# Favorite pieces by least favorite composers and vice versa



## Common Listener (Apr 6, 2019)

20centrfuge's post in another thread prompted this. What are 1-5 works or so that you love by a composer you don't like so much otherwise and vice versa? And if you know of the piece someone doesn't like and like it yourself, maybe you could provide "the keys" to it. (This isn't intended to express contempt for any composer or work or start fights but the other way around, really - to just talk about those odd "expectation breakers.")

For instance, I've recently been raving about Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra and, while I wouldn't say he was a "least" favorite composer, it is odd to me that I can't find anything else that does it for me in quite the same way (though some pieces are okay). Flipside, despite loving almost everything by Mozart, I can't get into his violin concertos as much as the rest, perhaps No. 2 most of all (though being deaf to post-Baroque violin concertos generally isn't unusual for me).

Anybody else have any exceptional pieces?


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## Allegro Con Brio (Jan 3, 2020)

I have very few composers that I totally dislike. But here are some works from my favorite composers that I can’t get along with:

Bach: Flute Sonatas and Flute Partita, Christmas Oratorio
Brahms: Double Concerto, string quartets
Mahler: No. 8
Schubert: String Quintet (pitchfork time!), Death and the Maiden
Sibelius: Kullervo
Beethoven: Symphony 7, Tempest Sonata
Elgar: Cello Concerto


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

There was a thread similar to this some time ago.
With Bartok, I like Music for strings, percussion, celesta. With Debussy, I like Toccata from Pour le piano (just a bit)
Your avatar's awesome, btw


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## chu42 (Aug 14, 2018)

I cannot stand many of the overplayed works from composers that I generally like, such as Massanet's Meditation, Ravel's Bolero, Pachelbel's Canon, etc. Although this goes for most classical music fans.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

From composers I like, well-known compositions I really don't like:

Beethoven - Symphony 9, Cello sonatas, Triple concerto
Brahms - Piano sonatas, String quartets
Mozart - Operas
Wagner - Meistersinger

From composers I don't like, compositions I really like:

Orff - Carmina Burana
Verdi - Requiem


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## Caryatid (Mar 28, 2020)

The only piece of Alkan's that I love is Le festin d'Esope. I have listened to many of his other works, and they have considerable merits, but I haven't found any of them entirely satisfactory. A similar case is Cecile Chaminade's variations Op. 89 - her only great work for piano, so far as I can tell. 

On the other hand, I like most of Brahms, but I don't listen often to the third string quartet. The first movement is an excellent reimagining of Mozart's String Quintet No. 6, but the other movements are largely a disappointment. Nor do I listen often to most of his lieder, the variations on an original theme (Op. 21 No. 1), or the variations for four hands Op. 23.


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

Sullivan - I can appreciate a couple of the orchestral and choral works and that's all.

Handel - I know I'm probably doing him a massive disservice but my blind spot is his numerous sonatas - I've always thought them to be pretty thin gruel compared to other baroque works for two or three instruments.


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

Composers I generally like, but works I am not keen on:

Michael Tippet: Songs for Dov
Richard Wagner: Rienzi
Sergei Prokofiev: War and Peace

Composers I can't really get on with, but works I like:

Peter Maxwell Davies: The Lighthouse
Franz Schubert: Octet
Marcel Poot: Symphony No. 7

The Schubert is an embarrassing admission: I can't be doing with most of his music, I fear!


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> The Schubert is an embarrassing admission: I can't be doing with most of his music, I fear!


Even his Piano Sonata No. 21?


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> Even his Piano Sonata No. 21?


'Fraid not. I've one of those Brilliant Classics types of collection, so potentially own everything or nearly everything he wrote. But I barely listen to him. Neither he nor most of Beethoven really make me work up a sweat, I'm sorry to say. It's something I need to work on, I realise!

Is No. 21 the D958 one? I'll take a listen now if you're recommending it...


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> 'Fraid not. I've one of those Brilliant Classics types of collection, so potentially own everything or nearly everything he wrote. But I barely listen to him. Neither he nor most of Beethoven really make me work up a sweat, I'm sorry to say. It's something I need to work on, I realise!
> 
> Is No. 21 the D958 one? I'll take a listen now if you're recommending it...


