# What am I missing?



## Ciel_Rouge (May 16, 2008)

I have reached a point where I would like to expand my horizons a little. Here is a list of what I listen to right now. I would appreciate any suggestions for expanding the list by adding some new composers and their pieces (still some major ones left out) as well as adding not very well known pieces by the composers I already mentioned. I think I am still missing some major milestones. I am open to all instruments and vocals. However, I am very choosy regarding the mood. I prefer the minor key although I did discover some pieces in major that I actually liked. In general, I like dark/nostalgic/sad/romantic/passionate/powerful/subtle/energetic. I strongly distaste "cheerful". So here it goes - please add your suggestions:

Bach
Beethoven
Berlioz
Brahms
Bruckner
Debussy
Dvorak
Gesualdo
Grieg
Handel
Holst
Mendelssohn
Mozart
Mussorgsky
Orff
Rachmaninoff
Rameau
Ramirez
Rodrigo
Schubert
Shostakovich
Sibelius
Verdi
Vivaldi


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## Guest (Dec 30, 2008)

Ciel_Rouge said:


> I think I am still missing some major milestones.


Indeed!

I've added a few tidbits to your list, cunningly differentiated typographically from your original:

ASHLEY
AVRAM
Bach
BARTOK
Beethoven
Berlioz
BIBER
Brahms
Bruckner
CAGE
COPLAND
CZERNOWIN
Debussy
DIMIZIO
DUMITRESCU
Dvorak
FELDMAN
FERRARI
FERREYRA
GABRIELI
GERHARD
Gesualdo
GOEBBELS
Grieg
GUBAIDULINA
Handel
HARTMANN
HENZE
HODGKINSON
Holst
IVES
JANACEK
KAGEL
KALINNIKOV
KRENEK
LACHENMANN
LIGETI
MARCLAY
Mendelssohn
MESSIAEN
Mozart
MUMMA
Mussorgsky
OLIVEROS
Orff
Rachmaninoff
RADULESCU
Rameau
Ramirez
RAVEL
RIHM
ROUSSEL
Rodrigo
SAINT-SAENS
Schubert
Shostakovich
Sibelius
STRAUSS
STRAVINSKY
VARESE
Verdi
Vivaldi
WALTON
XENAKIS
ZIMMERMAN
ZORN

Just a few more...


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## Rachovsky (Jan 5, 2008)

Ciel_Rouge said:


> I have reached a point where I would like to expand my horizons a little. Here is a list of what I listen to right now. I would appreciate any suggestions for expanding the list by adding some new composers and their pieces (still some major ones left out) as well as adding not very well known pieces by the composers I already mentioned. I think I am still missing some major milestones. I am open to all instruments and vocals. However, I am very choosy regarding the mood. I prefer the minor key although I did discover some pieces in major that I actually liked. In general, I like dark/nostalgic/sad/romantic/passionate/powerful/subtle/energetic. I strongly distaste "cheerful". So here it goes - please add your suggestions:


I'll just reply to say that I feel exactly the same way. I mainly enjoy strong/dramatic/powerful/etc. music and disdain the happy stuff. Mendelssohn is one of those happy composers that I really just can't listen to. That's another reason I don't really like Baroque music. MOST of it is happy with the damned harpsicord. The instrument could not be made any happier :angry:


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## Rondo (Jul 11, 2007)

The list is practically endless. However, speaking of dark, romantic composers, I am surprised Liszt has not been mentioned. He is one who sprung almost immediately to mind when reading your original post.


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Ralph Vaughan-Williams. Start with _Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis_. It may seem slow at first but it pays off. Also _Sinfonia Antartica_ [and yes, it's spelled "Antartica" not "Antar*c*tica" for some reason] is pretty amazing if you like mysterious faraway wordless soprano as I do. Better wait until summer for that though


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## jhar26 (Jul 6, 2008)




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## Elgarian (Jul 30, 2008)

Ciel_Rouge said:


> I prefer the minor key although I did discover some pieces in major that I actually liked. In general, I like dark/nostalgic/sad/romantic/passionate/powerful/subtle/energetic. I strongly distaste "cheerful".












These should press all those buttons. Deeply nostalgic, sad, passionate, subtle, and not avoiding the dark side - all those things. Some heart-piercing tunes. And absolutely no trace of the jolliness you so dislike.

Cheap, too - for two CDs:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Elgar-Violin-Concerto-Quartet-Quintet/dp/B0001ZM8VI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1230630298&sr=1-2

*Footnote:* Also, perfectly suited for anyone who uses Turner's _Sheerness_ as an avatar, I would think.


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## Atabey (Oct 8, 2008)

Mahler and Wagner!


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## Chi_townPhilly (Apr 21, 2007)

As is typical for my participation in threads like this, I _do_ try to make an effort to hone in on the tastes of the original poster, and formulate recommendations with that in mind.

As you mentioned Rachmaninoff & Debussy, I have to conclude that you're not averse to solo piano music. If that's the case, *Chopin* is a glaring omission. "Cheerful" definitely does NOT come to mind when thinking of Chopin.

The citing of Rachmaninoff & Shostakovich brings me to *Stravinsky* (previously mentioned by *some*) as well as *Prokofiev*. If someone's image of *Tchaikovsky* centers around candy-cane visions of _The Nutcracker_, one might get a different perspective from the _Pathétique_ symphony.

I'll add to *Atabey*'s recommendation of *Mahler*. If you have the attention span for Bruckner, you have the attention span for Mahler. Oh, yes, and do try some tenative steps into *Wagner* (you can sample excerpts first, if the whole "music-drama" thing seems like too big a mouthful).


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## Ciel_Rouge (May 16, 2008)

Thanks for lots of great recommendations, I'll check them out shortly. Actually, I also like baroque - it is not all joliness, some of the pieces like Rameau's "La Timida" greatly fit into the subtle and emotionally intense category while also bearing a touch of dance and movement which is something I particularly like about baroque. And I do like the harpsichord - it has a very interesting sound which does not always have to be jolly at all. Therefore, I would highly appreciate baroque recommendations as well.


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## Elgarian (Jul 30, 2008)

Ciel_Rouge said:


> Therefore, I would highly appreciate baroque recommendations as well.


jhar26 and I have been creating such a fuss about the '200 years of music at Versailles' box that you're probably sick of the noise we've been making. But just in case you missed it (perhaps holidaying on Mars?), some of our gobsmacked responses in this thread might be worth looking at. _Some_ of it just might be a touch too jolly for you, but a lot of it is heart-bleedingly beautiful.


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## Rondo (Jul 11, 2007)

There have also been a number of threads where people are simply requesting "dark" classical music (for a while it actually had become a trend). You can look here, here and here for other recommendations.


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