# Recommendations for newbie



## Guest (Dec 10, 2018)

Hi I'm new to classical. Just listened to these pieces and enjoyed them a lot.

Beethoven sonatas (Waldstein, Appassionata, Hammerklavier, Tempest)
Beethoven piano concerto no 5
Schubert D 960
Schubert piano trio no 3
Schubert Impromptus
Chopin sonata 3
Chopin preludes op 28
Chopin Barcarolle
Mozart Rondo K 511

I like melodious stuff, are there any recommendations?


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Melodious and piano by the looks of it....

Chopin - Nocturnes
Debussy - Suite bergamasque (includes Clair de lune)
Ravel - Pavane pour une infante défunte


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## Guest (Dec 10, 2018)

Wow thanks! Debussy and Ravel sounded too light for me, but the Chopin was nice. I'll check out some of his other works.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

you want just piano music?

Mozart - Piano Sonata No. 8 in A minor
Medtner - "Sonata Romantica" op. 53
Liszt - Dante Sonata
Liszt - Sonata in B minor
Schumann - Fantasie in C
Alkan - Symphony for solo piano


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

a BTW, I am a big fan of Bach's keyboard music. You might give it a try. Try the Goldberg variations played on piano, or Chaconne in the Busoni transcription, or the French suites.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

Haydn - Piano Sonata no. 58
Schubert - Piano Sonatas D 894 and 959.


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## Frank Freaking Sinatra (Dec 6, 2018)

Liszt - Rondo Fantastique sur un thème espagnol 
Liszt - Grande Fantaisie de Bravoure sur la Clochette de Paganini

Amédée Méreaux, Étude Op. 63 No. 24

Charles Valentin Alkan, Concerto for Solo Piano, Op. 39 No. 8-10 

Chopin-Godowsky, Étude No. 36 in G sharp minor, based on Chopin's Op. 25 No. 6 “Thirds” Etude

Stravinsky - -Petrushka for solo piano

Ferruccio Busoni's Fantasia Contrappuntistica and Piano Concerto

Rudepoema by Hector Villa-Lobos

Alexander Scriabin's Sonata No. 5 

Alexis Weissenberg's Sonata in a state of Jazz

Olivier Messiaen's Vingt Regards sur l'enfant Jesus 

Brahms' Op. 1 Piano sonata and his Piano concerto No. 2

Rachmaninoff's Piano concerto No. 2 & 3 and his Piano Sonata No. 2 in b flat minor

Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 2, 4, 5

Euphemia Allen - The Celebrated Chop Waltz


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## Guest (Dec 10, 2018)

Liked the B minor Liszt sonata


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

HSW said:


> Liked the B minor Liszt sonata


actually, I wanted to recommend the Totentanz instead of the Dante sonata (I switched the two in my mind)


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

just try the usul names
Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Schumann, Schubert, Chopin, Rachmaninov, Brahms, Liszt, Prokofiev, Shostakovich - all of them wrote wonderful music, both for piano and other. You just have to discover yourself, what you like and what not. 
And then there is the 20th century. The music from that era is different. I would recommend to check out the piano music of Scriabin, Hindemith, Ligeti, Bartok, Dutilleux. The harmonies of this modern music are different from the romantic era. Some people like it, some not


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## Ras (Oct 6, 2017)

By *CHOPIN* you should also try:
- Waltzes
- Impromptus
- Etudes
And "bigger" works:
- Scherzos 
- Ballades

*Chopin* also wrote two wonderful piano concertos - I like this recording:









So you like Beethoven's 5th piano concerto - maybe you will like other "grandiso"-pieces:
*- Tchaikovsky's First Piano Conceto.
- Brahms' First piano concerto
- Grieg's piano concerto
- Maybe even Rachmaninov's 3rd piano concerto - although I think you should probably try the 2nd one first…
- Beethoven 9th Symphony - start with the last movement - ca. 25 minutes with choir and turkish march and God knows what.*

- Hayppy listening! and welcome on Talk Classical!


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## Ras (Oct 6, 2017)

HSW said:


> Beethoven sonatas (Waldstein, Appassionata, Hammerklavier, Tempest)


You should also try these *Beethoven sonatas*:
- Moonlight
- Pathetique

And these *Beethoven symphonies:* 3, 5, 7.


