# Top 10 Composers For Solo Piano Works



## neoshredder

Who do you think are the top 10 Composers for Piano Works or as many as you can think of? Also recommended recordings would be useful.


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## KenOC

This is an interesting question. There is a fundamental dichotomy: (1) Who wrote the best piano music; and (2) Who wrote the best music for the piano?

I'll put Beethoven #1 in #2, and Chopin #1 in #1. Bach I conveniently ignore. Others to follow!


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## neoshredder

I'm thinking the list would go like this. And I'm only considering ones that wrote for Piano. So Bach won't count. At least not JS Bach. 
1. Beethoven
2. Mozart
3. Chopin
4. Schubert
5. Debussy
6. Ravel
7. Liszt
8. Prokofiev
9. Shostakovich
10. Satie.


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## stanchinsky

So tough especially since you want to leave out Bach (I would put him right at the top with no hesitation) here's my list, my order could be changed slightly depending on what day it is. 
1. Beethoven
2. Chopin (not in my personal list of favorites but his influence would be difficult to overstate)
3. Mozart
4. Rachmaninoff 
5. Debussy
6. Scriabin 
7. Liszt (once again not one of my favorites but really important)
8. Brahms
9. Rubinstein (Listen to the B flat piano trio great piano stuff going on, I feel he's really overlooked)
10 For me 10th could go to so many, Mendelssohn, Ravel, Schumann, I guess I'll go with Schumann


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## neoshredder

Yeah Bach sounds great on Piano. That wasn't to his original intent though. They were made for Harpsichord or Organ. And yeah that's a pretty good list. I guess Chopin gets the edge over Mozart. Close call. I know BurningDesire wouldn't say it was close though. lol


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## joen_cph

Beethoven

then, in no particular order, and concerning solo piano works only:

Scriabin
Debussy
Chopin
Schumann
Schubert
Liszt
Samuil Feinberg (admittedly a personal favourite mostly, and rather neo-Scriabinesque)
Sorabji (the world just isn´t ready for him yet)
Bach; if he goes out, Rachmaninov or Medtner


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## moody

I think perhaps Alkan and Scharwenka could be added to the usual suspects somewhere.


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## Art Rock

Personal preference from 1 to 10 (focusing on solo piano works here):

Chopin
JS Bach*
Schubert
Debussy
Mendelssohn
Shostakovich
Grieg
Ravel
Rachmaninoff
Scriabin

*) I am not a purist, I love Bach on piano.

Beethoven: I have all his sonatas, but prefer the other composers listed above.
Brahms: one of my favourite composers, but not on piano.
Schumann: like most of his work, his piano compositions do not really connect with me.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

If the composer in question won a Grawemeyer Award (the most prestigious award for composition there is) for many of his piano works, does that automatically make him no. 1?


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## stanchinsky

I think he would need quite a few to compete with Beethoven and Chopin, not to mention everyone else.


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## Renaissance

1) Beethoven
2) Liszt
3) Rachmaninoff 
4) Faure 
5) Ravel
6) Schumann 
7) Shostakovich 
8) Chopin
9) Schubert 
10)Grieg


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

1. *Ligeti*
2. Liszt
3. Cage
4. Chopin
5. Ravel
6. Beethoven
7. Debussy
8. Shostakovich
9. Mozart
10. Stockhausen


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## Prodromides

Charles Koechlin 




Luciano Berio 




Morton Feldman 




Florent Schmitt


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## millionrainbows

Beethoven
Mozart
Chopin
Debussy
Erik Satie
John Cage
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Pierre Boulez
Milton Babbitt
Terry Riley


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## Ravndal

Ravel
Debussy
Chopin
Bach
Beethoven
Grieg
Rachmaninoff
Schubert
Scriabin
Liszt
Mendelssohn

This question was too hard. And this list changes all the time. I dont have an all time favorite composer for piano (maybe exept for Ravel. But it is mood-based)


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## tdc

I'll include Baroque for this one and just go with my favorites:

1) J.S. Bach
2) Ravel
3) Beethoven
4) Debussy
5) D. Scarlatti
6) Rodrigo
7) Schubert
8) Prokofiev
9) Schumann
10) Chopin


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## KenOC

joen_cph said:


> Sorabji (the world just isn´t ready for him yet)


Reminds me of what they say up north: "Alaska -- it's the land of the future! And always will be."


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## Ukko

The 19th Century was _the_ piano period, and Chopin, Liszt and Alkan were it's masters.


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## joen_cph

KenOC said:


> Reminds me of what they say up north: "Alaska -- it's the land of the future! And always will be."


Concerning Sorabji, the set of "100 Transcendental Etudes" seems to show him from a more approachable side ... Ullén is doing a fine, pioneering job recording them, but a pianist with more emotional involvement and architectural understanding, based on Ulléns initial voyage of discovery, will probably make them sound even better.


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## PetrB

Ignoring the poll and top ten aspects, which I don't get, and perhaps wrongly assuming part of your energy behind them is to collect suggestions.... These I think will certainly be in the general literature, some of them 'Everests or K2's' of a sort, which, since 'they are there' many a pianist will want to climb.

There is a little matter of *Olivier Messiaen*'s large scale cycle _Visions de l'Amen_ for two pianos, his _Vingt regards sur l'enfant Jesus_, a cycle of twenty pieces for solo piano, and his collected thirteen pieces of the _Catalogue d'oiseaux_ ("Bird catalogue") also for solo piano.

*Elliott Carter*'s monumental (and only) _Piano Sonata_





Check out *Frederic Rzewski's* variations on "_The People United Will Never Be Defeated!_" -- on the scale of Beethoven's _Diabelli Variations_.





Or his four _North American Ballads_
Dreadful Memories




Which Side are You on?




Down by the Riverside




Winnsboro Cotton Mill Blues





*William Bolcom* ~ _Twelve new Etudes_


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## PetrB

neoshredder said:


> I'm thinking the list would go like this. And I'm only considering ones that wrote for Piano. So Bach won't count. At least not JS Bach.
> 1. Beethoven
> 2. Mozart
> 3. Chopin
> 4. Schubert
> 5. Debussy
> 6. Ravel
> 7. Liszt
> 8. Prokofiev
> 9. Shostakovich
> 10. Satie.


Knock off your no's 9 & 10 and replace them with Brahms and Schumann, and this list would not be so hopelessly lop-sided -- in spite of the fact I more than much admire Satie and love some of the piano pieces. But a lot of re-hashed Bach as one of the larger contributions a composer made to the piano literature does not cut it in my book at all.

The trouble with lists....


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## violadude

Beethoven
Chopin
Schumann
Liszt
Brahms
Prokofiev
Ravel
Debussy 
Ravel
Scriabin

Also Messiaen


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## Lisztian

My current ten, as far as personal preference goes:

1. Liszt.
2. Beethoven.
3. Chopin.
4. Schumann.
5. Schubert.
6. Brahms.
7. Debussy.
8. Rachmaninoff.
9. Scriabin.
10. Bach.


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## DeepR

1. Scriabin

The rest is open for debate.


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## Vaneyes

Sorry, I would leave out too many with a Top 10 request.


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## KenOC

No Liberace from anybody?


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## Prodromides

KenOC said:


> No Liberace from anybody?


"You'll be the death of me"


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## KenOC

Prodromides said:


> "You'll be the death of me"


The Loved One, right? :lol: Oops, just saw the words at the bottom...


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## quack

Did Liberace actually compose or just add icing sugar?

Could do with a few more spanish Albeniz and Mompou. Also no Medtner Anyone else I would have mentioned already has, just not in the same lists.


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## elgar's ghost

Order to be determined:

Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin
Schumann
Liszt
Brahms
Debussy
Skryabin
Satie
Ravel


I'd need a supplementary list featuring Mozart, Grieg, Albeniz, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Granados, Poulenc and Ireland but for now the above ten are fairly unshakeable. Pity Moussorgsky didn't write more for solo piano rather than wasting years buggering about with operas he was usually too tanked up to finish.


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## BurningDesire

I find it bizarre when people list a composer who never wrote for the piano as one of the best piano composers. Keyboard/harpsichord aren't the same thing as piano. It would be like a list for composers who wrote best for the bassoon, and including some renaissance composer for using the krummhorn.

I don't care if you like Bach's music on piano. He didn't write those pieces for it. A fair amount of the pieces are really for any keyboard, but I think its silly to call that "great piano writing". Its great keyboard writing, but it doesn't acknowledge anything unique to the piano, no use of sustain or dynamics. It is tempered by limitations and capabilities of the harpsichord.


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## KenOC

BurningDesire said:


> I don't care if you like Bach's music on piano. He didn't write those pieces for it.


Bach's Musical Offering may well have been written for the fortepiano, since that's about all Freddie the Great had. And in fact, Bach acted as a sales agent for Silbermann's fortepianos in later years, once he thought them sufficiently improved. Sales documents survive.


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## neoshredder

And the piano does a very poor job of imitating a Harpsichord as well. So it has its limitations as well. Some people just want to hear Bach's music through a Romantic prism. Both are great instruments in their own right but are quite different in sound.


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## violadude

violadude said:


> Beethoven
> Chopin
> Schumann
> Liszt
> Brahms
> Prokofiev
> Ravel
> Debussy
> Ravel
> Scriabin
> 
> Also Messiaen


Why did I put Ravel twice? It won't let me edit it now!


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## neoshredder

Well Ravel is quite good.


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## Webernite

Let's be honest. The list is:

1. Chopin
2. Others

And I don't even like Chopin that much.


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## Lisztian

Webernite said:


> Let's be honest. The list is:
> 
> 1. Chopin
> 2. Others
> 
> And I don't even like Chopin that much.


Why?

Filler.


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## Webernite

It's just one of the laws of classical music.


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## BurningDesire

KenOC said:


> Bach's Musical Offering may well have been written for the fortepiano, since that's about all Freddie the Great had. And in fact, Bach acted as a sales agent for Silbermann's fortepianos in later years, once he thought them sufficiently improved. Sales documents survive.


I wasn't aware, but still, does the piece take advantage of the capabilities of a fortepiano? And my point stands that in pretty much all his most famous keyboard works he was writing for keyboard in general, and wasn't thinking pianistically.


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## BurningDesire

neoshredder said:


> And the piano does a very poor job of imitating a Harpsichord as well. So it has its limitations as well. Some people just want to hear Bach's music through a Romantic prism. Both are great instruments in their own right but are quite different in sound.


I find it plenty Romantic on a harpsichord. I think the instrument suits the drama of his music so much better. On piano it sounds so held-back, and restrained, because when it is played in the manner most musicologists would call accurate, its this extremely limited kind of piano playing. The harder, grimmer sound of the harpsichord fits his music so much better in my opinion, as a romantic :3


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## tdc

BurningDesire said:


> I find it bizarre when people list a composer who never wrote for the piano as one of the best piano composers. Keyboard/harpsichord aren't the same thing as piano. It would be like a list for composers who wrote best for the bassoon, and including some renaissance composer for using the krummhorn.
> 
> I don't care if you like Bach's music on piano. He didn't write those pieces for it. A fair amount of the pieces are really for any keyboard, but I think its silly to call that "great piano writing". Its great keyboard writing, but it doesn't acknowledge anything unique to the piano, no use of sustain or dynamics. It is tempered by limitations and capabilities of the harpsichord.


You do have a point, I just wanted to include Baroque for this list, since I usually leave it out of such lists, but lets face it Bach and Scarlatti sound great on the piano, and as you say yourself a great many of these pieces are really _for any keyboard_. The piano itself is like an upgraded advanced version of the harpsichord in many ways and very closely related. We have an entire list of 'Keyboard Concertos' for this reason - the two instruments are similar enough that they are often grouped together. Its not like people have to change these works significantly to make them sound great on a modern piano. Do you really think that had the piano been invented in the Baroque era, these master composers would have struggled composing the dynamics for this instrument?


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## millionrainbows

BurningDesire said:


> I find it bizarre when people list a composer who never wrote for the piano as one of the best piano composers. Keyboard/harpsichord aren't the same thing as piano. It would be like a list for composers who wrote best for the bassoon, and including some renaissance composer for using the krummhorn.
> 
> I don't care if you like Bach's music on piano. He didn't write those pieces for it. A fair amount of the pieces are really for any keyboard, but I think its silly to call that "great piano writing". Its great keyboard writing, but it doesn't acknowledge anything unique to the piano, no use of sustain or dynamics. It is tempered by limitations and capabilities of the harpsichord.


I would agree with you if it were _organ_ pieces by Bach being proffered, but I see enough correspondences between harpsichord and piano to warrant an exception (bassoon/krummhorn...feh). Plus, the thread idea of "composers" completely excludes artists like Glenn Gould, who worked wonders for Bach on piano.

If we adhere to the thread idea in a strict manner, then we are assessing "Top 10" piano composers for musical ideas, but also for "pianistic" writing, which includes fingering, appropriate content for execution on keyboard, technical dimensions, etc. On these technical points, I think Bach is very strong, as he himself played piano/organ/keyboards. To exclude him seems unfair; I'm sure he could have been a kick-*** pianist, and his music sits very well for piano. _This is keyboard music!_

A blind adherence to history and tradition seems to defeat the purpose. If this thread had been "Top 10 Composers for Solo Keyboard," it might well have included Bach.


