# What are 3 works in the Modernist era that you view ARE Masterpieces



## Phil loves classical

No post-Romanticism. Maximum 1 work per composer.


----------



## Phil loves classical

For me Bartok's Music for Percussion Strings and Celesta is an absolute masterpiece.
Lutoslawski's Symphony No. 3, and Penderecki's Threnody to Victims of Hiroshima which captures the horrors of the bombing.


----------



## Heck148

What is the modernist era?? Starting when?? Are Shostakovich, Prokofieff, Bartok, Stravinsky, Schoenberg "modernist era" composers??...Copland, Schuman, Mennin, etc...20 century orchestral music is probably my overall favorite....


----------



## mmsbls

There are quite a few, but here's 3:

Messiaen - Turangalîla-Symphonie
Schnittke: Piano Quintet
Dutilleux: Tout un monde lointain


----------



## TurnaboutVox

Here are three (of many) that I love:

*
Alban Berg - Altenberg Lieder - Fünf Orchesterlieder nach Gedichten von Peter Altenberg, Op. 4* (1911-12)



> The Five Orchestral Songs, for medium voice and large orchestra, were composed by Alban Berg in 1911/12. Numbers 2 and 3 were premiered under the baton of Arnold Schoenberg at the Vienna Musikverein on 31 March 1913, known as the "Skandalkonzert" for the riot that erupted during Berg's songs. The texts are taken from picture-postcard texts ('Ansichtskartentexte' in German) by the contemporary Viennese poet Peter Altenberg (hence the more commonly used title Altenberg Lieder). The texts deal with "the stormy but beautiful condition of the soul, and the palpable sensations of love and longing." The music has [...] the conflicted, lyrical passion found in much of Berg's works.
> 
> - Wikipedia


*Frank Bridge - Sonata for Violin and Piano, H.183* (1932)



> Composed in 1932 and dedicated to Mrs Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge, the wealthy American arts patron.
> 
> [This] is a work that is part of the cluster of post-Great War compositions that were to mark a sea-change in Bridge's style. Gone is the pastoralism and naked romanticism. Instead the composer works in a complex musical language complete with nods to atonality, polytonality and bitonality. Yet somehow there is still a reflection of the old composer underlying this 'modernism.'
> The Sonata is constructed in one movement lasting just under 20 minutes.
> 
> There is no consummation here. It is shot through with pain and grief and a sense of futility.
> 
> - John France, at "British Classical Music: The Land of Lost Content"


*
Bela Bartok - String Quartet No. 6, Sz. 114, BB 119* (1939)



> ...this [is] one of the most moving and easily appreciated of Bartók's works."
> 
> "The Quartet begins with an arching, step-wise melody marked Mesto-"sad". This theme unifies the whole composition by reappearing in different settings at the beginnings of the second and third movements, and by serving as the principal subject of the finale.
> 
> Each successive movement of the Sixth Quartet is more melancholy in mood and slower in tempo-Vivace, Marcia, Moderato, Mesto-so that the work ends with a feeling of bleak resignation, perhaps indicating the growing pessimism that overcame Bartók during the time of its creation."
> 
> Nowhere in all Bartók's music is there a movement so restrained and at the same time with such a powerful impact."
> 
> - Dr Richard E Rodda


----------



## Phil loves classical

Heck148 said:


> What is the modernist era?? Starting when?? Are Shostakovich, Prokofieff, Bartok, Stravinsky, Schoenberg "modernist era" composers??...Copland, Schuman, Mennin, etc...20 century orchestral music is probably my overall favorite....


1900-1960, but can include post modern up to present. All the ones you named are considered modern. But excluding post-romantic means no Mahler, R. strauss, Rachmininov (not a problem for you), Debussy, Ravel.


----------



## Phil loves classical

mmsbls said:


> There are quite a few, but here's 3:
> 
> Messiaen - Turangalîla-Symphonie
> Schnittke: Piano Quintet
> Dutilleux: Tout un monde lointain


The only thing that turns me off the Turangailila Symphony are those bird calls that sound out of place to me. I have to relisten to the Schnittke Piano Quintet.


----------



## Portamento

Just a few for your fancy.

Schmitt: _Symphonie concertante_





Bridge: Piano Sonata





Hovhaness: Symphony No. 19, "_Vishnu_"


----------



## Phil loves classical

Portamento said:


> Just a few for your fancy.
> 
> Schmitt: _Symphonie concertante_
> 
> Bridge: Piano Sonata
> 
> Hovhaness: Symphony No. 19, "_Vishnu_"


Sampled all 3, but listened to the Bridge Sonata whole, that is some piece.


