# Is anyones favorite composer a living composer?



## Nix

I'm just curious. I haven't listened to much contemporary music (still working my way through the classics), but I've been around people who have, and while I hear about certain composers they like, such as Adams, Corliagno etc. they never seem to be put on the level of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart. Of course people that gifted aren't all over the place, but surely some of the greatest musical minds have yet to be born, and some could have been born more recently. So is there anyone out there who reveres a working composer as much as the accepted greats?


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## Krummhorn

One in particular ... our own Site Administrator, Frederik Magle. He has posted a number of offerings on our sister site, Magle Int'l Music Forums, all of which I think are outstanding.

My opinion of Frederik's music is not biased in any way - even though I work for him as an administrator on two of his forums. I would hold the same esteem for his works if I were not serving in this capacity. His latest performance in June 2009, in the presence of the Prince Consort of Denmark, was an absolutely thrilling experience.


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## Weston

For me, it depends on how you define composer. I think musicians in non-classical genres (for want of a better term) may rival my appreciation for Beethoven and Bach. There is a lot of creativity afoot. You just don't find it on the radio - nor in academia I'm afraid. I enjoy works by so called progressive rock or RIO (rock in opposition) groups, like Univers Zero, or Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, some of whose work would scarcely be called music by some standards. If Stravinsky had used electric instruments and massive drum kits, this is what might have emerged.

Frank Zappa was very much inspired by Varese and wrote some fantastic orchestral and chamber scores that are most definitely classical. I have always found him as interesting as the historical greats on those rare occasions when his humor did not involve bodily fluids. He of course is no longer living -- but darn it, he should be. 

While there are other contemporary pieces I admire very much, I don't think any of the rest come close to Beethoven or Bach in my personal pantheon of composers.


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## Tapkaara

My favorite living composer is Wojciech Kilar.


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## joen_cph

Among those still around, I mainly prefer contemporary Russians - Gubajdulina, Silvestrov, Pärt, Artyomov, or their neighbours born next door, like Penderecki and Gorecki, Saariaho and Rautavaara. Admittedly, the style of these people can be quite easily accessible, and Penderecki´s neo-romanticism (interesting at first, as seen in the Te Deum), has become an unnecessarily long-drawn repetition of almost the same music again and again, like Silvestrov can border on pop-music now and then.

Among the Danes, Nørgård is a deep thinker who has undergone an incredible number of different stylistic experiments and stages as well as received many cultural and literary inputs. There´s a lot to discover in him, but many of the works are just plain vague nonsense to listen to, or they are felt unnecessary. We also have Nørholm and Maegaard, Bent Sørensen and a few others (Ruders, Graugaard, Nordstrøm, Rosing-Schouw, Lorentzen, Gudmundsen-Holmgreen, Borup-Jørgensen etc.), but their works are very uneven, often introvert and rarely spectacular.
As regards other Scandinavians I own quite a lot, but haven´t got into much detail with them so far - Hammerth wrote a fine piano cto, there´s Sandstrøm, Nordheim, Lindberg, Olav Berg, and many others.

Of the French, Boulez and Murail (to a degree) have written some interesting works, among the British I´m not really into Maxwell-Davies (nice Bassoon Cto, I think, though), but perhaps some Adés and some Birtwistle, not Julian Anderson or James MacMillan, neither Knussen nor Turnage. As regards the Germans, Henze is generally preferrable to Rihm´s vagueness, for instance, otherwise there are many younger ones that I don´t know, but their music tends to descend into incoherent nothingness, like Lachenmann´s.

As regards the Americas, I have found only the Piano Concerto of Corigliano worth a listen to so far, definetely not the minimalists and their off-spring. Oh yes, and Carter of course, though he is a difficult one to get to know, and perhaps some Gloria Coates.

But I really like a lot of composers that were alive just a few years ago - Rochberg, Schnittke, Sumera, Takemitsu and many, many others. Have probably forgotten to mention a few good ones among the living as well here. Of course, as regards new music, it can be an advantage to listen to the works many times and not to be put off by one´s immediate and instinctive reaction, which tends to dominate one´s views. So underrated
works can become more appreciated with time. Would probably say that at least Gubajdulina, Nørgård, Henze, Boulez and Carter must be counted as some of the really great and important names in the history of music. I can´t say that I have a single favourite composer; would have to make a list of at least 30, and I suppose 
that perhaps 5 of them would be post-1945. To dismiss the whole of post-1945-music is offensive and lazy, I think, and can only be the result of limited knowledge as regards the subject.


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## starry

Of course there are good composers who are still living, but the point of this thread seems to be how they compare to the most acclaimed dead ones of the past. Classical music was far more central to the entertainment and culture of the past and it was in quite high demand creating a competitive atmosphere in which styles and composers could develop easier.


