# Sticky  A Contemporary Music Repertoire (a work in progress)



## Trout

Hi everyone,

For the past year or so, I've been on and off working on compiling a large, but hopefully comprehensive, list of contemporary classical music. In fact, I'm still working on it, but I thought I would share my current progress in case anyone is interested.

What is this list exactly? Well, in the most precise terms, it is simply an aggregation of works of the most-acclaimed contemporary composers that both critics and casual listeners seem to recommend. I did this through plenty of research across various forums, books, articles and reviews (including a drop of my own preferences). As I disclaim in the link, this list is obviously not scientific nor perfect by any means, but I hope it provides a good overview of contemporary classical music especially for novices.

To breakdown its sheer vastness, I created a couple tiers to distinguish the most-recommended works:

*⋆⋆⋆* means an essential work, among the most esteemed of the contemporary era
*⋆⋆* means a fairly important work, good to know especially if you're interested in that particular composer

Of the composers listed, am I missing any of their important works or your favorites? Do you disagree strongly with any of the star ratings (or lack thereof)? Or generally, if anyone has any questions or feedback, I'd be happy to hear!

Edit: I should have made it more clear that there are tons of absent composers that I just haven't had time to include yet. Each composer entry takes many hours to complete thoroughly so I appreciate all of your patience.


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## Lisztian

Awesome, thanks!

Just wondering what the cut-off point is, as I was struck by the absence of Xenakis and Stockhausen (while their contemporaries are up there). I also realise you said it's a work in progress: just curious!

Again: thanks, this is fantastic and I'll definitely make use of it.


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## Red Terror

Great list. I would add:

Jón Leifs
Vyacheslav Artyomov
Richard Barrett
Michael Hersch
Kaija Saariaho
Aribert Reimann
George Benjamin
Ben Johnston
Lou Harrison
Pascal Dusapin
Olivier Greif
Jason Eckardt
Djuro Zivkovic
Michel Chion
Evan Ziporyn
Luciano Cilio
Magnus Lindberg
Mick Rossi
Franco Evangelisti
Friedrich Cerha
Noah Creshevsky
Hans Kox
Rolf Riehm
Horațiu Rădulescu
Steve Martland
Rytis Mažulis
Robert Kyr
Anders Koppel
Georg Katzer
Giya Kancheli
Vinko Globokar


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## Trout

Thanks for checking it out, Lisztian!



Lisztian said:


> Just wondering what the cut-off point is, as I was struck by the absence of Xenakis and Stockhausen (while their contemporaries are up there). I also realise you said it's a work in progress: just curious!


I forgot to mention that I've been tackling this project by going through one composer at a time in a quasi-alphabetical order. (I did the Schnittke and Takemitsu entries early on before becoming a bit more methodical.) Xenakis and Stockhausen are definitely in the pipeline!

Here's a (non-exhaustive) list of all other composers I definitely intend to do at some point:

Nono, Luigi
Nørgård, Per
Nyman, Michael
Pärt, Arvo
Partch, Harry
Penderecki, Krzysztof
Rautavaara, Einojuhani
Reich, Steve
Rihm, Wolfgang
Riley, Terry
Romitelli, Fausto
Rzewski, Frederic
Saariaho, Kaija
Scelsi, Giacinto
Sciarrino, Salvatore
Sculthorpe, Peter
Sessions, Roger
Silvestrov, Valentin
Stockhausen, Karlheinz
Tavener, John
Ustvolskaya, Galina
Vasks, Pēteris
Wuorinen, Charles
Xenakis, Iannis
Young, La Monte

Once I hit all of the big names, I'll probably start adding some more lesser-knowns.


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## Trout

Red Terror said:


> Great list. I would add:
> 
> Vyacheslav Artyomov
> Richard Barrett
> Michael Hersch
> Kaija Saariaho
> Aribert Reimann
> George Benjamin


Thanks for the suggestions. Saariaho is definitely on the shortlist. Benjamin and Barrett will probably follow once I finish the above list. The others deserve more research on my part, though I definitely do really like Reimann's _Lear_ and Hersch's _The Vanishing Pavilions_.


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## Lisztian

Trout said:


> Thanks for checking it out, Lisztian!
> 
> I forgot to mention that I've been tackling this project by going through one composer at a time in a quasi-alphabetical order. (I did the Schnittke and Takemitsu entries early on before becoming a bit more methodical.) Xenakis and Stockhausen are definitely in the pipeline!
> 
> Here's a (non-exhaustive) list of all other composers I definitely intend to do at some point:
> 
> Nono, Luigi
> Nørgård, Per
> Nyman, Michael
> Pärt, Arvo
> Partch, Harry
> Penderecki, Krzysztof
> Rautavaara, Einojuhani
> Reich, Steve
> Rihm, Wolfgang
> Riley, Terry
> Romitelli, Fausto
> Rzewski, Frederic
> Saariaho, Kaija
> Scelsi, Giacinto
> Sciarrino, Salvatore
> Sculthorpe, Peter
> Sessions, Roger
> Silvestrov, Valentin
> Stockhausen, Karlheinz
> Tavener, John
> Ustvolskaya, Galina
> Vasks, Pēteris
> Wuorinen, Charles
> Xenakis, Iannis
> Young, La Monte
> 
> Once I hit all of the big names, I'll probably start adding some more lesser-knowns.


Excellent  I'll be looking forward to it! As for now I'm updating my 'to-buy' lists


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## Lisztian

Trout said:


> Of the composers listed, am I missing any of their important works or your favorites?


I think Gougalon is one of Chin's very best works and I have heard others express a similar sentiment. Of course, I don't think it's out on CD...


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## Trout

Lisztian said:


> I think Gougalon is one of Chin's very best works and I have heard others express a similar sentiment. Of course, I don't think it's out on CD...


It's a piece that I just barely left out the first time, so your support and an enthusiastic Guardian review that I missed is more than enough to push it on the list. It would need the support of several others more to climb to the next tier though, which is pretty difficult without a proper recording and also for being such a new piece.


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## Andolink

Two female composers I'd definitely add: Chaya Czernowin and Rebecca Saunders

and worth conisdering: 
Isabel Mundry
Clara Ianotta 
Olga Neuwirth
Marina Khorkova

And from the other gender: James Dillon and Alexander Goehr are both very important IMO.


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## Art Rock

A first glance: you're missing some of the most important contemps from Finland: Aho, Rautavaara, Saariaho, Sallinen.

What's your cut-off for contemporary?


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## Trout

Andolink said:


> Two female composers I'd definitely add: Chaya Czernowin and Rebecca Saunders
> 
> and worth conisdering:
> Isabel Mundry
> Clara Ianotta
> Olga Neuwirth
> Marina Khorkova
> 
> And from the other gender: James Dillon and Alexander Goehr are both very important IMO.


Many of those would be on my second pass (Czernowin, Saunders, Neuwirth, Dillon and perhaps Goehr). The others will require some more research from me.


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## Trout

Art Rock said:


> A first glance: you're missing some of the most important contemps from Finland: Aho, Rautavaara, Saariaho, Sallinen.
> 
> What's your cut-off for contemporary?


See my post above for major composers that I haven't had time to get to yet. Aho and Sallinen would definitely follow.

My rough cutoff is any composer that has a substantial or important body of work post circa-1975.


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## arpeggio

In all fairness this is a humongous undertaking so I am not too disappointed at the many omissions. The ones that have made the list so far are excellent. But as a band junkie I am sad


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## Trout

arpeggio said:


> In all fairness this is a humongous undertaking so I am not too disappointed at the many omissions. The one that have made the list so far are excellent. But as a band junkie I am sad


I appreciate your understanding and your advocacy. You are right though, band music has been almost entirely absent from my radar and from most of my sources, as if the "contemporary classical" and "concert band" worlds were entirely insular and distinct. I will certainly spend some more time researching, but for now I find that Wikipedia has a pretty good list of contemporary concert band composers, that I'll use as a starting basis. Are there others that you would personally add?


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## Guest

Most composers released by neos I've really enjoyed. Nikolaus Brass and Adriana Hölszky are two that spring to mind. https://neos-music.com


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## Guest

Trout said:


> See my post above for major composers that I haven't had time to get to yet. Aho and Sallinen would definitely follow.
> 
> My rough cutoff is any composer that has a substantial or important body of work post circa-1975.


Most of the music I listened to over the last six months were by composers whose average date of birth is somewhere in the early 70s....I could have a look at them all again when I get back home from my holiday and add some more.


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## Enthusiast

Its going to develop into a great work! I wonder how you are handling the evaluative and categorising decisions? How do you decide where to place the bar for who to include and who not to? If it is open to all suggestions it will grow so big that it will be only good to refer to (looking up composers you already know) but if it is more discerning it might also function as a guide that takes you to composers who you don't know yet. Also, how did you decide which works are *** and **?


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## arpeggio

*Excellant list*



Trout said:


> I appreciate your understanding and your advocacy. You are right though, band music has been almost entirely absent from my radar and from most of my sources, as if the "contemporary classical" and "concert band" worlds were entirely insular and distinct. I will certainly spend some more time researching, but for now I find that Wikipedia has a pretty good list of contemporary concert band composers, that I'll use as a starting basis. Are there others that you would personally add?


Excellent list.

What freaked me out is that Jerry Brubaker, who is on the list, was a friend of mine. After he retired from the U S Navy Band he became a member of the City of Fairfax Band. Jerry is a horn player and a graduate of Eastman. He used to be the chief arranger for the Navy Band and he used to do many arrangements for us. The band is doing several of his arrangements at our annual Christmas concert tonight.

The bassoon section used to tease him that he never wrote interesting bassoon parts. He got his revenge on us and we never complained again. A few years ago he moved to Colorado.

He is an outstanding arranger. A few years ago he did an arrangement of the _Overture for Sea Hawk_ by Korngold. He listened to the classic RCA recording with Charles Gerhardt conducting the National Philharmonic Orchestra. It was fantastic and he did by ear listening to the recording.


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## Becca

Rodion Shchedrin?


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## senza sordino

Thanks for this list, I look forward to exploring more of it. I recently picked up a cd of Mark Anthony Turnage, Your Rockaby. It's a Saxophone Concerto. I've heard some more of his music a year ago, but I don't remember what exactly. Sorry, not much help here. But yet another composer to listen to in your excellent but mammoth project.


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## Andolink

In my earlier listing of female composers to consider I neglected to include the extremely talented and innovative Liza Lim from Australia, currently based at the University of Huddersfield as Professor of Composition.


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## Trout

Enthusiast said:


> Its going to develop into a great work! I wonder how you are handling the evaluative and categorising decisions? How do you decide where to place the bar for who to include and who not to? If it is open to all suggestions it will grow so big that it will be only good to refer to (looking up composers you already know) but if it is more discerning it might also function as a guide that takes you to composers who you don't know yet.


Good question! I honestly haven't thought too much about that ultimate cutoff. It might depend moreso on my motivation than anything else. It will probably take several more months before I finish up all the remaining primary composers. After that point, who knows. I am still in the "passion project" phase right now, but it's possible that will change with time.

In an ideal world, I would probably include as many composers as are deemed significant to at least some niche of listeners. In more specific terms, that would be any composer on which I can find a good amount of articles, guestbook threads, etc. to learn and explore from. My guess is that would make a gigantic list though with hundreds of composers from all across the globe.



Enthusiast said:


> Also, how did you decide which works are *** and **?


These tier distinctions were made admittedly somewhat arbitrarily but, I think, pretty consistently.


2 stars are any works that I found at least 10 (net) positive recommendations across multiple sources with preferably at least 1 "professional" opinion, like a book author or newspaper columnist.

3 stars are works with around 20 such recommendations, although I made this cutoff a bit more subjective. What I noticed in my research is that composer popularity seems to be a bit exponential. By this, I mean that the most popular composers would have several times more recommendations than others (for a quick comparison, Adams, Boulez, Cage, and Carter each have around 500 total work recommendations while at the other end Abrahamsen and Furrer have only about 70). So, I loosened this criteria just a bit for some of the less-popular composers by dropping the number to around 15 to 17.

As I said in my preface, this is not really a scientific process, but I think the results so far seem to align pretty well with the typical consensuses.


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## Trout

Becca said:


> Rodion Shchedrin?





senza sordino said:


> Thanks for this list, I look forward to exploring more of it. I recently picked up a cd of Mark Anthony Turnage, Your Rockaby. It's a Saxophone Concerto. I've heard some more of his music a year ago, but I don't remember what exactly. Sorry, not much help here. But yet another composer to listen to in your excellent but mammoth project.


Thanks for the suggestions. I have both Shchedrin and Turnage pegged to be in the next batch of composers.



Andolink said:


> In my earlier listing of female composers to consider I neglected to include the extremely talented and innovative Liza Lim from Australia, currently based at the University of Huddersfield as Professor of Composition.


Thanks, I am slightly familiar with Lim (thanks in part to a pretty enthusiastic fan around these parts...), but I will need to do some more listening and reading!


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## Portamento

This is a great start! My first question would be about the significance of works with no stars. Are they still considered central works? If so, I suggest that single stars are included.

Looking at Schnittke's entries, there are a few works whose inclusion I would question, namely:

Symphony #0 (1957)
Piano Concerto (1960)
Violin Sonata #1 (1963)
Labyrinths (1971)​
The majority of these are early works that I don't consider to be essential to any Schnittke collection. Sure, Symphony #0 has the distinction of being recorded in BIS's trailblazing _Schnittke Edition_, but just because it isn't completely forgotten doesn't make it a central work of its composer.


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## dismrwonderful

I am very impressed.

Dan


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> This is a great start! My first question would be about the significance of works with no stars. Are they still considered central works? If so, I suggest that single stars are included.
> 
> Looking at Schnittke's entries, there are a few works whose inclusion I would question, namely:
> 
> Symphony #0 (1957)
> Piano Concerto (1960)
> Violin Sonata #1 (1963)
> Labyrinths (1971)​
> The majority of these are early works that I don't consider to be essential to any Schnittke collection. Sure, Symphony #0 has the distinction of being recorded in BIS's trailblazing _Schnittke Edition_, but just because it isn't completely forgotten doesn't make it a central work of its composer.


I appreciate the feedback.

I wouldn't consider the no-stars to be central works necessarily. I would say they are less-popular works that are still recommended. This could mean central works with limited exposure/accessibility but also perhaps less-important works that have some well-known/well-regarded recordings. In the case of big-name composers like Schnittke, un-starred works are typically the latter since the composer's name typically is a big enough spotlight or brand, if you will, to grant most of their works with a proper recording.

Now in my bookkeeping, I do factor in "anti-recommendations" which decrements a piece's number of recommendations. Shall I count your post as such? In doing so, you may bump 1 or 2 of those pieces off the list...


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## Portamento

Trout said:


> Now in my bookkeeping, I do factor in "anti-recommendations" which decrements a piece's number of recommendations. Shall I count your post as such? In doing so, you may bump 1 or 2 of those pieces off the list...


No, don't do that!


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## Portamento

All in all, the list very well researched and has no "glaring omissions." Trying to keep with the standards of previous entries, I've compiled lists for two more composers (subjective and open to change, of course) that can be added if Trout agrees.

Cardew, Cornelius (1936-81; British)

- February Pieces [piano] (1959-61)
- Autumn '60 [orch.] (1960)
- Octet '61 for Jasper Johns [open instrumentation ensemble] (1961)
- Treatise [open instrumentation ensemble] (1963-67) ***
- Memories of You [piano] (1964) 
- Solo with Accompaniment [open instrumentation ensemble] (1964)
- Bun No. 1 [orch.] (1965) 
- The Great Learning [7 pieces for various ensembles] (1968-70, rev. 1972) ***
- Unintended Piano Music (1970/71)
- Piano Album 1973 (1973)
- Piano Album 1974 (1974)
- Thälmann Variations [piano] (1974) **
- We Sing for the Future! [piano] (1979)

Eastman, Julius (1940-90; American)

- Stay on It [open instrumentation ensemble including voice, piano, percussion] (1973)
- Femenine [chamber ensemble] (1974) **
- If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich? [ensemble] (1977)
- Evil ****** [open instrumentation ensemble] (1979) ***
- Gay Guerilla [open instrumentation ensemble] (ca. 1980) **
- Crazy ****** [open instrumentation ensemble] (ca. 1980) **
- The Holy Presence of Joan d'Arc [10 cellos] (1981) **


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## Trout

Wow you even got my formatting down and everything!

I'll tell you what, since you did a lot of my work for me, I'll get to those composers next once I finish Luigi Nono (almost done...). Now, I can't guarantee that the entries I will get will look exactly like those (with the same star ratings and exactly all those pieces) but you mentioning them all will really help their cause. Were those completely subjective tier assignments and selected pieces or did you use any particular sources for them? I'd love to read anything you found!


