# Top 100 List 2013



## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

My local radio station is currently playing its listener-voted top 100 list for the end of the year. This is an annual event where listener votes are solicited for two weeks and one can vote for up to 10 ranked pieces. The station plays the pieces in a countdown during the week between Christmas and NYE. Every night I will post what has been played during the day because I know how much this forum enjoys lists. This first post will consolidate the past two days.

My city is a medium-sized Midwestern USA metropolitan area of 842,000. We have both a professional (ROPA) symphony and an opera company, with several other professional orchestras within an hour's drive, and another very fine amateur orchestra in town. Our 24-hour classical radio station is not NPR or university funded; it is listener-supported and non-commercial, and does much of its own programming. You can listen to the web stream here and review last year's list thread here.
http://www.talkclassical.com/23036-top-100-list-2012-a.html

100. GRAND CANYON SUITE Composer: Grofe, Ferde
99. WEST SIDE STORY SYMPHONIC DANCES Composer: Bernstein, Leonard
98. MUSIC FOR THE ROYAL FIREWORKS HWV351 Composer: Handel, George Frideric
97. WILLIAM TELL OVERTURE Composer: Rossini, Gioacchino
96. SYMPHONY NO 8 IN G OP88 Composer: Dvorak, Antonin
95. SONGS OP34: NO14 "VOCALISE" Composer: Rachmaninov, Sergei
94. LARK ASCENDING Composer: Vaughan Williams, Ralph
93. LARLESIENNE SUITE Composer: Bizet, Georges
92. WALKUERE: RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES Composer: Wagner, Richard
91. SERENADE K525 IN G "EINE KLEINE NACHTMUSIK" Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
90. CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA Composer: Bartok, Bela
89. JOHNNY APPLESEED SUITE Composer: OConnor, Mark
88. CANDIDE OVERTURE Composer: Bernstein, Leonard
87. STRING QUARTET NO 12 IN F OP96 "AMERICAN" Composer: Dvorak, Antonin
86. MARRIAGE OF FIGARO OVERTURE Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
85. CARMEN SUITE Composer: Bizet, Georges
84. SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE OP14 Composer: Berlioz, Hector
83. DAPHNIS AND CHLOE SUITE Composer: Ravel, Maurice
82. TALES FROM THE VIENNA WOODS OP325 Composer: Strauss, Johann Jr
81. GERMAN REQUIEM OP45 Composer: Brahms, Johannes
80. TANNHAEUSER OVERTURE Composer: Wagner, Richard
79. SYMPHONY NO 4 IN F MINOR OP36 Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
78. "SHEEP MAY SAFELY GRAZE" Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian
77. PIANO CONCERTO NO 2 IN B FLAT OP83 Composer: Brahms, Johannes
76. SPARTACUS SUITE Composer: Khachaturian, Aram
75. SYMPHONY NO 2 OP30 "ROMANTIC" Composer: Hanson, Howard
74. SYMPHONY NO 2 IN E MINOR OP27 Composer: Rachmaninov, Sergei
(there were 3 pieces played between these listings and I hate to guess which was #73!)
72. FOUR LAST SONGS Composer: Strauss, Richard
71. STRING QUARTET NO 2 IN D Composer: Borodin, Alexander
70. PEER GYNT SUITES 1 2 Composer: Grieg, Edvard
69. PIANO SONATA NO 14 IN C SHARP MINOR OP27 NO2 "MOONLIGHT" Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
68. BOLERO Composer: Ravel, Maurice
67. VIOLIN CONCERTO OP14 Composer: Barber, Samuel
66. ON THE BEAUTIFUL, BLUE DANUBE OP314 Composer: Strauss, Johann Jr
65. ORCHESTRA SUITE NO 3 IN D BWV1068 Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian
64. EGMONT OVERTURE OP84 Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
63. NIGHT ON BALD MOUNTAIN Composer: Mussorgsky, Modest
62. "JESU, JOY OF MANS DESIRING" Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian
61. PIANO QUINTET D667 IN A "THE TROUT" Composer: Schubert, Franz
60. SYMPHONY NO 8 IN B MINOR D759 "UNFINISHED" Composer: Schubert, Franz


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

I don't know the _Johnny Appleseed Suite_, but so far all the compositions are wonderful. My list would, of course, be different, but I'd have trouble arguing that any of the works should not be on the list.