----------



## Portamento

Glad you liked it. Bridge worked on the score for three years following WWI, in which his good friend died. He was an extreme pacifist and expressed his hatred and outright sadness through this work. I can only think what other masterpieces Bridge would have written if he had witnessed WWII.


----------



## PeterFromLA

Phil loves classical said:


> The only thing that turns me off the Turangailila Symphony are those bird calls that sound out of place to me. I have to relisten to the Schnittke Piano Quintet.


As far as I know, Messiaen didn't develop his literal approach to working with birdsong until the 1950s. Any birds heard in Turangalila are simulated or the tunes are "birdsong-like"...


----------



## PeterFromLA

1900 to 1960?

Stravinsky, Le sacre du printemps
Debussy, Douze etudes
Boulez, Le marteau sans maitre


----------



## Bettina

The modernist version of the 3 B's...

Bartok--Concerto for Orchestra
Berg--Violin Concerto
Britten--War Requiem


----------



## KenOC

Three from the last 50 years:

Shostakovich: Symphony No. 15 (1971)
Schnittke: Requiem (1975)
Adams: The Dharma at Big Sur (2003)


----------



## hpowders

Ives Concord Piano Sonata

Schuman Sixth Symphony

Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2.


----------



## Meyerbeer Smith

Prokofiev - Alexander Nevsky
Orff - Carmina Burana
Bartók - Music for Strings, Percussion, Celesta


----------



## Art Rock

Stravinsky - Le sacre du printemps
Moeran - Cello concerto
Gorecki - Symphony 3


----------



## Pugg

Orff - Carmina Burana and Prokofiev - Alexander Nevsky.


----------



## Casebearer

Bartók - Cantata profana
Schnittke - Faust cantata
Bartók - String Quartet 4


----------



## StDior

Boulez: Anthèmes II 
Gubaidulina: Quasi Hoquetus
Haas: String Quartet 3 "In iij. Noct"


----------



## Arent

Messiaen - _Eclairs sur l'au dela_
Boulez - _Sur Incises_
Ligeti - Violin Concerto


----------



## Strange Magic

Prokofiev Symphony No. 3
Hovhaness Violin Concerto No. 2
Bartok Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta

But there are more......


----------



## poodlebites

Edgar Varese - Arcana
Stravinsky - Le Sacre du Printemps
Bartok - String Quartet 6


----------



## hpowders

Really, naming just three isn't fair. After Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, & Brahms, I dwell in the Twentieth Century. I believe it is the greatest century for classical music creativity when the number of great composers participating, is taken into account.


----------



## hpowders

Bettina said:


> The modernist version of the 3 B's...
> 
> Bartok--Concerto for Orchestra
> Berg--Violin Concerto
> Britten--War Requiem


These choices could have been mine too! I would call these "plan B" after the one's I listed.


----------



## Pugg

I do add : Stravinsky : The rake's progress.


----------



## Arent

hpowders said:


> Really, naming just three isn't fair. After Bach and Brahms, I dwell in the Twentieth Century. I believe it is the greatest century for classical music creativity when the number of great composers participating, is taken into account.


I agree. The half-century 1890-1940 is just an incredible flowering of creativity, with a significant shoulder from 1940-1970. After that, it may be just my own ignorance, but there is not nearly as much that grabs me.


----------



## schigolch

Alban Berg - "Lulu"
Francis Poulenc - "Dialogues des Carmélites"
Benjamin Britten - "The Turn of the Screw"


----------



## NorthernHarrier

Ligeti: Requiem
Penderecki: Kosmogonia
Orff: Carmina Burana


----------



## Phil loves classical

Hey, I guess people do like Modern. The weird thing with Carmina burana is it was the first choral work i heard from movies like Excalibur. I didn't know when it was written till much later after I got into Classical.


----------



## hpowders

Phil loves classical said:


> Hey, I guess people do like Modern. The weird thing with Carmina burana is it was the first choral work i heard from movies like Excalibur. I didn't know when it was written till much later after I got into Classical.


Depends on what you mean by "modern". One person's "modern" is another person's"neo-classical".


----------



## NorthernHarrier

Phil loves classical said:


> Hey, I guess people do like Modern. The weird thing with Carmina burana is it was the first choral work i heard from movies like Excalibur. I didn't know when it was written till much later after I got into Classical.