D.960

I don't think anyone should feel compelled to like any particular composer - even LVB.


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> D.960
> 
> I don't think anyone should feel compelled to like any particular composer - even LVB.


Thanks for the clarification. I put on the D958 in the meantime and thought it.. ahem... reasonable background music. Sorry. It's always the way with Franz: I just don't get it, but feel somehow that I ought -and might, if I concentrated enough.

I'll see if the D960 knocks me sideways!


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

OK, I listened to Klára Würtz playing D960.

I made a mistake however: I only obtained the score _after_ the first movement. So whilst I found the first movement just a lot of notes, I warmed up to the Andante sostenuto as soon as I could follow it in score. It made more sense to _see_ it as well as hear it. And I pretty much enjoyed it from there on, until the last movement where there are passages of quavers in the left hand which are a quaver beat out from whatever the right hand is up to. Maybe it was Klara's fault, but it just sounded 'wonky' to me at those points: annoying syncopation, not the good stuff! These moments were mercifully few in number, however.

Overall though: would I recognise this piece again if I heard it on the radio? Probably not. I still don't 'get' what makes it unique or special. It just seemed rather charming, in places exhilarating -and at least three times in the Andante, I was quite moved (enough to make me go get the score, at least).

But I am struggling to work out why you would recommend it (but not doubting that you have your reasons!)

I'll have more goes at it in the coming weeks: so thank you for the suggestion.

Sadly, I think I have a general problem with the first quarter of the nineteenth century: all those Romantics, a-swooning and angst-ing away, I suppose. I never liked Shelley or Byron much, either.


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> OK, I listened to Klára Würtz playing D960.
> 
> I made a mistake however: I only obtained the score _after_ the first movement. So whilst I found the first movement just a lot of notes, I warmed up to the Andante sostenuto as soon as I could follow it in score. It made more sense to _see_ it as well as hear it. And I pretty much enjoyed it from there on, until the last movement where there are passages of quavers in the left hand which are a quaver beat out from whatever the right hand is up to. Maybe it was Klara's fault, but it just sounded 'wonky' to me at those points: annoying syncopation, not the good stuff! These moments were mercifully few in number, however.
> 
> ...


I enjoyed your detailed response...for me the the first movement is particularly interesting - the modulation right in the second or third bar got me immediately when I first heard it. It sense of calm reflection is imo quite delightful.



Would appreciate a Britten recommendation - I like Grime's Sea Interludes but struggle with the War Requiem.


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## Bigbang (Jun 2, 2019)

dizwell said:


> Thanks for the clarification. I put on the D958 in the meantime and thought it.. ahem... reasonable background music. Sorry. It's always the way with Franz: I just don't get it, but feel somehow that I ought -and might, if I concentrated enough.
> 
> I'll see if the D960 knocks me sideways!


Well, who said one had to listen to each and every piece of music with total concentration? Seriously, most of my listening *is* background music. If I can tolerate any music as background while doing stuff, good enough. It is when I cannot like a piece of music no matter what I am doing then it is what it is.

I think we might be too preoccupied with interpretation on what it means to like music. Kinda like one person saying they "love" and "like" this piece. I do not concern myself with self analysis so if Schubert is good enough as background (yes, he is that for me) then what is the problem? Do I need to go to therapy for help if I cannot get most of the classical music integrated into my psyche because practically most of it is nothing but background music?

Beethoven symphonies and other large scale works are sometimes too much because Beethoven, to me, is a composer who is in my face too much. Like people who are yelling and screaming at you, demanding that you listen to what they are saying.


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## Simplicissimus (Feb 3, 2020)

Allegro Con Brio said:


> I have very few composers that I totally dislike. But here are some works from my favorite composers that I can't get along with:
> 
> Bach: Flute Sonatas and Flute Partita, Christmas Oratorio
> Brahms: Double Concerto, string quartets
> ...


I also don't really have any composers that I totally dislike. But, to my consternation sometimes, there are works by composers I do like that I can't get into.

