# Present-day composers



## Clouds Weep Snowflakes (Feb 24, 2019)

Let's talk about composers that are still alive today- who do you like? Are they better, worse or indifferent from past composers? Is the vibe of Classical music still as strong as in the past?
As for me, I feel Classical music isn't time-limited, I judge music by it's content, not the period of history it's from.
Oh, and look at this piece by a present-day Finnish composer:


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## Guest (Mar 18, 2019)

I like a lot of it. It’s pretty cool. This stuff and opera is where I spend most of my time.


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## Dima (Oct 3, 2016)

Clouds Weep Snowflakes said:


> Oh, and look at this piece by a present-day Finnish composer:


Professionally. I have listened and I am positive. But in my view there are not enough fresh ideas and yet that music can be background music, but not still self-sufficient (I mean it is not Cinderella of Prokofiev

I think there is no anything today comparable with the past great composers - but I would like to know.
The best contemporary music I have ever listened is well arranged compositions of the past time. For example: 
Music of Alexey Shor on theme of song "Murka" (Odessa city song):





or this chamber music composed by Pavel Vernikov on themes of different songs popular in Odessa city in middle of 20th century:


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Sometimes classical listeners have such a narrow view of music that they exclude some terrific new music. For my taste, there is very little in the orchestral arena today worth listening to. But in the choral area, there is great innovation and some beautiful work being done. Morten Lauridsen and Eric Whitacre are both alive, writing constantly, and having their music performed and recorded world-wide. There's also a lot of music being written for wind band that is too often looked down upon by musical snobs. The Klavier series of recordings with the Cincinnati Conservatory Wind Symphony is fascinating. But when it comes to the new orchestral scores I hear, I'm not impressed; mostly discouraged.


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## science (Oct 14, 2010)

As I've written before, IMO the most interesting and (long-term) important music of our time is classical fusion stuff, with world music and electronica and all that.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

I'm all for today's music. It is very important, I think, and we neglect it at our peril. But there is so much and such variety and so much of it is so new that it can be difficult to discuss because everyone has different tastes.


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## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

My favorite classical music is from the mid to late 20th century, and the contemporary era. Music from earlier than The Rite of Spring really doesn't do much for me.

I would bet that the majority of my collection is by composers that are still living.

Of course, I believe they are as good as any previous eras, just different.


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## Tikoo Tuba (Oct 15, 2018)

Present day composers commonly just hang out .


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## Haydn70 (Jan 8, 2017)

Music of the superb Cuban-American composer Aurelio de la Vega


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## Guest (Mar 18, 2019)

Tikoo Tuba said:


> Present day composers commonly just hang out .


I'm hanging out with some at a bar tonight.


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## Kiki (Aug 15, 2018)

I'm probably more conservative than most in my choice of living composers whom I listen to, Kalevi Aho, Sofia Gubaidulina, Krzysztof Penderecki... none of them shocks, in fact quite accessible. There are plenty before them whose sound worlds are more "shocking".


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## Clouds Weep Snowflakes (Feb 24, 2019)

Dima said:


> Professionally. I have listened and I am positive. But in my view there are not enough fresh ideas and yet that music can be background music, but not still self-sufficient (I mean it is not Cinderella of Prokofiev
> 
> I think there is no anything today comparable with the past great composers - but I would like to know.
> The best contemporary music I have ever listened is well arranged compositions of the past time. For example:
> ...


You made a good point here, Classical music does take different directions, I personally noticed it gets less heavy with the time, Tchaikovsky for example sounds much lighter than Bach for me-but lighter and heavier variations exist in popular music as well, so there's nothing we shouldn't expect by that, musical styles evolve and form all the time; that doesn't mean 21st century Classics are not good, it merely says Classical music isn't alone anymore; but why they should be?
Oh, and Prokofiev's Cinderella is an awesome ballet!


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