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## BurningDesire

millionrainbows said:


> I would agree with you if it were _organ_ pieces by Bach being proffered, but I see enough correspondences between harpsichord and piano to warrant an exception (bassoon/krummhorn...feh). Plus, the thread idea of "composers" completely excludes artists like Glenn Gould, who worked wonders for Bach on piano.
> 
> If we adhere to the thread idea in a strict manner, then we are assessing "Top 10" piano composers for musical ideas, but also for "pianistic" writing, which includes fingering, appropriate content for execution on keyboard, technical dimensions, etc. On these technical points, I think Bach is very strong, as he himself played piano/organ/keyboards. To exclude him seems unfair; I'm sure he could have been a kick-*** pianist, and his music sits very well for piano. _This is keyboard music!_
> 
> A blind adherence to history and tradition seems to defeat the purpose. If this thread had been "Top 10 Composers for Solo Keyboard," it might well have included Bach.


Its not blind adherence, its that I don't think Bach really had that instrument in mind. It is a very different instrument from a harpsichord in mechanics and timbre, and in its limitations. I am not questioning Bach's merit as a writer, I love his music, especially that for keyboard, and I am fine with it being performed on other instruments. I just don't think its fair to put him on a list for piano composers and exclude people who actually wrote specifically for _that_ instrument. Bach is awesome, but I stand by that he wasn't really a piano composer in the sense we would call Mozart or Beethoven or Satie or Cage piano composers. If we were talking solo keyboard music I would probably include him on my list.


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## BurningDesire

my list, incidentally, and in no particular order:

Frederic Chopin
Claude Debussy
Charles Ives
Erik Satie
Olivier Messiaen
John Cage
Ludwig van Beethoven
Franz Liszt
Sergei Prokofiev
Henry Cowell


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## Guest

Referring to some earlier posts, I would absolutely list Bach here. He didn't write for piano, but only because there was no piano. I think it would be safe to say he wrote for keyboard, so I would definitely list him as a composer who wrote for piano. Here is my list, in order:

1. Bach - best representation, for me, is the Goldberg Variations, and I like Murray Perahia's recording on piano.
2. Beethoven - his Waldstein sonata is one of my favorites - go for the Wilhelm Kempff recording
3. Chopin - he did some other stuff, but stands out the most for piano works - I like the Tristesse Etude
4. Schubert - try his Wanderer Fantasy
5. Mozart - his sonatas are great, but I think I prefer his piano concertos
6. Haydn - very under-recognized in this genre (most people think of his symphonies and string quartets) but try any of the three recordings of his piano sonatas recorded by Marc-Andre Hamelin
7. Rachmaninoff - his 2nd piano concerto is amazing
8. Grieg - very lyrical and beautiful piano pieces
9. Brahms - I know, not what he is typically known for, but I happen to really love some of his solo piano works (as well as his Piano Trio No. 1)
10. C.P.E. Bach - He is a recent discovery for me, but I love his keyboard solo works and concertos.


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## BurningDesire

DrMike said:


> Referring to some earlier posts, I would absolutely list Bach here. He didn't write for piano, but only because there was no piano. I think it would be safe to say he wrote for keyboard, so I would definitely list him as a composer who wrote for piano. Here is my list, in order:
> 
> 1. Bach - best representation, for me, is the Goldberg Variations, and I like Murray Perahia's recording on piano.
> 2. Beethoven - his Waldstein sonata is one of my favorites - go for the Wilhelm Kempff recording
> 3. Chopin - he did some other stuff, but stands out the most for piano works - I like the Tristesse Etude
> 4. Schubert - try his Wanderer Fantasy
> 5. Mozart - his sonatas are great, but I think I prefer his piano concertos
> 6. Haydn - very under-recognized in this genre (most people think of his symphonies and string quartets) but try any of the three recordings of his piano sonatas recorded by Marc-Andre Hamelin
> 7. Rachmaninoff - his 2nd piano concerto is amazing
> 8. Grieg - very lyrical and beautiful piano pieces
> 9. Brahms - I know, not what he is typically known for, but I happen to really love some of his solo piano works (as well as his Piano Trio No. 1)
> 10. C.P.E. Bach - He is a recent discovery for me, but I love his keyboard solo works and concertos.


Its like saying Bach is the best composer electric guitar. He wrote for lute, and he only didn't write for electric guitar because there was no electric guitar. You could say the same kind of thing for any composer. Beethoven is the best jazz composer, because he used syncopated rhythms, and he improvised.


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## Renaissance

It is questionable even the fact that he might have written for lute. Some scholars today think that those pieces were written for a lute-harpsichord.


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## Ukko

Renaissance said:


> It is questionable even the fact that he might have written for lute. Some scholars today think that those pieces were written for a lute-harpsichord.


I have read that some of those pieces aren't playable on a lute.


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## Guest

Fine - then do we also exclude Mozart, Haydn, and at least some of Beethoven's "piano" works because, technically, the were written for the fortepiano, and not the piano?

Keyboard works were frequently played on a variety of instruments, according to what people had on hand - harpsichords, clavichords, tangent piano, virginal, fortepiano, piano. I would say that, while Bach specified in many cases what instrument he was writing for (for example, the title page for the Goldberg Variations goes so far as to even specify how many manuals the harpsichord should have), he was writing for the keyboard, of which the piano is a member, and as such his works have very successfully been performed on the piano. 

If we are going to so strictly adhere to these strict standards, then there are other things we need to introduce. When considering Bach's violin concerto's, perhaps we should specify that he only wrote them for the stringed instruments of his time, where the materials used were much different. The same goes for other instruments that evolved over time and have different dynamics than their predecessors. What if we find out that Bach wrote his suites for a violoncello de spalla instead of a violoncello da gamba? Would we no longer be able to call him a composer for solo cello, since the instrument differed from what we now use? Or can we not call him a composer for oboe since the baroque oboe was very different from what we now call an oboe?


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## clavichorder

If it can be played on the piano without modifying notes and still sound very convincing, it is a piano piece. Bach works in this way and so is Scarlatti. And the fortepiano is almost a different instrument, so that would cut off most of Beethoven, and all of Haydn, Mozart, Clementi, ect. I have played a fortepiano, and it does not feel or sound like a piano. The action is so incredibly light and the sound is different, more temperamental and less even, but interesting nonetheless. Mozart is easy to play on a fortepiano, whereas usually pianists complain about how hard he is to get right on modern piano.


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## clavichorder

I'll do the piano only list. Then I'll do the inclusive keyboard list. I am not going to be so uptight and exclude Beethoven, but the lower Liszt will be a more wholesome look at his music.

1. Chopin
2. Liszt
3. Beethoven
4. Rachmaninoff 
5. Debussy
6. Schubert
7. Scriabin
8. Prokofiev
9. Ravel
10. Schumann

Honorable mention to Medtner, Mendelssohn, Alkan, Field

Keyboard inclusive


1. Chopin
2. Beethoven
3. Scarlatti
4. J.S. Bach
5. Liszt
6. Schubert
7. Mozart
8. Rachmaninoff
9. Debussy
10. C.P.E. Bach

Honorable mentions to the english virginalists, particularly John Bull and William Byrd.


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## tdc

Renaissance said:


> It is questionable even the fact that he might have written for lute. Some scholars today think that those pieces were written for a lute-harpsichord.


This is possible but I would imagine if they were written for the lute harpsichord almost all of the pieces would be unplayable on a lute, as it would be very difficult to do with any of his other keyboard works.

However, I'm not too concerned with this as I play those pieces on a nylon stringed guitar anyway, and they sound fantastic that way!

The great thing with Bach's music is it sounds good on pretty much any instrument.


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## tdc

BurningDesire said:


> my list, incidentally, and in no particular order:
> 
> Frederic Chopin
> Claude Debussy
> Charles Ives
> Erik Satie
> Olivier Messiaen
> John Cage
> Ludwig van Beethoven
> Franz Liszt
> Sergei Prokofiev
> Henry Cowell


I absolutely adore Charles Ives 2 Piano Sonatas, if I knew of more of his solo piano pieces of this quality he would surely rank among my favorites in the genre, any recommendations?


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## elgar's ghost

^
^

TDC, you might be interested in Ives's brief Three-Page Sonata from 1905, just for the sake of knowing all three? I have an EMI disc, American Piano Sonatas vol. 1, featuring Peter Lawson which includes this (edited by Cowell) and other sonatas by Copland (his second), Carter and Barber. At the other end of the timescale is a work of real substance - the gnarly Three Quarter-Tone Pieces from 1924, specifically for two pianos tuned a quarter tone apart. I have this on a Naxos disc featuring other Ives works played by modern music specialists, Continuum. Also, if you haven't come across them before, investigate The Celestial Railroad and the Varied Air & Variations ('very darin' variations') - these works plus the other two better-known sonatas means you're pretty much done apart from a few odds and ends and some transcriptions, I think.


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## Op.123

Mozart
Beethoven
Schumann
Chopin


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## violadude

I made a video about this a while ago.






Have fun watching it.


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## DeepR

In my view it's at least unlikely to have Chopin very high on a piano favorites list and Scriabin not even on the list, unless one doesn't know Scriabin's piano music very well. 
For a brief moment, Scriabin is a sort of spiritual successor to Chopin. Not on a higher level, not even on the same level, but when Scriabin's music develops and becomes more unique to his own, it also gets better and even more likeable. And it should still be very easy to appreciate by fans of Chopin's music, up to a certain point... after that it becomes a matter of growing into his later music... and then, when you take into account his entire output, from early to late, the quality of both his earlier and later piano music, the radical change and development of his music, the great diversity between individual pieces even from around the same time period, you'll realize what an enormous creative force and total genius he was at piano music.


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## Mandryka

Renaissance said:


> It is questionable even the fact that he might have written for lute. Some scholars today think that those pieces were written for a lute-harpsichord.


Why would Bach have avoided writing music for lute? It was a popular instrument I think.

It would be good if someone could confirm that the lute music isn't playable on a lute, as suggested above.


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## Mandryka

DeepR said:


> In my view it's at least unlikely to have Chopin very high on a piano favorites list and Scriabin not even on the list, unless one doesn't know Scriabin's piano music very well.
> For a brief moment, Scriabin is a sort of spiritual successor to Chopin. Not on a higher level, not even on the same level, but when Scriabin's music develops and becomes more unique to his own, it also gets better and even more likeable. And it should still be very easy to appreciate by fans of Chopin's music, up to a certain point... after that it becomes a matter of growing into his later music... and then, when you take into account his entire output, from early to late, the quality of both his earlier and later piano music, the radical change and development of his music, the great diversity between individual pieces even from around the same time period, you'll realize what an enormous creative force and total genius he was at piano music.


In fact I don't much care if I never hear early Scriabin again, I like Scriabin after the fifth sonata. And I quite like some Chopin, but by no means all.


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## worov

1. J.S. Bach (I'm sorry, but there's no way he isn't in my list : he definitely has to be there)
2. Domenico Scarlatti (same)
3. Beethoven
4. Schumann
5. Prokofiev
6. Villa-Lobos
7. Joseph Haydn
8. Mendelssohn
9. Schubert
10. Debussy


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## Cosmos

Beethoven
Chopin
Scriabin
Medtner
Prokofiev
Busoni
Liszt
Debussy
Feinberg
Rachmaninov


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## Guest

Although I'm new to this I've fallen for the piano music of Chopin, Debussy and Liszt.


I heard Barber's Piano Sonata last night for the first time (on Young Musician of the Year) and was duly blown away.


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## Selby

Top 10
Chopin
Schubert
Scriabin
Debussy
Medtner
Beethoven
Hovhaness
Faure
Liszt
Koechlin

Back-Up 10
Mozart
Rachmaninov
Field
Persichetti
Granados
Schumann
Bach
Ligeti
Villa-Lobos
Prokofiev

Honorable Mentions
Busoni
Bowen
de Falla
Albeniz
Ives


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## astronautnic

Top Ten:
1) Brahms
2) Scriabin
3) Liszt
4) Beethoven
5) Schumann
6) Profoviev
7) Chopin
8) Grieg
9) Sibelius
10) Debussy


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## DeepR

astronautnic said:


> Top Ten:
> 1) Brahms
> 2) Scriabin
> 3) Liszt
> 4) Beethoven
> 5) Schumann
> 6) Profoviev
> 7) Chopin
> 8) Grieg
> 9) Sibelius
> 10) Debussy


Interesting that you put Brahms at the top. I just can't warm up to his piano music. And Scriabin at second place, he is so different from Brahms that they are like fire and ice (and I believe, judging from a quote by Arthur Rubinstein, that Scriabin also hated Brahms' music).
I like all the others, except Sibelius who's piano music I don't know!


----------



## Bulldog

My top ten in no particular order:

Scheidemann
Froberger
JS Bach
Mozart
Haydn
Beethoven
Schubert
Schumann
Chopin
Scriabin


----------



## Deontologist

Schubert
Beethoven
Skryabin
Chopin
Debussy
Franck
Mozart
Brahms
Reynaldo Hahn
Scott Joplin
(does Sebastien Bach count for piano?)


----------



## astronautnic

DeepR said:


> Interesting that you put Brahms at the top. I just can't warm up to his piano music. And Scriabin at second place, he is so different from Brahms that they are like fire and ice (and I believe, judging from a quote by Arthur Rubinstein, that Scriabin also hated Brahms' music).
> I like all the others, except Sibelius who's piano music I don't know!


Interesting as well...I don't know how well you know Brahms piano output but mind you, I see a lot of similarities in the artistry, the tonal control , the rythmic complexion (the "jazzy hints") and the contemplative spitit in Brahms and Scriabin. Don't see, that is "hear" fire and ice. And whether Scriabin hated Brahms music or not is no argument for me...If so he'd probably rather refered to his orchestral music. However, I find Brahms piano music by far the most interesting, emotionally as well as "intellectually" challenging.


