# Listening to modern classical music



## nikolovski (Apr 1, 2013)

Hello, I've been listening classical music for 10+ years, but this is the first time I felt actually _discussing_ classical music with someone, so here I am! Be gentle. 

Recently I've started listening to modern (20. century) classical music, primarily Shostakovich, Adams, and Copland. While there are some pieces I absolutely adore (the Leningrad symphony and some of the string quartets from Shostakovich; Nixon in China, Grand Pianola Music and Harmonielehre from Adams, Copland has all-around awesome compositions), I find much of their opus unpalatable (I just cannot listen to Adams' Chamber Symphony in whole). I cannot come to terms with the disharmonious modern classical piece.

I have a sort of a double question for discussion:


Could you recommend similar pieces to the ones I already like?
How do you recommend I "ease into" the modern classics? I think there is a beauty to them, but it's not as obvious as in a piece by the old masters, and I'd like to broaden my musical horizon.

PS: Geek members may notice that all of the Adams' pieces I like are from the soundtrack of Civilization IV. I think my love of classical music stems entirely from Tom and Jerry cartoons and games.


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## Norse (May 10, 2010)

Welcome!

I don't know if you have some sort of cut-off date for what you would consider 'modern', but here are a few 20th century classics you might enjoy if you haven't heard them already.

Stravinsky: Petrushka and The Rite of Spring (in that order)
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto no. 3
Holst: The Planets
Lutoslawski: Concerto for orchestra

Of these, the Lutoslawski is the most modern, but it's more accessible than his later stuff.


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## userfume (Nov 21, 2012)

Try Bartok Concerto for Orchestra


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde (Dec 2, 2011)

From Bartók's concerto for orchestra, go to his string quartets, from there try Ligeti's first string quartet and get more into his stuff, might be a little bit easier to grip than other music around that time. 

With 20th century music, especially atonal music, your brain might be wanting to pick out melodies and harmonies, dissonances resolving to consonances which probably won't happen. The best thing to do is focus your listening on the use of orchestration, the tone colours and contour of the abstract line of sound as it travels through different instruments.


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## drpraetorus (Aug 9, 2012)

Prokofiev: Scythian Suite, Alexander Nevsky, They are Seven.
Shostakovich: 4th Symphony, The Gadfly incidental music, Jazz Suites 1&2, Festival Overturte, Execution of Stepan Razin, Moscow-Cheryomushki
Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances
Bernstein: On the Waterfront
Orff: Trionfi, De Temporum Fine Comoedia
Vaugh-Williams: Fantasy on a Theme by Thomas Talis
Britain: Sea Scenes from Peter Grimes

That should keep you busy


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Start with Sibelius and work way to more modern from there. Prokofiev or Shostakovich. Bartok is a tough one for me. I would wait a little while to go there. And if you are into Impressionism, Debussy and Ravel are great ones to pick from.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Here would be my list. The ones on top would be more accessible imo. 
Sibelius
Respighi
Nielsen
Shostakovich
Strauss
Vaughan Williams
Prokofiev
Ravel
Debussy
Janacek
Elgar
Stravinsky
Ives 
Bartok
Berg
Schoenberg
Webern
Rautavaara
Schnittke
Ligeti
Messiaen
Lutoslawski
Norgard...


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