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## Portamento

The tier assignments were a blend of my personal preferences and what I found to be the composers' most popular works. I may have been too inclusive with Cardew, but this article makes a great case for some of his lesser-known experimental works. Eastman has been a favorite for a while (and his discography is pretty small) so it was easier to include what I thought were must-hears.


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## Trout

Here's the new entry for Luigi Nono.

I didn't listen/re-listen to everything there, but of the pieces I did, my favorite discovery was his late, beautiful piece dedicated to Pierre Boulez _A Pierre. Dell'azzurro silenzio, inquietum_.


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## Xisten267

Trout said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> For the past year or so, I've been on and off working on compiling a large, but hopefully comprehensive, list of contemporary classical music. In fact, I'm still working on it, but I thought I would share my current progress in case anyone is interested.
> 
> What is this list exactly? Well, in the most precise terms, it is simply an aggregation of works of the most-acclaimed contemporary composers that both critics and casual listeners seem to recommend. I did this through plenty of research across various forums, books, articles and reviews (including a drop of my own preferences). As I disclaim in the link, this list is obviously not scientific nor perfect by any means, but I hope it provides a good overview of contemporary classical music especially for novices.
> 
> To breakdown its sheer vastness, I created a couple tiers to distinguish the most-recommended works:
> 
> *⋆⋆⋆* means an essential work, among the most esteemed of the contemporary era
> *⋆⋆* means a fairly important work, good to know especially if you're interested in that particular composer
> 
> Of the composers listed, am I missing any of their important works or your favorites? Do you disagree strongly with any of the star ratings (or lack thereof)? Or generally, if anyone has any questions or feedback, I'd be happy to hear!
> 
> Edit: I should have made it more clear that there are tons of absent composers that I just haven't had time to include yet. Each composer entry takes many hours to complete thoroughly so I appreciate all of your patience.


This is great! Thanks.


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## Guest

terrific initiative; may I suggest you consult my blogspot; it lists composers from all eras, but is specialised in contemporary composers, because it is my major interest; among your list only babitt is missing just because I do not fancy his work;
my blogspot is: marcbollansee.blogspot.com


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## Art Rock

John Corigliano surely deserves to be included.


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## Portamento

Are you sure about including Sessions as a contemporary composer? You previously said that your cut-off was "any composer that has a substantial or important body of work post circa-1975," but Sessions only composed three works post-1975 (albeit three very fine works). Arguably his most important works were composed in the '40s and '60s, and if you include him I'm afraid there will be grounds to list also Ginastera, Orff, Krenek, Tubin, Pettersson, etc. (whom I don't consider to be contemporary composers in the strict sense). 

Since I'm familiar with Ustvolskaya, I'll try to help you out with that one.


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> Are you sure about including Sessions as a contemporary composer? You previously said that your cut-off was "any composer that has a substantial or important body of work post circa-1975," but Sessions only composed three works post-1975 (albeit three very fine works). Arguably his most important works were composed in the '40s and '60s, and if you include him I'm afraid there will be grounds to list also Ginastera, Orff, Krenek, Tubin, Pettersson, etc. (whom I don't consider to be contemporary composers in the strict sense).
> 
> Since I'm familiar with Ustvolskaya, I'll try to help you out with that one.


You're right, including Sessions was an oversight on my part. Scelsi is too, looking back on my list. I made this list a while ago, and I think it was originally supposed to be for post-war composers, but I later narrowed my focus to the contemporary "era."


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## Trout

New entry for Cornelius Cardew.

I remember interpreting and performing a sheet of his _Treatise_ for a modern music class I took. Super bizarre but very memorable experience. And now, in the context with the rest of his ouevre, it was interesting to read about how radically Cardew shifted from the avant-garde to Romantic agitprop.


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## Portamento

Cardew was certainly an odd man. Coming from an art background, the graphical score of _Treatise_ is both beautiful and interesting to analyze.


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## KenOC

Portamento said:


> Cardew was certainly an odd man. Coming from an art background, the graphical score of _Treatise_ is both beautiful and interesting to analyze.


Cardew is an interesting case. He worked closely with Stockhausen for several years, but later became a radical Marxist-Leninist-Maoist and denounced the avant garde, his own prior works and especially Stockhausen, in decidedly violent language.

On his own major work, which is based on Confucius: "No longer do I want to conceal the facts about bourgeois society, I want to expose them. My standpoint in criticising _The Great Learning_ is the standpoint of the working class. For the working class _The Great Learning_ is or would be if they ever got to hear it a piece of inflated rubbish which obviously has no role to play in their struggles; its role is to promote and consolidate bourgeois ideas in one guise or another amongst the intelligentsia."

http://ubu.com/historical/cardew/cardew_stockhausen.pdf


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## Portamento

Below is probably what I would list for Ustvolskaya:

*Ustvolskaya, Galina (1919-2006; Russian)*

- Concerto for Piano, String Orchestra, and Timpani (1946) 
- Piano Sonata No. 1 (1947) 
- Trio for Clarinet, Violin, and Piano (1949) 
- Octet [2 oboes, 4 violins, timpani, and piano] (1949-50)
- Violin Sonata (1952)
- Grand Duet [cello & piano] (1959) **
- Composition No. 1 "Dona nobis pacem" [piccolo, tuba, and piano] (1970-71)
- Composition No. 2 "Dies irae" [8 double basses, piano, and cube] (1972-73) **
- Composition No. 3 "Benedictus, qui venit" [4 flutes, 4 bassoons, and piano] (1974-75)
- Symphony No. 3 "Jesus Messiah, Save Us!" (1983)
- Symphony No. 4 "Prayer" (1985-87) 
- Piano Sonata No. 5 (1986) **
- Piano Sonata No. 6 (1988) ***
- Symphony No. 5 "Amen" (1989-90) **

There are still many, many more composers to go through but I see this being a valuable resource for contemporary music.


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## Kjetil Heggelund

I hope you also will consider Edison Denisov. I remember that he, Schnittke and Gubaidulina were the most talked about Russians of their generation. I don't understand why he has kind of been left out. If it's because he maybe repeats himself, the same can be said about many composers, and I regard that as a sort of signature.


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## Portamento

I like the new Ustvolskaya entry. It's amazing that that's 21/25 of the entries in her catalog. She was so self-critical that, in the end, all that remained were great (and occasionally masterful) works.


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## Trout

Thanks, I was planning on bumping this thread soon but you beat me to it.

Yeah, I noticed a lot of publications even referred to her oeuvre as only being the 21 listed works. The 4 other works are in a mainstream, Soviet-style that I think bares little to no resemblance to her others. So it might be just as apropos to say she went 21/21 from her creative catalog and basically did my work for me. 

Also, as you probably noticed, I finished the Julius Eastman one as well. What a revelation _Femenine_ was! I am listening to it for the 3rd time in the past couple days. Just beautiful. I'm still stunned that this was composed before _Music for 18 Musicians_.


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## 20centrfuge

This is going to be a super-valuable resource. Thanks for all the great work you've done. Make sure Van der Aa gets on there eventually.


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## Trout

I finished up the entry on Michael Nyman.

He has been quite a bit more divisive than I foresaw. It seems that in the classical community, opinions on him are pretty lukewarm overall with quite a number of people loathing his work entirely. The degree of negativity is a bit unusual but not exactly unique since lots of contemporary composers have their fair share of detractors. (For the record, I'd consider myself a fan of much of his music, especially _MGV_.) The difference is, however, that Nyman seems to have a ton of fans elsewhere that have really bolstered his recommendations, especially his film scores.

To correct a bit for this, I made a decision to increase the three-star threshold on all recommended film scores, not just his. Another justification for this is that film scores may not necessarily work on their own, so people recommending them may only be considering how the film score accompanies the film and not the score in isolation. The results of this new policy are that a couple Glass scores got demoted and the only three-star score on the list so far is Koyaanisqatsi, which makes sense to me.


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## Portamento

For Kjetil:

*Denisov, Edison (1929-96; Russian)*

- Flute Sonata (1960)
- Le soleil des Incas [soprano & chamber ensemble] (1964) **
- DSCH [clarinet, trombone, cello & piano] (1969)
- Peinture [orch.] (1970) 
- Saxophone Sonata (1970) **
- Sonata for Solo Clarinet (1972) 
- La vie en rouge [7 songs for soprano & ensemble] (1973)
- Flute Concerto (1975) **
- Sonata for Flute and Guitar (1977)
- Violin Concerto (1977) **
- Requiem [soprano, tenor, chorus & orch.] (1980) ***
- L'écume des jours [opera] (1981) **
- Tod ist ein langer Schlaf [theme & variations for cello & orch.] (1982)
- Confession [ballet for orch.] (1984) 
- Les quatre jeunes filles [opera] (1986)
- Symphony No. 1 (1987) 
- Reflets [piano] (1989)
- Sur la nappe d'un étang glacé [magnetic tape & 9 instrs.] (1991) 
- Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Cello (1994)


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## Trout

Here's the rather lengthy new entry for Per Nørgård. As most would expect, the 3rd symphony was the runaway winner, garnering multiple times the number of recommendations of any other work.

As for me, I'm generally not big on his work, but I hope that changes as I dive even deeper into his work now.


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## Enthusiast

I guess that the most difficult part of this is deciding which pieces to give stars to. There are many works that get no star but that are important to me and seem like masterpieces (sometimes more than starred works). OK, this is a bit subjective and I am not so in-touch with critical opinion as to know how well different works are considered or why (or whether I feel faith in those judgements). But surely Birtwistle's Antiphonies deserves recognition as a major work and Lachenmann's Allegro Sostenuto is a fine work that seems to get everywhere (I have accumulated three recordings without trying!).

Also, I think Julian Anderson belongs in your list.


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## Art Rock

Trout said:


> Here's the rather lengthy new entry for Per Nørgård. As most would expect, the 3rd symphony was the runaway winner, garnering multiple times the number of recommendations of any other work.
> 
> As for me, I'm generally not big on his work, but I hope that changes as I dive even deeper into his work now.


Try the string quartets. Personally I prefer them over S3.


----------



## Trout

Enthusiast said:


> I guess that the most difficult part of this is deciding which pieces to give stars to. There are many works that get no star but that are important to me and seem like masterpieces (sometimes more than starred works). OK, this is a bit subjective and I am not so in-touch with critical opinion as to know how well different works are considered or why (or whether I feel faith in those judgements). But surely Birtwistle's Antiphonies deserves recognition as a major work and Lachenmann's Allegro Sostenuto is a fine work that seems to get everywhere (I have accumulated three recordings without trying!).
> 
> Also, I think Julian Anderson belongs in your list.


I appreciate the input. I think the Birtwistle entry was in need of an upgrade overall. I did it a long while ago before I fully fleshed out the process. I just now bumped up a few of his pieces (including _Antiphonies_) and added _Exody_, but it's possible that it's still missing some important works. I'd be happy to hear of anymore that feel sorely missing or underrated.

As for Lachenmann's _Allegro sostenuto_, I couldn't find enough recent sources to bump it up.


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## Portamento

Art Rock said:


> Try the string quartets. Personally I prefer them over S3.


The late quartets are great, No. 10 being my favorite. From what I've heard, Nørgård's recent efforts seem to be pared down and stripped of excess when compared to works such as S3 (sort of like Schnittke).


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## Portamento

I've made a graphic displaying the frequency of the works on the list per year. I've neglected to label the y-axis as specific numbers were not my focus here. That being said, 3 "points" were given to ⋆⋆⋆ works, 2 for ⋆⋆, and so on; works composed over multiple years (excluding revisions) had their points equally distributed over the respective years.









The single highest critical peak for contemporary music was in 1988, which saw the completion of Schnittke's _Symphony No. 5 (Concerto Grosso No. 4)_, Takemitsu's _Tree Line_ and _Twill by Twilight_, Berio's _Sequenza XI_, Kagel's _Die Stücke der Windrose_, etc.


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## Trout

Very interesting, thanks! 

If I'm able to keep this repertoire up-to-date in the many years to come, I hope that the peak will widen toward the right as we slowly assimilate and canonize the best new works of today.


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## Trout

Here is the entry for Edison Denisov. It was very difficult finding English-language reviews and opinions on his work; it might be likely that he is better-known abroad. Regardless, let me know if there are any significant works missing.

For me, his _Requiem_ was a great discovery. Do give it a listen, if you haven't!


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## Kjetil Heggelund

Trout said:


> Here is the entry for Edison Denisov. It was very difficult finding English-language reviews and opinions on his work; it might be likely that he is better-known abroad. Regardless, let me know if there are any significant works missing.
> 
> For me, his _Requiem_ was a great discovery. Do give it a listen, if you haven't!


This makes me a happy Denisovan


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## Trout

Here's the new entry on Arvo Pärt.

I might take a bit of a break before the next one.


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## Guest

Hi Trout, 
I totally support your great project because I am a great fan of contemporary classical. A lot of the info you are looking for is already available in my blogspot: marcbollansee.blogspot.com. There are about 160 contemporary composers listed with most of their works and the best recorded versions. Feel free to make use of it or be inspired by it. Some like Denisov are not listed. This is a personal choice. 
You will notice that Iannis Xenakis is extremely well represented. He is my favourite composer. Best Marc


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## Guest

great job, portamento, you might change my perspective on denisov; this kind of post is exactly what i am looking forward to from my fellow members


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## Trout

marc bollansee said:


> Hi Trout,
> I totally support your great project because I am a great fan of contemporary classical. A lot of the info you are looking for is already available in my blogspot: marcbollansee.blogspot.com. There are about 160 contemporary composers listed with most of their works and the best recorded versions. Feel free to make use of it or be inspired by it. Some like Denisov are not listed. This is a personal choice.
> You will notice that Iannis Xenakis is extremely well represented. He is my favourite composer. Best Marc


Hi Marc,

Thanks a lot for sharing. It's clear you have a great knowledge of contemporary music. There is a great deal of overlap between our two lists. Yours is in many ways more comprehensive than mine. Are the asterisk (*) entries particular favorites of yours, or do they signify something else? I also notice you place performers next to just about every piece. Are you recommending just that specific performance or _both_ the piece and performance?

Much appreciated!


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## PeterFromLA

Yeah, I think the 1980s were probably a high point for new music/contemporary classical. The pieces that were coming out then, the composers who were active then, it's a veritable golden age. Just to grab some names/works indicating what was being produced and who was writing music: 

Boulez Repons
Ligeti Etudes
Lutoslawski Symphony 3
Feldman For Philip Guston
Cage Litany for the whale
Schnittke Symphony 5
Berio Voci (Folk Songs II)
Carter Night Fantasies
Reich Different Trains
Messiaen St Francis of Assisi 
Dutilleux Violin Concerto
Adams Nixon in China
Gubaidulina Offertorium
Lindberg Kraft
Nono La lontananza nostalgica utopica futura
Kancheli Vom Winde beweint
Silvestrov Symphony 5
Xenakis Rebonds
Lachenmann Mouvement (- vor der Erstarrung)
Glass Koyaanisqatsi
Murail Gondwana
Pärt St. John's Passion
Saariaho Du cristal...
Takemitsu A string around autumn

It was a really exciting time to be alive, buying recordings, going to new music festivals and concerts. It seemed like something big was happening, but it wasn't clear how it would all shake out. The avant-garde was no longer hegemonic, but what would replace it, that wasn't certain.


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## Portamento

Here's what I've put together for (Van der) Aa:

*Aa, Michel van der (1970-; Dutch)*

- One [chamber opera for soprano, video & soundtrack] (2002) **
- Here Trilogy [3 pieces for soprano, chamber orch. & soundtrack] (2001-03) 
- Second Self [orchestra & soundtrack] (2004) 
- Imprint [baroque orchestra] (2005) 
- After Life [opera for soloists, ensemble, video & soundtrack] (2005-06, rev. 2009) **
- The Book of Disquiet [music theatre for actor, ensemble & film] (2008) **
- Up-close [cello, string orch. & film] (2010) ***
- Sunken Garden [opera] (2011-13) **
- Violin Concerto (2014) **
- Blank Out [chamber opera for soprano & film] (2015) **
- The Book of Sand [digital, interactive song cycle] (2015)


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## Trout

Krzysztof Penderecki is in the house!

Chronologically speaking, this was one of the most interesting entries because of his radical shift in style in the late 70s. As expected, the first avant-garde epoch seems to contain most of his significant and enduring pieces. But even if you look beyond his first phase, his remaining oeuvre seems to be, on paper, still pretty well-liked and probably still substantial enough for an entry on its own.


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## Kjetil Heggelund

Alright Penderecki! You should have seen the face of a student listening to Threnody, like his migraine trippled. I thought I could hear the change in style from his 1st to 2nd symphony. Around 1975 I believe he became a very accessible composer.