----------



## Bulldog

Deontologist said:


> Schubert
> Beethoven
> Skryabin
> Chopin
> Debussy
> Franck
> Mozart
> Brahms
> Reynaldo Hahn
> Scott Joplin
> (does Sebastien Bach count for piano?)


For a thread like this one, I automatically change "piano" to "keyboard". So, Bach counts if you say so.


----------



## hpowders

Bulldog and I think alike.


----------



## Orfeo

For me:

Rachmaninoff
Scriabin
Feinberg
Myaskovsky
Faure
Catoire
Mompou
John Ireland
Arnold Bax
Schumann
Cyrill Scott

Honorable mentions: Glazunov, Rebikov, Arensky, Medtner, Shostakovich, Weinberg, Lyapunov, Balakirev, Satie, Alwyn, Moeran, Lyadov.


----------



## Trout

dholling, do you have any particular favorite pieces of some of those rather esoteric piano composers?


----------



## Orfeo

*^^^*
_Some of the works are not so esoteric, but remarkable in their own way._

Rachmaninoff: Études-Tableaux ("study pictures"), Sonata no. I.
Rebikov: Esclavage et Liberte.
John Ireland: Soliloquy, The Almond Tree, Sonata.
Myaskovsky: Piano Sonata no. IV, Prelude & Rondo op. 58, Yellowed Leaves.
Protopopov: Sonata.
Glazunov (not so esoteric):His two piano sonatas, Three Etudes, Theme et Variations.
Alexandrov: Piano Sonata no. IV.
Catoire: Quatre Morceaux, Cinq morceaux op. 10, Intermezzo.
Melartin: Six Pieces for Pianoforte, op. 7, Fantasia Apocaliptica (1920), The Melancholy Garden.
Mompou: Impresiones intimas, Dialogues, Suburbis.
Polovinkin: Dziuba" (1936), Danse Lyrique (1929) and Humoresques.
Arnold Bax: Piano Sonata nos. I & II.
Feinberg: Sonata no. IX.
Balakirev: Sonata op. 5.
Cyrill Scott: Sonata in D, Sonata no. I.
Lyapunov: Sonata & Nocturne.
Lyadov: Two Pieces op. 24.
Shostakovich: Piano Sonata no. I


----------



## Morimur

*Solo Piano Compositions by György Ligeti*

_Four Early Piano Pieces: Basso Ostinato (1941)
Due capricci (1947)
Invention (1948)
Musica ricercata (1951-53)
Chromatische Phantasie (1956)
Trois Bagatelles, for David Tudor (1961)
Études, Livre 1 (1985)
No. 1: Désordre
No. 2: Cordes à vide
No. 3: Touches bloquées
No. 4: Fanfares
No. 5: Arc-en-ciel
No. 6: Automne à Varsovie
Études, Livre 2 (1988-93)
No. 7: Galamb Borong
No. 8: Fém
No. 9: Vertige
No. 10: Der Zauberlehrling (The Sorcerer's Apprentice)
No. 11: En Suspens
No. 12: Entrelacs
No. 13: L'escalier du diable
No. 14: Columna infinitǎ
No. 14A: Coloana fǎrǎ sfârşit
L'arrache-coeur (1994)
Études, Livre 3 (1995-2001)
No. 15: White on White
No. 16: Pour Irina
No. 17: À bout de souffle
No. 18: Canon_


----------



## PeterF

These ten composers reflect my personal choice in listening to solo piano works. 

Chopin
Beethoven
Schubert
Mozart
Haydn
J.S. Bach
Schumann
Mendelssohn
Faure
Scarlatti


----------



## Varick

ComposerOfAvantGarde said:


> If the composer in question won a Grawemeyer Award (the most prestigious award for composition there is) for many of his piano works, does that automatically make him no. 1?


I have never put a lot of merit into many awards of any kind - Artistic, Scholastic, Political, etc,. There are some awards that take great, and only great, achievements to acquire, while many (dare I say most) have become so diluted or convoluted to render them pointless (ie: Nobel Peace Prize).

So, not knowing the process and criteria of how the Grawemeyer award is dispensed, I can not comment on that particular case. However, in general, whenever I see awards and accolades on someone's resume, I automatically (I'm sure in some cases unfairly) approach with a bit of caution.

V


----------



## Mahlerian

Varick said:


> So, not knowing the process and criteria of how the Grawemeyer award is dispensed, I can not comment on that particular case. However, in general, whenever I see awards and accolades on someone's resume, I automatically (I'm sure in some cases unfairly) approach with a bit of caution.


The Grawemeyer award-winning compositions and composers represent a relatively diverse swath of contemporary music, and I find there is a much better percentage of true quality work among them than among the Pulitzer Prize-winning works, which often seem to be awarded to the composer more than the individual composition.

Compare the lists for yourself:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulitzer_Prize_for_Music
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grawemeyer_Award_(Music_Composition)


----------



## JACE

Bach 
Haydn
Beethoven
Schumann
Brahms
Liszt
Chopin
Scriabin
Ives
Debussy
Rachmaninov
Shostakovich

That's a dozen instead of ten. Oh well. Those are my choices!


----------



## mtmailey

As for me JOPLIN,SCHUBERT,BEETHOVEN.CHOPIN,LISZT,MOZART,GRIEG & BRAHMS.


----------



## hpowders

My favorite composers for piano are Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann, Ives and Persichetti.


----------



## Doublestring

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Liszt
4. Brahms
5. Schumann
6. Debussy
7. Rachmaninov
8. Mozart
9. Schubert
10. Haydn


----------



## Aaconn

Definitely Brahms and Debussy. Bartok is not bad either.


----------



## HaydnBearstheClock

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


----------



## Chronochromie

In no order:
Debussy
Schubert
Beethoven
Ravel
Satie
Brahms
Mendelssohn
Liszt
Schumann
Chopin


----------



## Vaneyes

Top 10 Composers For Solo Piano WorksOkay, just for today.

Scriabin, Rachmaninov, LvB, Chopin, Debussy, JS Bach, D. Scarlatti, Haydn, Ravel, Schumann.


----------



## violadude

Don't know if I have already posted this in here but I might as well post it again. My top 10 piano composers video.


----------



## hpowders

Vincent Persichetti's 12 Piano Sonatas are a tremendous achievement in 20th century composition, so I nominate Mr. Persichetti.


----------



## Selby

I enjoy making lists, but always feel the need to add: This is constantly evolving! So, with a grain of salt I provide my *current* list of the most rewarding composers for the solo keyboard. Interpreters I've recently been listening to in parenthesis.

Beethoven (Levitt, Gilels)
Hovhaness (Giosmin, Rosen)
Scriabin (Hamelin, Lettberg)
Schubert (Brendel, Perahia)
Chopin (Pires, Zimerman, Hamelin)
Debussy (Roge, Jacobs)

Those first 6 came out naturally, the next four take a little more 'hemming and hawing.'

Faure (Pinkas)
Medtner (Hamelin)
Liszt (Chamayou, Hough, Ott)
Mozart (Uchida, Goode)

....Aaaand I'm immediately regretting the exclusion of:

Messiaen (Osborne, Cheng)
Janacek (Schiff, Firkusny)
Persichetti (Burleson)
Satie (Roge)
Schumann (Hamelin)
Scarlatti (Schiff)


----------



## Dutchman

Beethoven
Chopin
Mozart
Debussy
Ravel
Bach
Scriabin
Haydn
Schubert
Liszt


----------



## hpowders

Persichetti, Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin and Debussy.


----------



## trazom

violadude said:


> Don't know if I have already posted this in here but I might as well post it again. My top 10 piano composers video.


I'm 18 minutes into this now, some interesting choices there. your voice is a lot softer than I expected, it makes it easier for me to listen to. Maybe you were talking about "Scarbo" as the most difficult piano piece from Ravel? There were some humorous statements, intentional or unintentional, possibly a mix: "like a pipeline to my heart, man" and "you can take that little tidbit to the bank." Those made me laugh out loud. I agree with what you say about Liszt. You picked the Chopin waltz I was learning recently, too. Brahms is also one of my favorites, I have his B flat minor and A major intermezzi but haven't worked up the confidence to play them yet, at least publicly. I knew you had to be kidding with that last part, I've never heard his music but...poker is not your game!


----------



## leroy

mine is basically this though the order changes depending

Beethoven
Chopin
Liszt
Schubert
Rachmaninov
Debussy
Medtner
Ravel
Bach
Scriabin


----------



## satoru

Mine is similar to others, in essence, with minor in and out. 

Bach
Beethoven
Chopin
Liszt 
Debussy
Scarlatti
Rachmaninov
Alkan
Mompou
Ravel


----------



## HaydnBearstheClock

I think Haydn is still quite an underrated composer for the piano - he has so many excellent sonatas, imo. They're extremely fun to listen to.


----------



## hpowders

This is true, but overall, Haydn doesn't make many raters' top 10. Maybe number 11? 

Now isn't this much more fun than looking at Anne-Sophie Mutter CD covers?


----------



## HaydnBearstheClock

hpowders said:


> This is true, but overall, Haydn doesn't make many raters' top 10. Maybe number 11?
> 
> Now isn't this much more fun than looking at Anne-Sophie Mutter CD covers?


Meh, raters. In terms of pure humour, joy and dynamic contrast, it's hard to beat these sonatas. As great as Beethoven's sonatas are, I find Haydn's much more fun. There's so much warmth to them.


----------



## hpowders

HaydnBearstheClock said:


> Meh, raters. In terms of pure humour, joy and dynamic contrast, it's hard to beat these sonatas. As great as Beethoven's sonatas are, I find Haydn's much more fun. There's so much warmth to them.


Beethoven's keyboard sonatas contain a lot of quirky humor. They never cease to amaze me!


----------



## HaydnBearstheClock

hpowders said:


> Beethoven's keyboard sonatas contain a lot of quirky humor. They never cease to amaze me!


Yes, they do have humour, but not as much as Haydn's, at least in the Beethoven sonatas I'm familiar with. Beethoven's sonatas are more about pathos, Haydn's more about quirkiness.


----------



## ObliqueFury

Great...thanks! Only gripe is some of em aint concerti but very interesting


----------



## Heliogabo

J. S. Bach and Scarlatti doesn't count for piano composition. So:
-Chopin
-Beethoven
-Schubert
-Mozart
-Brahms
-Liszt
-Debussy
-Scriabin
-Haydn
-Satie

(I miss Schumann, Alkan, Albéniz, Granados, Mompou, Ligeti, Ravel, Sibelius, Mendehlsonn and so on...)


----------



## aajj

I am cheating with eleven.

-Schubert (far and away my favorite)
-Bartok
-Mozart
-Debussy
-Janacek
-Bach (I am counting him and Scarlatti for "keyboard")
-Scarlatti
-Ravel
-Mussorgsky (not only Pictures; I've also heard several small descriptive pieces such as Meditation and Children's Games on youtube, as well as a fine 4-hand sonata)
-Ives
-Chopin

I have never been able to get into Schumann's solo piano music. He always comes across to me as a second-rate Schubert.


----------



## Beban

Countess Dora Pejačević (1885-1923)

Compositions for solo piano - a comprehensive listing on Wikipedia LINK

A few recordings available on YouTube 
Blumenleben Op.19 





Sechs Phantasiestücke Op.17 





Piano Sonata No.2 Op.57 





Piano Sonata No.1 Op.36 





Valse de concert Op.21


----------



## DiesIraeCX

For solo piano: Beethoven and Debussy are my co-favorites. After that it's Schubert, Schumann, Ravel, and Chopin.


----------



## JD Reyes

Bach
Mozart
Beethoven
Chopin
Schubert
Debussy
Satie
Albéniz
Shostakovich
Bartók

I'm adding Bach because he wrote some of his most profound music - Musical Offering - For Frederick II of Prussia after he showed him his pianofortes and asked him to expound on the theme which he gave him.


----------



## silentio

Piano *solo* (sonata, partita, suite...)
1/Bach
2/Beethoven
3/Chopin
4/Schubert
5/Mozart
6/Schumann
7/Brahms
8/Haydn
9/Liszt
10/Debussy

Piano _with something else_ (concerto, trio, quartet, quintet ...)
1/Mozart
2/Brahms
3/Bach
4/Beethoven
5/Mendelssohn
6/Schumann
7/Haydn
8/Schubert
9/Tchaikovsky
10/Dvorak


----------



## farris

1. Chopin
2. Shostakovich
3. Debussy
4. Ravel
5. Prokofiev
6. Mozart
7. Satie.
8.Schubert
9. Liszt


----------



## Stirling

Koechlin and Sorabji should be on the list for those who want something new


----------



## Vesteralen

I probably said something on this topic before, but I'm too lazy to go back and check.

The way I feel right now is that there is only one composer whose solo piano music never bores me, and that's Schumann. I love specific pieces by other composers, but they all have their passages or even entire works where my mind tunes out.

I can't explain why, but Schumann's music never does that to me.

Other peoples' mileage obviously differs.

(I've been waiting for a long time for the Brilliant Schumann edition. It was finally released. It's on its way.)


----------



## Guest

Stirling said:


> Koechlin and Sorabji should be on the list for those who want something new


I've not heard of Koechlin.
I put Sorabji on today. Loved it. Played it again.
(TStudies 1/25)


----------



## sinasalehi10

1-beethoven(also number on in almost all genres except opera)
2-bach
3-chopin
4-schubert
5-mozart
6-liszt
7-brahms
8-rachmaninov
9-schumann
10-ravel


----------



## KenOC

"1-beethoven(also number on in almost all genres except opera)"

Ludwig misses the mark in sackbut serenades.


----------



## musicrom

I probably don't know enough solo piano music to make a legitimate list, but I'll go for it anyways...