It seemed for a while that every action movie used that piece in its soundtrack.


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Phil loves classical said:


> 1900-1960, but can include post modern up to present. All the ones you named are considered modern. But excluding post-romantic means no Mahler, R. strauss, Rachmininov (not a problem for you), Debussy, Ravel.


Calling Debussy "post-Romantic" is like calling Schumann post-Classical. Calling Ravel post-Romantic is like calling Liszt post-Classical.

But okay, it's your thread, so let's say they're not included, for whatever reason.

Schoenberg - "Pierrot lunaire" 



 Text in German & English: http://www.lunanova.org/pierrot/text.html

Bartok - string quartet No. 5 




Stravinsky - "Orpheus" 




And you said "Modernist," so I'll be using that as an excuse NOT to try to figure out where Postmodern Morton Feldman, middle-to-late Steve Reich, Gérard Grisey, et al. fit in.


----------



## Orfeo

There are plenty, but I'll pick:


*Carl Nielsen:* Fifth Symphony (definitely)
*George Enescu:* opera "Oedipe"
*Leonard Bernstein:* Symphony no. II "The Age of Anxiety"
*Honorable mentions:* Ives' "Central Park in the Dark", Myaskovsky's Thirteenth Symphony and Piano Sonata no. IV, Berg's "Lulu", Prokofiev's "The Fiery Angel", Roslavets' Five Preludes for Piano, etc., etc., etc.


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Alternately: Three masterpieces by Stravinsky, because there's him and then there's everybody else.

The Wedding [Les Noces/Svadebka]
The symphony of psalms
The Requiem canticles

Or again:

The symphonies of winds
Oedipus
"The Rake's Progress"


----------



## Sloe

Magnum Miserium said:


> Alternately: Three masterpieces by Stravinsky, because there's him and then there's everybody else.
> 
> The Wedding [Les Noces/Svadebka]
> The symphony of psalms
> The Requiem canticles
> 
> Or again:
> 
> The symphonies of winds
> Oedipus
> "The Rake's Progress"


I prefer Symphony in Three Movements and Oidipus Rex.


----------



## hpowders

I could have also listed:

Pettersson Symphony No. 7

Schuman Symphony No. 9

Mennin Symphony No. 7


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Sloe said:


> I prefer Symphony in Three Movements and Oidipus Rex.


I listed Oedipus.

Anyway, two more sets of three masterpieces I'd list before the symphony in three movements (which has never done very much for me):

Three pieces for string quartet
Fable [Renard/Bayka]
The Soldier's Tale

Mavra
Apollo
Violin concerto


----------



## Sloe

Magnum Miserium said:


> I listed Oedipus.
> 
> Anyway, two more sets of three masterpieces I'd list before the symphony in three movements (which has never done very much for me):
> 
> Three pieces for string quartet
> Fable [Renard/Bayka]
> The Soldier's Tale
> 
> Mavra
> Apollo
> Violin concerto


Sorry I did not made the connection between Oidipus and Oidipus Rex. I was just making a casual mobile answer.
Personally I enjoy symphony in 3 movements a lot.


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Perhaps we can simply agree that Igor has an insanely strong back catalog.


----------



## laurie

There are far too many "masterpieces" to choose only 3! So, just off the top of my head:

Copland - Appalachian Spring
Sibelius - Symphony No. 7
Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue

(And I second ArtRock; the Moeran Cello Concerto is stunning)


----------



## laurie

Ok, now I'm over the limit of 3 ~ sorry! ~ but I _have _ to add:

Barber - Piano Concerto op.38
Britten - Four Sea Interludes


----------



## TurnaboutVox

Hm, well, if other people aren't stopping at three...


Paul Hindemith - Violin Concerto (1939)

Benjamin Britten - War Requiem, Op. 66 (1961-2)

György Kurtág - Six Moments Musicaux for string quartet, Op. 44 (2006)


----------



## Strange Magic

OK, I'll play along. Three more:

Martinu Symphony No. 1
Bartok Concerto for Orchestra
Ravel Concerto for the Left Hand


----------



## Trout

There are so many great pieces that choosing the best/my favorite 3 would be difficult. So I'll simply highlight 3 lesser-known yet extraordinarily visionary ones:

Decaux: Clairs de lune (1900-7) -- an immediate precursor to Debussy and Schoenberg, straddling impressionism and expressionism

Langgaard: Music of the Spheres (1916-8) -- a complete anachronistic oddity: consists of tone clusters, hypnotic repetitions, and other experimental techniques before they caught on several decades later

Crawford Seeger: String Quartet (1931) -- one of the early uses of serialism and a forerunner of integral serialism, which was not fully cultivated until Boulez in the 50s

But their innovations should not distract you from admiring how wonderful they all sound as music!