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## 20centrfuge

Portamento said:


> Here's what I've put together for (Van der) Aa:
> 
> *Aa, Michel van der (1970-; Dutch)*
> 
> - One [chamber opera for soprano, video & soundtrack] (2002) **
> - Here Trilogy [3 pieces for soprano, chamber orch. & soundtrack] (2001-03)
> - Second Self [orchestra & soundtrack] (2004)
> - Imprint [baroque orchestra] (2005)
> - After Life [opera for soloists, ensemble, video & soundtrack] (2005-06, rev. 2009) **
> - The Book of Disquiet [music theatre for actor, ensemble & film] (2008) **
> - Up-close [cello, string orch. & film] (2010) ***
> - Sunken Garden [opera] (2011-13) **
> - Violin Concerto (2014) **
> - Blank Out [chamber opera for soprano & film] (2015) **
> - The Book of Sand [digital, interactive song cycle] (2015)


I'd add Hysteresis - Clarinet Concerto


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## PeterFromLA

Penderecki's first violin concerto (1976) is the work that first clearly shows an about face from his earlier style.


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## starthrower

Kjetil Heggelund said:


> Around 1975 I believe he became a very accessible composer.


Or a rather bland one depending on your taste.


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## Kjetil Heggelund

starthrower said:


> Or a rather bland one depending on your taste.


At least he has a distinct style


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## starthrower

Kjetil Heggelund said:


> At least he has a distinct style


Yes, he does. Dark and more darkness. But I still love him!


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## Kjetil Heggelund

starthrower said:


> Yes, he does. Dark and more darkness. But I still love him!


Me too! Just now I decided to listen to more Stockhausen! That's other buns (direct translation from Norwegian...)


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## Portamento

Another composer I decided to look into somewhat randomly. Like Nyman, I found a good deal of both praise and derision from those that cherish his optimistic, jazzy works and others that label his oeuvre as derivative. Personally, I think I fall in the middle of these two camps: at his best, Kapustin achieves a near-perfect synthesis of popular music and classical but there is an undeniable sameness in his output that makes it hard to listen to him back-to-back.

*Kapustin, Nikolai (1937-; Russian)*

- Suite in the Old Style, op. 28 [piano] (1977) 
- Piano Sonata No. 1, op. 39 "Sonata-Fantasia" (1984)
- Eight Concert Études, op. 40 [piano] (1984) **
- Variations, op. 41 [piano] (1984)
- 24 Preludes, op. 53 [piano] (1988) **
- Piano Sonata No. 2, op. 54 (1989) **
- Five Études in Different Intervals, op. 68 [piano] (1992)
- 24 Preludes and Fugues, op. 82 [piano] (1997)


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## Trout

With Portamento's help again, I've added the entry for Michel van der Aa. I was quite a bit stingier on the tier assignments simply because it's still a bit early in his career and he doesn't yet have the name-recognition among listeners as some of his other contemporaries like Thomas Ades and Unsuk Chin. But I'll definitely keep an eye out to see if he becomes a larger figure in the years to come.


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## Portamento

I noticed the inclusion of Kurtág's _Fin de partie_. Good call.


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## Enthusiast

I've been listening to quite a lot of Holliger recently and he definitely needs to be listed!


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## Red Terror

Glad to see Lutosławski on the list. He's never caught on in North America as he has in Europe. His work is as good as Stravinsky's.


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## CnC Bartok

I've probably missed something significant here, but is there any reason why Olivier Messiaen doesn't get a mention?

As an aside on Penderecki, his Sixth Symphony ("Chinese Poems") has now been completed and performed. No sign of a recording as yet, though.....


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## Trout

Robert Pickett said:


> I've probably missed something significant here, but is there any reason why Olivier Messiaen doesn't get a mention?


My general guideline for inclusion is that a composer must have a substantial part of his body of work composed since about 1975. While I love Messiaen and acknowledge he did create quite a few late masterpieces, there are only 3 or 4 significant works since the 70s I would include, with the center-of-gravity of his oeuvre being in the 40s.

If I ever expanded this into a post-WWII repertoire, then he would absolutely be one of the first names I would add.


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## CnC Bartok

Fair enough....Unfortunately that means Messiaen gets penalised for "wasting all that time" on St Francis (1975-83) :devil:

By his dates, he's just a bit older than the likes of Lutoslawski (who definitely deserves inclusion). And Olivier for me always "feels" modern/contemporary.

You are being pelted with suggestions for inclusion, it comes with the territory (!) but this is a really sensible project you've got here. Am I allowed to suggest including my favourite just-deceased composer, Veljo Tormis, and my favourite recently-deceased Czech composer Petr Eben? Neither are cutting edge, but both produced very fine music...


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## Enthusiast

Umm Peter Eotvos ... he belongs, too.


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## Portamento

Guys, this is a work in progress!


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## Enthusiast

^^ A very valuable one, too. I thought we were being asked for suggestions. I definitely do not intend any criticism with any of my suggestions.


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## Portamento

Two of my favorite composers that wrote in idioms which could not be more different:

*Rautavaara, Einojuhani (1928-2016; Finnish)*

- A Requiem in Our Time, op. 3 (1953)
- Kaivos, op. 15 [opera] (1957-60, rev. 1962)
- Symphony No. 3, op. 20 (1961) **
- Symphony No. 4 "Arabescata" (1962) 
- Cello Concerto No. 1, op. 41 (1968) **
- Etydit, op. 42 [piano] (1969) **
- Piano Concerto No. 1, op. 45 (1969) ***
- Pano Sonata No. 2, op. 64 "The Fire Sermon" (1970) 
- Vigilia [solists & chorus] (1971-72, rev. 1996) **
- Cantus arcticus, op. 61 [concerto for taped birdsong & orch.] (1972) ***
- Flute Concerto, op. 63 "Dances with the Winds" (1975) **
- Organ Concerto "Annunciations" (1976-77)	
- Violin Concerto (1976-77) **
- Angels and Visitations [orch.] (1978) **
- Double Bass Concerto "Angel of Dusk" (1980, rev. 1993)
- Thomas [opera] (1982-85) **
- Symphony No. 5 (1985-86) ***
- Vincent [opera] (1986-87) **
- Piano Concerto No. 2 (1989) **
- Auringon talo [chamber opera] (1990) 
- Symphony No. 6 "Vincentiana" [based on _Vincent_] (1992) ***
- Tietäjien lahja [chamber opera] (1993-94)
- Symphony No. 7 "Angel of Light" (1994) ***
- Aleksis Kivi [opera] (1995-96)
- On the Last Frontier [fantasy for chorus & orch.] (1997)
- Piano Concerto No. 3 "Gift of Dreams" (1998)
- Autumn Gardens [orch.] (1999)
- Symphony No. 8 "The Journey" (1999) **
- Percussion Concerto "Incantations" (2008)
- Cello Concerto No. 2 "Towards the Horizon" (2008-09)

*Rădulescu, Horațiu (1942-2008; Romanian-French)*

- Credo, op. 10 [9 cellos] (1969, rev. 1976)
- Das Andere, op. 49 [cello/viola] (1984) **
- String Quartet No. 4, op. 33 "infinite to be cannot be infinite, infinite anti-be could be infinite" [9 string quartets / string quartet surrounded by an imaginary viola da gamba with 128 strings] (1976-87) ***
- Intimate Rituals, op. 63 [viola & sound icon] (1985-87) **
- Byzantine Prayer, op. 74 [40 flautists with 72 flutes] (1988) ** 
- String Quartet No. 5, op. 89 "before the universe was born" (1990-95) **
- Piano Concerto, op. 90 "The Quest" (1996) **

(I hope I'm not inundating you with these lists I'm making. Feel free to update the site at your own pace.)


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## Trout

Not at all! That's actually perfect timing as they were the next two composers I was planning to cover.

Now that the holiday season is over, I will be quite a bit busier and so new entries will be a lot less frequent. But still, comments and suggestions are always welcome!


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## Portamento

Another great addition to the list would be Christophe Bertrand, a promising student of Boulez and Dusapin who passed away much too early. Listening to _Vertigo_, I can immediately spot not only the influences of his decorated teachers but also those of the spectral school and Ligeti (whose _Kammerkonzert_ was the impetus for Bertrand's exploration of modern classical music). What a loss.

*Bertrand, Christophe (1981-2010; French)*

- Treis (2000) [violin, cello & piano]
- Yet (2002) [20 musicians]
- Mana (2004-05) [orch.] **
- Vertigo (2006-07) [2 pianos & orch.] **
- Scales (2008-09) [large ensemble]


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## Guest

my blogspot lists all the major works by bertrand including sq 1-2 by the arditti qt


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## Trout

After a bit of a hiatus, here's the entry for Rautavaara. He's a composer that still eludes me as I tend to find his music rather forgettable. I hope to remedy that however by trying some pieces here that are new to me.


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## science

Wow, dude, that's pretty awesome. Well done!


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## science

I wonder how far away Ustvolskaya's three "Compositions" are from getting some asterisks?

Here is a recent, disinterested (~third party) recommendation, in case it helps!



NLAdriaan said:


> You might try the Russian composer Galina Ustvolskaya, nicknamed "the woman with the hammer". She composed some very dynamic and confronting music. Unsettling maybe, but also moving.
> 
> If you listen to Composition I, II, III as recorded by Schonberg Ensemble and Reinbert de Leeuw on Spotify, you might find what you are looking for or take it from there.
> 
> A YT link to only one piece of this CD:


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## Trout

science said:


> I wonder how far away Ustvolskaya's three "Compositions" are from getting some asterisks?
> 
> Here is a recent, disinterested (~third party) recommendation, in case it helps!


Nos. 1 and 3 still have a ways to go, but No. 2 was fairly borderline. With that post and a little bit more researching, I decided to bump it up.


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## Portamento

The Rautavaara and Reich (is that one new?) lists look great.

Yet another pointless little qualm, but the Davies list is missing opus numbers. These would be:

- Sinfonia, op. 20 (1962)
- Taverner, op. 45 [opera] (1962-8, rev. 1970)
- Eight Songs for a Mad King, op. 39 [male voice & instr. ensemble] (1969) ⋆⋆⋆
- St. Thomas Wake, op. 37 [foxtrot for orch. on a pavan by John Bull] (1969)
- Vesalii Icones, op. 42 [music-theatre work for dancer, solo cello & instrumental ensemble] (1969)
- Worldes Blis, op. 38 [orch.] (1969) ⋆⋆
- Hymn to St. Magnus, op. 53 [instr. ensemble with mezzo-soprano obbligato] (1972)
- Ave Maris Stella, op. 63 [instr. ensemble] (1975) ⋆⋆
- Symphony No. 1, op. 71 (1976) ⋆⋆
- A Mirror of Whitening Light, op. 75 [orch.] (1976-77)
- Westerlings, op. 73a [4 songs and a prayer, with seascapes for SATB chorus] (1977)
- The Lighthouse, op. 86 [chamber opera in 1 act with prologue] (1979) ⋆⋆
- Symphony No. 2, op. 91 (1980)
- Farewell to Stromness, op. 89/1 [piano interlude from The Yellow Cake Revue] (1980) ⋆⋆
- Image, Reflection, Shadow, op. 105 [instr. ensemble] (1982)
- Sinfonia Concertante, op. 106 [wind quintet & orch.] (1982)
- Symphony No. 3, op. 119 (1984)
- An Orkney Wedding, with Sunrise, op. 120a [orch.] (1985) ⋆⋆
- Trumpet Concerto, op. 132 (1988)
- Strathclyde Concerto No. 2, op. 131 [cello & orch.] (1988)
- Strathclyde Concerto No. 4, op. 143 [clarinet & orch.] (1990)
- Strathclyde Concerto No. 7, op. 156 [double bass & orch.] (1992)
- A Spell for Green Corn: The MacDonald Dances, op. 161 [violin & orch.] (1993)
- Strathclyde Concerto No. 8, op. 159 [bassoon & orch.] (1993)
- Strathclyde Concerto No. 9, op. 170 [6 woodwind instrs. & string orch.] (1994)
- Carolísima, op. 168 [serenade for chamber orch.] (1994)
- Symphony No. 5, op. 166 (1994)
- Symphony No. 6, op. 176 (1996)
- Job, op. 183 [oratorio for SATB Soli, SATB chorus & orch.] (1997)
- Mavis in Las Vegas, op. 184 [theme & variations for orch.] (1997)
- Piano Concerto, op. 188 (1997)
- Symphony No. 7, op. 211 (2000)
- Symphony No. 8, op. 215 "Antarctic" (2001)
- Naxos Quartets, opp. 229, 234, 236, 245, 253, 257, 265, 268, 275, 283 [10 pieces for string quartet] (2002-07)
- Symphony No. 10, op. 327 "Alla ricerca di Borromini" (2013)

Davies didn't assign these numbers himself, but commissioned a group of musicologists to do so late in life.


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## Trout

The opus numbers have been added in. Thanks for that, Portamento.

And yes the Steve Reich entry is new. (I planned to announce it here if/when the thread needed to be bumped, but glad I don't have to!) He is one of the original masters of American minimalism and one of my favorite composers. It is still one of my lifelong goals to hear _Music for 18 Musicians_ live, but for now I'll have to settle for the many excellent recorded versions. His early phasing works are also more than just interesting conceptual experiments, as I'd argue they are just as compelling musically. His "middle-period" works to have a fascinating, unique blend of Eastern gamelan and Renaissance polyphony. I am not very enthusiastic about his work since the 2000s, but that could just be because of my sky-high expectations and the inevitable narrative of "becoming softer" that forms around his work. But who knows, perhaps I would be championing them if they were the work of some up-and-coming youngster.


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## Trout

A few miscellaneous promotions:

- Andriessen: De Volharding (now listed)
- Andriessen: La Commedia (now listed)
- Andriessen: Trilogie van de Laatste Dag (now listed)
- Cage: Roaratorio (now 3-star)
- Henze: Requiem (now 3-star)
- Kagel: Aus Deutschland (now listed)
- Lachenmann: Allegro sostenuto (now 2-star)
- Lachenmann: Concertini (now 2-star)
- Lachenmann: Consolations I & II (now listed)
- Lachenmann: Dal niente (now listed)
- Lachenmann: Mouvement (now 3-star)
- Lachenmann: NUN (now listed)
- Lachenmann: Pression (now 2-star)
- Schnittke: Cello Sonata No. 1 (now 3-star)


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## Trout

And just a few other changes:

- Babbitt: Occasional Variations (now listed)
- Rautavaara: Isle of Bliss (now 2-star)
- Reich: The Three Movements (removed, upon seeing it repeatedly cited as one of his weakest works despite some enthusiasm from casual listeners)

And the Wolfgang Rihm entry is now complete! One of the most prolific composers of our time, so it's not a big surprise that his entry is among the largest ones. I did a lot of catching up on some of his most important works and I have to say that he has risen quite a bit in my estimation. Two of his operas _Die Eroberung von Mexico_ and _Jakob Lenz_ are pretty impressive and I really enjoyed his dark and powerful contribution to the Passion 2000 project, _Deus Passus_. His recent _IN-SCHRIFT 2_, which won the Grawemeyer Award in 2014, seems to distill some of his best compositional qualities in a fairly short package. I still need to hear more of his chamber work (especially the quartets), but his hauntingly beautiful _Et Lux_ has been among my favorites of the past decade.


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## Josquin13

I realize that it's 'a work in progress' (& applaud your efforts), but couldn't help notice that the following composers aren't (yet?) included on your list:

Magnus Lindberg: 



John Tavener: 



Paavo Heininen: 



Oliver Knussen: 








Poul Ruders

















Ib Nørholm: 



Arne Nordheim: 








Harri Vuori: 








Bent Sørensen: 



Friedrich Cerha: 



Wolfgang Rihm: 



 (Edit: I see Rihm has now been included).
John Harbison: 



George Rochberg: 



Robin Holloway: 



Peteris Vasks:








Christopher Rouse: 



Ned Rorem: 



Peter Lieberson: 



Esa-Pekka Salonen: 



Joseph Schwantner: 



Tobias Picker
Andrzej Panufnik
Kalevi Aho
Erkki-Sven Tüür
Anders Hillborg: 



Gavin Bryars: 



Ivan Moody: 



James McMillan
Gabriel Jackson
Tarek O'Regan: 



Simon Holt: 



Colin Matthews: 



David Matthews: 



Nicholas Maw: 



Aullis Sallinen
Alan Stout
Einar Englund: 




I suppose that when we're talking about composers of recent decades, especially those still working today, it's more difficult to be certain about who exactly is a major or minor composer, since all that has yet to be worked out (although I expect it will be over time, as we see the direction that music progresses in the coming decades).

