for trumpet to start. Add some Pergolisi, perhaps the Stabat Mater and/or Concertino No. 4. And nothing by Rameau, the third or fourth greatest Baroque composer? Start with the Pièces de clavecin, Orchestral Suites and move onto Les Indes galantes, Pygmalion and/or some of the operas.


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