- Beethoven (plus Haydn and Mozart): String quartets. I like the string quartet form, but for some reason only in its later instantiation, especially by Dvorak, Bartok, and Shostakovich.
- Elgar: Symphony No. 2 and Cello Concerto. I do like Symphony No. 1, Enigma Variations, and the elaborated Symphony No. 3 among others.
- Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition, orchestral version. Overexposure, probably.
- Prokofiev: Piano Concerti. This really pains me. I want to be into them. Nevsky is one of my favorites, too.

Franz


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

I've really tried to like Tchaikovsky's music, and I totally get why other people like it. To me though it just seems needlessly over the top emotionally (even for a Romantic composer) and he doesn't really write good development sections (even Tchaikovsky admitted this). So, I've never really been knocked over by his "hits" like Symphonies 4, 5, 6, PC1, Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, 1812, none of it.

EXCEPT.......the violin concerto. My goodness I love this piece, and it's one of my all time favorite works from any composer. In my humble opinion it's miles above anything else he composed, and it's the only Tchaikovsky piece I listen to with any regularity.


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## Bigbang (Jun 2, 2019)

Olias said:


> I've really tried to like Tchaikovsky's music, and I totally get why other people like it. To me though it just seems needlessly over the top emotionally (even for a Romantic composer) and he doesn't really write good development sections (even Tchaikovsky admitted this). So, I've never really been knocked over by his "hits" like Symphonies 4, 5, 6, PC1, Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, 1812, none of it.
> 
> EXCEPT.......the violin concerto. My goodness I love this piece, and it's one of my all time favorite works from any composer. In my humble opinion it's miles above anything else he composed, and it's the only Tchaikovsky piece I listen to with any regularity.


Well, you got me curious with your background and if I remember you have a website devoted to the classical era. What versions of Tchaikovsky's VC work for you?


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> I enjoyed your detailed response...for me the the first movement is particularly interesting - the modulation right in the second or third bar got me immediately when I first heard it. It sense of calm reflection is imo quite delightful.
> 
> 
> 
> Would appreciate a Britten recommendation - I like Grime's Sea Interludes but struggle with the War Requiem.


It really depends on what floats your boat.

If you like Choral, I would start with _Rejoice in the Lamb_ (but get a decent modern recording with an English Cathedral Choir. Britten's own recordings were done in the dark ages and sound ....not good). Second choice would be _Hymn to St. Cecilia._

If you prefer Orchestral, I'd start with _Sinfonia da Requiem_. And second choice, if you think a ballet score counts as orchestral, _Prince of the Pagodas_.

If you prefer Chamber/Instrumental, I think I'd have to go for the _Nocturnal after John Dowland_ (for guitar, as originally intended, not a re-work for string quartet). Second choice would be the _Third String Quartet_.

If you prefer Vocal, it would have to be _Les Illuminations._ Originally written for soprano and orchestra, but I'd go for the Peter Pears version any time. Second choice would be the _Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings_ (which was written for Pears).

Currently re-acquainting myself with Penderecki's _Seven Gates of Jerusalem_, but once that's done, I shall give D960 another go, especially in light of your comment.


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

Bigbang said:


> Well, who said one had to listen to each and every piece of music with total concentration? Seriously, most of my listening *is* background music. If I can tolerate any music as background while doing stuff, good enough. It is when I cannot like a piece of music no matter what I am doing then it is what it is.


No-one, but I find I have to concentrate on a new piece if I'm to get any sense out of it. Once it's under my skin, so to speak, I am happy to not concentrate so much. _Seven Gates of Jerusalem_ is playing as I type. It's an excellent work, but I know it well enough not to have to listen in a darkened room or with the score on my lap!



Bigbang said:


> I think we might be too preoccupied with interpretation on what it means to like music. Kinda like one person saying they "love" and "like" this piece. I do not concern myself with self analysis so if Schubert is good enough as background (yes, he is that for me) then what is the problem? Do I need to go to therapy for help if I cannot get most of the classical music integrated into my psyche because practically most of it is nothing but background music?
> 
> Beethoven symphonies and other large scale works are sometimes too much because Beethoven, to me, is a composer who is in my face too much. Like people who are yelling and screaming at you, demanding that you listen to what they are saying.