Even so, I was a bit surprised to see Witold Lutoslawski included on your list, and not certain other important mid to late 20th century composers, such as Allan Pettersson, Vincent Persichetti, William Schuman, Olivier Messiaen, Vagn Holmboe, Einar Englund, Robert Simpson, Sir Michael Tippett, and Joonas Kokkonen. But perhaps Persichetti, Messiaen, and Schuman didn't compose enough major works in the 1970s & 80s to meet your requirements--I'll have to check (although I see that you've already done so in regards to Messiaen). However, surely Pettersson, Holmboe, Englund, Simpson, Tippett, and Kokkonen composed enough significant works in the 1970s & 80s to be counted as 'contemporary' composers? (And perhaps Malcolm Arnold & Edmund Rubbra, too?)

Then again, I tend to think that any important composer working within my lifetime, whose music I saw or heard premiered in the late 1970s, 80s & 90s should be considered a 'contemporary' composer, whether they're living or not--especially those that were hugely influential as teachers, such as Holmboe, Persichetti, Rochberg, & Schuman.

Finally, there's also the question of what to make of Leif Segerstam's several hundred symphonies? (most of which I've not heard myself)... & Alan Hovhaness' 67 symphonies, too...


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## Portamento

That is a great list of composers which I'm sure will be addressed in due time. Trout's definition of contemporary (see #12) is "any composer that has a substantial or important body of work post circa-1975." Of the potentially borderline cases you list, I would argue for Englund, Rochberg, Simpson, Tippett, and (maybe) Kokkonen. Most of Holmboe's post-1975 output is obscure (although the late string quartets are some of his best) and Arnold, Pettersson, and Rubbra's inclusions all rest on their late symphonies. I don't think any of Segerstam's symphonies are popular enough to make the list; Hovhaness' certainly are, and #50 (1982), #60 (1985), and #66 (1992) would warrant his inclusion in my books.


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## Guest

dear trout, yr post jan 06,
i do apologize but i had not read your post until today march 28 th; my file has grown immensely since jan; i consider the performers to be vitally important, because they often play different versions of the same piece and on top of that i find the quality of the performers to be of paramount importance; i only give one asterisk and it means that i like the piece and the performance; as i read a lot i am sometimes influenced by the opinion of my peers; my list is in fact my collection; i own all the records of my list, because i only listen with headphones; although i focus on contemporary i am equally interested by other periods; my kick is to listen to new pieces every day; i have complete files on 200 contemporary composers, which i consider to be the best ones, so if you need help with any of them i can produce your list in one hour (i just need to check the dates of the pieces); i have noticed that you focus on orchestral, instrumental, vocal and tend to neglect chamber and piano pieces and i suppose you do that on purpose in order not to end up with too many entries; i looked at your lists today and some are extremely good (ligeti for example); others are weaker (ades, denisov, norgard); denisov has written concertos for all important instruments, yet i think your list only mentions one; norgard's piano music is only represented by one piece whereas his production is abundant and of extraordinary quality; rome was not built in one day but there are ways to speed up your process; you will find my updated list of contemporary composers on my thread : best contemporary composers; i will post it tonight; some of our members sometimes get carried away by their enthusiasm and do not really try to evaluate the importance of the composers; personally i try to do that, but am also interested by young promising composers who do not yet have a large body of work recorded; all the best marc


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## Trout

Hi Josquin,

Thanks for that list. A number of those composers are certainly in the immediate pipeline already, namely:



Josquin13 said:


> Magnus Lindberg
> John Tavener
> Friedrich Cerha
> George Rochberg
> Peteris Vasks
> Kalevi Aho
> Erkki-Sven Tüür
> Gavin Bryars
> James MacMillan


I hope to get to each of these composers as soon as I finish all of the "biggest names" shown here (minus Partch and Sessions).
The following group of composers, I would consider to be mid-priority as they are all fairly well-known and well-regarded but not essential (in my opinion of course):



Josquin13 said:


> Oliver Knussen
> Poul Ruders
> Bent Sørensen
> John Harbison
> Christopher Rouse
> Ned Rorem
> Peter Lieberson
> Esa-Pekka Salonen
> Joseph Schwantner
> Andrzej Panufnik
> Anders Hillborg
> Nicholas Maw
> Aullis Sallinen
> Einar Englund


Their inclusion may hinge upon my future motivation for this project after hopefully finishing the prior lists.
This last group are composers that are not on my radar at all for whatever reason. These may just be personal blindspots, but I would need to be really persuaded to include them (through independent research, posts here, or otherwise).



Josquin13 said:


> Paavo Heininen
> Ib Nørholm
> Arne Nordheim
> Harri Vuori
> Robin Holloway
> Tobias Picker
> Ivan Moody
> Gabriel Jackson
> Tarek O'Regan
> Simon Holt
> Colin Matthews
> David Matthews
> Alan Stout


As for those borderline cases, I think I agree with Portamento's assessments. I don't have a super strict policy for this list quite yet, but I'm reluctant to include too many "mid-century" composers that may have only a few post-70s works. Boulez and Lutoslawski among others may have been each arguable, but I would argue they each produced several late masterpieces in addition to their 50s output. Messiaen (one of my all-time favorite composers) was a difficult cut, but I still think his oeuvre's "center of gravity" clearly lies in the 1940s despite his late output. That's just a bit too early for me to consider him a contemporary composer.


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## Trout

Hi Marc,



marc bollansee said:


> i have complete files on 200 contemporary composers, which i consider to be the best ones, so if you need help with any of them i can produce your list in one hour (i just need to check the dates of the pieces)


If you have any recommendations on particular pieces, I'd certainly be interested in seeing them and factoring them in.



> ; i have noticed that you focus on orchestral, instrumental, vocal and tend to neglect chamber and piano pieces and i suppose you do that on purpose in order not to end up with too many entries; i looked at your lists today and some are extremely good (ligeti for example); others are weaker (ades, denisov, norgard); denisov has written concertos for all important instruments, yet i think your list only mentions one; norgard's piano music is only represented by one piece whereas his production is abundant and of extraordinary quality


I appreciate the feedback. I would agree that orchestral works are definitely favored in general but I'm not entirely sure how to correct for this. I try to make this as "objective" a process as possible and not impose any separate criteria/thresholds for different genres.

I included 5 Denisov concertos and 2 Norgard piano pieces, but I take your point. I did just add a piano work for Adès (_Traced Overhead_), but his entry could be longer. If you see any specific glaring omissions, again I'd be glad to hear.


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## Portamento

I understand you have a list of composers that you want to work your way through, but please consider Nancarrow next. Here's what I've scrounged together from forums, blogs, and books (primarily Kyle Gann's _The Music of Conlon Nancarrow_):

- String Quartet No. 1 (1945)
- Study No. 2a [player piano] (late 1940s)
- Study No. 3 "Boogie-Woogie Suite" [player piano] (1948) ⋆⋆⋆
- Study No. 6 [player piano] (between 1948 and 1960) ⋆⋆
- Study No. 7 [player piano] (between 1948 and 1960) 
- Study No. 24 [canon for player piano] (between 1948 and 1960)
- Study No. 25 [player piano] (between 1948 and 1960)
- Study No. 21 [canon for player piano] (1961) ⋆⋆⋆
- Study No. 20 "Cloud" [player piano] (probably ca. 1965) ⋆⋆
- Study No. 33 [canon for player piano] (ca. 1968)
- Study No. 36 [canon for player piano] (ca. 1970) ⋆⋆⋆
- Study No. 37 [canon for player piano] (1969) ⋆⋆
- Study No. 40 "Transcendental" [2 canons for player piano; combined for 2 synchronized player pianos] (ca. 1975) ⋆⋆
- Study No. 41 [2 canons for player piano; combined for 2 synchronized player pianos] (completed between 1969 and 1977)
- Study No. 48 [2 pieces for player piano; combined for 2 player pianos] (1975-77) ⋆⋆⋆
- Study No. 45 "Betty Freeman Suite (Boogie-Woogie Suite No. 2)" [player piano] (1982-83) ⋆⋆
- Study No. 47 [canon for player piano] (prior to 1984)
- String Quartet No. 3 (1987) ⋆⋆

I strongly recommend the studies stay separate as they were published individually and were not intended to be played as a cycle.


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## Guest

Hi Trout, Thks for your kind message. I will get back to you with some proposals at the end of next week. Marc


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## Trout

Let's enter the groovy, hypnotic world of Terry Riley. For as famous as he is in the classical world for _In C_ and _A Rainbow in Curved Air_, his other work goes largely unmentioned despite it being right up there in terms of quality. Of all the composers I've looked at, I think Terry Riley has the most crossover appeal with fans of other music genres, namely jazz, world/folk, ambient, and even rock. This may be due to the fact that a good portion of his music lies at some unique intersection of all those. I trust that all the pieces listed can be considered "classical" in some sense of the word as I removed a couple that I thought strayed a bit too far: his collaborative album _Church of Anthrax_ with John Cale and his jazzy, Indian-inspired _Atlantis Nath_.

I was (and still am) a big fan of _In C_ and its many great performances, but I only really recently came around to hearing Riley's other music. His _Persian Surgery Dervishes_ are just as brilliant as Glass's early electric keyboard works, if not moreso. And I found his tape work _You're No Good_ to be kind of like Steve Reich's early tape experiments but on acid. It starts with trippy phasings of a pop song in snippets until it deconstructs into madness. I cannot wait to see what else I've been missing out on my whole life.


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## Portamento

I've got to explore more Riley. I remember _You're No Good_ from the electronic works project and your description sums it up well.

How close is Rautavaara's _Piano Concerto No. 1_ to three stars? I've always considered it his greatest work.


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> I've got to explore more Riley. I remember _You're No Good_ from the electronic works project and your description sums it up well.
> 
> How close is Rautavaara's _Piano Concerto No. 1_ to three stars? I've always considered it his greatest work.


It's actually pretty close, the closest of his 2-star pieces along with _Symphony No. 3_. It might also be his most popular work (citation needed) so it seems pretty bump-able right now. I'll look into it a bit more.


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## Guest

hello trout, congrats for the riley list;love it; plse find hereafter my suggestions for additions ; best marc
Ades, Thomas
-Polaris for orchestra and screens (2010)
-Concerto for piano and orchestra (2018)
-Concerto conciso for piano and chamber ensemble (1997)
-Lieux retrouvés for cello and piano (2009)
-The Four Quarters for SQ (2010)
-Darknesse visible for solo piano (1992)
-The exterminating Angel, Opera (2016)

Denisov, Edison
-Peinture for orchestra (1970)
-Piano Concerto (1974)
-Oboe Concerto (1986)
-Viola Concerto (1986)
-Clarinet Concerto (1989)
-Chamber Music for viola, harpsichord and strings (1982)
-Clarinet Quintet (1987)
-Quintet for piano and saxophone quartet (1991)

Furrer, Beat
-Chiaroscuro for large orchestra (1983/1986)
-Gaspra for ensemble (1988)
-Orpheus Bücher for strings, voices and orchestra (2001)
-Dort ist das Meer for 12 voices and orchestra (1986)

Haas, Georg Friedrich
-Descendiendo for large orchestra (1993)
-Poème for large orchestra (2005)
-Piano Concerto (2007)
-Dark Dreams for orchestra (2013)
-Aus-Weg for 8 instruments (2010)
-Monodie for 18 instruments (1998/1999)
-Solstices for 10 instruments (2019)
-String Quartet no 9 (2016)

Murail, Tristan 
-Couleur de Mer for 15 instruments (1969)
-La Barque mystique for 5 instruments (1993)
-La Mandragore for piano (1993)
-Les Nuages de Magellan for ondes Martenot (1973)
Nörgard, Per
-Fragments I-IV for piano (1959-1961)
-Nine Studies op 25 B for piano (1959)
-Four Sketches op 25 A for piano (1959)
-Nine Friends for piano (1984)

Rihm, Wolfgang
-Schattenstück for orchestra (1985)
-Abkehr for orchestra (1985)
-Horn Concerto (2013-2014)
-Seraphin-Sphäre for ensemble (1993-1996/2006)


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## Trout

Thanks Marc for all of your suggestions! I looked at them all and my current tallies and here's what I'm able to add to the list right now:

Adès: Darknesse Visible
Adès: The Exterminating Angel
Adès: The Four Quarters
Adès: Polaris
Denisov: Clarinet Concerto
Denisov: Oboe Concerto
Denisov: Peinture
Furrer: Orpheus' Bücher
Furrer: Gaspra
Murail: Les Nuages de Magellan

If there are any that you listed that you really think are big omissions, I would need to see some other sources (preferably professional reviews or articles) recommending them.

And in other news, I also decided to promote the Rautavaara piano concerto. And Riley's _You're No Good_ too (which probably should have been higher initially).


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## Guest

hello trout, 
thks for your kind reply. i think the norgard piano pieces i mentioned are seminal and at the core of his infinity series. piano is his instrument and his development of other pieces often starts there. it is peinture for the denisov piece.
even if you decide not to include the norgard pieces i invite you to listen to them.all the best marc


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## Roger Knox

Trout said:


> And just a few other changes:
> 
> And the Wolfgang Rihm entry is now complete! ... Two of his operas _Die Eroberung von Mexico_ and _Jakob Lenz_ are pretty impressive ...


I heard _Jacob Lenz_ in a live concert version and liked it -- very suited to the original play.


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## Trout

With Portamento's generous help (yet again!), Conlon Nancarrow's player piano rolls have been added to the list. I am tempted to call his works "Ligetian", but actually Ligeti's (piano) works should be called "Nancarrowan." Regardless, while his studies are each pretty short, they are extremely dense and complex and reward many subsequent listens. I've only read a small fraction of Kyle Gann's analyses, but I have no doubt that the book would enhance my appreciation and admiration.


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## Trout

And with that entry complete, I'm planning to take a bit of a break before tackling the next one. When this resumes, the agenda will likely be as follows:

Romitelli, Fausto
Rzewski, Frederic
Saariaho, Kaija
Sciarrino, Salvatore
Sculthorpe, Peter
Silvestrov, Valentin
Stockhausen, Karlheinz
Tavener, John
Vasks, Pēteris
Wuorinen, Charles
Xenakis, Iannis
Young, La Monte


In the meantime, feel free to let me know if there are any pieces missing, if you want to see any particular works on a higher tier, or any other general feedback. I hope everyone has been finding this as enjoyable and useful as I have!


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## Larkenfield




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## Trout

In the interim, I've made a number of promotions with perhaps a few more to follow:

Babbitt: Semi-Simple Variations (now listed)
Boulez: Piano Sonata No. 1 (now 3-star)
Cage: 108 (now listed)
Cage: A Book of Music (now listed)
Cage: Dream (now 2-star)
Cage: Fontana Mix (now 2-star)
Cage: Four Walls (now listed)
Cage: Four6 (now listed)
Cage: Imaginary Landscape No. 4 (now listed)
Cage: Ryoanji (now 2-star)
Cage: Suite for Toy Piano (now 2-star)
Denisov: Chamber Symphony No. 2 (now listed)
Denisov: Piano Concerto (now listed)
Denisov: Saxophone Concerto (now 2-star)
Denisov: Sonata for Saxophone and Cello (now listed)
Nørgård: Turn (now listed)
Takemitsu: Gitimalya (now listed)
Takemitsu: In the Woods (now listed)
Takemitsu: Marginalia (now listed)

If I have the time in the coming days, I hope to finish up entries on perhaps the two biggest names missing from the list.


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## science

So much good work there.


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## Trout

Thanks, science.

I've been meaning to bump this thread to announce that I've finally added entries for Stockhausen and Xenakis. I haven't had much time to listen to their works recently to make a proper post, but they are two composers I admire and need to explore more. And hopefully their inclusions now will lend a bit more credibility to the list.


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## Portamento

May I suggest you add Kalevi Aho to your to-do list? I've been meaning to explore his output lately, but it's so vast that an entry telling me where to start would be of much use.


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## leonsm

Contemporary composers with a not so much contemporary language may have a entry here? If yes, I humbly suggest the name of Yoshimatsu.


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## Trout

No promises, but Aho should be in the next batch.



leonsm said:


> Contemporary composers with a not so much contemporary language may have a entry here? If yes, I humbly suggest the name of Yoshimatsu.


I don't disqualify anyone because of style, but I am prioritizing composers that are sui generis and have been at the forefront of significant movements or schools. I'll admit Yoshimatsu has slipped my mind, but I wouldn't discount him. He just may not show up for a while, assuming the longevity of this project.

And as a side note, a few more promotions:

Andriessen: Rosa (now listed)
Nono: "Hay que caminar" soñando (now 2-star)
Stockhausen: Erwachen (now listed)
Stockhausen: Freude (now 2-star)
Stockhausen: Hoffnung (now listed)
Stockhausen: Natürliche Dauern (now listed)
Xenakis: Khoaï (now listed)


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## tortkis

I think this is an interesting and valuable project. I like to know individual's favorite composers/works but also I am curious about what contemporary works are widely regarded as standout. There are not so many guides like this.

