# Winter storm music



## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

New England preparing for big blizzard this weekend...lots of snow, high winds....hopefully, we won't suffer too much power outages...
Time to get my winter storm music together:

Vaughan Williams Sym #7 "Antarctica"
Sibelius 4, maybe 1 and 7, too...Tapiola, Pohjola's Daughter
Tchaikovsky #1 "Winter Dreams"
Fucik - "Wintersturm"

probably some Shostakovich, too..
What are some other "wintry" works??


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

I think Chopin's Nocturnes are appropriate as are Debussy's piano works.


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## Kreisler jr (Apr 21, 2021)

There is a piece called Snowstorm by Sviridov, a suite or so.
Not a storm but the dance/waltz of the snowflakes at the end of the first Nutcracker act is very nice.

And of course from Schubert's "Winterreise": 
Der stürmische Morgen (stormy morning), Mut (Courage)


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Bax: Winter Legends
Tchaikovsky: The Snow Maiden
Prokofieff: Battle on the Ice


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## Vasks (Dec 9, 2013)

Leopold Mozart - Musical Sleigh Ride
Waldteufel - Skater's Waltz
Prokofiev - Troika from "Lieutenant Kije"
Rachmaninoff - Sliver Sleigh Bells from "The Bells"


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Prokofiev: The Battle on the Ice (from Alexander Nevsky)
Schubert: Winterreise (Gefror'ne Tränen) in addition to the others
Britten: Winterwords


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Thoughts of snow and cold weather often get me turning to a Louisville First Edition Records disc, LOU-57-1, featuring Paul Nordoff's _Winter Symphony_.









I have two copies on black vinyl. An oldie, but a goodie.

Thing is -- I tend to play this one in mid-summer when the weather is hot and humid. Something to cool off to. Not sure why anyone wants reminded of cold, snow, and blizzardy winds in the middle of winter with its cold, snow, and blizzardly winds. Rather, take a step outside and enjoy the _sounds_ of the winter storm.

Me, I'll hunt up some summer music, filled with heat and warmth and gentle breezes. Certainly not José Serebrier's Violin Concerto, 'Winter' (1991), or the one by that Vivaldi feller. Of course, that Vivaldi feller did give us a warm-up concerto, too. Good choice for a winter blizzard soundtrack, in my opinion. And certainly not Georgy Sviridov's _The Snowstorm_ (Musical Sketches To The Story By Alexander Pushkin) or John Rutter's "Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind" from _Five Meditations For Orchestra_. I love Tchaikovsky's First Symphony, too, but again it seems more fitting to me for hot summer dreams.

When the winter weather gets too cold and blustery, you may also want to avoid Joachim Raff's Symphony No 11 Op. 214 In A Minor (_Der Winter_). I do. I prefer his 9th for such occasions: Symphony No 9 Op. 208 In E Minor (_Im Sommer_).

There are plenty of "seasons" works out there from which you can choose to go summer or winter, depending upon the season. I said I prefer warming music during cold spells and cool-off music during hot spells. So the "season" works allow for choices depending on your nature.

Dan Locklair has a recording on NAXOS titled _Symphony of Seasons_ (Symphony No. 1) dating from 2002 and featuring "Winter" as the second movement and "Summer" as the fourth. Likewise, Rick Sowash, a favorite composer of mine, offers the Piano Trio No. 1: _Four Seasons In Bellville_, 1977, with "Winter", an Adagietto as the first movement, and "Summer", Molto Allegro, as the third movement. Thea Musgrave's _The Seasons_, a worthwhile composition in many ways, gives us "Winter" as a second movement and "Summer" as a fourth. And Jonathan Leshnoff's String Quartet No. 1, available on NAXOS, is also a _seasonal_ work, by movements. There are many many such "season" works to pick movements from.

If you are more of a "wishful thinker," you might try "For, Lo, The Winter Is Past...", the _Andante Con Moto_ from Ralph Vaughan Williams's _Flos Campi_.

But I'm content to snuggle up to my fireplace, and my well-heated-up tube amplifier during these cold, stormy, white winter days and enjoy music of sunshine and warmth. So ... what do I have in my collection that fits the bill? After all, it's predicted to be a mite cold where I live, too. Ah ... back to Discogs catalog to see what's lurking in my collection that fits the bill. Storm's a comin'.


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

Hovhaness' Storm on Mount Wildcat is short and nice and fits the mood perfectly


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## 59540 (May 16, 2021)

An old chestnut, maybe, but:


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

The first two months (January and February) of Bernard Herrmann's song cycle "The Fantasticks" are pretty bleak. I'm not relishing shoveling the 2 feet projected in my area. (South Eastern Massachusetts).


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

Heck148 said:


> New England preparing for big blizzard this weekend...lots of snow, high winds....hopefully, we won't suffer too much power outages...
> Time to get my winter storm music together:
> 
> Vaughan Williams Sym #7 "Antarctica"
> ...


Die Walküre, 'Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond" obviously.


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## pjang23 (Oct 8, 2009)

Dohnanyi's Etude op. 28 no. 1





Yoshimatsu's White Landscapes (wintery though not stormy)


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)




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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

Azol said:


> Hovhaness' Storm on Mount Wildcat is short and nice and fits the mood perfectly


Or as volatile as this winter has been, his Symphony No. 50, "Mount St. Helens"


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## FrankinUsa (Aug 3, 2021)

I live in Connecticut. Before I had read this post I had just begun listening to all of the symphonies by Sibelius and the Violin Concerto. The Finnish winter is always in the music of Sibelius.