That I definitely agree with! Bach makes me want to dance; Mozart makes me want to indulge in ice cream. Beethoven makes me want to do the hoovering (vaccuuming)! I exaggerate, but only slightly.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

Bigbang said:


> Well, you got me curious with your background and if I remember you have a website devoted to the classical era. What versions of Tchaikovsky's VC work for you?


Great place for a plug. 

http://somethingclassical.blogspot.com

I think the reason I gravitate to the Classical Period composers is because I really enjoy formal structure, good development of ideas, musical wit, and cleverness. Self-expression in music is totally fine with me, but I still want a clear structure I can follow. This is probably why my most favorite 19th Century composers are Mendelssohn, Brahms, and Dvorak (the composers that expressed emotion through use of the Classical Period homophonic forms without changing them too much). It's probably why I almost never listen to Liszt, Berlioz, Mahler, Bruckner, or Wagner. I totally appreciate their genius and I absolutely get why other people like their work. It's just not my thing. Too overly emotional for me. Interesting also that my favorite 20th century music tends to be the Neo-classical movement (Shostakovich 9, Prokofiev 1, Stravinsky Pulcinella, etc.)

I think I enjoy Tchaikovsky's VC mainly because I think it's the one work where he writes gorgeous melodies, develops his ideas well, and expresses himself without wallowing in self-pity or needless angst. Just my opinion of course. I haven't heard all versions of course but I do particularly enjoy Hilary Hahn and Julia Fischer's recordings, PROBABLY because to me they sound the most technically perfect and aren't too emotionally over the top.

I just realized I must be a Vulcan.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Olias said:


> I've really tried to like Tchaikovsky's music, and I totally get why other people like it. To me though it just seems needlessly over the top emotionally (even for a Romantic composer) and he doesn't really write good development sections (even Tchaikovsky admitted this). So, I've never really been knocked over by his "hits" like Symphonies 4, 5, 6, PC1, Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, 1812, none of it.
> 
> EXCEPT.......the violin concerto. My goodness I love this piece, and it's one of my all time favorite works from any composer. In my humble opinion it's miles above anything else he composed, and it's the only Tchaikovsky piece I listen to with any regularity.


I would echo everything you said about Tchaikovsky, except it's the PC1 that does it for me, but only in the right hands (specifically Cliburn's). I may also like the VC, I'd need to spend more time with it to tell. I'm sure I'll lose points with you for saying this, but I also feel similarly about Dvorák. I just can't get into any of his music. The one work that sorta does it for me would be the Cello Concerto.

That's all I've got for now. I'll come back if I think of anything else.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

flamencosketches said:


> I would echo everything you said about Tchaikovsky, except it's the PC1 that does it for me, but only in the right hands (specifically Cliburn's). I may also like the VC, I'd need to spend more time with it to tell. I'm sure I'll lose points with you for saying this, but I also feel similarly about Dvorák. I just can't get into any of his music. The one work that sorta does it for me would be the Cello Concerto.
> 
> That's all I've got for now. I'll come back if I think of anything else.


Hey, it's all good. Dvorak's my jam but not everyone gets into him. If we all liked the same thing it would be a boring discussion board. 

Although kudos for liking his Cello Concerto best. It is arguably his most perfect work.


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## Simplicissimus (Feb 3, 2020)

Olias said:


> Great place for a plug.
> 
> http://somethingclassical.blogspot.com
> 
> ...


I'm such a big fan of Tchaikovsky that I can't resist going to bat for him after reading such a clear exposition of your Vulcan sensibility. Perhaps because he was immature and not yet dominated by anxiety and self-pity (if that's what actually happened to him), Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 13 "Winter Dreams" might work for you -- it has, I think, strong formal structure, pretty good development of ideas (actually spelled out programmatically by Tchaikowsky in his commentary), wit, and good humor. This symphony doesn't get a lot of exposure compared to his later, emotionally heavier ones, so I want to commend it to your consideration. I hear it as a glimpse of what the composer might have developed further if he had not veered into the emotional depths he plumbed later in his life. I have two recordings of this symphony, both of which I consider good: Dorati/London SO, and (a very young) Tilson Thomas/Boston SO.