I know almost nothing about Carter's works except for some string quartets, and I will check out some from the list. (Just listened to Variations for Orchestra (***).) There is no star for his works in the 21st century. His late works are not generally regarded as high as his earlier works, or it's too early to assess? I love Cage's number pieces but rarely see discussions about each work. It's interesting that Four, Fourteen, Seven[SUP]2[/SUP] and Fifty-Eight got stars.


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## Trout

I appreciate the kind words, tortkis.



tortkis said:


> I know almost nothing about Carter's works except for some string quartets, and I will check out some from the list. (Just listened to Variations for Orchestra (***).) There is no star for his works in the 21st century. His late works are not generally regarded as high as his earlier works, or it's too early to assess? I love Cage's number pieces but rarely see discussions about each work. It's interesting that Four, Fourteen, Seven[SUP]2[/SUP] and Fifty-Eight got stars.


I think Carter's late works seem to be the most obscure part of his oeuvre, generally only known to Carter aficionados. I'm not exactly sure as to why this is. Perhaps his high productivity late in life worked against him as none of those works had much space to stand out. His compositional style also changed a bit as he reduced much of the density and length of his prior works and, to my mind, became more accessible. I personally quite like and even prefer some of his late works, especially his _Cello Concerto_ and _Horn Concerto_.

Sometimes, sets of pieces like Cage's number pieces tend to garner more recommendations as a whole compared to most of the individual pieces. These are instances when it is incumbent on me to select which works end up where, which is a bit more subjective than usual. In this case, those four Cage pieces are by my counts the most recommended but I don't think I would consider them significantly better/more-liked compared to his other number works. There are also quite a few that I excluded from the list that perhaps quality-wise should be on there, but I had to draw lines somewhere.


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## Portamento

How close are the following works from making the list?

- Adams: American Berserk (2001)
- Adams: Guide to Strange Places (2001)
- Adams: The Gospel According to the Other Mary (2012)
- Adams: Scheherazade.2 (2014)
- Górecki: Symphony No. 4, op. 85 "Tansman Epizody" (2006)
- Harvey: Messages (2008)
- Reich: Pulse (2015)


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> - Adams: American Berserk (2001)
> - Adams: Scheherazade.2 (2014)


These two were close so I can add them, but the others were unfortunately not really on my radar...


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## Guest

hello trout, 
your project is tremendous and not surprisingly you make the same choices as mine; it is simply the result of hard work; i totally respect your ethical way of making selections; you are now at a level of about 50 + composers and i confirm you have made the right choices for each of them; i could tell you that i listen to my favourite composer,xenakis, since 1958 and that akrata and echange are worth a zillion stars, but you got it right for all the other entries.
as a challenge to you and all tc members i send you a list of the +- 200 contemporary composers i cherish most at this point in time;

Contemporary Classical Composers: Index

-Argentina : Golijov 
-Armenia : Mansourian 
-Australia : L.Lim*, Sculthorpe, Vine
-Austria : Cerha*, G.F.Haas*, Larcher, Mitterer, Neuwirth 
-Azerbaijan: Ali-Sadeh
-Bulgaria : Tabakova
-Canada : Mozetich, Vivier
-China: Q.Chen, Y.Chen, Lei Liang, Bright Sheng, Tan Dun, Zhou Long
-Croatia: M.Ivicevic
-Czechoslovakia : Kalabis 
-Denmark : Abrahamsen, Gudmundsen-Holmgreen, Norgard*, Ruders 
-England: Ades*, J.Anderson, N.Barrett, R.Barrett, Benjamin, Birtwistle*, Cardew , Clyne, Ferneyhough*, Finnissy *, Goehr , Grange, Harvey , Hesketh, Leighton, Maxwell-Davies, Pickard, Saunders*, R.Simpson, R.Stevenson, J.Tavener, Turnage, Weir 
-Estonia : Eespere, Part, Sumera*, Tormis, Tuur 
-Finland : Aho, Fagerlund , Kokkonen, Lindberg*, Rautavaara*, Saariaho* , Sallinen, Salonen
-France: André, Bayle, Beffa, Bertrand, Boulez*, Canat de Chizy, Cavanna, Connesson, Dalbavie*, Dhomont, Dufourt, Dusapin*, Escaich, Greif , Grisey, Levinas , Manoury*, Mantovani, Messiaen, Murail*, Pecou , Tanguy
-Georgia : Kancheli* 
-Germany : Bauckholt*, Henze, Hölszny, Lachenmann, Mundry*, Pintscher, Rihm*, Ruzicka*, Spahlinger, Stockhausen*, Widmann* 
-Greece : Aperghis, Xenakis* 
-Hungary: Eötvös, Kurtag, Ligeti *
-Iceland: Guonadottir, Ingolfsson, Jonsdottir, Thorvaldsdottir*
-Israel: Czernowin, Ran
-Italy: Berio*, Francesconi, Nono*, Scelsi* , Sciarrino
-Japan : Fujikura, Mochizuki, Nishimura , Takemitsu* 
-Korea : Chin* 
-Latvia : Vasks 
-Lithuania : Narbutaite
-Mexico : Paredes
-Netherlands : L.Andriessen, Van der Aa 
-Norway : Buene, Nordheim 
-Poland : Gorecki, Penderecki*, Zubel* 
-Rumania: Radulescu* 
-Russia: Artyomov, Gubaidulina*, Khorkova, Raskatov, Schnittke*, Tishchenko , Ustvolskaya *
-Scotland: Dillon, Hinton, Knussen, MacMillan*
-Serbia: Djordjevic
-Slovakia: Godar* 
-South Africa: Volans
-Spain: E.Mendoza, Parra, Posadas*, 
-Switzerland: Furrer, Huber
-Sweden: Hillborg*, Pettersson*, Skog, Tarrodi 
-Ukraine: Desyatnikov, Silvestrov
-United States: J.Adams , J.L.Adams* , Auerbach , Bates, Cage*, Carter* , Corigliano , G.Crumb, Currier, J.Eastman, Eckardt , Fairouz* , Feldman*, R.Gibson, Glass, Harrison, Hersch, Higdon*, T.Johnson, Kernis, La Monte Young*, D.Lang, Liebermann, A.Lucier, I.Marshall , Matheson, Missy Mazzoli , Monk , Muhly, Oliveros, Perich, Persichetti, Reich*, Reynolds, Riley*, Rzewski, Schwantner, L.Schwendinger, Sharp, Taaffe-Zwilich, A.R.Thomas, Torke, Tower*, Tsontakis, Wolfe*


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## Trout

Incredible list, Marc! I think I've heard of most of them, but I can only claim to be really familiar with a small handful of them. I hope to give them all their due as a listener when I have the time.


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## tortkis

How about Christian Wolff? Maybe not as popular as Cage or Feldman, but he seems regarded highly and there are substantial number of recordings.


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## science

I was looking for this and I figured since I appreciate Trout's work here so much it's worth bumping in case anyone hasn't seen it!


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## Trout

Thanks again science for the kind words.

Just an update to say that Kaija Saariaho's entry has been added. One of my favorite composers, Saariaho manages to elicit a profound intellectual and emotional response from me, the latter of which much of contemporary music either fails to or fails at attempting to. This is not necessarily a dig on current music as not everything has to move me to be enjoyable. However, I do find it increasingly less common for composers to strive for this expressly, focusing instead on a more visceral and intellectual approach. Thankfully, Saariaho manages to do all the above in her own beautiful language. Some of her pieces with electronics were among the first that I encountered that really blew my mind and widened my view on how the medium can be used.

I've finished up a couple other entries in the interim, and I'm hoping that this project will be a bit more active in the near future.


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## Portamento

I'm liking the Young entry. Have you ever heard _Just Charles & Cello in the Romantic Chord_? The sole recording by the dedicatee is extremely elusive (and expensive!)-according to the CD's liner notes: "The new work was composed specifically for Charles Curtis, who has studied the performance technique with Young in the guru-disciple method of oral transmission over a period of years. The work is not intended to be played by other cellists unless they study it with Young in the same way...."

If you ask me, that's bordering on pretentious.


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> I'm liking the Young entry. Have you ever heard _Just Charles & Cello in the Romantic Chord_? The sole recording by the dedicatee is extremely elusive (and expensive!)-according to the CD's liner notes: "The new work was composed specifically for Charles Curtis, who has studied the performance technique with Young in the guru-disciple method of oral transmission over a period of years. The work is not intended to be played by other cellists unless they study it with Young in the same way...."
> 
> If you ask me, that's bordering on pretentious.


Young's music is notoriously hard to find and listen to. I've only heard a couple short samples of that piece that I found available on some obscure site and, well, they were all just cello drones. Any special performance technique was lost on me, though I admit Young's music is not exactly my cup of tea and, thus, I haven't paid the closest attention to the sounds. I respect his vision and style, but the music doesn't hypnotize me in the way Riley's or Glass's manages. I do find much of _The Well-Tuned Piano_ quite fascinating though.

And since the cat's out of the bag, here's a link to Young's ironically short entry (unlike much of his music).

And in other news, there is one new addition to Haas's entry: his _Solstices_ (2019). I hope you're happy if you're reading this, Marc!


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## Trout

I recently stumbled upon a fascinating survey of 21st-century classical music (click on "Get more information") from 113 leading conductors, critics, art directors, and musicologists in Europe's contemporary music scene. The results unsurprisingly seem to skew toward a similar avant-garde aesthetic, that of the so-called "Third Viennese School", but I still find them to be rich with recommendations.

I've incorporated all the relevant results in my current tallies, thus bumping up the following works:

Abrahamsen: Four Pieces for Orchestra (now listed)
Adams: The Gospel According to the Other Mary (now listed)
Adès: In Seven Days (now 2-star)
Berio: Piano Sonata (now listed)
Boulez: Dérive 2 (now 3-star)
Chin: Le Silence des Sirènes (now listed)
Furrer: Enigma I-VI (now listed)
Furrer: FAMA (now 3-star)
Gubaidulina: Glorious Percussion (now listed)
Haas: Atthis (now listed)
Haas: dark dreams (now listed)
Harvey: Speakings (now 2-star)
Kurtág: Colindă Baladă (now listed)
Lachenmann: Concertini (now 3-star)
Lachenmann: Schreiben (now 2-star)
Murail: Terre d'Ombre (now listed)
Rihm: Dionysos (now 2-star)
Rihm: Sieben Passions-Texte (now listed)
Saariaho: Laterna Magica (now 2-star)
Van der Aa: Blank Out (now 2-star)
Van dar Aa: One (now listed)


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## Trout

Two completed entries to announce:

Frederic Rzewski

Salvatore Sciarrino

Both composers I have come around to recently and now enjoy quite a lot. Sciarrino's music, especially, has left a really great impression. A number of his works like _Studi per l'intonazione del mare_ are immensely evocative through its quiet, yet powerful timbres. And his work _Efebo con radio_ is a delightful sound collage, not too far removed from those by Schnittke or even Ives.


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## Portamento

Bump. 

Aho, Kancheli, Silvestrov are three of the best-known names not included in this project thus far. I hope you still plan to continue.


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> Aho, Kancheli, Silvestrov are three of the best-known names not included in this project thus far. I hope you still plan to continue.


Thanks for the bump, Portamento.

Yes, at the very least, I'll soon finish the half-complete Silvestrov entry collecting digital dust on my laptop. Available free time and motivation for this project (and classical/contemporary music in general) are fairly cyclical for me and the latter especially has been at a bit of a trough in the past couple months. Not that I don't love it still, but other interests, like film, have prioritized themselves recently.

When I do "return" to this, the following composers would be among the next entrants:

Aho, Kalevi
Benjamin, George
Corigliano, John
Dhomont, Francis
Dusapin, Pascal
Ferrari, Luc
Hovhaness, Alan
Kancheli, Giya
Lindberg, Magnus
MacMillan, James
Monk, Meredith
Oliveros, Pauline
Parmegiani, Bernard
Radulescu, Horatiu
Rochberg, George
Romitelli, Fausto
Sculthorpe, Peter
Silvestrov, Valentin
Tavener, John
Vasks, Pēteris
Wuorinen, Charles


----------



## science

Let's bump this! It's one of the best things going on here!


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## chu42

Nice list. I will wait patiently for the addition of Ives.


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## Trout

chu42 said:


> Nice list. I will wait patiently for the addition of Ives.


Thanks, chu. Ives unfortunately falls outside the scope of this project as he composed during the early part of the last century. I'm looking for more recent composers. The cutoff for this project to determine if a composer qualifies is seeing if they have a sizable body of work since the 1970s. If you know of any important ones missing, please do let me know!


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## jiraffejustin

This is a tremendous resource, especially for somebody like me that doesn't really know which way to look for music recommendations. Thanks so much for your hard work.


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## science

So I find myself consulting this again...


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## Portamento

science said:


> So I find myself consulting this again...


Yup. I do it almost weekly.


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## Trout

I appreciate all the support, guys. I really want to try to get back to this at some point in the near future. Life has been really busy the past month or so and will continue to be probably until the holiday season. But I hope that you all continue to show your enthusiasm for contemporary music both in this thread and on the forums. I am always interested in finding new names to explore and blind spots to uncover. I hope that we ultimately help create a contemporary music repertoire (not just referring to this project) that is as large, diverse, and informative as possible.

Thanks a lot.


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## Portamento

I found a video of La Monte Young's elusive _Just Charles & Cello in the Romantic Chord_! There's a Wayback Machine archive of a taken-down YouTube video from 2011.

https://web.archive.org/web/20121007215033/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7-hQ6TZTGk

I'll definitely be hearing this soon.


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## Trout

Happy holidays everyone.

I'm just bumping this to announce that I finally added a new entry: Peteris Vasks. I myself am quite a fan of Vasks' music, especially his highly recommended Violin Concerto and his 4th String Quartet with its haunting final movement.


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## Trout

I also just completed the entry for the late, great Giya Kancheli. My personal favorites of his works are his Symphony No. 5 and his _Lament_, but I definitely plan to explore more.


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## Trout

Here is my last addition for now: Magnus Lindberg.


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## 20centrfuge

I'm working my way through the list and listening to the 3 star recordings. Thanks Trout for all of your hard work.


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## Trout

I'm planning to add a new entry in the next day or so. In the meantime, here are some recent promotions:

Boulez: Incises (now added)
Crumb: Eleven Echoes of Autumn (now added)
Denisov: Cello Concerto (now 2-star)
Feldman: Principal Sound (now added)
Ferneyhough: Exordium (now added)
Furrer: Presto (now added)
Haas: Piano Concerto (now added)
Stockhausen: Sternklang (now 2-star)


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## Trout

Here is the new entry for George Benjamin. It may seem rather short, but that is actually a fairly good chunk of the current oeuvre of one of the best 21st-century composers. _Written on Skin_ is, in my opinion and that of many others, a powerful masterpiece. On the list, he's one of only 4 composers who composed a 3-star work from the 2010s (the others being Abrahamsen, JL Adams, and Haas). He additionally has some of the most recent pieces currently listed. He is a major figure indeed, and I look forward to including many more of his pieces in the coming years.

By the way, I recognize that most all of his listed pieces are large, orchestral ones. I'm not yet familiar enough with his work as a whole to know if that's just the orchestral bias popping up again, or if that is simply a stronger medium for him (or perhaps some of both). However, if anyone wants to advocate for some of his works for other ensembles, I'd be happy to hear.


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## Trout

A few more promotions, courtesy of Harrison Birtwistle:

Berio: Concertino (now listed)
Birtwistle: Deep Time (now listed)
Birtwistle: Gigue Machine (now listed)
Birtwistle: Nine Movements (now listed)
Birtwistle: Donum Simoni MMXVIII (now listed)
Chin: Alice in Wonderland (now 2-star)
Chin: Rocaná (now 2-star)
Crumb: Zeitgeist (now listed)
Davies: Symphony No. 6 (now 2-star)
Ferneyhough: Bone Alphabet (now 2-star)
Ferneyhough: Shadowtime (now 2-star)
Ferneyhough: Transit (now 2-star)
Furrer: spur (now 2-star)
Takemitsu: Air (now listed)
Xenakis: Nuits (now 2-star)


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## 20centrfuge

I wish this could be made “sticky” so I wouldn’t have to search for it.


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## Trout

Thanks, I think the project is a bit overdue for some new entries. I have been thinking about Wuorinen, in light of his recent passing.