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## christomacin (Oct 21, 2017)

Sibelius, Kuolema, JS 113 - 2. Scene II Paavali's Song 'Jack Frost, son of the icy north wind' (Moderato)


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Voces8: Winter
Winter Songs/ Ola Gjeilo (piano)
Ye: Winter

Some new thong to explore.


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## Coach G (Apr 22, 2020)

Schubert: _Winter's Journey_

Find a recording featuring the wonderful Dietrich Fischer-Diskau, but which one?


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## Kreisler jr (Apr 21, 2021)

Demus/DG mid-1960s or the earlier? one on EMI (Moore?) Too lazy to look it up, there must be an EMI from the 60s or so as well, apparently he recorded this about twice per decade. One definitely wants to catch him in fresher voice than all the ones you show except Moore/DG.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

Leroy Anderson: Sleigh Ride
Soundtrack to Dr, Zhivago
Ruggkes: Sun Treader


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Coach G said:


> Schubert: _Winter's Journey_
> 
> Find a recording featuring the wonderful Dietrich Fischer-Diskau, but which one?
> 
> ...





Kreisler jr said:


> Demus/DG mid-1960s or the earlier? one on EMI (Moore?) Too lazy to look it up, there must be an EMI from the 60s or so as well, apparently he recorded this about twice per decade. One definitely wants to catch him in fresher voice than all the ones you show except Moore/DG.


Maybe this?









Recorded 1962.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

FrankinUsa said:


> I live in Connecticut. Before I had read this post I had just begun listening to all of the symphonies by Sibelius and the Violin Concerto. The Finnish winter is always in the music of Sibelius.


It's rarely NOT winter in Finland.....or Sweden, or Norway.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

Actually, come to think of it, Sun Treader is good blizzard music - raw, elemental -- and Ruggles was a Vermonter (although we're only on the fringe of the storm).


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## haziz (Sep 15, 2017)

Well, here in Western Massachusetts, with snow falling outside I played (mostly video today), Brahms (Sym. No. 2), Zimmermann, Lutosławski (Sym. No. 1), Sibelius' 1st and 5th symphony, Grieg's Piano Concerto and Peer Gynt Suites, Sibelius Sym. Nos. 1 & 5, Shostakovich Sym. Nos. 6 & 10, a hint of Dvorak, and am about to throw in some Glazunov (Raymonda Suite).

I was not trying to deliberately create a winter snow storm playlist, but in retrospect a lot of composers did come from the icy north!


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## Triplets (Sep 4, 2014)

Sibelius. Tapioca and En Saga, for starters…


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Coach G said:


> Schubert: _Winter's Journey_


That's "wintry", but not "stormy".
Conversely, here's something "stormy", but not "wintry":


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

The storm seems to be winding down here. Time to listen to a "Spring Symphony" by my second favorite composer from the state of Maine.


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## FrankinUsa (Aug 3, 2021)

progmatist said:


> It's rarely NOT winter in Finland.....or Sweden, or Norway.


Can you please explain. I am aware of the long days and long nights…depending upon the season.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Alfacharger said:


> The storm seems to be winding down here.


then it's time for


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Jonas Kaufmann: Wagner - Die Walküre, 'Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond'


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

FrankinUsa said:


> Can you please explain. I am aware of the long days and long nights…depending upon the season.


Being sub-arctic in the south, and arctic in the north, it's cold in those 3 countries most of the year.


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## norman bates (Aug 18, 2010)




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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

See Amid the Winter's Snow. Words by Edward Caswall set to music by Sir John Goss.
Sung by The Sixteen.

To keep the spirits up.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Rogerx said:


> *W*agner - Die *W*alküre, '*W*interstürme *w*ichen dem *W*onnemond'


An Awesome Alliteration, btw


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

When all fails.......Winter Classical Music: Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Mussorgsky, Smetana


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)




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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Heck148 said:


> New England preparing for big blizzard this weekend...lots of snow, high winds....hopefully, we won't suffer too much power outages...
> Time to get my winter storm music together:
> 
> Vaughan Williams Sym #7 "Antarctica"
> ...


You do not know but , we are curious what you used from this list?


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## JoachimBlas26 (Jun 7, 2021)

Schubert's Piano Sonata 21 D960 or Honegger Symphony No. 3 "Liturgique", two works with very diferent moods but i think both fits for the occasion.


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

Rogerx said:


> You do not know but , we are curious what you used from this list?


All of them...


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## Rania (Jun 23, 2009)

dissident said:


> An old chestnut, maybe, but:


The recording by Beatrice Rana is a revelation:


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## Roger Knox (Jul 19, 2017)

These two compositions for orchestra are on YouTube:

Healey, Derek (New ZealandCanada/USA) – Arctic Images 1.
Bouliane, Denis (Canada) - La neige est blanc mais l'eau est noire


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Heck148 said:


> All of them...


Thank goodness, another satisfied customer. :cheers:


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## Fredrikalansson (Jan 29, 2019)

Maybe for after the storm: Cantus Arcticus by Rautavaara and Holmboe's Symphony 8 "Sinfonia Boreale"


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## geralmar (Feb 15, 2013)

Kalinnikov, Symphony #1, second movement. Snow falling in the moonlight deep in the woods. That's what I "see" anyway.


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