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## Ras (Oct 6, 2017)

HSW said:


> Mozart K 511


Just try all of Mozart's piano sonatas.


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## Guest (Dec 10, 2018)

Sorry, forgot to mention it was Mozart's Rondo in A minor K 511, not a sonata...

Loved Beethoven's 3rd symphony though. I'll try the rest of them as well as the two sonatas you mentioned. 

So far, I'm loving classical. Can't wait to dive deeper.


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## Littlephrase (Nov 28, 2018)

For Schubert, I'd recommend the String Quintet along with the last three String Quartets. Other relatively overlooked pieces would be his Three Piano Pieces D 946 and the Fantasy in F minor D 940. These are all very characteristically melodic works of Schubert. I'm sure you'd enjoy them. 

The other recommendations here are very good. I'd especially hunt out all the Romantic stuff.


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

HSW said:


> Sorry, forgot to mention it was Mozart's Rondo in A minor K 511, not a sonata...
> 
> Loved Beethoven's 3rd symphony though. I'll try the rest of them as well as the two sonatas you mentioned.
> 
> So far, I'm loving classical. *Can't wait to dive deeper.*


I always recommend Sibelius, so sorry everyone for being boring...

Sibelius Symphonies 7 and 5 and his tone poem Tapiola - beautifully deep works...and it remains a continuing astonishment that any human being can achieve such incredible music.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

janxharris said:


> I always recommend Sibelius, so sorry everyone for being boring...
> 
> Sibelius Symphonies 7 and 5 and his tone poem Tapiola - beautifully deep works...and it remains a continuing astonishment that any human being can achieve such incredible music.


however much I enjoy Sibelius, I still find Bach deeper. But everyone must find what he likes for himself. If this website has taught me something (except for discovering a ton of great music), that human musical tastes can differ enormously


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

Jacck said:


> however much I enjoy Sibelius, I still find Bach deeper. But everyone must find what he likes for himself. If this website has taught me something (except for discovering a ton of great music), that human musical tastes can differ enormously


I keep trying Bach


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

Did Gould cut the legs off that chair? And that piece - it's become a song....


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## Xisten267 (Sep 2, 2018)

The piece that changed my life and made me want to explore classical music was the _Tannhäuser Overture_, by Richard Wagner. I recommend it and his other overtures/preludes to you:


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Beethoven piano sonatas 1, 8, 14
Dvorak symphonies 8 & 9
Mozart piano concerto 21


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Some shorter melodious tone poems and overtures:

Borodin - In The Steppes Of Central Asia
Tchaikovsky - Marche Slave
Rimsky Korsakov - Russian Easter Overture
Beethoven- Egmont Overture


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

Littlephrase1913 said:


> For Schubert, I'd recommend the String Quintet along with the last three String Quartets.


As well as the Piano Quintet, aka the "Trout" Quintet.


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## Brahmsian Colors (Sep 16, 2016)

Haydn: Piano Trio No. 39 in G, "Gypsy"
Schubert: Piano Sonata No. 13
Mozart: Clarinet Quintet, K. 581
Wagner: Tannhauser Overture
Grieg: The Last Spring (Elegiac Melody No. 2)
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4 ("Italian")


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## Guest (Dec 11, 2018)

Thanks everyone


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## isorhythm (Jan 2, 2015)

Mozart's piano concertos! All of them from number 17 on.


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## Brahmsianhorn (Feb 17, 2017)

Bach: 
Brandenburg concertos - Britten
Cello suites - Fournier
Goldberg variations - Gould (1981 recording)

Beethoven: 
Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7 - Kleiber
Symphony No. 9 - Bernstein (1979)
Piano sonatas Nos. 8, 14, 23 - Rubinstein

Brahms: Violin concerto - Perlman/Giulini

Chopin: Nocturnes - Pires

Debussy/Ravel: String quartets - Melos Quartet

Dvorak: Symphonies Nos. 8 & 9 - Kubelik

Grieg: Peer gynt suites/Sibelius: Finlandia - Karajan

Handel: Messiah - Pinnock

Haydn: Op. 76 String quartets - Lindsay Quartet

Mahler: Symphony No. 9 - Karajan (1982)

Monteverdi: Vespers - Gardiner (DG Archiv)