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## Simplicissimus (Feb 3, 2020)

flamencosketches said:


> I would echo everything you said about Tchaikovsky, except it's the PC1 that does it for me, but only in the right hands (specifically Cliburn's). I may also like the VC, I'd need to spend more time with it to tell. I'm sure I'll lose points with you for saying this, but I also feel similarly about Dvorák. I just can't get into any of his music. The one work that sorta does it for me would be the Cello Concerto.
> 
> That's all I've got for now. I'll come back if I think of anything else.


A recording by my favorite pianist that I consider not better, but as good (and that's saying a lot), as Cliburn's Tchaikowsky PC1: Ozawa/London SO with John Browning, 1967, RCA (via Sony). I love the piece, as you say, in the right hands.


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## Bigbang (Jun 2, 2019)

dizwell said:


> No-one, but I find I have to concentrate on a new piece if I'm to get any sense out of it. Once it's under my skin, so to speak, I am happy to not concentrate so much. _Seven Gates of Jerusalem_ is playing as I type. It's an excellent work, but I know it well enough not to have to listen in a darkened room or with the score on my lap!
> 
> That I definitely agree with! Bach makes me want to dance; Mozart makes me want to indulge in ice cream. Beethoven makes me want to do the hoovering (vaccuuming)! I exaggerate, but only slightly.


I was more or less joking about the background music as now days it is how we listen to music. But for me, I listen to music on a subconscious level as I am not an expert on music. So I have to bypass the conscious awareness much of the time. Truly I have no time for just music, so it is good that there is plenty of classical music that works for me.


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> It really depends on what floats your boat.
> 
> If you like Choral, I would start with _Rejoice in the Lamb_ (but get a decent modern recording with an English Cathedral Choir. Britten's own recordings were done in the dark ages and sound ....not good). Second choice would be _Hymn to St. Cecilia._
> 
> ...


Appreciate this dizwell - will report back.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

seitzpf said:


> I'm such a big fan of Tchaikovsky that I can't resist going to bat for him after reading such a clear exposition of your Vulcan sensibility. Perhaps because he was immature and not yet dominated by anxiety and self-pity (if that's what actually happened to him), Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 13 "Winter Dreams" might work for you -- it has, I think, strong formal structure, pretty good development of ideas (actually spelled out programmatically by Tchaikowsky in his commentary), wit, and good humor. This symphony doesn't get a lot of exposure compared to his later, emotionally heavier ones, so I want to commend it to your consideration. I hear it as a glimpse of what the composer might have developed further if he had not veered into the emotional depths he plumbed later in his life. I have two recordings of this symphony, both of which I consider good: Dorati/London SO, and (a very young) Tilson Thomas/Boston SO.


You got it. I admit I have only listened to Tchaikovsky's 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and Manfred (if you count that as a Symphony). I most certainly will listen to his 1st.


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## MusicSybarite (Aug 17, 2017)

Allegro Con Brio said:


> I have very few composers that I totally dislike. But here are some works from my favorite composers that I can't get along with:
> 
> Bach: Flute Sonatas and Flute Partita, Christmas Oratorio
> Brahms: Double Concerto, string quartets
> ...


Brahms's string quartets?
The Schubert??
Beethoven's 7th???

You're a sinner, guy! :lol:

Otherwise, I agree about the Elgar, Bach and Mahler.


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## Allegro Con Brio (Jan 3, 2020)

MusicSybarite said:


> Brahms's string quartets?
> The Schubert??
> Beethoven's 7th???
> 
> ...


I know, I've committed heresy against the consensus! My dislike for the Beethoven mostly stems from the second movement; I have no idea what people see in it. Schubert is one of my top 5 composers, but I seriously do not see what folks think is so great about the String Quintet. The trio of the scherzo is heavenly, but the rest I find just adequate, and the Adagio bores me to death. I prefer the Trout quintet and piano trios by a country mile.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

I always find it fascinating how our individual tastes can sometimes show remarkable parallels, and then suddenly go off into a complete tangent.


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> It really depends on what floats your boat.
> 
> If you like Choral, I would start with _Rejoice in the Lamb_ (but get a decent modern recording with an English Cathedral Choir. Britten's own recordings were done in the dark ages and sound ....not good). Second choice would be _Hymn to St. Cecilia._
> 
> ...


I tried the orchestral works you cited but I failed to comprehend Britten's meaning. I listened to the Sinfonia Da Requiem a good few times. Will keep trying.