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## Jokke (Dec 28, 2013)

Interesting.

In my homecountry Belgium, the classical radio station Klara organised a classical Top 100 a couple of weeks ago.
The result can be consulted here : http://klara.be/top100_2013/


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Seems to be on just about everybody's top list: the Johnny Appleseed Suite


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## DrKilroy (Sep 29, 2012)

I have heard the Johnny Appleseed Suite and, unfortunately, placing it above The Lark Ascending or Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra seems to be a bad joke, unless you are a huge country or bluegrass fan. 

Best regards, Dr


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

If I ever hear another performance of Ravel's Bolero....well, there's no telling what I'll do!


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## Guest (Dec 28, 2013)

If you give the same people, roughly, the same list of contenders, roughly, you will end up with the same 100, roughly, every time, no matter which town you're in.

Here's an idea: every month (a year is such a long time) publish a list of works that few if any of your audience have heard.

Keep doing this forever.

(If you want to get them to listen to those works, you might have to play them on your station. That would be good. But offering a prize would be even better. Beer would get _my_ attention. A nice craft beer that I've never tried before, of course. (If you can find one.))


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## Jokke (Dec 28, 2013)

some guy said:


> A nice craft beer that I've never tried before, of course. (If you can find one.))


 Westvleteren 12 maybe?


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

This is the third year the _Johnny Appleseed Suite_ has been on the list. It's a nice piece that's easy to listen to by a composer that happens to be alive, but I don't have an explanation.


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## Guest (Dec 28, 2013)

Lunasong said:


> This is the third year the _Johnny Appleseed Suite_ has been on the list. It's a nice piece that's easy to listen to by a composer that happens to be alive, but I don't have an explanation.


The listenership of a local classical music station is probably relatively low. Then participation in the survey is even lower. If Mark O'Conner has family in the area, a handful of votes might sew it up for him. Who want's to do the research?


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## Taggart (Feb 14, 2013)

Hmm. If you want to see what the UK's list looks like have a look at Classic FM's Hall of Fame. The top 5 include Rachmaninov, Vaughan Williams and a couple of games scores there's some Beethoven Mozart and Elgar in the 6 - 10 range and Allegri's Miserere ends up at number 10. Definitely a mixed bag.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

A short list today because of other programming:

59. CELLO CONCERTO IN E MINOR OP85 Composer: Elgar, Edward
58. RODEO SUITE Composer: Copland, Aaron
57. REQUIEM K626 Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
56. FIREBIRD Composer: Stravinsky, Igor
55. TURANDOT: "NESSUN DORMA" Composer: Puccini, Giacomo
54. SYMPHONY NO 6 IN B MINOR OP74 "PATHETIQUE" Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
53. CONCIERTO DE ARANJUEZ Composer: Rodrigo, Joaquin


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

I fainted when I saw "The Trout" as #61.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Jerome said:


> If Mark O'Conner has family in the area, a handful of votes might sew it up for him. Who want's to do the research?


O'Connor was raised in Washington state and currently resides in NYC. But you only live 2 hours from me.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Vaneyes said:


> I fainted when I saw "The Trout" as #61.


In 2008, it ranked as #23. It was not even on the list in 2011. Last year it was #88.
(I track these on a geeky spreadsheet.)

A seasonal trout to revive you...


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Wonder what number one will be-The Sorcerer's Apprentice?


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## GiulioCesare (Apr 9, 2013)

hpowders said:


> Wonder what number one will be-The Sorcerer's Apprentice?


Probably between the Blue Danube and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

^^^That's the response I would expect from a Viennese taxi driver, if I asked him where Beethoven's grave is.


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

GiulioCesare said:


> Probably between the Blue Danube and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.