1. Chopin
2. Beethoven
3. Rachmaninoff
4. Schumann
5. Scriabin
6. Mozart
7. Balakirev
8. Liszt
9, 10. Mendelssohn and Schubert, I suppose?

The problem is that I rarely know a significant portion of any one composer's music, so I'm basing my rankings off of sometimes no more than a couple of pieces that I've heard from them.

EDIT... Looking at my list, it seems like it's greatly lacking in 20th century composers, with only Scriabin and Rachmaninoff making it into the 1900s. It seems like most music of the 20th century that I listen to is orchestral. Seems like I should explore that area more.


----------



## starthrower

If you're looking for more unheard stuff, Egon Wellesz wrote beautiful piano music. There's an excellent 3 disc set on Capriccio.


----------



## Chronochromie

Chronochromie said:


> In no order:
> Debussy
> Schubert
> Beethoven
> Ravel
> Satie
> Brahms
> Mendelssohn
> Liszt
> Schumann
> Chopin


What is Mendelssohn doing there, polluting my Liszt?

Update (in alphabetical order):

Beethoven
Chopin
Debussy
Ligeti
Liszt
Messiaen
Ravel
Schubert
Schumann
Scriabin

Honorable mention: Satie


----------



## hpowders

Beethoven, Brahms, Ives, Persichetti, Bernstein, Copland. That's it.

I leave out Bach, because he did NOT write his keyboard music for the pianoforte.


----------



## Jokke

Piano solo is my favourite music.

Best top 13 composers? :

> Ravel
> Debussy
> Satie
> Beethoven
> Mozart
> Schumann
> Schubert
> Chopin
> Mompou
> Prokofiev
> Brahms
> Moussorgsky
> Grieg


----------



## jenspen

At the moment:

Schubert (no, that's not "at the moment" he is for the ages)
Beethoven
Debussy
Bach
Schumann
Scarlatti
Mussorgsky
Shostakovich
Ravel
Chopin

Hoping to pick up another favourite from the suggestions of other posters.


----------



## tortkis

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1817) - Jean-Bernard Pommier
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907) - Eva Knardahl
Erik Satie (1866-1925) - Early Piano Works / Reinbert De Leeuw
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) - Angela Hewitt
John Cage (1912-1992) - In a Landscape / Stephen Drury, Music of Changes / David Tudor, Sonatas and Interludes / Philipp Vandré, Etudes Australes / Grete Sultan, ...
Conlon Nancarrow (1912-1997) - Studies for Player Piano
Simeon Ten Holt (1923-2012) - Canto Ostinato etc. / Jeroen Van Veen
La Monte Young (b 1935) - The Well-Tuned Piano
Terry Riley (b 1935) - The Harp of New Albion, Lisbon & Padova concerts, ZOFO Plays
Jürg Frey (b 1953) - Piano Music & Pianist, Alone / R. Andrew Lee

Just some composers whose piano music I love. I recently listened to Mompou's piano works and I liked them very much.


----------



## Pugg

Chopin/ Beethoven / Mozart/ Schubert/ Field /Schumann/ Liszt/ Mendelssohn :tiphat:


----------



## Aldarion

*Beethoven
Brahms
Schubert
Schumann
Liszt
Alkan
Medtner
Ravel
Debussy
Chopin*


----------



## Medtnaculus

Ignoring the greats from before the 20th century, in no particular order:

Ravel
Scriabin
Schmitt
Debussy
Medtner
Koechlin
Stanchinsky
Feinberg
Roslavets
Rachmaninoff


----------



## lele23

1. Beethoven
2. The Hungarian Connection (Liszt, Bartok, Ligeti)
3. Debussy


----------



## Genoveva

If I was making recommendations to others for general listening purposes I'd probably suggest the following top 10 in broadly that order.

Beethoven
Chopin
Bach J S
Schubert
Mozart
Liszt
Schumann
Debussy
Brahms
Tchaikovsky

But my current personal favourites are: Schumann, Schubert, Debussy with all the others somewhat behind.


----------



## Pat Fairlea

Alkan
Gottschalk
Rachmaninoff
Mompou
Debussy
Ravel
Moussorgsky
Field
Ives
Roussell


----------



## worov

They're not exactly a piano compositions, but I love Scarlatti's sonatas when they're performed on piano.


----------



## Pugg

worov said:


> They're not exactly a piano compositions, but I love Scarlatti's sonatas when they're performed on piano.


Believe me, you are not the only one.


----------



## Guest

Indeed,I love the cembalo but I very much like the playing of Zacharias.


----------



## zachybinx

damn, this is impossible....?

In general, where I differ probably from many is that I think while some composers write really great pieces- Beethoven, mozart- I don't think that they are necessarily great "piano" compositions. The beethoven sonatas are soo soooo good. But they aren't nearly as creative as Ravel's piano genius. In general I think the french and people who imitated the french, have a much more sensuous appreciation and creativity for the unique tendencies/abilities of the instrument. But this is really nothing to say about the quality of the piece/composer. I just think they came to own what the piano means.


Ravel
Rachmanninoff
Chopin
Schubert
Satie
Liszt
Chabrier
Ives
Beethoven
Scarlatti

but yeah, how can you ignore bach, ligeti and the rest? My list is very biased.


----------



## Medtnaculus

Medtnaculus said:


> Ignoring the greats from before the 20th century, in no particular order:
> 
> Ravel
> Scriabin
> Schmitt
> Debussy
> Medtner
> Koechlin
> Stanchinsky
> Feinberg
> Roslavets
> Rachmaninoff


I'd update this to:

Ravel
Scriabin
Schmitt
Debussy
Emmanuel
Medtner
Roslavets
Rachmaninoff
Ferroud
Szymanowski


----------



## Reichstag aus LICHT

zachybinx said:


> The beethoven sonatas are soo soooo good. But they aren't nearly as creative as Ravel's piano genius.


I think what Beethoven achieved in creating towering works of art from the most unpromising material required an incredible degree of creativity.


----------



## Vaneyes

Okay, just for today. *Bartok*, *Enescu*, *Janacek*, *Mompou*, *Poulenc*, *Prokofiev*, *Rachmaninov*, *Scriabin*, *Shostakovich*, *Szymanowski*.


----------



## Pugg

Traverso said:


> Indeed,I love the cembalo but I very much like the playing of Zacharias.


They are very good, do try however Evgeny Sudbin recording, perhaps you can find one in a Klassiekke zaken shop ( discount)


----------



## Guest

It is indeed very attractive playing but for 15 euro one can buy a box with 4 cd's.


----------



## worov

My choice is Maria Tipo :


----------



## Pugg

Traverso said:


> It is indeed very attractive playing but for 15 euro one can buy a box with 4 cd's.


That's bargain hunting :lol:


----------



## Klassic

Too hard, I cannot....


----------



## Vronsky

1. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
2. Ludwig van Beethoven
3. Claude Debussy
4. Maurice Ravel
5. Robert Schumann
6. Johannes Brahms
7. Frédéric Chopin
8. Alexander Scriabin
9. Edvard Grieg
10. Franz Liszt


----------



## andrzejmakal

1. Chopin 
2. Schumann 
3. Schubert
4. Beethoven
5. Debussy


----------



## Aleksandar

1. Bach
2. Beethoven
3. Chopin
4. Schumann
5. Liszt
6. Ravel
7. Schubert
8. Mozart
9. Debussy
10. Scriabin


----------



## worov

Add Albeniz to the list.


----------



## premont

Composers who wrote for piano (which excludes composers who wrote for harpsichord):

Beethoven
Chopin
Brahms
Nielsen
Bartok
Prokofiev
Hindemith

that's all


----------



## DiesIraeCX

1a Beethoven
1b Debussy

These two, as far as solo piano music goes, are way above the rest of my favorites. Schumann, Chopin, Schubert, and Ravel are in the next tier.


----------



## StephenBailey

I always dislike making lists like this because I forget someone I think is great and have such a hard time narrowing things down.
That said, I've always been struck by the piano music of George Crumb.


----------



## hpowders

Beethoven

Chopin

Persichetti

Prokofiev


----------



## quietfire

Art Rock said:


> Personal preference from 1 to 10 (focusing on solo piano works here):
> 
> Chopin
> JS Bach*
> Schubert
> Debussy
> Mendelssohn
> Shostakovich
> Grieg
> Ravel
> Rachmaninoff
> Scriabin
> 
> *) I am not a purist, I love Bach on piano.
> 
> Beethoven: I have all his sonatas, but prefer the other composers listed above.
> Brahms: one of my favourite composers, but not on piano.
> Schumann: like most of his work, his piano compositions do not really connect with me.


We might have similar tastes. Though I would put J S Bach on top.


----------



## Arent

Fauré
Debussy
Messiaen
Boulez
Ligeti
Bartók
Schumann
Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin

The French school is very strong with me - could have included several others. Also, although I left out Liszt, he probably belongs in a top 10, and that makes three Hungarians who are legitimate contenders, a very strong showing for such a small country!


----------



## Bettina

My ten favorite composers for solo piano - and, as a bonus, my favorite piano work by each one:

1. Beethoven (Piano Sonata No. 32)
2. Liszt (Sonata in B Minor)
3. Ravel (Gaspard de la Nuit)
4. Debussy (L'isle joyeuse)
5. Chopin (Barcarolle)
6. Schumann (Carnaval)
7. Schubert (Piano Sonata No. 21)
8. Brahms (Piano Sonata No. 3)
9. Mendelssohn (Variations sérieuses)
10.Bartók (2 Romanian Folk Dances, Op. 8a)


----------



## Bettina

quietfire said:


> We might have similar tastes. Though I would put J S Bach on top.


Bach is one of my favorite composers. However, he didn't write for piano - he wrote for other keyboard instruments such as harpsichord, clavichord and organ. For that reason, I didn't include him in my list.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

1) Haydn
2) Debussy
3) Ravel
4) Brahms


----------



## hpowders

hpowders said:


> Beethoven
> 
> Chopin
> 
> Persichetti
> 
> Prokofiev


I must have been under the influence of my Columbus Day rum cake:

Eliminate the Chopin!!! Add Debussy for his kaleidoscopic trip, L'isle joyeuse!


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

hpowders said:


> I must have been under the influence of my Columbus Day rum cake:


Forget the music, I'll take a slice or two of some rum cake with a small dab of vanilla ice cream on top.


----------



## hpowders

Haydn67 said:


> Forget the music, I'll take a slice or two of some rum cake with a small dab of vanilla ice cream on top.


I also have some New England Clam Chowder laced with sherry. I am careful to always slurp some after posting.

I do not want to embarrass myself by slurring my posts!


----------



## quietfire

Bettina said:


> Bach is one of my favorite composers. However, he didn't write for piano - he wrote for other keyboard instruments such as harpsichord, clavichord and organ. For that reason, I didn't include him in my list.


Technically, yes. But somehow J S Bach is the only composer to be compulsory across all the *piano *exams in the world.


----------



## Chronochromie

quietfire said:


> Technically, yes. But somehow J S Bach is the only composer to be compulsory across all the *piano *exams in the world.


Title is still Top 10 Composers For Solo Piano Works though.


----------



## lextune

In chronological order:
1. Mozart 
2. Beethoven 
3. Schubert
4. Chopin 
5. Schumann 
6. Liszt
7. Debussy
8. Scriabin 
9. Rachmaninoff 
10. Prokofiev


----------



## Rachmoney no free money

I really think this is one hell of a task to do but I try my best to order the best piano composers imo:
1. Chopin
2. Rachmaninov
3. Scriabin
4. Beethoven
5. Ravel
6. Medtner
7. Schubert
8. Liszt
9. Mozart
10. Bach
But please by all means take into consideration that I do see all of them on almost the same level but they do vary in their styles so much that I ordered them by how much I like their individual stylistics.


----------



## DeepR

01. A.
02. N.
03. S
04. C
05. R
06. I
07. A
08. B
09. I
10. N


----------



## Tchaikov6

Top 10:

1. Beethoven

2. Schubert

3. Bach

4. Scarlatti

5. Mendelssohn

6. Ravel

7. Debussy

8. Schumann

9. Rachmaninov

10. Mozart


----------



## Blancrocher

DeepR said:


> 01. A.
> 02. N.
> 03. S
> 04. C
> 05. R
> 06. I
> 07. A
> 08. B
> 09. I
> 10. N


Just spent over a minute trying to figure out who A and N were. I feel like I just failed some kind of test.


----------



## Selby

Blancrocher said:


> Just spent over a minute trying to figure out who A and N were. I feel like I just failed some kind of test.


My guess is *A*lexander *N*ikolayevich Scriabin. cheers,


----------



## Selby

My conservative list would probably be something like this:
(in roughly chronological order)
1. Mozart
2. Beethoven
3. Schubert
4. Schumann
5. Chopin
6. Liszt
7. Debussy
8. Scriabin
9. Medtner
10. Sorabji
11. Messiaen
12. Hovhaness

I would like to offer a list of composer with relatively small outputs. It is hard to judge Ravel, with about 2 hours of piano music, against Schumann, with more like 15 hours. What about a list for composers with, say, 3 discs or less of music? Or 3 or less significant pieces?

le petite compositeurs:
1. Koechlin
2. Schönberg
3. Ravel
4. Webern
5. Janáček
6. Albéniz
7. de Falla
8. Ginastera
9. Ligeti
10. Feldman
11. Xenakis
12. Chin

Something like that. I consider these types of lists to be pretty fluid. Likely to change.