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## Guest

Nix seems to have left the room, but I'll still ask the question, what does "on the same level as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart" mean? For one, these three have somehow acquired an iconic status (one that would surprise and perhaps even repulse at least two of these three) that seems simply inarguable. No one can compare to them, because they have been elevated to "incomparable" status. For two, are the arts even close to being the same kind of thing as, say, liquid in a measuring cup? Bach: 6 oz. Mozart: 5 oz. Beethoven 4.7 oz. Or something of the sort?

As for the rest of it, yes, I esteem many living composers as highly (or more highly) than the icons of the past, including the ones joen_cph has seen fit to dismiss. Lachenmann "incoherent nothingness"?? I think maybe joen_cph might be well served to take his own advice here and do a little of that not being put off by one´s immediate and instinctive reaction thing he mentioned!

And speaking of "immediate and instinctive reactions," I'd like to just testify a little bit here, with the kind indulgence of the congregation, and say that my immediate and instinctive reactions to a great deal of contemporary music have been those of utter and complete delight.

Here's a very small sampling of delightful composers who are alive:

Helmut Lachenmann
Arne Nordheim
eRikm
Natasha Barrett
Lyn Goeringer
Martin Tétreault
Beatriz Ferreyra
Pauline Oliveros
Phill Niblock
Otomo Yoshihide
Yasunao Tone
Christian Marclay
Christine Kubisch
Francis Dhomont
Michèle Bokanowski
Jon Christopher Nelson
Mattin
Philip Jeck
Philip Samartzis
Elliott Sharp
Christian Wolff
Zeena Parkins
My Cat is an Alien (Roberto and Maurizio Opalio)
Crawling with Tarts (Michael Gendreau and Suzanne Dycus-Gendreau)
Robert Normandeau
Christine Groult
Annette Van de Gorne
Anna Clyne (currently composer-in-residence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra)
Paul Rudy
Sachiko M
Per Nørgård
Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen
Simon Steen-Andersen
Julio Estrada
Keith Rowe
Katsura Mouri
Iancu Dumitrescu
Ana-Maria Avram
Horváth Balázs
Barry Truax
Norbert Moret
Ludger Brümmer

[Pärt, just by the way, is not Russian. If you were from Louisiana, would you want to be called a Texan?]


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## starry

some guy said:


> Nix seems to have left the room, but I'll still ask the question, what does "on the same level as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart" mean? For one, these three have somehow acquired an iconic status (one that would surprise and perhaps even repulse at least two of these three) that seems simply inarguable.


Not sure about repulsed, although the commercialism may have repulsed them a bit. But I was thinking recently about how surprised they would have been that their music had lasted this long. They may have partly wrote for posterity with some works, but they probably didn't write for people over 200 years in the future.


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## Aramis

I'm my favourite composer and I'm still alive, though it can change, I drink a lot of cofee, smoke, sleep during the day and stay awake during the night, I already have heart problems, what you suggest?


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## joen_cph

Hi someguy: _touché_, wise remarks of yours and you are obviously more well-founded than me as regards many lesser known contemporary composers in general. As regards the "instinctive reactions" I am mainly referring to a personal fatigueness of mine sometimes: that what appears to be pictures of musical anarchy or provocative meaninglessness _has_ been presented and heard so many times before ...

Admittedly I´m not a musician myself and some of the musical subtleties and ongoings I´m probably therefore not able to recognize in the music. Lachenmann is a good example; I find him too vague, monotonously vague, but I must also say that I haven´t listened much to him; am just beginning to explore him. Wikipedia says: (Lachenmann) _has referred to his compositions as musique concrète instrumentale, implying a musical language that embraces the entire sound-world made accessible through unconventional playing techniques. The sound events are chosen and organized so that the manner in which they are generated is at least as important as the resultant acoustic qualities themselves. Consequently those qualities, such as timbre, volume, etc., do not produce sounds for their own sake, but describe or denote the concrete situation: listening, you hear the conditions under which a sound- or noise-action is carried out, you hear what materials and energies are involved and what resistance is encountered.His music is therefore primarily derived from the most basic of sounds._ A piece of his for piano and ensemble which I have might be a good way to become more acquainted with him, if there are, say, concertante or more discernible traits. But likewise I was not able to appreciate the Nono "Fragmente, Stille ..." which has been hailed as a masterpiece, or a live Cage Piano Concerto, so far. When Gudmundsen-Holmgreen composes a piece for automobile horn, it is funny and also educating just to know that it exists, but one does not necessarily have the psychological urge to hear it through. I try to be relatively open to new trends, sound-pictures and ideas and select among them. I was not trying to disqualify those composers, just stating my preferences. For instance I love the Dlugoszewski _Fire Fragile Flight _, - in itself apparently a prime example of a somewhat anarchistic sound world - the collages by Globokar or - though more conservative in their idiom - those of Henry Brant.