Thanks.


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> I tried the orchestral works you cited but I failed to comprehend Britten's meaning. I listened to the Sinfonia Da Requiem a good few times. Will keep trying.
> 
> Thanks.


I am probably going to commit heresy when I say that, if at all possible, I would stop looking for meaning in his works. Not that he doesn't have any, of course. Just that if you are unfamiliar with them, I would recommend sitting back and just enjoy the tunes, the instrumentation, the technical effects.

I think I found a biography of help (knowing that the Sinfonia da Requiem was written to commemorate his recently desceased parents, etc). It puts things into perspective, somewhat.

Once the notes are familiar enough, I find the meaning comes later, on the whole.

Of course, there's the school of thought (a la Bernstein) that his music is all about gears grinding and not quite meshing, and full of pain -though no composer I know was more technically accomplished and able to make gears mesh perfectly well. There's the 'boys and sadism' angle. And there's the line from Peter Gammond that I've always liked: "Britten wrote two kinds of works; vocal, which all sound as if they were written for Peter Pears to sing (and were); and non-vocal, which all sound as if they were written for Peter Pears to sing (and may have been, but he was busy at the time". And there's his slightly less frivolous line, "There ought to be some way of dismissing his work lightly, but it's peculiar personal poetry (a mixture of Grimm's fairy tales and Peter Pears) is so utterly compelling that everyone has been forced to admit that he was probably a real genius".

Short version: enjoy the music for its surface attractions first. Read into it what you like later.

But that's just the way I found my way in. It may not work every time for every one else!


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> I tried the orchestral works you cited but I failed to comprehend Britten's meaning. I listened to the Sinfonia Da Requiem a good few times. Will keep trying.
> 
> Thanks.


I am probably going to commit heresy when I say that, if at all possible, I would stop looking for meaning in his works. Not that he doesn't have any, of course. Just that if you are unfamiliar with them, I would recommend sitting back and just enjoy the tunes, the instrumentation, the technical effects.

I think I found a biography of help (knowing that the Sinfonia da Requiem was written to commemorate his recently desceased parents, etc). It puts things into perspective, somewhat.

Once the notes are familiar enough, I find the meaning comes later, on the whole.

Of course, there's the school of thought (a la Bernstein) that his music is all about gears grinding and not quite meshing, and full of pain -though no composer I know was more technically accomplished and able to make gears mesh perfectly well. There's the 'boys and sadism' angle. And there's the line from Peter Gammond that I've always liked: "Britten wrote two kinds of works; vocal, which all sound as if they were written for Peter Pears to sing (and were); and non-vocal, which all sound as if they were written for Peter Pears to sing (and may have been, but he was busy at the time)". And there's his slightly less frivolous line, "There ought to be some way of dismissing his work lightly, but its peculiar personal poetry (a mixture of Grimm's fairy tales and Peter Pears) is so utterly compelling that everyone has been forced to admit that he was probably a real genius".

Short version: enjoy the music for its surface attractions first. Read into it what you like later.

But that's just the way I found my way in. It may not work every time for every one else!


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> I am probably going to commit heresy when I say that, if at all possible, I would stop looking for meaning in his works. Not that he doesn't have any, of course. Just that if you are unfamiliar with them, I would recommend sitting back and just enjoy the tunes, the instrumentation, the technical effects.
> 
> I think I found a biography of help (knowing that the Sinfonia da Requiem was written to commemorate his recently desceased parents, etc). It puts things into perspective, somewhat.
> 
> ...


I must have listened to the Sinfonia Da Requiem about 10 times - so I am pretty familiar.

"'boys and sadism' angle"?


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> I am probably going to commit heresy when I say that, if at all possible, I would stop looking for meaning in his works. Not that he doesn't have any, of course. Just that if you are unfamiliar with them, I would recommend sitting back and just enjoy the tunes, the instrumentation, the technical effects.
> 
> I think I found a biography of help (knowing that the Sinfonia da Requiem was written to commemorate his recently desceased parents, etc). It puts things into perspective, somewhat.
> 
> ...


I assume composers are attempting to express some kind of narrative that has an emotional aspect to it; I waited for that to be become apparent but it didn't for me.