----------



## Omicron9

In no order:

1. Shostakovich
2. Schoenberg
3. Sorabji
4. Messiaen
5. Feldman
6. Bartok
7. Debussy
8. Mompou
9 Schubert
10. Vainberg


----------



## Tchaikov6

Omicron9 said:


> In no order:
> 
> 1. Shostakovich
> 2. Schoenberg
> 3. Sorabji
> 4. Messiaen
> 5. Feldman
> 6. Bartok
> 7. Debussy
> *8. Mompou*
> 9 Schubert
> 10. Vainberg


Just listening to Silent Music- what an interesting and creative composition! He sounds like a Spanish Debussy, maybe not at the same level as Debussy, but still quite enjoyable.


----------



## Pat Fairlea

OK, here goes...

Composers who did most to fully explore and develop the potential of the instrument:
Beethoven
Chopin
Liszt
Debussy
Rachmaninov

Three who brought a distinctive originality to their piano compositions:
Ravel
Mompou
Poulenc

That's 8 of the 10 I'm allowed. For the last two, two composers who crafted a wonderful range of miniatures for the piano:
Schubert
Greig.

I cannot believe I have listed ten great composers for piano and not included Satie or Gottschalk.


----------



## Tchaikov6

Selby said:


> My conservative list would probably be something like this:
> (in roughly chronological order)
> 1. Mozart
> 2. Beethoven
> 3. Schubert
> 4. Schumann
> 5. Chopin
> 6. Liszt
> 7. Debussy
> 8. Scriabin
> 9. Medtner
> 10. Sorabji
> 11. Messiaen
> 12. Hovhaness
> 
> I would like to offer a list of composer with relatively small outputs. *It is hard to judge Ravel, with about 2 hours of piano music, against Schumann, with more like 15 hours*. What about a list for composers with, say, 3 discs or less of music? Or 3 or less significant pieces?
> 
> le petite compositeurs:
> 1. Koechlin
> 2. Schönberg
> 3. Ravel
> 4. Webern
> 5. Janáček
> 6. Albéniz
> 7. de Falla
> 8. Ginastera
> 9. Ligeti
> 10. Feldman
> 11. Xenakis
> 12. Chin
> 
> Something like that. I consider these types of lists to be pretty fluid. Likely to change.


I greatly prefer Ravel- for me, quantity isn't quality.

For me at least, it's not very hard to compare the 4 Brahms Symphonies to the 67 of Hovhaness, or the 230 or so violin concertos of Vivaldi to the combined forces of Sibelius, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Berg, and Mendelssohn Concertos.


----------



## Reichstag aus LICHT

Pat Fairlea said:


> Composers who did most to fully explore and develop the potential of the instrument:
> Beethoven
> Chopin
> Liszt
> Debussy
> Rachmaninov


Good criterion, and I wouldn't argue with your nominees. In terms of exploration and development of the instrument, would Conlon Nancarrow count?


----------



## Pat Fairlea

Reichstag aus LICHT said:


> Good criterion, and I wouldn't argue with your nominees. In terms of exploration and development of the instrument, would Conlon Nancarrow count?


Interesting question! My main reason for excluding Nancarrow from that group would be my doubts that his amendments of the piano will have a lasting effect on the development of piano repertoire and composition. Thanks for bringing him to mind.


----------



## Selby

Tchaikov6 said:


> I greatly prefer Ravel- for me, quantity isn't quality.
> 
> For me at least, it's not very hard to compare the 4 Brahms Symphonies to the 67 of Hovhaness, or the 230 or so violin concertos of Vivaldi to the combined forces of Sibelius, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Berg, and Mendelssohn Concertos.


In that scenario I agree with you. I also agree that quantity is not _necessarily_ more important than quality. I would likely choose Ravel over Schumann. Then again, I would choose Hovhaness over Brahms.

I think Messiaen's Turangalila Symphony is a masterpiece. It is one of my favorite symphonies. However, I wouldn't call Messiaen a great symphonist.

The interesting question, to me, is how we evaluate, say, the "top 10 composers for solo piano works"? Is Ravel a top 10 piano composer? When debating the virtues of our keyboard gods the breadth of their oeuvre is pertinent, isn't it?


----------



## Tchaikov6

Selby said:


> In that scenario I agree with you. I also agree that quantity is not _necessarily_ more important than quality. I would likely choose Ravel over Schumann. Then again, I would choose *Hovhaness over Brahms. *
> 
> I think Messiaen's Turangalila Symphony is a masterpiece. It is one of my favorite symphonies. However, I wouldn't call Messiaen a great symphonist.
> 
> The interesting question, to me, is how we evaluate, say, the "top 10 composers for solo piano works"? Is Ravel a top 10 piano composer? When debating the virtues of our keyboard gods the breadth of their oeuvre is pertinent, isn't it?


Wow! I can't criticize your tastes, but I am quite surprised that you prefer Hovhaness to Brahms, one of the greatest symphonists!

I would consider Ravel a top 10 piano composer, and I included him in my list. I guess I agree that the more piano music a composer writes, either (a, they become better at it with the more they compose, or (b, they get more chances at writing a "great" piece, or maybe both.

But I still makes my lists based on how much I *love* a piece, rather than how many pieces I kind of like.

For instance, Mahler- one of my top 10 composers- he wrote 11 symphonies (including Song of the Earth and 10) and a couple of song cycles, yet the quality of his music is enough to rank him above someone like Telemann, who wrote thousands of compositions.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

My revised ranking: 

1) Haydn
2) Debussy
3) Ravel
4) Brahms
5) Sibelius


----------



## Pugg

Haydn67 said:


> My revised ranking:
> 
> 1) Haydn
> 2) Debussy
> 3) Ravel
> 4) Brahms
> 5) Sibelius


Any particular for piano solo you recommend?


----------



## jegreenwood

I generally prefer orchestral and chamber music to solo piano. But that doesn't mean I can't come up with a list. 

1. Chopin
2. Beethoven
3. Schubert
4. Debussy
5. Brahms
6. Mozart
7. Schumann
8. Rachmaninoff
9. Mendelssohn
10. Liszt or Haydn

Bach and Scarlatti would have made this list had they been allowed.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Pugg said:


> Any particular for piano solo you recommend?


I used to have several cds that comprised a full set of Sibelius' Piano Pieces by the Norwegian pianst Eva Knardahl. It appears they are no longer available. I heard some excerpts by Gimse on Naxos, but felt they didn't quite match the idiomatic feeling conveyed by Knardahl. You might want to try tracking down Eric Tawaststjerna's portrayals. I've also noticed Ashkenazy has recorded a good number of Sibelius' Piano Pieces and Pieces Romantique. I'm going to try to sample some of these myself. I need to re-acquire many of those pieces I enjoyed, but I want someone who can paint in my mind that atmospheric feeling for the Northern landscape, and a recording that has well balanced sound reproduction.


----------



## Pat Fairlea

Haydn67 said:


> My revised ranking:
> 
> 1) Haydn
> 2) Debussy
> 3) Ravel
> 4) Brahms
> 5) Sibelius


Sibelius fan though I am, I'm surprised to see him on a list of composers for the piano. He did write a lot of short-ish piano works, some of which deserve attention, but it's not his finest work nor do his piano works stand up well in comparison with other piano music written 1890-1930. Tawaststjerna's recordings are about as good as it gets, but in all, I think Sibelius was right with his comment that "I write piano music on my days off".


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Pat Fairlea said:


> Sibelius fan though I am, I'm surprised to see him on a list of composers for the piano. He did write a lot of short-ish piano works, some of which deserve attention, but it's not his finest work nor do his piano works stand up well in comparison with other piano music written 1890-1930. Tawaststjerna's recordings are about as good as it gets, but in all, I think Sibelius was right with his comment that "I write piano music on my days off".


I've noticed you and I have fairly often agreed on favorite works by a number of favorite composers, but perhaps not entirely here. A number of these pieces I do enjoy, others I'm not too fond of. Nevertheless, :cheers:

One of the nicer short works:


----------



## Tallisman

10 makes the degrees of separation pointless. There's just a holy trinity: Chopin, Beethoven, Scriabin... With Debussy occasionally edging in


----------



## Chatellerault

1. Beethoven
2. Schubert
3. Chopin
4. Schumann
5. Liszt
6. Debussy
7. Scriabin
8. Ravel
9. Prokofiev
10. Dutilleux


----------



## hpowders

In real time:

1. Schumann

2. Beethoven

3. Debussy

4. Brahms

5. Chopin

6. Persichetti


----------



## MusicSybarite

These ones are my favorites:

Beethoven
Liszt
Debussy
Schubert
Chopin
Prokofiev (because of his terrific sonatas)
Brahms
Schumann
Bartók
Busoni


----------



## Bettina

My current favorites:

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Liszt
4. Debussy
5. Schumann
6. Ravel
7. Schubert
8. Haydn
9. Mozart
10. Brahms


----------



## Bulldog

Haydn67 said:


> I used to have several cds that comprised a full set of Sibelius' Piano Pieces by the Norwegian pianst Eva Knardahl. It appears they are no longer available. I heard some excerpts by Gimse on Naxos, but felt they didn't quite match the idiomatic feeling conveyed by Knardahl. You might want to try tracking down Eric Tawaststjerna's portrayals. I've also noticed Ashkenazy has recorded a good number of Sibelius' Piano Pieces and Pieces Romantique. I'm going to try to sample some of these myself. I need to re-acquire many of those pieces I enjoyed, but I want someone who can paint in my mind that atmospheric feeling for the Northern landscape, and a recording that has well balanced sound reproduction.


I have quite a few Sibelius solo piano recordings. My favorite by far is Olli Mustonen on the Ondine label. He brings this music to life with his sharper contours and rhythmic flair.


----------



## Varndog

My favourite piano composers of all time are
1. Chopin 
2. Mozart 
3. Beethoven 
4. Schubert 
5. Brahms 
6. Bach
7. Schuman
8. Rachmaninoff 
9. Satie
10. Tiersen


----------



## Josquin13

I enjoy the keyboard works of JS Bach, GF Handel, D. Scarlatti, & William Byrd immensely, but they didn't compose for the piano or fortepiano.

Therefore, here's my top ten (in order of their eras):

1. WA Mozart
2. FJ Haydn
3. LV Beethoven
4. Franz Schubert
5. Robert Schumann
6. Frederic Chopin
7. Johannes Brahms
8. Claude Debussy
9. Maurice Ravel
10. Serge Prokofiev

Honorable mention to Franz Liszt, Dmitri Shostakovich, Olivier Messiaen, Felix Mendelssohn, Leos Janacek, Gabriel Faure, Erik Satie, Edvard Grieg, Isaac Albeniz, & Bela Bartok.

However, what might be more interesting--since people probably already know the solo piano works of most of the above composers--is a list of some of my favorite composers of solo piano music that are off the beaten path. Here are 13 that I've been listening to over the past several years, in addition to the mainstream composers mentioned above:

1.Charles Koechlin: "Paysages et Marines", and "Les heure persanes", etc.:














2. Nikolai Tcherepnin: "The Tale of the Fischerman and the Fish", Op. 41: 




3. Alexander Tcherepnin: 8 pieces for piano, Op. 88, etc.: 




4. Joonas Kokkonen: 




5. Arvo Part: 




6. Vagn Holmboe: 




7. Paavo Heininen: Runoilijan soitteita, or "The Poet's tunes":














8. Harri Vuori:


















8. Francis Poulenc: Melancolie, etc.:


















9. Federico Mompou--"Musica Callada", "Impresiones Intimas", and "Canciones y danzas":














10. Einojuhani Rautavaara:






















11. Jean Sibelius: I've been listening to Sibelius recordings by Janne Mertanen, Marita Viitasalo, and Folke Gräsbeck (& hope to purchase the new Sony recording by Leif Ove Andsnes at some point--see link below to sample the whole CD):






















12. Darius Milhaud: Le Printemps (parts 1 & 2), played by William Bolcom: 




13. Martin Boykan: Usurpations, Sonata No. 3, Fantasy Sonata, etc.:


----------



## Schoenberg

Should Bach count, and transcribers count, here is my list:

1. Beethoven
The 32 piano sonatas is the new testament of piano playing.

2. Bach
So many masterpieces, from the WTC to the Goldberg variations to his suites and many others.

3. Liszt
Not only did he mainly compose for solo piano, and beautiful compositions at that, he transcribed a lot of music, including Beethoven's monumental 9 symphonies.

4. Rachmaninoff
Preludes, Variations, sonatas among other things.

5. Chopin.
So much great piano music.

6. Mozart.
As well, much great piano music.

After that, I would rank 7-10 in no general order Grieg, Schubert, Bartok, Ravel.


----------



## philoctetes

Debussy
Ravel
Rach
Satie
Liszt
Schubert
Beethoven
Scarlatti
Couperin
Cage


----------



## Pat Fairlea

philoctetes said:


> Debussy
> Ravel
> Rach
> Satie
> Liszt
> Schubert
> Beethoven
> Scarlatti
> Couperin
> Cage


Replace your last three by Poulenc, Mompou and Grieg, and that's my list


----------



## Roger Knox

Somewhat similar to Josquin13 though in different order:

Robert Schumann
LV Beethoven
Claude Debussy
Frederic Chopin
Johannes Brahms
Maurice Ravel
Serge Prokofiev
Franz Schubert
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Max Reger


----------



## Bwv 1080

Excluding baroque keyboard composers

Beethoven
Schumann
Chopin
Liszt
Brahms
Debussy
Bartok
Messiaen
Ligeti
Carter


----------



## Roger Knox

*Interesting List*

Wow -- Post 118 is a really interesting off-the-beaten path list! No. 9, Federico Mompou - "Musica Callada" is -- quiet . . .