Once read an interesting hypothesis - that the enjoyment of music is very much based on the enjoyment of _recognizing _sounds and sound patterns - this makes any sort of memorized or predictable sound into music, potentially. There is some sort of dualism and narrative in almost any kind of music, most often it is a matter of getting to know it enough, I agree. About Pärts nationality I´m not ignorant of it and it is a good idea to correct it here, since the Baltic states are highly idiosyncratic about their USSR-decades. He was mainly educated by the Estonian Eller, but his early style was partly influenced by the Russians Shostakovich, Prokofieff and others, and most of his childhood and adult life he lived in what was called the USSR, hence my slip.


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## starry

Music is a dramatic interplay of ideas certainly. The ideas in themselves need to be interesting enough and the way they interact needs to be logical but without being too predictable.


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## Nix

"Nix seems to have left the room, but I'll still ask the question, what does "on the same level as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart" mean?"

I've reentered the room. All I meant by that was that Bach, Beethoven and Mozart are widely accepted as some of the greatest musical minds to have ever lived. So is there anyone living who you would consider one of the greatest musical minds to have ever lived? A pretty open-ended question to be sure, but I'm not asking this to spark debate about what "greatest musical mind" means- I'm simply borrowing a phrase to ask peoples own personal opinion: are there any living composers that you hold in the very highest of esteem, even when put up against dead ones? 


I had a teacher who called John Corliagno "gods gift to this earth." But for some reason I never asked why he thought that, or how he compared Corliagno to Shostakovich (who he claimed was his favorite composer). This is what I'm wondering.


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## joen_cph

> I'm my favourite composer and I'm still alive, though it can change, I drink a lot of cofee, smoke, sleep during the day and stay awake during the night, I already have heart problems, what you suggest?


... - What about composing the world´s best "The Non-Smoker´s Symphony" ? ...


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## Guest

joen_cph said:


> I love the Dlugoszewski _Fire Fragile Flight _, - in itself apparently a prime example of a somewhat anarchistic sound world - the collages by Globokar or - though more conservative in their idiom - those of Henry Brant.


All three great favorites of mine, too! Have you heard Dlugoszewski's _Space is a Diamond_? I was a trumpet player back in the day, who hated listening to trumpet music! _Space is a Diamond_ was one of only two exceptions that I can think of offhand. (Aurelio de la Vega's _Para-Tangents_ was the other.)



joen_cph said:


> Once read an interesting hypothesis - that the enjoyment of music is very much based on the enjoyment of _recognizing _sounds and sound patterns....


I'm sure this is true for a lot of people. And while I enjoy a lot of old music, my enjoyment of new music at least is based on unpredictability and on unfamiliar sounds. I start recognizing sounds and sound patterns and I lose interest. With the exception of pattern/repetition type minimalism. There, if the pattern goes on and on for several minutes/hours, my interest comes back again.

But that's just me.


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## World Violist

There's one composer in particular who is still very much alive and active, and he's among my current top 5 composers: Kalevi Aho... yes, another Finn.


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## HarpsichordConcerto

some guy said:


> Nix seems to have left the room, but I'll still ask the question, what does "on the same level as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart" mean? For one, these three have somehow acquired an iconic status (one that would surprise and perhaps even repulse at least two of these three) that seems simply inarguable. No one can compare to them, because they have been elevated to "incomparable" status. For two, are the arts even close to being the same kind of thing as, say, liquid in a measuring cup? Bach: 6 oz. Mozart: 5 oz. Beethoven 4.7 oz. Or something of the sort?
> 
> As for the rest of it, yes, I esteem many living composers as highly (or more highly) than the icons of the past, including the ones joen_cph has seen fit to dismiss. Lachenmann "incoherent nothingness"?? I think maybe joen_cph might be well served to take his own advice here and do a little of that not being put off by one´s immediate and instinctive reaction thing he mentioned!
> 
> And speaking of "immediate and instinctive reactions," I'd like to just testify a little bit here, with the kind indulgence of the congregation, and say that my immediate and instinctive reactions to a great deal of contemporary music have been those of utter and complete delight.
> 
> Here's a very small sampling of delightful composers who are alive:
> 
> Helmut Lachenmann
> Arne Nordheim
> eRikm
> Natasha Barrett
> Lyn Goeringer
> Martin Tétreault
> Beatriz Ferreyra
> Pauline Oliveros
> Phill Niblock
> Otomo Yoshihide
> Yasunao Tone
> Christian Marclay
> Christine Kubisch
> Francis Dhomont
> Michèle Bokanowski
> Jon Christopher Nelson
> Mattin
> Philip Jeck
> Philip Samartzis
> Elliott Sharp
> Christian Wolff
> Zeena Parkins
> My Cat is an Alien (Roberto and Maurizio Opalio)
> Crawling with Tarts (Michael Gendreau and Suzanne Dycus-Gendreau)
> Robert Normandeau
> Christine Groult
> Annette Van de Gorne
> Anna Clyne (currently composer-in-residence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra)
> Paul Rudy
> Sachiko M
> Per Nørgård
> Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen
> Simon Steen-Andersen
> Julio Estrada
> Keith Rowe
> Katsura Mouri
> Iancu Dumitrescu
> Ana-Maria Avram
> Horváth Balázs
> Barry Truax
> Norbert Moret
> Ludger Brümmer
> 
> [Pärt, just by the way, is not Russian. If you were from Louisiana, would you want to be called a Texan?]