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## Guest002 (Feb 19, 2020)

janxharris said:


> I must have listened to the Sinfonia Da Requiem about 10 times - so I am pretty familiar.
> 
> "'boys and sadism' angle"?


Well, there is the school of thought that Britten was fixated on the loss of childhood innocence. That growing up was something that happened to him, but he really rather wished it hadn't. All of his operas tend to be about the betrayal of innocence: Peter Grimes, the sadistic fisherman who causes a young orphan boy to die; Rape of Lucretia: Lucretia was innocent!; Billy Budd, young sailor, handsome and good, is killed because of Claggart; Turn of the Screw, Miles is corrupted by Quint and Flora by Miss Jessel; Curlew River -a mad woman is redeemed by the apparition of her transfigured son, previously murdered by robbers; Death in Venice: old man inspired -and corrupted by- the youthful charms and innocence of the boy Tadzio.

And on and on.

At one point, there was a school of thought that noticed the extensive use of percussion and, in particular, the whip in his orchestrations.

I mean, you take or leave that sort of stuff. But the fondness for night, youth, innocence; and the despair at its inevitable destruction at the hands of old age, experience and real life is definitely there as a background to a lot of his work.


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## mikeh375 (Sep 7, 2017)

dizwell said:


> ..............
> 
> I mean, you take or leave that sort of stuff. But the fondness for night, youth, innocence; and the despair at its inevitable destruction at the hands of old age, experience and real life is definitely there as a background to a lot of his work.


Hence his affinity with Auden.

_"Time and fevers burn away individual beauty from thoughtful children"
_


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

dizwell said:


> Well, there is the school of thought that Britten was fixated on the loss of childhood innocence. That growing up was something that happened to him, but he really rather wished it hadn't. All of his operas tend to be about the betrayal of innocence: Peter Grimes, the sadistic fisherman who causes a young orphan boy to die; Rape of Lucretia: Lucretia was innocent!; Billy Budd, young sailor, handsome and good, is killed because of Claggart; Turn of the Screw, Miles is corrupted by Quint and Flora by Miss Jessel; Curlew River -a mad woman is redeemed by the apparition of her transfigured son, previously murdered by robbers; Death in Venice: old man inspired -and corrupted by- the youthful charms and innocence of the boy Tadzio.
> 
> And on and on.
> 
> ...


Are you aware that Jeff Buckley (now deceased) recorded a version of Britten's 'Corpus Christi Carol'?


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## consuono (Mar 27, 2020)

Tchaikovsky is probably my least favorite among the "big names", but for some reason I've always liked his Serenade in C for strings.

And I'd agree with not being thrilled with the Bach flute partita. Not even Bach's greatness can make a solo flute interesting for 15 minutes. (The flute sonatas though are heavenly.)


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## Triesta (Nov 28, 2020)

The Wood Dove by Dvorak. I'm largely allergic to Dvorak (maybe not so much to the chamber music), but I've always had time for this piece. Rattle turned me on to it, but there is a surprisingly large number of good recordings. OK, there's a bit of cod-Wagnerianism but it's a little strange and not as ingratiating as most of the orchestral work.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Schubert's arpeggione sonata is intriguing for the "desolate" mood it creates. (Much like certain parts of the Beethoven tempest sonata)


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## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

I enjoy Mahler Symphony No. 4 and the first 3 movements of his second symphony. I am not fond of the last two movements sung/choral movements of the 2nd, and this is the only musical composition I will play as a "bleeding chunk" and skip the last 2 movements of the second symphony. I do enjoy the entire 4th symphony. Never understood, appreciated or enjoyed the rest of his work.

I would not say I dislike JS Bach, however the only set of works I play constantly are the solo cello suites, which are definitely in my favorite 10 compositions of any kind. I probably have 30 sets of CDs of the suites by various cellists and have heard Wispelwey play them live. I do also enjoy his Goldberg variations and will play them once in a while but not anywhere as frequently. I do recognize his musical genius, I just don't love the music. This maybe a reflection of my musical tastes, which rarely involves the baroque. I am much more into 19th century classical and particularly romantic era orchestral music.