----------



## PlaySalieri

tdc said:


> I'll include Baroque for this one and just go with my favorites:
> 
> 1) J.S. Bach
> 2) Ravel
> 3) Beethoven
> 4) Debussy
> 5) D. Scarlatti
> 6) Rodrigo
> 7) Schubert
> 8) Prokofiev
> 9) Schumann
> 10) Chopin


I know your post goes back to 2012 - I thought you liked Mozart? yet no Mozart in your top 10


----------



## tdc

stomanek said:


> I know your post goes back to 2012 - I thought you liked Mozart? yet no Mozart in your top 10


Yes my tastes have changed since then. At that time I loved Mozart but over looked his music for solo piano for some reason. He would make my top ten list now for sure, so would Brahms.


----------



## tdc

Updated list:

1) J.S. Bach
2) Ravel
3) Debussy
4) Brahms
5) Mozart
6) Rodrigo
7) Prokofiev
8) Albéniz
9) Bartók 
10) D. Scarlatti


----------



## tdc

Sampling some of the Poulenc pieces from post # 183 - beautiful music. I should listen to more Poulenc.


----------



## DeepR

DeepR said:


> 01. A.
> 02. N.
> 03. S
> 04. C
> 05. R
> 06. I
> 07. A
> 08. B
> 09. I
> 10. N


Hehe. Oh, alright, 9 others:

Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin
Schumann
Liszt
Rachmaninoff
Prokofiev
Ravel
Debussy


----------



## Highwayman

1-Beethoven
2-Schumann
3-Brahms
4-Schubert
5-Chopin
6-Rach
7-Scriabin
8-Medtner
9-Debussy
10-Fauré


----------



## MusicSybarite

I don't remember if I've posted here, but it here goes:

Alkan
Bartók
Beethoven
Brahms
Chopin
Debussy
Liszt
Poulenc
Prokofiev
Schubert


----------



## elinasisi

stanchinsky said:


> So tough especially since you want to leave out Bach (I would put him right at the top with no hesitation) here's my list, my order could be changed slightly depending on what day it is.
> 1. Beethoven
> 2. Chopin (not in my personal list of favorites but his influence would be difficult to overstate)
> 3. Mozart
> 4. Rachmaninoff Sarkari Result TurboTax Rufus
> 5. Debussy
> 6. Scriabin
> 7. Liszt (once again not one of my favorites but really important)
> 8. Brahms
> 9. Rubinstein (Listen to the B flat piano trio great piano stuff going on, I feel he's really overlooked)
> 10 For me 10th could go to so many, Mendelssohn, Ravel, Schumann, I guess I'll go with Schumann


I'm thinking the list would go like this. And I'm only considering ones that wrote for Piano. So Bach won't count. At least not JS Bach.


----------



## flamencosketches

Some of the best in my opinion (definitely in no order): Ravel, Satie, Chopin, Beethoven, Brahms (especially late in his life, and his piano music is the only part of his work that I really appreciate), Schubert, Mozart, Liszt, Scriabin, Debussy, and I'm going to ruffle some feathers and say Bach even though he may have never touched a piano in his life. His music just sounds so great on the piano that it really doesn't matter to me.


----------



## Clouds Weep Snowflakes

Chopin wrote mostly for the piano, Mozart and Beethoven are also very good, as well as Rachmaninoff, Schumann, and Mendelsohn; I have a feeling you'll love this pianist:
https://www.youtube.com/user/ValentinaLisitsa
https://www.valentinalisitsa.com/


----------



## Clouds Weep Snowflakes

Take a look at this too:


----------



## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist

(Note: I'm not counting music written for the harpsichord as "piano music")

1. Beethoven (the late sonatas are really just some of the greatest pieces of music ever written)
2. Chopin
3. Brahms (not that much quantity especially in his mid/later years, but LOTS of quality)
4. Ravel (also low quantity, high quality)
5. Debussy
6. Scriabin
7. Schubert
8. Haydn
9. Faure
10. Liszt/Rachmaninoff/Medtner

If we're talking about all works containing piano writing rather than just solo piano works, then here's my list:

1. Beethoven
2. Brahms
3. Mozart (yes, the piano concertos and chamber music with piano make him go from not being on the list to #3)
4. Chopin
5. Ravel
6. Schubert
7. Scriabin
8. Faure
9. Haydn
10. Rachmaninoff


----------



## pickybear

This question has been on my mind recently so I'm glad I've found this thread. These are just the composers whom I honestly enjoy the most, rather than over analyzing their various abilities, prolificness or influence. There are some composers whose technical ability I am in awe of but emotionally am cold to. Also some of my favorite piano music would also be considered modern and minimal. 

1. Beethoven.. Hearing Artur Schnabel RCA recordings of his cycles again, I really have to put him at #1. The range and depth of emotion is startling, and haunting. 
2. Chopin
3. Schubert
4. Mozart 
5. Debussy
6. Liszt
8. Feldman 
9. Ravel
10. Otte

It's hard this list because Rachmaninoff belongs there, but I prefer listening to the likes of Ravel and Otte, even though they only produced a few hours of piano music between them. And obviously taste plays a big role, because I also don't understand why Scriabin shows up on so many of these lists..

Others I'd add would be Ligeti, Southam, Messiaen, Satie


----------



## joen_cph

Hans Otte is an unusual, non-virtuoso choice ... I only know _Buch der Klänge_, which I have played by Henck.


----------



## pickybear

Hm yes I agree, since it was a top ten and not 'best' or technical list.. I suppose I had to add a composer whom I simply have enjoyed throughout my life, without care for their technical ability. Satie as well, they cannot be compared with the great virtuosos, but they affect people in unique ways.


----------



## AnthonyAlcott

I'm torn between offering what I would consider my objective appraisal of a top ten or a very idiosyncratic and biased one. On either list though, Beethoven would take the top spot for me (if we are excluding Bach). After that, I'm not sure. For instance, Mozart would be higher on an objective list, but Haydn would outrank him on my personal top ten. I would think most people would consider Mozart the greater piano composer than Haydn objectively(?!?).


----------



## Bulldog

AnthonyAlcott said:


> I'm torn between offering what I would consider my objective appraisal of a top ten or a very idiosyncratic and biased one. On either list though, Beethoven would take the top spot for me (if we are excluding Bach). After that, I'm not sure. For instance, Mozart would be higher on an objective list, but Haydn would outrank him on my personal top ten. I would think most people would consider Mozart the greater piano composer than Haydn objectively(?!?).


I would agree if we are including piano concertos. If only solo piano works, not.


----------



## Enthusiast

I won't attempt a list and haven't been through the whole thread but am surprised not to have seen mention of Messiaen.


----------



## flamencosketches

My revised list now that I know a little bit better what I'm talking about:

1. Chopin
2. Beethoven
3. Debussy
4. Scriabin
5. Schubert
6. Ravel
7. Brahms
8. Rachmaninov
9. Mozart
10. Satie


----------



## DeepR

pickybear said:


> And obviously taste plays a big role, because I also don't understand why Scriabin shows up on so many of these lists..


And I don't understand why he is absent on so many other lists.


----------



## AnthonyAlcott

I'm also somewhat surprised by how low Liszt ranks for a lot of people. His greatest works are astonishing. The transcendental etudes by Arrau are heavenly. Or deux legendes, Hexameron (Hamelin interpretation for instance) or reminiscences of Don Juan. His sonata is also breathtaking. We all know these pieces of course. Why the lukewarm feelings toward Liszt? Side by side I don't think Liszt suffers by comparison to anyone. These differences of opinion are very interesting to me.


----------



## AeolianStrains

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Schubert
4. Mozart
5. Liszt
6. Brahms
7. Farrenc
8. Debussy
9/10. Do I really have to pick? Ravel, Faure, Satie, Rach, Scriabin, Robert & Clara, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, maybe John Field, even Clementi, Czerny etc. And that's not even considering Bach and the other organists/harpsichordists.

I'm sure my mood will shift along with positions, but as for now, this is the list 1-8 I want.


----------



## pianoville

AnthonyAlcott said:


> I'm also somewhat surprised by how low Liszt ranks for a lot of people. His greatest works are astonishing. The transcendental etudes by Arrau are heavenly. Or deux legendes, Hexameron (Hamelin interpretation for instance) or reminiscences of Don Juan. His sonata is also breathtaking. We all know these pieces of course. Why the lukewarm feelings toward Liszt? Side by side I don't think Liszt suffers by comparison to anyone. These differences of opinion are very interesting to me.


Liszt for me is very much hit or miss. His best pieces are some of the greatest of the piano litterature (Sonata for example) but he was very inconistent with his works, with some being pretty bad. Sometimes I get the feeling that he was going for quantity instead of quality, but sometimes his music is just fantastic. I'm a bit torn about him.


----------



## pianoville

1. Beethoven
2. Schumann
3. Bach
4. Brahms
5. Prokofiev
6. Scriabin
7. Rachmaninoff
8. Schubert
9. Debussy
10. Ravel

If we're including piano concertos Mozart would definitely be on my list.


----------



## juliante

No Chopin? Interested why not...


pianoville said:


> 1. Beethoven
> 2. Schumann
> 3. Bach
> 4. Brahms
> 5. Prokofiev
> 6. Scriabin
> 7. Rachmaninoff
> 8. Schubert
> 9. Debussy
> 10. Ravel
> 
> If we're including piano concertos Mozart would definitely be on my list.


----------



## pianoville

juliante said:


> No Chopin? Interested why not...


His music bores me to death. His influence is undeniable but I just can't listen to his music. Too much sugar.


----------



## paulbest

pianoville said:


> His music bores me to death. His influence is undeniable but I just can't listen to his music. Too much sugar.


Yes agree, Chopin, Liszt and Scriabin , all 3 had tremendous influence of the young Maurice Ravel. For me, Ravel is the supreme fruit and flower of the classical/romantic traditions. 
In piano solo, if we consider all his unique qualities , its hard to argue against. For performers, his music is treacherous and utmost challenging , which only a rare few can master.


----------



## DeepR

Are you sure that Scriabin was an influence on Ravel? Scriabin was only 3 years older and I dont think they ever met. Maybe he got hold of some of his music but Chopin and Liszt seem more likely influences.


----------



## flamencosketches

I definitely hear some similarities between the music of the two. Outside of that, I'm not sure if they really influenced each other or if they were both drawing from the same sources and had similar minds.


----------



## Mandryka

Lim released a recording with Ravel and Scriabin together, and I thought it was revealing how much they have in common, or rather, how well the 4th sonata works as a complement of Valses Nobles et Sentimentales.


----------



## paulbest

DeepR said:


> Are you sure that Scriabin was an influence on Ravel? Scriabin was only 3 years older and I dont think they ever met. Maybe he got hold of some of his music but Chopin and Liszt seem more likely influences.


Just fishing for comments from others concerning ravel's influences. His solo piano is just unreal. Liszt for sure, and I am guessing Scriabin also took hold of Ravel's imaginations. I mean where did Ravel come up with such masterpieces? Its unworldly, and I am guessing the 2 most imaginative composers for piano solo were Scriabin and Liszt at that time.


----------



## paulbest

Mandryka said:


> Lim released a recording with Ravel and Scriabin together, and I thought it was revealing how much they have in common, or rather, how well the 4th sonata works as a complement of Valses Nobles et Sentimentales.
> 
> View attachment 116692


I failed to note your post.
I posted just now, and see yours.
I mean it is possible Ravel was enchanted by Scriabin and this triggered unreal creativity in the young Ravel.
Ravel could not have possibly created his solo works out of thin air, he had influences which fired his imaginative powers.
Now Wagner was truly original, his genius was fired by old Germanic folk lore, as was Sibelius in his great great Kullervo and other tone poems.


----------



## paulbest

flamencosketches said:


> I definitely hear some similarities between the music of the two. Outside of that, I'm not sure if they really influenced each other or if they were both drawing from the same sources and had similar minds.


Liszt Transcendental Etudes are full of power and magic which must have blew away the young Ravel, at 1st hearing. 
His imaginational fires were stoked by Liszt, yet this does not answer all the Q's as to how Ravel arrived at his unreal creations. 
I think here we must look at what Jung calls the unconscious, meaning Ravel had tapped into the Platonic archetypal realm of The Beautiful. 
Liszt Trans Etudes are something more than Chopin, and more than Schumann;s Trans Etudes as well. , But it is a giant leap from Liszt to what Ravel composed. I say Ravel tapped into the creative unconscious and brought from the archetypal Beauty. 
Which means these works will never tarnish not rust. That is to say, partake of eternity. 
= in 1T years Ravels' piano solo will still hold all its Beauty.


----------



## flamencosketches

I am a huge fan of Ravel's piano music too. On a good day, his piano music is the best out there.

Some of my favorite recordings:
















My current all around favorite Ravelian pianist is Samson François.


----------



## flamencosketches

Re: Liszt - I'm not familiar with his Transcendental Etudes, so I appreciate that link. He is a composer I am certainly looking to explore further as I quite like everything I've heard of his, though nothing has really connected with me compared to the music of, say, Chopin.

This is a fantastic Liszt recording I've been enjoying lately, from one of my favorite pianists:


----------



## tdc

Re: Ravel and Scriabin, I've never come across anything suggesting Ravel listened to Scriabin's music. DeepR is correct in naming Chopin and Liszt as influences on his keyboard music, there are many others (Schumann, Mozart etc) 

As far as music contemporary to Ravel that he drew inspiration from certainly Faure, Chabrier, Satie and Debussy were some.