Nice list. Though I havent' heard of all/most of them.


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## Guest

Well, at least twenty-three of them are very nice people, I know that.

I suspect the remainder are pretty nice, too, though I don't know first hand.

But the music of all of them is topnotch, I'd say.


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## Rondo

As far as living composers, a list of favorites would undoubtedly include Michael Daugherty. And, of course, I can't omit John T. Williams.


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## Sid James

I've only begun to get into the music of the last 50 or so years relatively recently, so my knowledge is not great. Of the living composers, I like Carter, Penderecki (his earlier "texture music" works especially, less so his more recent conservative stuff), Gubaidulina, Part, Gorecki, Boulez, Ramirez, Ades & our very own Australians Brett Dean & Peter Sculthorpe. I am interested in exploring other living composers, and no doubt with time my knowledge will expand to include many others.

My "favourite" composer so far is Edgard Varese, who died in 1965, so I guess that's more recent than some other people's favourite composers. But the more I get into classical, I have trouble pinning down "favourites," as (apart from Baroque) I love pretty much any classical, from early music to the present. I even don't mind Baroque, I'm just not as fascinated by it as the other periods.

As for the 'holy trinity' of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven - I do think that some contemporary composers can compose music just as good as theirs. However, it definitely works on different levels to their music, it comes from a different perspective (our own time), so it's (sometimes) not going to be using the same language or gestures, etc. But I don't think it's necessary to compare, let's just enjoy ALL the music...


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## Tapkaara

Glass is another living composer I am enthusiastic about. OK, bring on the insults, I can take it!


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## rojo

I've been thoroughly enjoying a foray into the works of Henri Dutilleux these days, and I think I can safely say that he is now among my favourites. I'm not sure he's still composing though. I think I can also mention Frederic Rzewski if only for his _Winnsboro Cotton Mill Blues_, which I love.

I'm more of a 'favourite works' person than a 'favourite composers' person though, generally.


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## starry

Andre said:


> As for the 'holy trinity' of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven - I do think that some contemporary composers can compose music just as good as theirs.


Of course, but I suppose it's about amount of good music.



Andre said:


> But I don't think it's necessary to compare, let's just enjoy ALL the music...


Comparison isn't essential, but it's useful for discussion.


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## Argus

rojo said:


> I'm more of a 'favourite works' person than a 'favourite composers' person though, generally.


Yeah, me too. I don't really have any set list of favourite composers or even composers that I listen to substantially more than others. Which is strange as I do have a quite fixed list of favourite guitarists (Fripp, McLaughlin, Iommi, Sharrock, Django, Hendrix, Akkerman, Santana) and bassists (Hook, Holland, Squire, Chancellor, Mingus, Haden, JPJ) who also happen to do a bit of composing.

As for favourite living composers, I'll opt for Riley, Branca, Glass, Eno, Morricone and Zorn.



> Of course, but I suppose it's about amount of good music.


The amount and the consistency.


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## Lukecash12

If John Coltrane were still alive.


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## Guest

Sadly, he's not.

And neither is Luc Ferrari.

But life goes on. And Peter Brötzmann is still alive. (I just saw him live in Fresne-en-Woevre this past November. And so can safely say "He's still got it!")

And so is eRikm, for that matter.

Plenty of living composers to enjoy. Heiner Goebbels, for one. (For one that I left off my woefully incomplete list.)


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## Weston

Argus said:


> Which is strange as I do have a quite fixed list of favourite guitarists (Fripp, McLaughlin, Iommi, Sharrock, Django, Hendrix, Akkerman, Santana) and bassists (Hook, Holland, Squire, Chancellor, Mingus, Haden, JPJ) who also happen to do a bit of composing.
> 
> As for favourite living composers, I'll opt for Riley, Branca, Glass, Eno, Morricone and Zorn.


These are stellar lists. A good percentage of your favorite guitarists are handicapped in some way yet still managed to create new and idiosyncratic ways of playing. I'd say that list coincides with mine - but to the bassists I would add Tony Levin and perhaps Geddy Lee. (I don't know Hook or Chancellor that I am aware of.)

Riley is a great living composer. Somehow I had forgotten him. I also like Tobias Picker. But then the original question was about how they rank with the classical holy trinity.


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## StlukesguildOhio

Plenty of living composers to enjoy. Heiner Goebbels, for one. (For one that I left off my woefully incomplete list.)