Mozart: 
Piano concertos Nos. 20, 23, 24, 27 - Curzon
Requiem - Marriner (Philips)

Puccini: Tosca - Callas/De Sabata

Rachmaninoff: Piano concertos Nos. 2 & 3 - Janis/Dorati

Schumann: Dichterliebe/Schubert: Lieder - Wunderlich

Stravinsky: The Rite of spring - Stravinsky

Tchaikovsky: 1812 overture - Dorati (Mercury)

Vivaldi: The Four seasons - Marriner (Decca)

Wagner: Overtures and preludes - Karajan (EMI)

Opera aria collection: "Pavarotti's Greatest Hits"


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## rodrigaj (Dec 11, 2016)

To the OP:

How do you listen to music? (youtube, spotify, etc...?)

I have found the classical music streaming service, IDAGIO to be excellent for discovery. I am now discovering 20th century music. IDAGIO's curated playlist and suggestions have opened up new vistas for me. I also have spotify premium, but for classical, IDAGIO can't be beat. They offer a free trial.

Disclaimer: I have no interest in IDAGIO other than being a satisfied subscriber.


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## Bluecrab (Jun 24, 2014)

janxharris said:


> Did Gould cut the legs off that chair?


There's a story about why that stool he used was so short. It has to do with the way his fingers struck the keys. You can find it online, I'm sure. IIRC, his father and first teacher were involved with it.


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## HND1 (Dec 11, 2018)

*A question re pianissimoo ?*

i'm new to this site and haven't worked out yet how to ask a question ? So apologies in advance to those i offend ? 
I'm a newbie piano player ( adult learning ) and ask the following question of my teacher and never get a satisfactory answer ? Can anyone assist?
'When do the signs such as forte, mf, and pianissimo ect ect start and finish ?..Start is usually pretty clear but finish ? Is there a definite sign or place/ time to stop these indications ?


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## Tchaikov6 (Mar 30, 2016)

HND1 said:


> i'm new to this site and haven't worked out yet how to ask a question ? So apologies in advance to those i offend ?
> I'm a newbie piano player ( adult learning ) and ask the following question of my teacher and never get a satisfactory answer ? Can anyone assist?
> 'When do the signs such as forte, mf, and pianissimo ect ect start and finish ?..Start is usually pretty clear but finish ? Is there a definite sign or place/ time to stop these indications ?


Well, after Beethoven's death I would say dynamic markings became very very specific and detailed, and for the time period of the 1840s on I would say that the dynamic markings should be explicitly followed as written. However, with the music of many Baroque and Classical composers, especially Baroque- the keyboards at the time had very limited or no dynamic range, so it was unnecessary addition as dynamics would add nothing to the performance. That is why virtually none of Bach's keyboard music have dynamics. But if you listen to different recordings of the Well-Tempered Clavier, performers will play many dynamic markings and have many different ways of playing even one Prelude and Fugue. As for composers like Mozart and Haydn, who had access to a dynamic-ranged keyboard but did not use or write that many dynamic markings, I guess that has to do with a style of writing at the same time, and dynamic ranges were to be interpreted and played as the performer liked, as it was a much more "free" time playing-wise.

Sorry if this was an unsatisfactory/non-factual response that you may have been looking for, obviously I am no expert. Maybe it would help if you gave specific examples of dynamics starting but not stopping in pieces you are playing?


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## Guest (Dec 12, 2018)

I use both Youtube and Spotify. Thanks for your suggestion, I'll try out IDAGIO!


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## Guest (Dec 12, 2018)

Wow thanks for the long list!

Tried out most of your suggestions, so far Beethoven and Schubert are my favourites. Liked the Mahler symphony too.


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## Guest (Dec 12, 2018)

By the way how to quote a reply


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

HSW said:


> Wow thanks for the long list!
> 
> Tried out most of your suggestions, so far Beethoven and Schubert are my favourites. Liked the Mahler symphony too.


try Beethoven Bagatelles or Hammerklavier then.

in general, people initially like only certain works or composers or periods, but slowly, their appreciation expands. So listen to what you like, but expose yourself to other music as well.


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## janxharris (May 24, 2010)

HSW said:


> By the way how to quote a reply


Look at the 'Reply With Quote' option next to 'Reply' at the bottom right of each post.


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