----------



## Rubens

Same names different order

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Schumann
4. Schubert
5. Brahms
6. Rachmaninoff
7. Debussy
8. Scriabin
9. Liszt
10. Prokofieff


----------



## caters

Beethoven
Chopin
Mozart
Haydn
Liszt
Debussy
Grieg
Brahms
CPE Bach(Solfeggio in C minor is just incredible, I am almost at full speed with that piece)
Schubert

My all time favorite composer, be it for orchestra or piano, is Beethoven. Mozart comes very close and in general is my second favorite composer but that is mainly due to his symphonies. His piano works tend to be on the simplistic side. But he decieves you with the simplicity of the melody and makes things more difficult for the left hand by sustaining the Alberti bass pattern among other things.


----------



## flamencosketches

caters said:


> Beethoven
> Chopin
> Mozart
> Haydn
> Liszt
> Debussy
> Grieg
> Brahms
> CPE Bach(Solfeggio in C minor is just incredible, I am almost at full speed with that piece)
> Schubert
> 
> My all time favorite composer, be it for orchestra or piano, is Beethoven. Mozart comes very close and in general is my second favorite composer but that is mainly due to his symphonies. His piano works tend to be on the simplistic side. But he decieves you with the simplicity of the melody and makes things more difficult for the left hand by sustaining the Alberti bass pattern among other things.


I'm working on CPE Bach's Solfeggio. It is an awesome piece, a toccata-etude of sorts. I am nowhere near able to play it fast.

Props for including Grieg on your list, "the Chopin of the North" as I seem to remember some critic deemed him. Great composer for the piano.

My current favorites are Chopin, Beethoven, and Ravel. If we're talking most important, however, it would be impossible not to include Liszt and Debussy.


----------



## chu42

1. Beethoven
2. Schumann
3. Chopin
4. Mozart
5. Kapustin
6. Bach
7. Scriabin
8. Liszt
9. Rachmaninov
10. Schubert

Ten isn't enough to list them all- I'd add Debussy, Alkan, Ravel, Haydn, Brahms, and Prokofiev.

If you've never listened to Kapustin, do so ASAP. He is the greatest pianist composer of the 20th/21st century.

Also, how is Schumann not being consistently mentioned on these lists?


----------



## Trout

My 10 favorites:

Beethoven
Debussy
Finnissy
Koechlin
Ligeti
Liszt
Messiaen
Ravel
Satie
Scriabin


----------



## vtpoet

Sorry if this has been said elsewhere, but just wanted to add the aside that it's very likely that Bach's Musical Offering was intended for the piano (for one of King Frederick's pianos to be precise). That's not to say that therefore Bach should be considered a composer of piano music, only that he may have written music for the piano at the end of his career.


----------



## flamencosketches

vtpoet said:


> Sorry if this has been said elsewhere, but just wanted to add the aside that it's very likely that Bach's Musical Offering was intended for the piano (for one of King Frederick's pianos to be precise). That's not to say that therefore Bach should be considered a composer of piano music, only that he may have written music for the piano at the end of his career.


If we are to concede that, it'd only be fair to say that the Ricercar for 3 voices was actually written on/for a piano. The Ricercar for 6 would have been written at home on his harpsichord/clavichord/whatever he was playing at the time (for all we know it may have been a piano too).


----------



## flamencosketches

flamencosketches said:


> My revised list now that I know a little bit better what I'm talking about:
> 
> 1. Chopin
> 2. Beethoven
> 3. Debussy
> 4. Scriabin
> 5. Schubert
> 6. Ravel
> 7. Brahms
> 8. Rachmaninov
> 9. Mozart
> 10. Satie


And here, two months down the line...:

1. Chopin
2. Beethoven
3. Debussy
4. Ravel
5. Scriabin
6. Schumann
7. Schubert
8. Brahms
9. Mozart
10. Satie

Nothing terribly different, but I now realize that it was a crime against nature not including Schumann. I am sorry that I had to edge out Rach, leaving the list terribly bereft of Russians. If it's any consolation, Mussorgsky is extremely close to making the list despite that I can count his major piano works on one finger. I had to cut Bach out of the list to allow others a chance, despite that I LOVE Bach's music played on a modern grand piano.

If we were counting concerti as well as solo works, Mozart would be a lot higher on the list.

Ah, and I'm not a huge fan of his, but I'm doing everyone who reads this a huge disservice by omitting Liszt... I really need to get around to listening to more of his music so I can remedy this problem...


----------



## mikeh375

Speaking as a pianist, Satie over Rachmaninov is absurd.


----------



## flamencosketches

mikeh375 said:


> Speaking as a pianist, Satie over Rachmaninov is absurd.


Probably so, but speaking as a novice pianist I couldn't have had it any other way :lol:

Erik Satie is also the composer who got me into classical music. Needed a mention.


----------



## paulbest

Maurice Ravel 
10X's


----------



## PlaySalieri

AnthonyAlcott said:


> I'm torn between offering what I would consider my objective appraisal of a top ten or a very idiosyncratic and biased one. On either list though, Beethoven would take the top spot for me (if we are excluding Bach). After that, I'm not sure. For instance, Mozart would be higher on an objective list, but Haydn would outrank him on my personal top ten. *I would think most people would consider Mozart the greater piano composer than Haydn objectively*(?!?).


Given that approx 75% on this thread are putting Mozart into their top 10 on solo piano and Haydn figures on just a handful of top 10s the answer is YES.


----------



## ojoncas

Best in my opinion are:

1. Late Beethoven
2. Mid Beethoven :lol:
3. Brahms
4. Medtner
5. Scriabin
6. Ravel
7. Chopin
8. Haydn
9. Early Beethoven
10. Alkan

Yes, there are 3 Beethovens! JS Bach would be 2nd if it were a solo klavier top 10 though.


----------



## Swosh

Seems like everyone has never heard of Moszkowski ;(


----------



## hammeredklavier

flamencosketches said:


> If we were counting concerti as well as solo works, Mozart would be a lot higher on the list.





pianoville said:


> If we're including piano concertos Mozart would definitely be on my list.





Bulldog said:


> I would agree if we are including piano concertos. If only solo piano works, not.


These comments confirm my belief his other solo keyboard works are vastly underrated.






















K396: 



K397: 



K399: 



K401: 



K540:


----------



## hammeredklavier

Swosh said:


> Seems like everyone has never heard of Moszkowski ;(


----------



## Ramenbot

1. Debussy
2. Scriabin
3. Beethoven
4. Kapustin
5. Prokofiev
6. Ravel
7. Janacek
8. Mozart
9. Fauré
10. Koechlin

Honorable mentions: Schubert, Sciarrino, Alkan, Messiaen

Just the composers whose piano works I find myself returning to the most. If the topic were keyboard music, JS Bach would be near the top.


----------



## Allegro Con Brio

Excluding Bach:

1. Chopin 
2. Beethoven
3. Schumann
4. Debussy
5. Ravel
6. Liszt
7. Brahms
8. Rachmaninoff
9. Schubert
10. Medtner? Prokofiev? Dunno

I tried to minimize my personal opinion and rank them based on idiomatic writing, ingenuity, influence, and individuality; though I still couldn’t bring myself to include Scriabin


----------



## SanAntone

Liszt
Debussy
Brahms
Schumann
Beethoven
Feldman
Messiaen
Szymanowski
Chopin
Joplin


----------



## DeepR

Allegro Con Brio said:


> I tried to minimize my personal opinion and rank them based on idiomatic writing, ingenuity, influence, and individuality; though I still couldn't bring myself to include Scriabin


I've read several times that you don't get/like Scriabin. If you like Chopin, Rachmaninoff and others his early-mid music is really not that hard to like....


----------



## Bulldog

No particular order:

Mozart
Haydn
Beethoven
Schubert
Schumann
Brahms
Debussy
Ravel 
Rachmaninov
Shostakovich
Scriabin
Chopin


----------



## SanAntone

Bulldog said:


> No particular order:
> 
> Mozart
> Haydn
> Beethoven
> Schubert
> Schumann
> Brahms
> Debussy
> Ravel
> Rachmaninov
> Shostakovich
> Scriabin
> Chopin


That's more than ten.  And yet, no mention of Liszt.


----------



## Mandryka

Karlheinz Stockhausen
Michael Finnissy
Brice Pauset
John Cage
Christian Wolff
Beat Furrer 
Salvatore Sciarrino
Howard Skempton
Jennifer Saunders 
Giancinto Scelsi


----------



## Josquin13

Here's my top 10 list--excluding favorites William Byrd, Thomas Tomkins, Orlando Gibbons, François & Louis Couperin, G.F. Handel, J.S. Bach, Domenico Scarlatti, & Jean-Philippe Rameau (& others), who were all masters of the keyboard, but didn't compose for the piano or fortepiano, specifically--with the possible exception of Bach's "A Musical Offering", which IMO works better on a fortepiano, & surprisingly so: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEmphgzuGTA):

Franz Josef Haydn
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Ludwig van Beethoven
Franz Schubert
Robert Schumann
Franz Liszt
Frederic Chopin
Claude Debussy
Maurice Ravel (any composer that can compose piano works as imaginative as "Gaspard de la Nuit" and "Miroirs" deserves to be in the top 10: 



, and 



)
Serge Prokofiev (his 9 Piano Sonatas and "Visions Fugitives", etc., get underrated, IMO): 



)

--Honorable mention (or the next 15...): Johannes Brahms (especially for his 4 Ballades & Late piano music Ops. 117-119), Felix Mendelssohn (especially for his Schumann influenced "Songs Without Words"), John Field (for his Nocturnes, which influenced Chopin), Edvard Grieg (especially for his "Lyric Pieces": 



 ), Gabriel Faure, Erik Satie (especially for his 6 Gnossienes & 3 Gymnopedies), Leos Janacek (especially for his "In the Mists": 



, and "On an Overgrown Path": 



), Alexander Scriabin, Isaac Albéniz (especially for his "Iberia": 



), Charles Koechlin (especially for his "Paysages et Marines": 



, and "Les Heures Persanes": 



 ), Serge Rachmaninov, Bela Bartok, Dmitri Shostakovich (especially for his 24 Preludes & Fugues, Op. 87:



), Olivier Messiaen (especially for his "Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jesus": 



, and a shorter piano work that I particularly like, "Le Courlis Cendre": 



), and Federico Mompou (especially for his "Musica Callada": 



, & "Impresiones intimas": played by Rosa Sabater: 



, and Alicia de Larrocha: 



, which I listen to fairly often).

--Other piano composers whose piano works I'll occasionally listen to, but wouldn't place in the top 25, at least not in preference to any of the composers that I've mentioned above: Granados, Sibelius, Szymanowski, Medtner, Schoenberg, de Falla, Poulenc, Saint Saens, Franck, Busoni, Griffes, Alkan, Ligeti, and Boulez.

--& some composers whose solo piano music has surprised me in recent years, by its better than expected quality, though I'm not claiming that they are among the top ranks:

--Alexandre Tcherepnin (played by Monique Haas)--this is fascinating music: 



--Georges Enescu: I enjoyed Rada Lupu playing Enescu's Sonata No. 1, Op. 24 in a 2002 recital at Carnegie Hall: 



. Now I want to get to know Enescu's other two piano sonatas, etc.. 
--Darius Milhaud: I've recently discovered an old Nonesuch album by pianist William Bolcom that I like, particularly Milhaud's "Le Printemps", Books 1 & 2: 



--Bohuslav Martinu: I've liked pianist Rudolf Firkusny's playing of Martinu's music, & especially this album: 



--Nikolai Tcherepnin: 



--Samuel Barber: His "Four Excursions" are impressive: 



--Elliott Carter: Carter's "Night Fantasies" is an interesting work (as played by Charles Rosen, Paul Jacobs, Ursula Oppens, or Pierre Laurent Aimard): 



, along with his Piano Sonata: 



--Vincent Persichetti: Piano Sonatas Nos. 1-12 (played by pianist Geoffrey Burleson): 



--Oliver Knussen--Being a Debussy nut, I am fascinated by Debussy's strong influence on Knussen's music:








 



--Joonas Kokkonen: IMO, Kokkonen's "Pielavesi Suite" to be an unjustly neglected work in the concert hall, and arguably a minor masterpiece (pianist Janne Mertanen has recorded it for Alba): https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8033902--joonas-kokkonen-piano-works
--Vagn Holmboe: There is a rare BIS album of Holmboe's piano works by pianist Anker Blyme that has grown on me: https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/7967839--holmboe-works-for-piano 
--Paavo Heininen: I've liked Heininen's "Runoilijan soitteita (or The Poet's Tunes)", Op. 55, as played by Katriina Korte, and would like to hear more of his piano music: https://www.prestomusic.com/classic...ius-piano-pieces-vuori-beyond-night-and-frost 
--Harri Vuori (again, pianist Katriina Korte has been championing Vuori's music):
https://www.prestomusic.com/classic...ius-piano-pieces-vuori-beyond-night-and-frost












--Arvo Pärt: 



--Magnus Lindberg:




https://www.amazon.com/Magnus-Lindb...+lindberg+piano&qid=1602176799&s=music&sr=1-2








https://www.amazon.com/Magnus-Lindb...+lindberg+piano&qid=1602176799&s=music&sr=1-3
--Martin Boykan: 




Next on my list to explore: the piano music of Joseph Guy Marie Ropartz, whose chamber music I've enjoyed getting to know in recent years.

Ropartz, Nocturne No. 3:


----------



## Bulldog

SanAntone said:


> That's more than ten.  And yet, no mention of Liszt.


Liszt isn't usually on my radar; I haven't given much thought as to why. Thinking about it now, I do love his Years of Pilgrimage, Christus, Hungarian Rhapsodies. It's likely his most popular works I don't connect with.


----------



## Allegro Con Brio

DeepR said:


> I've read several times that you don't get/like Scriabin. If you like Chopin, Rachmaninoff and others his early-mid music is really not that hard to like....