Indeed. And there are actually a good many that others may have actually heard of:

Sofia Gubaidulina
Tan Dun
Osvaldo Golijov
Veljo Tormis
Peter Lieberson
George Crumb
John Tavener
Morten Lauridsen
John Adams
Terry Riley
John Corigliano
Peteris Vasks
Harrison Birtwistle
Joseph Schwantner
William Bolcomb
David Diamond
Ned Rorem
John Harbison
Steve Reich
Stephen Hartke
Daniel Lentz
Phillip Glass
Lorenzo Palomo
Roberto Sierra
David Lang
Tarik O'Regan
James MacMillan
Einojuhani Rautavaara
Erkki-Sven Tüür
Krzysztof Penderecki 
Tristan Murail
Elliott Carter
Poul Rudders
Horatiu Radulescu
Valentin Silvestrov
Per Nørgård
Mark Andre
Julian Anderson
Jonathan Harvey
Kaija Saariaho
Kalevi Aho
etc...


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## Air

StlukesguildOhio said:


> Plenty of living composers to enjoy. Heiner Goebbels, for one. (For one that I left off my woefully incomplete list.)
> 
> Indeed. And there are actually a good many that others may have actually heard of:
> 
> Sofia Gubaidulina
> Tan Dun
> Osvaldo Golijov
> Veljo Tormis
> Peter Lieberson
> George Crumb
> John Tavener
> Morten Lauridsen
> John Adams
> Terry Riley
> John Corigliano
> Peteris Vasks
> Harrison Birtwistle
> Joseph Schwantner
> William Bolcomb
> David Diamond
> Ned Rorem
> John Harbison
> Steve Reich
> Stephen Hartke
> Daniel Lentz
> Phillip Glass
> Lorenzo Palomo
> Roberto Sierra
> David Lang
> Tarik O'Regan
> James MacMillan
> Einojuhani Rautavaara
> Erkki-Sven Tüür
> Krzysztof Penderecki
> Tristan Murail
> Elliott Carter
> Poul Rudders
> Horatiu Radulescu
> Valentin Silvestrov
> Product Image
> Per Nørgård
> John Foulds
> Mark Andre
> Julian Anderson
> Jonathan Harvey
> Kaija Saariaho
> Kalevi Aho
> etc...


Yeah, and some of these are dead (Diamond, for one)...


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## Guest

Yes, not only "have actually heard of," but "actually know" which ones are dead, as well as which ones you've misspelled!!

And who, pray tell, is this "Product Image" person? (Or did I just pass the test?)


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## StlukesguildOhio

Oops... one "L" in Philip... and oh yeah... I missed a few accent marks on Horaţiu Rădulescu and wasn't aware that he'd died in 2008. My great mistakes. That and the "product image" which is some glitch from copying the names from the net must surely nullify the merits of my post and all the composers I suggested. Of course someone else might wonder about how concerned you must be about your status as the resident expert on contemporary music when you need to turn to something as "relevant" as a spelling mistake or whether Arvo Pärt in Russian or Estonian considering that either way he was born in the Soviet Union to prove that no one else here knows anything about music. I'm thrilled that you have actually heard of more living composers than I... including a great many that no one else here has ever heard of either. Believe it or not, I will probably give a listen to those you mention (if they have anything in print) because I am always seeking out new voices... no matter what the source.


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## Argus

Weston said:


> These are stellar lists. A good percentage of your favorite guitarists are handicapped in some way yet still managed to create new and idiosyncratic ways of playing. I'd say that list coincides with mine - but to the bassists I would add Tony Levin and perhaps Geddy Lee. (I don't know Hook or Chancellor that I am aware of.)
> 
> Riley is a great living composer. Somehow I had forgotten him. I also like Tobias Picker. But then the original question was about how they rank with the classical holy trinity.


I knew I'd forget somebody. Geddy Lee wrote some great basslines in Rush, but then the guitar and drum parts are equally excellent. I like Tony Levin but I prefer the Wetton style of bass playing in King Crimson even if it is simpler. Peter Hook was the bass player in Joy Division/New Order and Justin Chancellor is in Tool, just to let you know.


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## Methodistgirl

I know of some who were new during the 60s and up to the present. Anyone
remember Lennon and McCartney of the Beatles? I know of another that I
grew up with listening to his music. That's Neil Diamond. After all the
different styles during his carieer as a composer from Cherry Cherry to
the latest Pretty Amazing Grace. I can classify him as a classic in his own
time and a living legend.
judy tooley


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## Eusebius12

Yes. Bach.


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## Argus

Eusebius12 said:


> Yes. Bach.


Jan Bach?










Sebastian Bach?










Or have you been up to some necromancy in Leipzig?


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## gurthbruins

Well, it's all a matter of taste, but for my money I'm the greatest composer who ever lived.
How do I work that out?

Well, 10 years ago I used to whistle Mozart, Bach or Beethoven while walking around the streets or the countryside.
These days I find I'm usually whistling my own themes. And I see them as in the classical genre.


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## toucan

Two among my favorite composers are still alive: Pierre Boulez and Henri Dutilleux. I ardently hope they will be able to finish what they are currently working on, the remaining Notations and Antheme III in Boulez's case, a second string quartet in Dutilleux's.

I like a handful of pieces by Kaija Saariaho, especially Orion; I also like Aerial, by the otherwise unsatisfying HK Gruber. They are still alive, are they?