Both are already listed.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

52. SYMPHONY NO 4 IN A OP90 "ITALIAN" Composer: Mendelssohn, Felix
51. FANFARE FOR THE COMMON MAN Composer: Copland, Aaron
50. ROMEO AND JULIET SUITE Composer: Prokofiev, Serge
49. SUITE BERGAMASQUE Composer: Debussy, Claude
48. REQUIEM Composer: Verdi, Giuseppe
47. CELLO CONCERTO IN B MINOR OP104 Composer: Dvorak, Antonin
46. FANTASIA ON A THEME BY THOMAS TALLIS Composer: Vaughan Williams, Ralph
45. CLARINET CONCERTO IN A K622 Composer:Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
44. VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D OP77 Composer: Brahms, Johannes
43. FINLANDIA OP26 Composer: Sibelius, Jean
42. SYMPHONY NO 41 IN C K551 "JUPITER" Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
41. OVERTURE IN E FLAT "1812" Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
40. SYMPHONY NO 40 IN G MINOR K550 Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
39. SYMPHONIC POEM NO 3 "LES PRELUDES" Composer: Liszt, Franz
38. SYMPHONY NO 3 IN E FLAT OP55 "EROICA" Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

hpowders said:


> Wonder what number one will be-The Sorcerer's Apprentice?


_The Sorcerer's Apprentice_ has made the list once - in 2010.


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

Jokke said:


> Interesting.
> 
> In my homecountry Belgium, the classical radio station Klara organised a classical Top 100 a couple of weeks ago.
> The result can be consulted here : http://klara.be/top100_2013/


NB. Non-Nederlands readers will want to hit the tab "De Stand" to read the list.


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

Lunasong said:


> This is the third year the _Johnny Appleseed Suite_ has been on the list. It's a nice piece that's easy to listen to by a composer that happens to be alive, but I don't have an explanation.


I'm sure it would do well on the infamous UK Classic FM.


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

With only minor differences between lists generated in one locale or another, these top 100 thingies seem near wholly interchangeable one with the other.

There is some top of the pops cheese along with top of the classical pops profundities, absolutely the most usual suspects, nothing really interesting or newsworthy.

If you don't care for the "lighter" fare -- or "tone poems" in general, you could despair that Ferde Grofe's Grand Canyon suite seems to linger on, and on, and on.

But what real point of publishing endlessly repetitive populist based lists has, I dunno. Maybe checking in on them at ten year intervals might show something of interest, like a slight shift in taste of what's popular, but other than that, the sameness makes posting yet another not newsworthy in the least.


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## Guest (Dec 30, 2013)

Lunasong said:


> O'Connor was raised in Washington state and currently resides in NYC. But you only live 2 hours from me.


Darn! You're on to me. I called in four times cuz I just dig Johhny Appleseed. 

It's nice to know someone else in the Midwest listens to classical music. If Mozart drove a pickup truck I'd be cool again.


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

Jerome said:


> Darn! You're on to me. I called in four times cuz I just dig Johhny Appleseed.
> 
> It's nice to know someone else in the Midwest listens to classical music. If Mozart drove a pickup truck I'd be cool again.


I'm in that big city on the south edge of Lake Michigan to the north of you, and even though it is supposedly 'urbane,' I know who this "hillbilly" / comes from bluegrass roots composer O'Conner is. Try his piano trio, I think -- even without the colorful "Johnny Appleseed" appellation -- you might like it


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## Cadenza (Sep 24, 2012)

O'Conner is pushed very hard on the Seattle station, which I do not understand at all. It's music that sounds like its Classical from someone who really only understands Bluegrass...way too many notes.

The same station gets about the same results, more-or-less, in its polls, with all the Romantic warhorses and barn-burners predominating, yet insists on a daily playlist way too heavy on Baroque and Ancient stuff. Go figure...