Yes, I don't mind some of that stuff but it just doesn't grab me. Just a personal blind spot I guess, entirely my own fault. I keep trying every once in a while.


----------



## Simplicissimus

Excluding works for harpsichord, organ, etc.

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Schumann
4. Liszt
5. Debussy
6. Barber
7. Albéniz
8. Hindemith
9. Alkan
10. Mozart


----------



## Roger Knox

Josquin13, Yours is a discerning list that emphasizes musical substance, and it includes some intriguing composers that are new to me. It could be the basis of a very fine collection of recordings that many listeners including professional musicians would enjoy.


----------



## Roger Knox

In chronological order:

Beethoven
Chopin
Schumann
Brahms
Fauré
Debussy
Rachmaninoff
Reger
Ireland 
Prokofiev


----------



## SearsPoncho

While not in order, the first four constitute what I consider the Mt. Rushmore of Piano/Keyboard composers because of the quality of their work and their importance as composers of piano/keyboard music:

1) Bach
2) Beethoven
3) Chopin 
4) Debussy

The rest:
Mozart 
Schubert 
Haydn
Rachmaninov
Scriabin
Ravel

Even though I'm not a fan of most of Schumann's piano works and piano cycles, although I'm a big fan of his Fantasie, I think his influence and importance as a piano composer cannot be denied, particularly in the Romantic era. Nearly all the great pianists of the recorded era seemed to adore his music. On the basis of influence alone, he at least deserves an Honorable Mention.


----------



## chu42

If Schumann is not on your list you must either hate or not listen to Schumann. I don't see how anyone could like Schumann without simultaneously thinking that he is one of the greatest composers for the piano.


----------



## SanAntone

SanAntone said:


> Liszt
> Debussy
> Brahms
> Schumann
> Beethoven
> Feldman
> Messiaen
> Szymanowski
> Chopin
> Joplin


After looking at my list, I can probably improve it like this:

1. Liszt
2. Debussy
3. Brahms
4. Satie
5. Schumann
6. Beethoven
7. Feldman
8. Messiaen
9. Boulez
10. Carter


----------



## Jay

Ornstein
Cowell
Nancarrow
Satie
Johnston
Rudhyar
Ruggles
Seeger
Duckworth
Tyranny (R.I.P)


----------



## Mandryka

Karlheinz Stockhausen
La Monte Young
Simon Steen Anderson
Sylvano Bussotti
Christian Wolff
Christopher Fox
Olivier Messiaen
Ralph Shapey


----------



## mossyembankment

My list. Would've included Bach but I'm not sure his solo keyboard works count.

1 Schumann
2 Mozart
3 Beethoven
4 Debussy
5 Ravel
6 Chopin
7 Brahms
8 Satie
9 Schubert
10 Mussorgsky


----------



## elgar's ghost

This was the list I made over eight years ago (in no particular order). It still just about holds, but I'm miffed I can't find a place for either Prokofiev or Messiaen, whose piano works I have increasingly warmed to since the list was initially made.

Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin
Schumann
Liszt
Brahms
Debussy
Skryabin
Satie
Ravel


----------



## Malx

elgars ghost said:


> This was the list I made over eight years ago (in no particular order). It still just about holds, but I'm miffed I can't find a place for either Prokofiev or Messiaen, whose piano works I have increasingly warmed to since the list was initially made.
> 
> Beethoven
> Schubert
> Chopin
> Schumann
> Liszt
> Brahms
> Debussy
> Skryabin
> Satie
> Ravel


Hard to argue with that list EG although I would replace Satie with Prokofiev - which would also solve your conundrum :tiphat:

*ETA* - I should say that for me J S Bach would be listed but I'm setting him aside as he didn't write for piano - a convenient way of getting another choice in the current list.


----------



## Enthusiast

It is a surprise to see lists without including Messiaen. Other than him it is clear that Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Debussy, Ravel, Chopin, Brahms and (though I am no fan) Liszt belong on the list.


----------



## Kreisler jr

Beethoven
Bach 
Chopin
Schumann
Debussy
Ravel 
Prokofieff (in favor of Scriabin and Rachmaninoff)
Schubert
Brahms
Liszt (not a fan, but historically should be on #4 or #5)

I don't know enough about later 20th cent and more recent piano music, so not sure if Messiaen should be there rather than Stockhausen, Ligeti or someone else.


----------



## lextune

Is there any debate against this top ten?!



lextune said:


> In chronological order:
> 1. Mozart
> 2. Beethoven
> 3. Schubert
> 4. Chopin
> 5. Schumann
> 6. Liszt
> 7. Debussy
> 8. Scriabin
> 9. Rachmaninoff
> 10. Prokofiev


----------



## lextune

Can we just have a top eleven?

In chronological order:
1. Mozart
2. Beethoven
3. Schubert
4. Chopin
5. Schumann
6. Brahms
7. Liszt
8. Debussy
9. Scriabin
10. Rachmaninoff
11. Prokofiev


----------



## JohnP

Beethoven
Bach
Chopin
Rachmaninoff
Debussy
Shostakovich
Schumann
Ravel
Scriabin
Brahms 
Prokofiev

I want badly to have more slots, for Mozart (the concertos) and a sleeper, Medtner.


----------



## pjang23

In alphabetical order,

Bach
Beethoven
Brahms
Chopin
Debussy
Prokofiev
Ravel
Schubert
Schumann
Scriabin

If Bach is excluded, I'd add Fauré or Haydn or Medtner.


----------



## MusicSybarite

Beethoven
Schubert
Prokofiev
Liszt
Alkan
Chopin
Poulenc
Ravel
Brahms
Medtner


----------



## Livly_Station

1. Beethoven
1. Scriabin
1. Liszt

4. Bach
4. Schumann
4. Chopin

7. Ravel
8. Rachmaninoff
9. Debussy
10. Villa-Lobos

Honorable mentions:
Sorabji
Moszkowski
Kapustin


----------



## alexson

These are the top 10 composers of solo piano

Frederic Chopin
Ludwig van Beethoven
Franz Liszt
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Claude Debussy
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Johann Sebastian Bach
Franz Schubert
Johannes Brahms
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky


----------



## HenryPenfold

I only have 9 


Scriabin
Sorabji
Satie
Medtner
Debussy
Ravel
Chopin
Beethoven
Faure


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## Josquin13

Excluding three of my favorite composers, J.S. Bach, G.F. Handel, & William Byrd, and Glenn Gould's favorite composer for the keyboard, Orlando Gibbons, on the grounds that they didn't compose for a modern piano...

Here is my current top 10 (listed in no particular order),

Haydn
Mozart
Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin
Schumann
Liszt
Debussy
Ravel
Prokofiev

& some favorites whose piano music I wouldn't want to be without (listed in order of preference): Brahms, Satie, Koechlin, Mompou, Mendelssohn, Shostakovich, Albeniz, Grieg, Janacek, Faure, Scriabin, Martinu, Rachmaninov...

Plus, as an extra bonus, here are three of my favorite new discoveries from the past several years,

--Charles Tournemire: his 12 Préludes-poéme, Op. 58, played by pianist Lise Boucher: 




--Joonas Kokkonen: especially his Pielavesi Suite, played by pianist Janne Mertaten: 




https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8033902--joonas-kokkonen-piano-works

--Darius Milhaud: especially his Le Printemps, Books 1 & 2, played by Milhaud's former pupil, William Bolcom:


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## Mandryka

Hdhdhdhdhdhdhdhdhxhxhdh


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## Neo Romanza

Let’s see...

Debussy
Ravel
Bartók
Janáček
Shostakovich
Prokofiev
Enescu
Liszt
Rachmaninov 
Ligeti


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## SanAntone

I've probably already posted in this thread, but my choices are probably different anyway.

Liszt
Satie
Mompou
Feldman
Debussy
Ravel
Chopin


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## JohnP

Beethoven
Chopin
Bach, JS *
Mozart
Rachmaninoff
Debussy
Ravel
Scarlatti **
Scriabin
Schostakovich

* I agree with Art Rock on this.
** See *


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## advokat

In no particular order:


Bach
Tchaikovsky
Mozart
Beethoven
Schubert
Chopin
Schumann
Brahms
Scriabin
Rachmaninoff

Immediately following:


Alkan
Medtner
Faure
Liszt
Debussy
Soler
Galuppi
D.Scarlatti
Prokofiev
Grieg
Mendelsohn
Satie
Granados


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## Ice Berg

I don't know about best, but personal favorites:

Beethoven
Field
Chopin
Cui
Gulda (check out "Variationen uber Light My Fire")
Alkan
Fauré
Scharwenka (1850-1924)
Muczynski
Scriabin


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## Jen L

I’m new to this forum, and imagine the members here already have a working definition of ‘best’, but until I get up to speed, here’s my favourites:
Bach, D Scarlatti, Rameau, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Ligeti, Cage.
(And I’m obviously thinking more of what the pieces are often performed on, than composed for)


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## That Guy Mick

Can't do ten. I have only listened to piano works composed by the five below with any regularity, but I think they are all pretty good. They seem to know what they are doing and all managed to land on the best of piano album. But as they say, sometimes its who you know...

Beethoven
Rachmaninov
Grieg
Chopin
Satie


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## bwv543

Chopin
Scriabin
Brahms
Rachmaninoff
Beethoven
Grieg
Schubert
Schumann
Ravel
Prokofiev


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## Endeavour

Not very original I'm afraid...

Bach (I prefer Bach on piano)
Beethoven
Brahms
Chopin
Debussy
Haydn
Liszt
Mozart
Schubert
Schumann


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## SanAntone

SanAntone said:


> I've probably already posted in this thread, but my choices are probably different anyway.
> 
> Liszt
> Satie
> Mompou
> Feldman
> Debussy
> Ravel
> Chopin


I"d have to also include *Arnold Schoenberg* - and maybe leave out Chopin. This is based on my more recent listening patterns.


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist

BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist said:


> (Note: I'm not counting music written for the harpsichord as "piano music")
> 
> 1. Beethoven (the late sonatas are really just some of the greatest pieces of music ever written)
> 2. Chopin
> 3. Brahms (not that much quantity especially in his mid/later years, but LOTS of quality)
> 4. Ravel (also low quantity, high quality)
> 5. Debussy
> 6. Scriabin
> 7. Schubert
> 8. Haydn
> 9. Faure
> 10. Liszt/Rachmaninoff/Medtner
> 
> If we're talking about all works containing piano writing rather than just solo piano works, then here's my list:
> 
> 1. Beethoven
> 2. Brahms
> 3. Mozart (yes, the piano concertos and chamber music with piano make him go from not being on the list to #3)
> 4. Chopin
> 5. Ravel
> 6. Schubert
> 7. Scriabin
> 8. Faure
> 9. Haydn
> 10. Rachmaninoff


This was 2 and a half years ago, but I should be beheaded for the omission of Schumann. He may very well be my #1 now.


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist

Jen L said:


> I'm new to this forum, *and imagine the members here already have a working definition of 'best'*, but until I get up to speed, here's my favourites:
> Bach, D Scarlatti, Rameau, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Ligeti, Cage.
> (And I'm obviously thinking more of what the pieces are often performed on, than composed for)


Nope .............


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## Doublestring

Beethoven
Chopin
Liszt
Debussy
Schumann
Brahms
Rachmaninoff
Mozart
Ravel
Scriabin


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## Brahmsian Colors

Four year update: 

1) Haydn
2) Brahms
3) Debussy
4) Ravel
5) Mozart
6) Schubert


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## Musicpro

Beethoven, Mozart are my favorites


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## SanAntone

SanAntone said:


> I've probably already posted in this thread, but my choices are probably different anyway.
> 
> Liszt
> Satie
> Mompou
> Feldman
> Debussy
> Ravel
> Chopin


I've been listening to the solo piano music of *Karol Szymanowski* today; there's a lot of it, it may be the genre he wrote the most works in. If I make a new list someday he will be on it.


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## Second Trombone

My own subjective list, in alphabetical order:
Bach
Beethoven
Brahms
Chopin
Debussy
Liszt
Mozart
Ravel
Schubert
Schumann

There are many other piano composers I love, and I'm looking forward to checking out several of the composers listed here whose work I don't know so well. I haven't spent enough time with Scriabin, for example. I include Bach because I love his keyboard works on piano and because these works are important to, or even central to, the work on many fine pianists. Putting it another way, Bach may not have composed for the piano, but his music is a key part of the piano repertory.

BTW, in order to get a check on the relative popularity of various composers for the piano, I once did a count of the # of hours of compositions by each composer performed in the Philips 200 disc "Great Pianists of the 20th Century" collection. I made the count after ripping the whole set into iTunes and making it into a playlist. Once I'd done that, the counting was a piece of cake. Note that this listing of hours performed does included concerto performances as well as solo and duo (but not chamber music). So it doesn't perfectly fit the question, but it's close enough for government work, I think. Anyway, here's the list. Note that the total performance hours was likely 210+, since the 200 CDs are well filled.

Chopin: 1.6 days (38 hours)
Beethoven: 1.1 days (26.5 hours)
Mozart: 21.5 hrs
Liszt: 20 hrs + 3 hrs of Liszt's arrangements of others
Schumann: 17 hrs
Bach: 16 hrs
Brahms: 13 hrs
Rachmaninov: 12 hrs
Schubert: 11 hrs
Debussy: 9 hrs

Mozart is perhaps disproportionately helped by the inclusion of recordings from his 27 piano concertos. Still, Mozart would no doubt make the top 10 "most played" even if limited to solo performances. And, clearly, Bach is right up there, in the #6 slot.


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