I doubt Penderecki will ever be more than a second fiddle, like Ludwig Spohr or Francis Poulenc, even when he is good, which he has not been since that atrocious second symphony of his. But he too is still alive (though he has long ceased kicking) and I have a sweet tooth for his 1960's production, his first two string quartets, his Capriccio for oboe, his harpsichord concerto, his first symphony, his first cello concerto.


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## classidaho

Methodistgirl said:


> I know of some who were new during the 60s and up to the present. Anyone
> remember Lennon and McCartney of the Beatles? I know of another that I
> grew up with listening to his music. That's Neil Diamond. After all the
> different styles during his carieer as a composer from Cherry Cherry to
> the latest Pretty Amazing Grace. I can classify him as a classic in his own
> time and a living legend.
> judy tooley


 I adore JL Seagul and most of Diamonds 'stuff'.

About half of all classic composers have written music I can live without......

With this in mind, I have to mention Rebbew Dyoll Werdna .....I love over half of his music. 









Yeah, Iknow, I have no class!


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## norman bates

wayne shorter. Not strictly a classical composer but a great composer without a doubt.


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## snailmailtrail

My favourite living composer is Armando Ghidoni, who is French/Italian. His music is sort of a fusion of jazz and classical. Here's a video of my chamber group performing one of his pieces:


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## Glaliraha

Philip Glass is my favourite ever composer.


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## bassClef

Not that he's my favourite composer of all time, but I do admire John Adams, who I believe is very much alive (well I keep getting his notifications on facebook anyway!)


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## Delicious Manager

joen_cph said:


> Among those still around, I mainly prefer contemporary Russians - Gubajdulina, Silvestrov, Pärt, Artyomov,


Oh dear, oh dear

Gudaidulina is Tartar
Silvestrov in Ukrainian
Pärt is Estonian

Only Artyomov is Russian!


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## elgar's ghost

I admire Dutilleux and Boulez but my favourites from these times are probably Ades, Part and Penderecki.


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## joen_cph

> Oh dear, oh dear
> 
> Gudaidulina is Tartar
> Silvestrov in Ukrainian
> Pärt is Estonian
> 
> Only Artyomov is Russian!


Yes, you have displayed my incredible ignorance. However I suppose that you agree that the background of these composers can be complicated - the nation of birth versus the place of education, the USSR versus the current political divisions , the country of residence nowadays etc. End of discussion for my part.


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## jhar26

My favourite living composers are Saariaho and Golijov, but I've still got a lot of exploring to do in this area.


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## Miz

My one favorite living composer is John Williams.


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## myaskovsky2002

Krummhorn said:


> One in particular ... our own Site Administrator, Frederik Magle. He has posted a number of offerings on our sister site, Magle Int'l Music Forums, all of which I think are outstanding.
> 
> My opinion of Frederik's music is not biased in any way - even though I work for him as an administrator on two of his forums. I would hold the same esteem for his works if I were not serving in this capacity. His latest performance in June 2009, in the presence of the Prince Consort of Denmark, was an absolutely thrilling experience.


Indeed, his music is beautiful.

Martin


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## myaskovsky2002

Valentin Silvestrov is one of my favourite living composers...When I was young Shostakovich was alive, and, as I have mentionned before, we had a cup of tea together in 1970 for about 40 minutes...When Prokofiev died I was 1 year...I "think"...just I "think" actual composers are less "great"...I'm certainly wrong...But...But...

Of course we have the great Bishop Alfeyev I have already mentionned...






quite young

Martin

Martin, hesitating


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## pluhagr

Philip Glass, He is a god!


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

My second favourite composer (Michael Nyman) is still alive thankfully.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Miz said:


> My one favorite living composer is John Williams.


John Williams _the composer???_


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## Hector

John Williams, a fantastic composer and also my favorite, more famous for his film music, has written concertos for almost all instruments of the orchestra, except the trombone. As a trombone player I hope he writes one. Also missing is a piano concerto.

Lately I've been obsessed with John Adams.


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## LordBlackudder

I have listened to the classics and Nobuo Uematsu (living) remains to be my favourite composer.


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## Vaneyes

Thinking briefly, no.


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## Rapide

Boulez is one of my favourites.


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## Guest

Most of my favorite composers are alive.

A few have just recently died.

Some are in their eighties, some are in their seventies, some are in their sixties, some are in their fifties, some are in their forties, some are in their thirties, some are in their twenties.

I wouldn't know where to begin. Or, worse, I wouldn't be able to stop until I'd mentioned them all.

Let's just pretend I continued to refrain from posting to this thread, shall we?


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## bassClef

Carl Vine is a friend of mine on facebook


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

bassClef said:


> Carl Vine is a friend of mine on facebook


_really?_ Wow! Ask him how his second piano concerto is.


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## Crudblud

My favourite composer _should_ still be alive, but he isn't.


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## bassClef

ComposerOfAvantGarde said:


> _really?_ Wow! Ask him how his second piano concerto is.