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## Trout

Here's an entry to recognize the belated Charles Wuorinen. I discovered his thrilling oratorio _Genesis_ shortly before his passing which became one of my favorite contemporary choral works. I found its cousin, the _Mass_, more elusive upon first hearing, but I now consider it tremendously awe-inspiring and beautiful upon re-listens. I also particularly enjoy his percussive _Third Piano Concerto_ with its shifting tones and textures. His passing was a tremendous loss, but if there is any silver lining, hopefully there will be some renewed interest in his works both in the concert hall and on disc. I think many of his works certainly deserve more interpretations, or, in the case of some, a premiere recording.

And just an update on the composers in the next batch (whenever that may be...), I am considering the following:

Aho, Kalevi
Bryars, Gavin
Cerha, Friedrich
Corigliano, John
Dillon, James
Dusapin, Pascal
Eötvös, Peter
Ferrari, Luc
Golijov, Osvaldo
MacMillan, James
Monk, Meredith
Oliveros, Pauline
Radulescu, Horatiu
Rochberg, George
Romitelli, Fausto
Sallinen, Aulis
Saunders, Rebecca
Sculthorpe, Peter
Tavener, John


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## Portamento

Thanks for the Rădulescu entry!


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## 20centrfuge

I’ve been listening to some Gabriela Lena Frank. I’m very impressed so far. Worthy of the list, I believe.


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## ORigel

Great list for when I explore contemporary music more. The Xenakis entry is missing _Epicycles_ (1989). I do not know enough about the others to comment.


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## Trout

Thanks Portamento for bumping. There are 3 new entries on the site in total since my last post:

- Péter Eötvös
- Horațiu Rădulescu
- Peter Sculthorpe



ORigel said:


> Great list for when I explore contemporary music more. The Xenakis entry is missing _Epicycles_ (1989). I do not know enough about the others to comment.


Thanks. That particular Xenakis work is completely new to me and sounds quite interesting. Do you have any other sources to merit its inclusion?


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## Trout

Hot off the presses: James Dillon.

And I made a few promotions mainly to correct for some bad omissions:

- Finnissy: Contretänze (now listed)
- Finnissy: Seven Sacred Motets (now listed)
- Radulescu: String Quartet #4 (now 3-star)
- Radulescu: String Quartet #5 (now 3-star)
- Rzewski: The Road (now listed)
- Saariaho: Amers (now listed)
- Saariaho: Grammaire des rêves (now listed)


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## Portamento

mmsbls has kindly agreed to make this a sticky thread. No more bumping needed!


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## ORigel

I do not know. I just like it, as I do much of Xenakis's output.

Edit: it is a chamber work for solo cello and eleven other instruments. This is far removed from compositions like Metastasis-- it is melodic. It is a good piece for those new to Xenakis.


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## Trout

Portamento said:


> mmsbls has kindly agreed to make this a sticky thread. No more bumping needed!


Wow, thanks a lot to the both of you! It's definitely gratifying to know that this project can be seen as a useful resource for many listeners here.

But I hope this is not just a one-man show and that anyone knowledgeable about the era can provide some guidance or anyone simply interested can share their opinions on the music. After all, I'm hoping to learn as much as anyone else through this process.


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## 20centrfuge

If you'd like me to, Trout, I would be willing to do some research and make recommendations for the music of Gabriela Lena Frank. I'd let you know also why I make those recommendations with simple documentation. I honestly don't know her oeuvre well at all, but I'd be willing to work on it so you don't have to be like Atlas and take the world on your shoulders.


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## Portamento

20centrfuge said:


> If you'd like me to, Trout, I would be willing to do some research and make recommendations for the music of Gabriela Lena Frank. I'd let you know also why I make those recommendations with simple documentation. I honestly don't know her oeuvre well at all, but I'd be willing to work on it so you don't have to be like Atlas and take the world on your shoulders.


You do Frank and I'll do Donatoni. Divide and conquer.


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## 20centrfuge

Doing a non-scientific survey using the following online sources (as well as general internet surfing )

Composer's own website: https://www.glfcam.com/people/gabriela
A survey of recordings available on Spotify, Arkivmusic, YouTube
An interview by the composer on YouTube
An article in the "San Francisco Classical Voice"
Wikipedia
wisemusicclassical.com

She has an oeuvre of about 50 works. I tried to pair it down to those works that seem to be getting the most buzz or that represent significant commissions of large scale works.

*Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout *(String Quartet or String Orchestra, 2001, recorded by Chiara and Del Sol Quartets). She refers to this as her breakout work. It also seems to be the most performed of her works. Maybe ** worthy.

Other key works seem to be:
-*Sueños de Chambi: Shapshots for an Andean Album,* for violin & piano (2002)
-*Three Latin-American Dances for Orchestra* (2003)
-*Adagio para Amantini *for Cello and Piano (2007)
-*Quijotadas*: String Quartet (2007)
-*Hilos* (Threads) for clarinet, violin, cello and piano (2010) 
-*Apu: Tone Poem for Orchestra* (2017)
-*Conquest Requiem* (premiered 2017) for soprano, baritone, chorus and orchestra commissioned by the Houston Symphony
-*El último sueño de Frida y Diego*, Opera (2019) (Premiering spring of next year, presumably because of COVID, co-commissioned by the San Diego and Fort Worth Opera companies. Her first opera.)

I hope this helps!

Also, for what its worth, I think Quijotadas is good enough to become part of the standard repertoire but that is entirely my opinion!


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## Portamento

Alright, here's what I've got for Donatoni:

- Musica [chamber orch.] (1954-55)
- Doubles [harpsichord] (1961)
- Puppenspiel [étude for orch.] (1961)
- Puppenspiel II [flute & orch.] (1966)
- Etwas ruhiger im Ausdruck [5 instrs.] (1967) ★★
- Souvenir "Kammersymphonie opus 18" [15 instrs.] (1967)
- Duo pour Bruno [orch.] (1974-75) ★★★
- Lumen [6 instrs.] (1975) ★★
- Ash [8 instrs.] (1976)
- Portrait [harpsichord & orch.] (1976-77)
- Algo [2 pieces for guitar] (1977)
- Ali [2 pieces for viola] (1977)
- Spiri [6 instrs.] (1977) ★★★
- Toy [2 violins, viola, & harpsichord] (1977)
- De près [female voice, 2 piccolos, & 3 violins] (1978)
- Argot [2 pieces for violin] (1979)
- Marches [2 pieces for harp] (1979)
- Nidi [2 pieces for piccolo] (1979)
- Le Ruisseau sur l'escalier [cello & 19 performers] (1980)	
- L'Ultima sera [mezzo-soprano & 5 instrs.] (1980)
- Fili [flute & piano] (1981)
- Tema [12 instrs.] (1981) ★★
- Ala [2 pieces for cello and double bass] (1983)
- Rima [2 pieces for piano] (1983)
- Cadeau [11 performers] (1984) ★★
- Ombra [2 pieces for contrabass clarinet] (1984)
- In cauda [choir & orch.] (1982-86) ★★
- Arpège [6 instrs.] (1986) ★★★
- Refrain [8 instrs.] (1986) ★★
- Hot [sopranino (or tenor) saxophone & 6 instrs.] (1989) ★★
- Soft [bass clarinet] (1989)
- Rasch [4 saxophones] (1990)
- Madrigale [4 children's choruses & 4 percussionists] (1991)
- Alfred, Alfred [comic opera in 7 scenes and 6 intermezzos] (1995)
- Rasch II [saxophone quartet, marimba, vibraphone, piano, & percussion] (1995)
- Françoise Variationen [piano] (1983-96) ★★
- Prom [orch.] (1999)
- ESA (In cauda V) [orch.] (2000) ★★

Donatoni wrote quite a lot so this took a while to compile. He had an interesting habit of revising/recontextualizing old works. For example, _Alamari_ (cello, double bass, piano) is based on _Ala_ (cello, double bass) and _Rima_ (piano); both the instrumentations and names are combined to create a new composition with its own unique identity. Also, I tried to be as objective as possible, which is not too difficult when I haven't heard most of these pieces!


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## Trout

Thank you both for your lists! They are very helpful. I am honestly not familiar at all with Gabriela Lena Frank so I will do some research to see how important her work seems to be to the classical music world today. I do know Donatoni, however, and agree that he would be a good addition. On the list, I only know and enjoy some of the 2-/3-star works so I look forward to learning more!


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## 20centrfuge

You are completely welcome to use or not use the info on Frank at your discretion. It was a valuable experience for me to sift through her work so I won’t view it as time wasted in the event that she isn’t put on the list at this time. 

Sincerely, just think of me as your servant who did a little work on your behalf. I appreciate all the hard work you have put into this list of contemporary repertoire.


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## Portamento

20centrfuge said:


> You are completely welcome to use or not use the info on Frank at your discretion. It was a valuable experience for me to sift through her work so I won't view it as time wasted in the event that she isn't put on the list at this time.


I think it's harder to put younger composers on the list because there hasn't been enough time for "history" to evaluate their work. Obviously, that's also part of the beauty with contemporary music!


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## calvinpv

Trout said:


> But I hope this is not just a one-man show and that anyone knowledgeable about the era can provide some guidance or anyone simply interested can share their opinions on the music. After all, I'm hoping to learn as much as anyone else through this process.


Since I'm due up to present a work by Philippe Manoury in the 1980-2000 listening group, I'll use this opportunity to listen/re-listen to a number of his works over the next couple weeks and then create a list of recommendations. He's a good one to add to the project and is a good example of being one of those composers who's famous everywhere in the contemporary music world except on TC.


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## Trout

A Philippe Manoury list would be great! I know much less about him than I probably should.

I made some new entries in the past week or so:

- Franco Donatoni
- Luc Ferrari
- Fausto Romitelli
- Claude Vivier

And here are some updates, mainly to old entries:

Abrahamsen: Marchenbilder (now listed)
Adams, JL: Become Desert (now 2-star)
Adams, JL: Canticles of the Holy Wind (now listed)
Andriessen: Hoketus (now 2-star)
Andriessen: Workers Union (now 2-star)
Babbitt: Consortini (now listed)
Babbitt: Groupwise (now listed)
Babbitt: Images (now listed)
Babbitt: Melismata (now listed)
Babbitt: Phonemena (now listed)
Davies: Symphony No. 3 (now 2-star)
Davies: Symphony No. 6 (now 2-star)
Kagel: Acustica (now 2-star)
Kurtág: ...quasi una fantasia... (now 2-star)
Kurtág: Double Concerto (now listed)
Kurtág: Messages of the Late Miss R.V. Troussova (now 3-star)
Kurtág: Splinters (now listed)
Murail: Portulan (now listed)
Murail: Tellur (now 2-star)
Nono: Sarà dolce tacere (now listed)
Pärt: Psalom (now listed)
Rihm: IN-SCHRIFT (now listed)
Wuorinen: Spinoff (now listed)


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## cougarjuno

only suggestions as these five are all significant composers that I do not see on your list:

Michael Daugherty
Eric Ewazen
Alan Hovhaness
James MacMillan
Michael Torke
Robert Ward


----------



## RogerWaters

Out of curiosity, what is your definition of 'contemporary classical music'? Much of this sounds no different from ambient music, in everything but instrumental choice. This makes me wonder whether ambient electronic artists such as (but certainly not limited to) Tangerine Dream; Klaus Shulze; Ash Ra should be included. I can think of two criterion for potentially ruling them out, which you might be using:

1. Artists must make music for instruments that are also used for more traditional forms of classical music? (This would seem a bit arbitrary, and anyway some the composers on your list _do_ use electronic instruments).
2. Artists must create scores, which are played by other people, rather than being 'recording artists'?


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## Trout

RogerWaters said:


> Out of curiosity, what is your definition of 'contemporary classical music'? Much of this sounds no different from ambient music, in everything but instrumental choice. This makes me wonder whether ambient electronic artists such as (but certainly not limited to) Tangerine Dream; Klaus Shulze; Ash Ra should be included. I can think of two criterion for potentially ruling them out, which you might be using:
> 
> 1. Artists must make music for instruments that are also used for more traditional forms of classical music? (This would seem a bit arbitrary, and anyway some the composers on your list _do_ use electronic instruments).
> 2. Artists must create scores, which are played by other people, rather than being 'recording artists'?


I'll be honest and say that I let others do the thinking for me. All composers included have a fairly broad consensus behind them being "classical".

But those are some good philosophical questions. There was a thread a few years ago about this very topic: When can electronic music be considered classical?.


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## vincula

*Alfred Schnittke*: _Viola concerto_ (1985). A work of beauty.






Yuri Bashmet seems to "own" the work, but I'm currently listening my preferred rendition on disc: Nobuko Imai/Malmö Symphony Orchestra/Lev Markiz.









Schnittke's work is vast and fascinating. Just don't expect him to cheer you up...

Regards,

Vincula


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## Guest

New musical concepts are not mandatory new sensibility.
Audio technique is not music ; you might be a technical genius, a great designer of "new musical bases" , and create no music.
Most mathematicians have utmost competences ; they never find any new theorem, but they lecture others what is the essence of maths.
Is progressivism progress as often as destruction ?


Please correct my approximate English


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## calvinpv

Apologies for waiting so long to do Manoury. I was going to work my way through his music and develop a list as I went, but I got about half way before getting sidetracked with other composers. It's hard to listen to one composer at a time with no breaks for other music. Lesson learned, I guess.

Anyways, I just compiled tonight Manoury's most important works with your rating system. One thing I'm not sure of is whether to include pieces that get regularly performed (that is, "regular" as far as contemporary music is concerned) but have no commercial recording or recording of a live performance. I did include several of those, but I can take them out if you want. On the other hand, if you want _all_ of Manoury's works, I can do that too.

EDIT: I just made Tensio and Le Livre des claviers ***. I also suspect La Trilogie Köln will become a *** as time goes on, but it's too early to tell.

I also added Partita II

- Cryptophonos [piano solo] (1974) **
- Numéro huit [103 musicians] (1980, rev. 1987)
- Zeitlauf [mixed choir, ensemble, tape & live electronics] (1982)
- Jupiter [midi-flute & live electronics] (1986-1987, rev. 1992, 1996) ***
- Le Livre des claviers [six percussionists] (1987-1988) ***
- Pluton [midi-piano & live electronics] (1988, rev. 1989) ***
- La Partition du Ciel et de l'Enfer [midi-flute, piano, midi-piano, ensemble & live electronics] (1989)
- Neptune [2 midi-vibraphones, marimba/tam-tam & live electronics] (1991)
- Michigan Trio [clarinet, violin & piano] (1992)
- En écho [soprano & live electronics] (1993-1994)
- Passacaille pour Tokyo [piano solo & 17 instruments] (1994)
- Métal [six sixxens] (1995)
- 60e Parallèle [opera] (1995-1996)
- Ultima [clarinet, cello & piano] (1995-1996)
- Fragments pour un portrait [30 musicians] (1998) **
- Toccata [piano solo] (1998)
- Sound and Fury [109 musicians] (1998-1999) **
- K … [opera] (2000-2001) **
- La ville [piano solo] (2001-2002)
- Fragments d'Héraclite [mixed choir] (2003)
- Partita I [viola & live electronics] (2006) **
- Trakl Gedichte [mixed choir] (2006)
- Veränderungen [piano solo] (2008)
- Stringendo [string quartet] (2010)
- Synapse [violin & orchestra] (2010)
- Tensio [string quartet & live electronics] (2010) ***
- Echo-daimónon [piano, orchestra & live electronics] (2011-2012)
- Partita II [violin & live electronics] (2012)
- Illud etiam [soprano, clarinet & live electronics] (2012, rev. 2015)
- Melancolia (d'après Dürer) [string quartet] (2013)
- Zones de turbulences [two pianos & orchestra] (2013)
- La Trilogie Köln (2013-2019) **
--- Ring [grand spatialized orchestra] (2016)
--- In situ [group of soloists, string orchestra & eight spatialized orchestral groups] (2013)
--- Lab.Oratorium [2 actors, soprano, contralto, chamber choir, grand amateur choir, grand spatialized orchestra & live electronics] (2019)
- Le temps, mode d'emploi [two pianos & live electronics] (2014) **
- Bref aperçu sur l'infini [cello & orchestra] (2015)
- B-Partita (in memoriam Pierre Boulez) [violin, ensemble & live electronics] (2016) **
- États d'alerte [two percussionists & orchestra] (2017)
- Kein Licht [opera] (2017) **
- Saccades [flute & orchestra] (2018)
- Anticipations [grand spatialized orchestra] (2019)


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## calvinpv

Though I won't get to them right away, other more recent, well-known contemporary composers I can do are:

Mark Andre
Pierluigi Billone (Andre and Billone are, imo, Lachenmann's two best students)
Rebecca Saunders (one of Ferneyhough's best students, though her aesthetics is closer to Lachenmann)
Simon Steen-Andersen (a creative multi-media composer like van der Aa and who challenges the boundaries of music in a Cagean fashion)
Enno Poppe
Bernhard Lang (Poppe and Lang use algorithms to generate their music. Specifically, Poppe uses mathematical models of plant growth and Lang is into "loop aesthetics")

Also, someone should do Richard Barrett, though I'm familiar with his work.