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

37. PINES OF ROME Composer: Respighi, Ottorino
36. VIOLIN CONCERTO IN E MINOR OP64 Composer: Mendelssohn, Felix
35.THAIS: MEDITATION Composer: Massenet, Jules
34. RHAPSODY ON A THEME OF PAGANINI OP43 Composer: Rachmaninov, Sergei
33. SYMPHONY NO 2 IN C MINOR "RESURRECTION" Composer: Mahler, Gustav
32. NUTCRACKER SUITE Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
31. SCHEHERAZADE OP35 Composer: Rimsky-Korsakov, Nikolai
30. VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D OP35 Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
29. WATER MUSIC: SUITE NO 1 IN F HWV348 Composer: Handel, George Frideric
28. PIANO CONCERTO NO 21 IN C K467 Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
27. SYMPHONY NO 6 IN F OP68 "PASTORAL" Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
26. MESSIAH Composer: Handel, George Frideric
25. SYMPHONY NO 5 IN E MINOR OP64 Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
24. VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D OP61 Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
23. SWAN LAKE SUITE Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
22. PLANETS OP32 Composer: Holst, Gustav
21. CARMINA BURANA Composer: Orff, Carl
20. PIANO CONCERTO IN A MINOR OP16 Composer: Grieg, Edvard

Tomorrow - the conclusion!


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...."


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## Couac Addict (Oct 16, 2013)

#1 will be Beethoven's 9th....why break tradition


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## Guest (Dec 31, 2013)

Antidote:

Find some music you've never heard before.

Listen to it.

Repeat.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

some guy said:


> Antidote:
> 
> Find some music you've never heard before.
> 
> ...


How about _Johnny Appleseed Suite_? Request this piece now from your classical station! Guaranteed not to be a "chestnut."

19. PIANO CONCERTO NO 1 IN B FLAT MINOR OP23 Composer: Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilych
18. APPALACHIAN SPRING SUITE Composer: Copland, Aaron
17. FOUR SEASONS Composer: Vivaldi, Antonio
16. RITE OF SPRING Composer: Stravinsky, Igor
15. PIANO CONCERTO NO 3 IN D MINOR OP30 Composer: Rachmaninov, Sergei
14. ENIGMA VARIATIONS OP36 Composer: Elgar, Edward
13. PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION Composer: Mussorgsky, Modest
12. CANON IN D Composer: Pachelbel, Johann
11. RHAPSODY IN BLUE Composer: Gershwin, George
10. MA VLAST Composer: Smetana, Bedrich
9. SYMPHONY NO 3 IN C MINOR OP78 "ORGAN" Composer: Saint-Saens, Camille
8. BRANDENBURG CONCERTO Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian
7. SYMPHONY NO 7 IN A OP92 Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
6. PIANO CONCERTO NO 5 IN E FLAT OP73 "EMPEROR" Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
5. SYMPHONY NO 5 IN C MINOR OP67 Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van
4. PIANO CONCERTO NO 2 IN C MINOR OP18 Composer: Rachmaninov, Sergei
3. SYMPHONY NO 9 IN E MINOR OP95 "FROM THE NEW WORLD" Composer: Dvorak, Antonin
2. ADAGIO FOR STRINGS OP11 NO2 Composer: Barber, Samuel
1. SYMPHONY NO 9 IN D MINOR OP125 "CHORAL" Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van

Our orchestra and chorus are performing Beethoven #9 this coming May. Based on this result, I expect a sold-out house. 

Not too many surprises. In perspective, if one was doing a "top 100 rock songs of all time" list every year, would there be that many changes ear to year?


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## Couac Addict (Oct 16, 2013)

Lunasong said:


> Our orchestra and chorus are performing Beethoven #9 this coming May. Based on this result, I expect a sold-out house.


A reasonable expectation. We never have a concert hall large enough when we play the 9th.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

As mentioned, I've been tracking the results for 7 years. Some stats:

Forty-four of the pieces have been on the countdown each of those years.
One hundred four pieces have previously been ranked and did not make this year's list.
The highest ranking piece that was not on the countdown all seven years is #14 "Enigma" Variations, which missed one year.
Four pieces were newly ranked this year:
EGMONT OVERTURE OP84 (Beethoven)​ORCHESTRA SUITE NO 3 IN D BWV1068 (Bach)​TALES FROM THE VIENNA WOODS OP325 (Strauss, Jr)​SYMPHONY NO 8 IN G OP88 (Dvorak)​


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