Can do......


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## bassClef

ComposerOfAvantGarde said:


> _really?_ Wow! Ask him how his second piano concerto is.


Well I asked him the question on his facebook wall but he replied to me personally, thus:

_"Hi Jeremy. I've started on the 2nd concerto, but taking 'time off' to complete a small cantata, which should be finished soon. The concerto has to be delivered by the end of March so no rest until then!"_

He needs to get his skates on!


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## PetrB

Aramis said:


> I'm my favourite composer and I'm still alive, though it can change, I drink a lot of cofee, smoke, sleep during the day and stay awake during the night, I already have heart problems, what you suggest?


Keep it up, die soon, and then your work will start really taking off


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## PetrB

Tapkaara said:


> Glass is another living composer I am enthusiastic about. OK, bring on the insults, I can take it!


The Glass is empty


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## gurthbruins

some guy said:


> Nix seems to have left the room, but I'll still ask the question, what does "on the same level as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart" mean? For one, these three have somehow acquired an iconic status (one that would surprise and perhaps even repulse at least two of these three) that seems simply inarguable. No one can compare to them, because they have been elevated to "incomparable" status. For two, are the arts even close to being the same kind of thing as, say, liquid in a measuring cup? Bach: 6 oz. Mozart: 5 oz. Beethoven 4.7 oz. Or something of the sort?
> 
> As for the rest of it, yes, I esteem many living composers as highly (or more highly) than the icons of the past, including the ones joen_cph has seen fit to dismiss.


I like the liquid in cup idea. Something like the Explainer Ratings of Sudoku puzzles.

I'd put Bach, Mozart, Beethoven as the only ultras, above 10.0. A deservedly recognised Trinity.
Many composers 1650 - Sibelius in the range 5.0 to 9.5.
Nobody since Sibelius above 5.0.


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## aleazk

Ligeti could be alive, he would have 89 yo , he died early


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## clavichorder

Dutilleux is still alive!


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## Argus

some guy said:


> Plenty of living composers to enjoy. Heiner Goebbels, for one. (For one that I left off my woefully incomplete list.)


I heard his Surrogate Cities a few weeks ago. Pretty good and parts of it were really out of the blue, especially the vocal parts. I'd recommend it for people who find modern music unapproachable.

As for the original question, most of my favourite musicians are still alive.


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## TresPicos

clavichorder said:


> Dutilleux is still alive!


Indeed! 96 years old and still composing.

Impressive, unless you compare with Elliott Carter, who's 103 and still composing, and at an output rate 10 times that of Dutilleux.


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## Cnote11

Today is Boulez's birthday.


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## Iforgotmypassword

I don't have a favorite, but one that I would almost consider naming a favorite would be Arvo Pärt. His music is essentially perfect in my eyes... or ears in this case.


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## Cnote11

For myself, I would say Carter, Part, Glass, Reich, Boulez, Penderecki, Crumb. Guys like that.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

aleazk said:


> Ligeti could be alive, he would have 89 yo , he died early


Poor *Ligeti.*


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## Prodromides

My user name here @ TC is from a living composer named Jean Prodromides (b. 1927).
As far as I know, he's alive and well.

There's quite a number of living composers whose music I collect on disc: many Finnish composers on Ondine, BIS, & the former Finlandia, as well as folks such as Skrowaczewski, G. Schuller, Rihm, van Keulen, Dutilleux, Cerha, Canat de Chizy, Birtwistle, R.R. Bennett, etc.

Actually, most of my favorite composers who are deceased are lesser-knowns whose posthumous reputations will never be as great as the three Germanic "B"s, for example.

This topic could really be split up into different directions: favorite living composers, for one - another is the question whether or not any 20th century (or 21st century) composer's reputation/legacy will ever attain the highest status afforded to Bach, Beethoven, etc. Does a composer need to be dead for over 150 years (for instance) before entering the pantheon of classical greats?


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## Jeremy Marchant

Interesting to read in the other posts how many composers I like _are _still alive. 
I would add Helmut Lachenmann - whom I like greatly - and Hans Werner Henze, who is genuinely one of my favourite composers.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

When do you think Carter's gonna cark it?

*To cark it*
_verb. [no obj.] Australian informal_
Die. eg _When's Elliott Carter (born 1908) gonna cark it? He's been alive for an awful long time!_


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## JD Reyes

I would have to say for living composers, I would name Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Pēteris Vasks, John Tavener. A lot of the stuff Philip Glass has written since 2000 is a lot more approachable to the general public, especially since he has taken up film score composing.


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## violadude

Wow, a lot of the composers that people named on previous pages have died since then...


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## Abraham Lincoln

Does ZUN count as a composer?


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## Ariasexta

I can be a composer myself but due to my conscience, I do not publish my music. Therefore I am not a composer to the public, I do not know about the other composers who are still alive, to me most of people today are brazen enough to publish their amateur porn and useless junks when they are bored. If people have more sense of shame, any thing around them can be music, their speeches, their sharing of ideas etc. We do not always need musical notes to express innovation and beauty. If you are a nice person, you are a good piece of music.