----------



## calvinpv

calvinpv said:


> Also, someone should do Richard Barrett, though I'm familiar with his work.


This should read: I'm NOT familiar with his work, so someone else ought to do it.


----------



## hoodjem

Don't overlook Jennifer Higdon.

Has Aaron Jay Kernis been mentioned?
Or Morten Lauridson?
Or Howard Skempton?
Robert Moran?
Caleb Burhans?
Tobias Picker?
Alexander Knaifel?
Anna Thorvaldsdottir?
Kim Andre Arnesen.


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## hoodjem

Some composers who blur the boundary between classical and new age:
Wim Mertens,
Johann Johannsson, 
Hildur Guonadottir,
Max Richter, 
Ludovico Einaudi,
Ola Gjeilo,
Maria Huld Marian Sigfusdottir,
Olafur Arnalds.


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## Guest

What's this? The Classical Hot 100? No thank you. I like music by dead guys - the deader the better.


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## 20centrfuge

Thanks for sharing, Jerome


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## Trout

Hi, everyone.

I appreciate the (mostly) constructive activity on this thread. Just to let you know on the current status of things, I took a bit of a break due to some big life events but things are starting to settle down now. I have had an entry on Pauline Oliveros nearly complete for some time and hope to publish it soon (Manoury will be on deck shortly). I've been doing some rethinking on how I consider genre for this project and I think I may reverse one criterion I had earlier, namely that all the works listed need be _strictly_ classical, mainly thanks to Oliveros whose works tended to straddle a few different genres. Thus, I think I will be adding some Terry Riley and La Monte Young works/albums I otherwise excluded. But all other entries should remain the same.

Lastly, the Google site will be forcibly receiving a makeover soon enough as it seems Google is no longer supporting this older format. I'll be working on that in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!


----------



## Kjetil Heggelund

Hello mr. Trout! How about having Arne Nordheim of Norway on your list?


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## Trout

Kjetil Heggelund said:


> Hello mr. Trout! How about having Arne Nordheim of Norway on your list?


That's the third mention of him in this thread, so I suppose I will have to investigate at some point soon!


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## Trout

(Just as a note to myself: some other missing composers with 3 mentions in this thread: Aho, Richard Barrett, Cerha, MacMillan, Sallinen, and Saunders.)


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## SanAntone

How do you define Contemporary Music? Strictly speaking it means music by living composers, or the music of our time, or with an easy dating measure, music written since 1970. 

Insisting on "esteemed" works would leave out most that has been written in the last 20 years, since there hasn't been enough time for the works nor the younger composers to become "esteemed." 

Which is the reason I wouldn't participate in this list, even though I am extremely interested in new music.


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## Trout

SanAntone said:


> How do you define Contemporary Music?


Music composed since the 1970s.



SanAntone said:


> Insisting on "esteemed" works would leave out most that has been written in the last 20 years, since there hasn't been enough time for the works nor the younger composers to become "esteemed."


That is true which is exactly why you _should_ participate, otherwise those composers may never be put on our radars. This list, while still being selective so far, I hope will be very comprehensive some day.


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## Lisztian

One of the best things to happen on this site!


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## Trout

Thanks Lisztian.

I finally got around to adding an entry for Kalevi Aho as a break from the more recent avant-garde ones. Hope this satisfies some 2-year old requests in this thread. His oeuvre of mostly conventional compositional forms seems almost out of place amidst all the modern eclecticism. But a welcome addition nevertheless.


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## Trout

Some more completed entries:

- Friedrich Cerha
- Pascal Dusapin
- Meredith Monk


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## calvinpv

*Simon Steen-Andersen (1976-; Danish)*

Steen-Andersen has some of the most creative music I've ever heard. He's a hybrid of Schaeffer's musique concrète, Lachenmann's extended techniques, Cage's philosophizing, and Kagel's theatrics, but he goes in a direction all his own. It's the way he combines sampler sounds with instruments, or the way he prepares the instruments, or the way he integrates visual media with sound, or the way he uses everyday tactile objects, that is unlike anything I've heard. Some of his early stuff can be hit or miss -- though if you're familiar with the ideas behind the music and have a good ear, they're still pretty interesting, the problem with them is that they're very performance dependent -- but starting with his work _Run Time Error_, he's really taken off with some great pieces. _Run Time Error_ in particular is an experimental piece fertile in musical ideas like Cage's 4'33" (in my opinion, it's more interesting than 4'33"); in fact, I'd go as far as to say that, were it not for the cultural milieu Steen-Andersen is currently composing in and were _Run Time Error_ created in the fifties like 4'33", it would've achieved the level of infamy 4'33" currently has.

The 2 pieces I recommend hearing first are:
_TRIO_, which premiered at the 2019 Donaueschingen festival and is an amazing spectacle of video and sound (piece starts at 1 hour 39 minute mark)
_Run Time Error_, a site specific video installation performance, where every performance of it is essentially a different composition (this youtube video is one such performance)

I've posted a bit about his music here on TC, so I'll just link to some of my posts:
post on TRIO that I wrote last week in one of those stupid "I hate contemporary music" threads.
post on Run Time Error
post on his Piano Concerto
couple posts on Black Box Music and Double Up

As far as ranking the pieces for Trout's list, I weighed different types of evidence. I checked for number of performances on youtube, checked for what's been commercially recorded, checked for amount and variety of information from a simple google search, the number of performances listed on the Steen-Andersen's personal website, and my personal opinions of the pieces (I listened to every work I could find and read the scores while listening; most of the scores and program notes can be found here). I've also listened to a couple interviews on youtube and this 2 hour lecture given by Steen-Andersen on his own music. But the best pieces of evidence are:

This essay "Have you Seen the Music"

The only two books I've read on more recent contemporary music had extended discussions on Steen-Andersen's _Run Time Error_ and _Black Box Music_. I doubt that's a coincidence.

This 2017 survey of over 100 music professionals asking who they thought were the best composers since 2000 and what were the best works (when you click on the link, then click on "Get More Information" for the survey results). Steen-Andersen had the second highest point total, behind only G. F. Haas. As an aside, this survey is a *fantastic* place to start checking out 21st century music.

Anyways, here's the list. Some notes:

1. loloopop is more of a visual art installation than a piece of music and is a collaboration effort with artist Carl Krull. I included it because I found it to be pretty interesting and I think it showcases in a different way the connections between Steen-Andersen's music and other artistic media, but if you think it's beyond the scope of this list, you can take it down.

2. It's rather difficult to give the instrumentation for (Self Reflecting) Next to Beside Besides. Steen-Andersen composed a work called Besides in 2003. He then wrote 13 solo pieces (the first of which is called Beside Besides, the others called Next to Beside Besides) that are each different takes on the coda of Besides. These 13 works can also be played simultaneously in any combination. This is the Next to Beside Besides series. Steen-Andersen then added an option for these solos to be projected onto video screens while other solos are being played, again in any combination. This is the Self Reflecting Next to Beside Besides series. I put "Self Reflecting" in () in order to condense these two series into one entry while indicating that the video part is optional. I'll leave it up to you if you have a better way of writing it. I'm also gonna leave the individual entries in the series below, so that you have the complete information, but I know you'll want to condense it all down to one line. Again, I'm not sure how to phrase the instrumentation in such a way so that I capture all the necessary information, so I'm leaving it up to you 

3. TRIO would easily be a *** piece except for two things. First, it was only composed two years ago. Second, it's the product of a specific time and place and is essentially a glorification of the SWR radio station and the Donaueschinger festival (whose 100th anniversary is this year). This implies that only the SWR orchestra can play it and can only be played for a short while before it loses its wider significance, thus limiting the number of performances. But other than that, it's an impeccably composed work. I gave it **, but if you think otherwise, go for it.

EDIT: I just listened to _The Loop of the Nibelung_, which came out last July, and it's definitely good enough to be included. It's basically Run Time Error meets Wagner.

- String Quartet No. 1 (1999)
- Praesens [14 musicians] (2001)
- Besides [amplified piccolo flute, amplified piano, amplified violin & dampened string trio] (2003)
- Rerendered [amplified & prepared piano solo, 2 assistants & video installation] (2003, rev. 2004)
- (Self-Reflecting) Next to Beside Besides [combinations of 1 or more solo instruments (optional video installation)] (2003-2008)
o Beside Besides (Next to Beside Besides No. 0) [dampened cello solo (optional amplification)] [2003]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 1 [amplified & dampened double bass solo] [2005]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 2 [amplified & dampened saxophone solo] [2005]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 3 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2005]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 4 [amplified & prepared snare drum solo] [2006]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 5 [amplified & prepared piccolo solo] [2006]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 6 [amplified, dampened & prepared violin solo] [2006]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 7 [amplified & prepared piano & whammy pedal] [2006]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 8 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2006]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 9 [amplified & prepared double bass solo] [2007]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 10 [miniature camera & visual installation] [2007]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 11 [amplified vibraphone solo] [2007]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 12 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2008]
o Next to Beside Besides No. 13 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2008]
- Amid [flute, Bb clarinet, prepared piano, guitar, percussion, dampened violin & dampened cello] (2004)**
- Amongst [amplified guitar solo & orchestra] (2005)
- loloopop (with Carl Krull) [audio-visual installation] (2006)
- In spite of, and maybe even therefore [amplified flute, amplified Bb clarinet, contrabassoon, amplified & dampened F horn, percussion, prepared piano & double bass] (2007)
- Studies for String Instrument Nos. 1-3 [1 or more string instruments, whammy pedal & video installation] (2007-2011)**
- Difficulties Putting it into Practice [2 or 4 amplified musicians] (2007, rev. 2010/2014)
- On and Off and To and Fro [prepared soprano saxophone, vibraphone & double bass; 3 prepared megaphones] (2008)
- Pretty Sound (Up and Down) [amplified piano solo] (2008)
- Ouvertures [amplified gu-zheng solo, sampler & orchestra] (2008-2010)
- Run Time Error [site-specific video installation performance] (2009-present)***
- Double Up [chamber orchestra & sampler] (2010)**
- History of my Instrument [amplified & prepared harp, amplified toy harp & video installation] (2011)
- Black Box Music [conductor solo, sinfonietta, amplified black box & video installation] (2012)***
- String Quartet No. 2 [with amplified & prepared bows] (2012)
- Inszenierte Nacht [music theater & live electronics] (2013)
- Buenos Aires [opera] (2014)
- Piano Concerto [piano solo, orchestra, sampler & video installation] (2014)**
- Asthma [amplified accordion & video installation] (2017)
- TRIO [orchestra, big band, choir & video installation] (2019)**
- The Loop of the Nibelung [singers, musicians & site-specific video installation performance] (2020)


----------



## calvinpv

In case anybody's interested, here's a list of every work Steen-Andersen composed (sans some works composed in the last year) plus my personal ranking of every work I could find on youtube. Rankings are out of 10 at the end of each entry.

•	4 Petitesses [cello solo] [1998]
•	Study for Alto Saxophone and Percussion [alto saxophone & percussion] [1998] [5.7/10]
•	Suite [ensemble] [1998]
•	Aurora Ritual [orchestra] [1999]
•	Étude No. 1 [piano solo] [1999]
•	Polaroid [tape] [1999]
•	Punctus Contra Punctum [organ] [1999]
•	Sinfonietta Variations [saxophone & sinfonietta] [1999]
•	String Quartet No. 1 [string quartet] [1999] [6.4/10]
•	De Profundis [soprano saxophone & percussion] [2000] [5.2/10]
•	De Profundis [soprano saxophone & percussion, arranged for bass clarinet & percussion] [2000, revised 2000] [5.2/10]
•	Impromptu [english horn, bass clarinet, bassoon & baritone saxophone] [2000]
•	in-side-out-side-in [guitar solo] [2000-2001] [5.3/10]
•	Electro Miniature [tape] [2001] [4.1/10]
•	Praesens [14 musicians] [2001] [6.6/10]
•	Among (Unattended Ones) [2 percussionist with adjustable amplification] [2002]
•	Spin-Off [soprano saxophone, C trumpet, accordion & double bass] [2002] [3.4/10]
•	Split Point [percussion solo] [2002] [3.8/10]
•	Besides [amplified piccolo flute, amplified piano, amplified violin & dampened string trio] [2003] [5.0/10]
•	Drownwords [amplified soprano & amplified guitar] [2003] [3.6/10]
•	Rerendered [amplified & prepared piano solo, 2 assistants & video installation] [2003, revised 2004] [6.8/10]
•	(Self-Reflecting) Next to Beside Besides [combinations of 1 or more solo instruments (optional video installation)] [2003-2008] [5.5/10]
o	Beside Besides (Next to Beside Besides No. 0) [dampened cello solo (optional amplification)] [2003]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 1 [amplified & dampened double bass solo] [2005]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 2 [amplified & dampened saxophone solo] [2005]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 3 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2005]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 4 [amplified & prepared snare drum solo] [2006]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 5 [amplified & prepared piccolo solo] [2006]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 6 [amplified, dampened & prepared violin solo] [2006]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 7 [amplified & prepared piano & whammy pedal] [2006]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 8 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2006]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 9 [amplified & prepared double bass solo] [2007]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 10 [miniature camera & visual installation] [2007]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 11 [amplified vibraphone solo] [2007]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 12 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2008]
o	Next to Beside Besides No. 13 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2008]
•	Amid [flute, Bb clarinet, prepared piano, guitar, percussion, dampened violin & dampened cello] [2004] [6.4/10]
•	[sproglyd] [interactive webpage] [2005]
•	Amongst [amplified guitar solo & orchestra] [2005] [5.2/10]
•	Within Amongst [amplified guitar solo] [2005] [4.2/10]
•	loloopop (with Carl Krull) [audio-visual installation] [2006] [7.2/10]
•	Tal Vez Quizás [clarinet & video installation] [2006]
•	Chambered Music [12 musicians & sampler] [2007] [4.1/10]
•	In spite of, and maybe even therefore [amplified flute, amplified Bb clarinet, contrabassoon, amplified & dampened F horn, percussion, prepared piano & double bass] [2007] [4.8/10]
•	Nothing Integrated [amplified clarinet, amplified percussion, amplified cello & video installation] [2007]
•	In Her Frown [2 amplified musicians] [2007, revised 2010] [5.1/10]
•	Studies for String Instrument [2007-2011] [6.0/10]
o	Study for String Instrument No. 1 [1 or more string instrument] [2007]
o	Study for String Instrument No. 2 [1 or more string instrument & whammy pedal] [2009]
o	Study for String Instrument No. 3 [amplified & prepared cello (optional additional string instruments) & video installation] [2011]
•	Difficulties Putting it into Practice [2 or 4 amplified musicians] [2007, revised 2010, 2014] [5.1/10]
•	A Bit of Nothing Integrated [2 performers & video installation] [2008] [4.0/10]
•	On and Off and To and Fro [prepared soprano saxophone, prepared vibraphone, prepared double bass & 3 prepared megaphones] [2008] [7.5/10]
•	Pretty Sound (Up and Down) [amplified piano solo] [2008] [6.1/10]
•	soundTAG (with Kaj Aune) [audio-visual installation] [2008]
•	Ouvertures [amplified gu-zheng solo, sampler & orchestra] [2008-2010] [6.9/10]
•	Self Simulator [interactive audio-visual installation] [2009]
•	Run Time Error [site-specific video installation performance] [2009-present] [9.2/10]
•	Double Up [chamber orchestra & sampler] [2010] [9.4/10]
•	Beloved Brother [dampened guitar solo] [2011] [3.7/10]
•	History of my Instrument [amplified & prepared harp, amplified toy harp & video installation] [2011] [4.9/10]
•	Black Box Music [conductor solo, sinfonietta, amplified black box & video installation] [2012] [10/10]
•	Half a Bit of Nothing Integrated [1 performer & video installation] [2012]
•	Im Rauschen [piccolo, flute, clarinet & live electronics] [2012] [3.5/10]
•	Obstruction Studies [2012]
o	Obstruction Study No. 1 [string quartet with prepared bows] [2012]
o	Obstruction Study No. 2 [string quartet, white noise & light installation] [2012]
o	Obstruction Study No. 3 [string quartet with amplified & prepared bows] [2012]
•	String Quartet No. 2 [string quartet with amplified & prepared bows] [2012] [5.7/10]
•	Inszenierte Nacht [voice, trumpet, trombone, 2 percussion, piano, guitar, cello, electric keyboard, live electronics, light installation & stage setting] [2013]
•	Buenos Aires [opera] [2014]
•	Mono (Autotune Study) [low male voice, electric keyboard & autotune] [2014] [4.0/10]
•	Piano Concerto [piano solo, orchestra, sampler & video installation] [2014] [9.6/10]
•	Korpus [7 or 8 musicians on marimba eroica, chromelodeon 1 & bloboy] [2015]
•	if this then that and now what [4 actors, 18 musicians, light installation & stage setting] [2016]
•	Asthma [amplified accordion & video installation] [2017] [7.6/10]
•	TRIO [orchestra, big band, choir & video installation] [2019] [9.9/10]
•	The Loop of the Nibelung [singers, musicians & site-specific video installation performance] [2020] [9.4/10]