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## ORigel (May 7, 2020)

Just about every favorite composer of mine has duds, so I'll list only popular works from them that I don't like:
Beethoven: Triple Concerto, Symphony no. 2, Piano Sonata no. 8
Bach: Organ works (when streaming; I appreciate the German Organ Mass on CD), Magnificat

Brahms: His Lieder, other than the Four Serious Songs

Mozart: Quintet for Piano and Winds, Ave Verum Corpus, most of his string quartets

Haydn: Symphony no. 96 "Miracle"

Schubert: Mass no. 5, Piano Sonatas, Piano Trios

Mahler: Symphony nos. 5 and 8

Bartok: Sonata for Solo Violin

Schoenberg: Pierrot Lunaire

Mendelssohn: Symphony no. 2

Tchaikovsky: Manfred Symphony, Piano Concerto no. 1, 1812 Overture, Symphony no. 4

Vivaldi: Juditha Triumphans

Liszt: Christus

Handel: Water Music


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## ORigel (May 7, 2020)

haziz said:


> I enjoy Mahler Symphony No. 4 and the first 3 movements of his second symphony. I am not fond of the last two movements sung/choral movements of the 2nd, and this is the only musical composition I will play as a "bleeding chunk" and skip the last 2 movements of the second symphony. I do enjoy the entire 4th symphony. Never understood, appreciated or enjoyed the rest of his work.
> 
> I would not say I dislike JS Bach, however the only set of works I play constantly are the solo cello suites, which are definitely in my favorite 10 compositions of any kind. I probably have 30 sets of CDs of the suites by various cellists and have heard Wispelwey play them live. I do also enjoy his Goldberg variations and will play them once in a while but not anywhere as frequently. I do recognize his musical genius, I just don't love the music. This maybe a reflection of my musical tastes, which rarely involves the baroque. I am much more into 19th century classical and particularly romantic era orchestral music.


How about romantic interpretations of his Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue, and old recordings of the B Minor Mass, St. Matthew Passion, and St. John Passion (played with large forces)?


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## ORigel (May 7, 2020)

Triesta said:


> The Wood Dove by Dvorak. I'm largely allergic to Dvorak (maybe not so much to the chamber music), but I've always had time for this piece. Rattle turned me on to it, but there is a surprisingly large number of good recordings. OK, there's a bit of cod-Wagnerianism but it's a little strange and not as ingratiating as most of the orchestral work.


I greatly prefer The Golden Spinning Wheel and The Water Goblin.


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## MusicSybarite (Aug 17, 2017)

I hardly ever am into modern or contemporary composers/works, and that doesn't mean I don't enjoy many of his works. Here some I consider very attractive:

Alban Berg: *Drei Orchesterstücke*
Luciano Berio: *Sinfonia*
Philip Glass: *Violin Concerto* or *Concerto Fantasy for two timpanists and orchestra*
Arnold Schoenberg: *String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 7*
Anton Webern: *Passacaglia for orchestra, Op. 1*


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

I wouldn't call him a 'least favourite' composer, but I'm not a big fan of Liszt. Other than that huge, wonderful B Minor Sonata for Piano.


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## Aries (Nov 29, 2012)

Good pieces of least favorite composers:

- Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante KV 364
- Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 5

Bad pieces of favorite composers:

- Bruckner: String quintett
- Shostakovic: Symphonies 1, 6, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15
- Schubert: Impromptu No. 2
- Sibelius: Symphonies 3, 4, 6, 7


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## Geoff48 (Aug 15, 2020)

I don’t like Bruckner and I can’t think of anything by him that I’ve ever enjoyed. I used to think the same about Franck, still find his symphony hard going, but I’ve recently got to know his violin sonata and that is really good. Then Bartok is difficult for me although the Concerto for Orchestra is that unusual work which is actually funny. Schumann is not unpleasant although I find his orchestration a little stodgy and I don’t see him as a favourite although the Piano Concerto is an exception to that rule, it really is lovely.
As for works by favourites I don’t really like I could do without the Choral Symphony excepting the third movement. And probably Sullivan’s Patience but I am a fan of his other operettas. And for a real favourite try his Merchant of Venice Suite, ideally the EMI four movement abridgement played by Vivian Dunn, really great foot tapping music.


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