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## KenOC

Not my favorite composer by any means, but in terms of the number of his works that I like, John Adams floats my boat from among those currently living. Coolidge that is, not Luther.

BTW John Tavener, mentioned above, died two years ago tomorrow. Peter Sculthorpe has left us as well.


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## Judith

I like Nigel Hess. A British Composer who wrote the music for Ladies in Lavender.


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## Stavrogin

Yes, sure, my favourite composer is still alive.
He just published a wonderful piano sonata, his Op.90.
Now excuse me while I go and read some news about this Congress in Vienna, seems important.


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## Stavrogin

^ Please don't bother my 200 yr older self here.


Let's see... not my favourite composers, but Giya Kancheli, Arvo Part and Penderecki are all still alive and they surely are top notch in my book.


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## TradeMark

He might not be one of my absolute favorites but I really enjoy the music of Georg Friedrich Haas


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## Azol

Pärt
Silvestrov
Rautavaara
Mertens
Dempster
Normandeau
López
Ešenvalds


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## Headphone Hermit

JD Reyes said:


> I would have to say for living composers, I would name Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Pēteris Vasks, *John Tavener*. A lot of the stuff Philip Glass has written since 2000 is a lot more approachable to the general public, especially since he has taken up film score composing.


John Tavener died on this day two years ago


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## Guest

I tend to focus on compositions, rather than composers. The composers of my favourite works are indeed living: Coates, Haas, Kurtag and Murail.


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## Gaspard de la Nuit

I can't really say composers who spent half their time going V-I really cut deeply into what I feel capable of experiencing musically, and for that reason I hesitate to say I regard the typical Austro-Germans as unattainably great. They are great but the potency of their work is within the grasp or able to be exceeded by others.

Arturo Márquez Is probably my favorite living composer.....esa pekka-salonen has his moments and John williams is amazing at what he does.


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## Open Lane

Most of my fav composers are dead, however, there is one living composer that comes to mind as a personal favorite: Charles Wuorinen


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## Krummhorn

One of my most favourite living composers is Frederik Magle.

One could say my opinion is rather biases (he's my boss here) but it was his music that first drew me to MIMF, our sister site back in 2007, and of course, that he is Danish.


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## gardibolt

No. The last living classical composer I liked was Shostakovich and he's been dead over 40 years.


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## Morimur

György Kurtág
************


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## gardibolt

gardibolt said:


> No. The last living classical composer I liked was Shostakovich and he's been dead over 40 years.


No wait I take that back. I like Ligeti too and he's been dead less than 10 years.


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## Bob516

JD Reyes said:


> Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Pēteris Vasks, John Tavener. A lot of the stuff Philip Glass has written since 2000 is a lot more approachable to the general public, especially since he has taken up film score composing.


Yes, yes, and yes.


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## eljr

Tapkaara said:


> Glass is another living composer I am enthusiastic about. OK, bring on the insults, I can take it!


It is amazing how many old farts don't like Mr. Glass.

Easy to understand why though and it's not because MR Glass is lesser in any way.


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## LezLee

Philip Glass
Marfan Mozetich
Georgs Pelecis
Ross Edwards
Steve Reich
Michael Torke
Terry Riley


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## Prodromides

Nix said:


> So is there anyone out there who reveres a working composer as much as the accepted greats?


I have plenty:

Gerard Schurmann (b. 1924)
Mikis Theodorakis (b. 1925)
Friedrich Cerha (b. 1926)
Luis de Pablo (b. 1930)
Paul Glass (b. 1934)
Gilbert Amy (b. 1936)
Paavo Heininen (b. 1938)
Charles Wuorinen (b. 1938)
Frederik van Rossum (b. 1939)
Michel Tabachnik (b. 1942)
Hugues Dufourt (b. 1943)
Edith Canat de Chizy (b. 1950)
Eero Hameenniemi (b. 1951)
Alessandro Solbiati (b. 1956)


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## Joe B

Just thinking about choral music, here are some of my favorite living composers:

Will Todd
Paul Mealor
John Rutter
Kim Arnesen
Ola Gjeilo
Karl Jenkins
Arvo Part
Frank Ticheli

These are just the few that I can think of off the top of my head. Choral music is alive and well. The composers of choral composition are writing fabulous music and the current top tier choral groups and choirs are doing outstanding work. Just my opinion, but I believe choral music has never been better.


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## eljr

Joe B said:


> Just thinking about choral music, here are some of my favorite living composers:
> 
> Will Todd
> Paul Mealor
> John Rutter
> Kim Arnesen
> Ola Gjeilo
> Karl Jenkins
> Arvo Part
> Frank Ticheli


and you got me enjoying all of these!


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## Musicaterina

My favourite composer alive is Friedrich Radermacher. He is, no doubt, a modern composer but he composes still melodically. He is now 96 years old, and I'm lucky to have met him personnally.


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