----------



## SanAntone

calvinpv said:


> *Simon Steen-Andersen (1976-; Danish)*
> 
> Steen-Andersen has some of the most creative music I've ever heard. He's a hybrid of Lachenmann's extended techniques, Cage's philosophizing, and Kagel's theatrics, but he goes in a direction all his own. It's the way he combines sampler sounds with instruments, or the way he prepares the instruments, or the way he integrates visual media with sound, or the way he uses everyday tactile objects, that is unlike anything I've heard. Some of his early stuff can be hit or miss -- though if you're familiar with the ideas behind the music and have a good ear, they're still pretty interesting, the problem with them is that they're very performance dependent -- but starting with his work _Run Time Error_, he's really taken off with some great pieces. _Run Time Error_ in particular is an experimental piece fertile in musical ideas like Cage's 4'33" (in my opinion, it's more interesting than 4'33"); in fact, I'd go as far as to say that, were it not for the cultural milieu Steen-Andersen is currently composing in and were _Run Time Error_ created in the fifties like 4'33", it would've achieved the level of infamy 4'33" currently has.
> 
> The 2 pieces I recommend hearing first are:
> _TRIO_, which premiered at the 2019 Donaueschingen festival and is an amazing spectacle of video and sound (piece starts at 1 hour 39 minute mark)
> _Run Time Error_, a site specific video installation performance, where every performance of it is essentially a different composition (this youtube video is one such performance)
> 
> I've posted a bit about his music here on TC, so I'll just link to some of my posts:
> post on TRIO that I wrote last week in one of those stupid "I hate contemporary music" threads.
> post on Run Time Error
> post on his Piano Concerto
> couple posts on Black Box Music and Double Up
> 
> As far as ranking the pieces for Trout's list, I weighed different types of evidence. I checked for number of performances on youtube, checked for what's been commercially recorded, checked for amount and variety of information from a simple google search, the number of performances listed on the Steen-Andersen's personal website, and my personal opinions of the pieces (I listened to every work I could find and read the scores while listening; most of the scores and program notes can be found here). I've also listened to a couple interviews on youtube and this 2 hour lecture given by Steen-Andersen on his own music. But the best pieces of evidence are:
> 
> This essay "Have you Seen the Music"
> 
> The only two books I've read on more recent contemporary music had extended discussions on Steen-Andersen's _Run Time Error_ and _Black Box Music_. I doubt that's a coincidence.
> 
> This 2017 survey of over 100 music professionals asking who they thought were the best composers since 2000 and what were the best works (when you click on the link, then click on "Get More Information" for the survey results). Steen-Andersen had the second highest point total, behind only G. F. Haas. As an aside, this survey is a *fantastic* place to start checking out 21st century music.
> 
> Anyways, here's the list. Some notes:
> 
> 1. loloopop is more of a visual art installation than a piece of music and is a collaboration effort with artist Carl Krull. I included it because I found it to be pretty interesting and I think it showcases in a different way the connections between Steen-Andersen's music and other artistic media, but if you think it's beyond the scope of this list, you can take it down.
> 
> 2. It's rather difficult to give the instrumentation for (Self Reflecting) Next to Beside Besides. Steen-Andersen composed a work called Besides in 2003. He then wrote 13 solo pieces (the first of which is called Beside Besides, the others called Next to Beside Besides) that are each different takes on the coda of Besides. These 13 works can also be played simultaneously in any combination. This is the Next to Beside Besides series. Steen-Andersen then added an option for these solos to be projected onto video screens while other solos are being played, again in any combination. This is the Self Reflecting Next to Beside Besides series. I put "Self Reflecting" in () in order to condense these two series into one entry while indicating that the video part is optional. I'll leave it up to you if you have a better way of writing it. I'm also gonna leave the individual entries in the series below, so that you have the complete information, but I know you'll want to condense it all down to one line. Again, I'm not sure how to phrase the instrumentation in such a way so that I capture all the necessary information, so I'm leaving it up to you
> 
> 3. TRIO would easily be a *** piece except for two things. First, it was only composed two years ago. Second, it's the product of a specific time and place and is essentially a glorification of the SWR radio station and the Donaueschinger festival (whose 100th anniversary is this year). This implies that only the SWR orchestra can play it and can only be played for a short while before it loses its wider significance, thus limiting the number of performances. But other than that, it's an impeccably composed work. I gave it **, but if you think otherwise, go for it.
> 
> - String Quartet No. 1 (1999)
> - Praesens [14 musicians] (2001)
> - Besides [amplified piccolo flute, amplified piano, amplified violin & dampened string trio] (2003)
> - Rerendered [amplified & prepared piano solo, 2 assistants & video installation] (2003, rev. 2004)
> - (Self-Reflecting) Next to Beside Besides [combinations of 1 or more solo instruments (optional video installation)] (2003-2008)
> o Beside Besides (Next to Beside Besides No. 0) [dampened cello solo (optional amplification)] [2003]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 1 [amplified & dampened double bass solo] [2005]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 2 [amplified & dampened saxophone solo] [2005]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 3 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2005]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 4 [amplified & prepared snare drum solo] [2006]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 5 [amplified & prepared piccolo solo] [2006]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 6 [amplified, dampened & prepared violin solo] [2006]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 7 [amplified & prepared piano & whammy pedal] [2006]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 8 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2006]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 9 [amplified & prepared double bass solo] [2007]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 10 [miniature camera & visual installation] [2007]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 11 [amplified vibraphone solo] [2007]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 12 [amplified & prepared accordion solo] [2008]
> o Next to Beside Besides No. 13 [amplified & prepared guitar solo] [2008]
> - Amid [flute, Bb clarinet, prepared piano, guitar, percussion, dampened violin & dampened cello] (2004)**
> - Amongst [amplified guitar solo & orchestra] (2005)
> - loloopop (with Carl Krull) [audio-visual installation] (2006)
> - In spite of, and maybe even therefore [amplified flute, amplified Bb clarinet, contrabassoon, amplified & dampened F horn, percussion, prepared piano & double bass] (2007)
> - Studies for String Instrument Nos. 1-3 [1 or more string instruments, whammy pedal & video installation] (2007-2011)**
> - Difficulties Putting it into Practice [2 or 4 amplified musicians] (2007, rev. 2010/2014)
> - On and Off and To and Fro [prepared soprano saxophone, vibraphone & double bass; 3 prepared megaphones] (2008)
> - Pretty Sound (Up and Down) [amplified piano solo] (2008)
> - Ouvertures [amplified gu-zheng solo, sampler & orchestra] (2008-2010)
> - Run Time Error [site-specific video installation performance] (2009-present)***
> - Double Up [chamber orchestra & sampler] (2010)**
> - History of my Instrument [amplified & prepared harp, amplified toy harp & video installation] (2011)
> - Black Box Music [conductor solo, sinfonietta, amplified black box & video installation] (2012)***
> - String Quartet No. 2 [with amplified & prepared bows] (2012)
> - Inszenierte Nacht [music theater & live electronics] (2013)
> - Buenos Aires [opera] (2014)
> - Piano Concerto [piano solo, orchestra, sampler & video installation] (2014)**
> - Asthma [amplified accordion & video installation] (2017)
> - TRIO [orchestra, big band, choir & video installation] (2019)**


You may be interested in my interview with Simon Steen-Andersen from 2014.


----------



## calvinpv

SanAntone said:


> You may be interested in my interview with Simon Steen-Andersen from 2014.


I don't know how much of his music you know, but considering your love for Cage, you really ought to check him out. Run Time Error may just be the 4'33" of today's music, but some of the other works I mention are great as well.

Interesting Steen-Andersen discusses Chambered Music in your interview. That was actually one work that I struggled with and is one of the works I had in mind when I said above his music can be "performance dependent". If you listen closely, there's a very strong sense of rhythm in his music, which I think he needs to convey some of his ideas (for example, his ideas around sampling: a steady beat allows the samples to be on an equal playing field with the live music). If the rhythm and the immersion is broken, his music can come off as a bunch of people on stage breaking their instruments for no reason.


----------



## SanAntone

calvinpv said:


> I don't know how much of his music you know, but considering your love for Cage, you really ought to check him out. Run Time Error may just be the 4'33" of today's music, but some of the other works I mention are great as well.
> 
> Interesting Steen-Andersen discusses Chambered Music in your interview. That was actually one work that I struggled with and is one of the works I had in mind when I said above his music can be "performance dependent". If you listen closely, there's a very strong sense of rhythm in his music, which I think he needs to convey some of his ideas (for example, his ideas around sampling: a steady beat allows the samples to be on an equal playing field with the live music). If the rhythm and the immersion is broken, his music can come off as a bunch of people on stage breaking their instruments for no reason.


I know some of his music and have kept up with what he's done since my interview.


----------



## calvinpv

SanAntone said:


> I know some of his music and have kept up with what he's done since my interview.


I just took a listen now to his _The Loop of the Nibelung_, composed last year for the legendary Bayreuth Festival. No one's music but Wagner's can be played at the festival, so Steen-Andersen straddled the line by performing a Run Time Error-like piece in the backstages with Wagner motifs mixed in.

But of course, we have people here on TC who tell us that traditional and avant-garde classical music can never mix...

https://www.br-klassik.de/video/the-loop-of-the-nibelung-simon-steen-andersen-installation-bayreuther-festspielaus-2020-100.html

https://edition-s.dk/news/interview-en-simon-steen-andersen-the-loop-of-the-nibelung


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## calvinpv

Apologies, Trout, for not being able to do Rebecca Saunders. I realized that I didn't know her music as well as I should.

The next composer I can do is Enno Poppe. He's probably the next composer I plan to to take a serious dive into, and I can build up a list while I'm listening to his music.


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## JohnP

Morten Lauridsen deserves a place on your list.


----------



## Enthusiast

I'd forgotten about this project - I do remember its earlier days but had forgotten completely about the resource that was being developed - and was just going through the list with a focus on composers whose names begin with an _M_. Do we need to add Bruno Maderna, Annunzio Mantovani and perhaps Louis Thomas Hardin (aka "Moondog")?


----------



## Trout

Apologies, I've been away from this project for some time. (I still haven't yet added Steen-Andersen for whom calvinpv did some excellent work in compiling an entry for.) Suggestions for composers are still welcome, although I suspect that I may eventually cap the list at some point now that many of the biggest names are there. Not that I'd ever really consider this project complete in any sense, but more so that I don't have as much time or interest for it as I used to.



Enthusiast said:


> I'd forgotten about this project - I do remember its earlier days but had forgotten completely about the resource that was being developed - and was just going through the list with a focus on composers whose names begin with an _M_. Do we need to add Bruno Maderna, Annunzio Mantovani and perhaps Louis Thomas Hardin (aka "Moondog")?


Maderna and Mantovani I think are a bit too old to qualify as "contemporary" according to the cutoff I'm using (1970s). Moondog I know only a little about but I'd be inclined to disqualify him as well considering how influential his 40s and 50s works seem to be.


----------



## Enthusiast

^ Thanks, Trout. I wasn't clear about Mantovani - I meant Bruno Mantovani (not the slick light music practitioner) who was born in 1974. As for Maderna, he died in 1973 but (as far as I am aware) composed several important works in the 70s - for example, Biogramme, Aura, the oboe concertos and Ausstrahlung. Fair enough on Moondog.


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## Portamento

Chaya Czernowin may make a good addition.


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## SanAntone

Has *Krzysztof Meyer* been added?

I am a big fan of his string quartets, he's written 15 so far, and Naxos has released 1-13 - but he's written in all forms.



> Krzysztof Meyer (born 11 August 1943) is a Polish composer, pianist, and music scholar, formerly Dean of the Department of Music Theory (1972-1975) at the State College of Music (now Academy of Music in Kraków), and president of the Union of Polish Composers (1985-1989). Meyer served as professor of composition at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne from 1987 to 2008, prior to his retirement.


Here's the Wikipedia entry on him.


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## hamur

Dear Trout,
It's a tremendous and very impressive project and I appreciate that you are not trying to grow your list too fast. But about some composers (like for example, *Auerbach, Martynov, Pelēcis, Shchedrin, Tavener*) I am wondering whether you decided not to include them or, perhaps, they are still waiting in the queue for their fate.


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## Shea82821

I'm not sure if she's been mentioned yet, but there is Elisabetta Brusa. Italian-born British composer. I recently listened to her Symphony no.2, and found it a marvelous and very worthy addition to the canon of 21st-century symphonies. It's on Naxos (Brusa: Orchestral Works Vol.4 I think is the album) if anyone is interested.


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## runssical

Today is the birthday of Israel born composer Chaya Czernowin (b.1957). She's a talented composer and I wanted to bring to the attention of the forum one of her most recent large-scale ensemble works, _The Fabrication of Light_ (2020). This is a sprawling work consisting of 4 sections that composer titled as _Spirals I-IV_.


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## composingmusic

runssical said:


> Today is the birthday of Israel born composer Chaya Czernowin (b.1957). She's a talented composer and I wanted to bring to the attention of the forum one of her most recent large-scale ensemble works, _The Fabrication of Light_ (2020). This is a sprawling work consisting of 4 sections that composer titled as _Spirals I-IV_.


Thanks for posting this! Great performance.


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## runssical

Here's a young composer from Latvia, Platons Buravickis and his Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra titled _Plastmasas temperatūra_ which translates to Temperature of Plastics. It was composed in 2019 and is featured on a new album of orchestral commissions that was recently released on the Latvian label, SKANI.


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## runssical

This work by Gerald Eckert is stylistically similar to the Czernowin work I uploaded a few months ago.


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## rcarle67

Trout said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> For the past year or so, I've been on and off working on compiling a large, but hopefully comprehensive, list of contemporary classical music. In fact, I'm still working on it, but I thought I would share my current progress in case anyone is interested.
> 
> What is this list exactly? Well, in the most precise terms, it is simply an aggregation of works of the most-acclaimed contemporary composers that both critics and casual listeners seem to recommend. I did this through plenty of research across various forums, books, articles and reviews (including a drop of my own preferences). As I disclaim in the link, this list is obviously not scientific nor perfect by any means, but I hope it provides a good overview of contemporary classical music especially for novices.
> 
> To breakdown its sheer vastness, I created a couple tiers to distinguish the most-recommended works:
> 
> *⋆⋆⋆* means an essential work, among the most esteemed of the contemporary era
> *⋆⋆* means a fairly important work, good to know especially if you're interested in that particular composer
> 
> Of the composers listed, am I missing any of their important works or your favorites? Do you disagree strongly with any of the star ratings (or lack thereof)? Or generally, if anyone has any questions or feedback, I'd be happy to hear!
> 
> Edit: I should have made it more clear that there are tons of absent composers that I just haven't had time to include yet. Each composer entry takes many hours to complete thoroughly so I appreciate all of your patience.


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## rcarle67

How do I get a copy of the list?


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## PeterKC

Trout said:


> Thanks for checking it out, Lisztian!
> 
> 
> 
> I forgot to mention that I've been tackling this project by going through one composer at a time in a quasi-alphabetical order. (I did the Schnittke and Takemitsu entries early on before becoming a bit more methodical.) Xenakis and Stockhausen are definitely in the pipeline!
> 
> Here's a (non-exhaustive) list of all other composers I definitely intend to do at some point:
> 
> Nono, Luigi
> Nørgård, Per
> Nyman, Michael
> Pärt, Arvo
> Partch, Harry
> Penderecki, Krzysztof
> Rautavaara, Einojuhani
> Reich, Steve
> Rihm, Wolfgang
> Riley, Terry
> Romitelli, Fausto
> Rzewski, Frederic
> Saariaho, Kaija
> Scelsi, Giacinto
> Sciarrino, Salvatore
> Sculthorpe, Peter
> Sessions, Roger
> Silvestrov, Valentin
> Stockhausen, Karlheinz
> Tavener, John
> Ustvolskaya, Galina
> Vasks, Pēteris
> Wuorinen, Charles
> Xenakis, Iannis
> Young, La Monte
> 
> Once I hit all of the big names, I'll probably start adding some more lesser-knowns.


David Diamond
Henry Cowell
Peter Mennin
William Schuman
Howard Hanson
Norman Dello Joio
George Antheil
George Walker


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