----------



## Kjetil Heggelund

I'll go for guitar pieces!
Britten-Nocturnal
Henze-Royal Winter Music I & II
Takemitsu-Towards the Sea (with alto flute)


----------



## AfterHours

So many great choices. Forced to limit myself to 3, I'd probably choose:

Symphony No. 15 in A Major - Dmitri Shostakovich (1971) 
Glagolitic Mass - Leos Janacek (1926) 
The Ascension - Glenn Branca (1981) 

Though it would be especially difficult to leave out:

Concerto for Orchestra - Roberto Gerhard (1965) 
Symphony No. 4 - Charles Ives (1924) 
Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta - Bela Bartok (1936) 
Turangalila Symphony - Olivier Messiaen (1948) 
Requiem - Gyorgy Ligeti (1965)


----------



## WildThing

Choral works:

Janáček - Glagolitic Mass
Dallapiccola - Canti di prigionia
Ligeti - Requiem

Operas:

Berg - Wozzeck
Poulenc - Dialogues des Carmélites
Britten - Peter Grimes

Symphonies:

Shostakovich - Symphony No. 10
Ives - Symphony No. 4
Pettersson - Symphony No. 7

Ballets:

Prokofiev - Romeo and Juliet
Stravinsky - Rite of Spring
Copland - Appalachian Spring

Etc....


----------



## Vaneyes




----------



## EddieRUKiddingVarese

poodlebites said:


> Edgar Varese - Arcana
> Stravinsky - Le Sacre du Printemps
> Bartok - String Quartet 6


Now your talkin


----------



## jailhouse

Messiaen - Vingt Regards sur l'enfant jesus
Ligeti - Etudes books 1-3
Schnittke - Choir Concerto


----------



## lluissineu

There are dozens of master pieces. Just an example:

- many Shostakovitch symphonies (5, 7, 8, 10, 13, 14, 15). Choose The one you prefer as if I had only mentioned one.
- Britten's War Requiem.
- gubaidulina's Canticle of The Sun.

Just in case I could mention 100 more, let me know.


----------



## ido66667

Nocturnal after John Dowland by Britten

Musica Ricercata by Ligeti

Electric Counterpoint by Reich

I would like to add Shostakovich Symphony 13, first part, "Babi Yar".
Also another piece that made quite an impression on me is the neo-romantic "Western Dances" by the unknown composer Ante B. K.


----------



## Phil loves classical

3 more sure:

Xenakis: Pleiades
Varese: Arcana
Stockhausen: Kontakte


----------



## Triplets

Barton, Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Prokofiev are just 4 of the Composer's that fall into this period. Why draw the line at 3 works? Between this 4 alone 300 might be a more appropriate number


----------



## Rangstrom

Rzewski: The People United
Harris: Symphony 3
Maw: Odyssey 

I was going to add Peter Grimes, but I see that is already listed.


----------



## Casebearer

Reading all of this I'm getting inspired by TC again. That has been a long time ago. 

I think this is a great and inspiring thread that should immediately (!!!!) be upgraded to a separate subforum because we seem to be able to meet amongst ourselves here and exchange about modernist music in a positive way between people that really like that kind of music and all seem to want to tell more about it (instead of the usual hassle with the ones that like and don't like it).

Who's in favor?


----------



## Phil loves classical

Casebearer said:


> Reading all of this I'm getting inspired by TC again. That has been a long time ago.
> 
> I think this is a great and inspiring thread that should immediately (!!!!) be upgraded to a separate subforum because we seem to be able to meet amongst ourselves here and exchange about modernist music in a positive way between people that really like that kind of music and all seem to want to tell more about it (instead of the usual hassle with the ones that like and don't like it).
> 
> Who's in favor?


Sure. Or we could just do it here. The more we do it, the less hassle we should get.


----------



## science

I don't have the expertise necessary to identify masterpieces, so I'll just mention three that I like. I've probably already over-promoted Crumb's Black Angels and Takemitsu's From Me Flows What You Call Time, so here are three others: 

Rzewski's Coming Together 
Enescu's Oedipe
Nono's Como una ola de fuerza y luz


----------



## Phil loves classical

science said:


> I don't have the expertise necessary to identify masterpieces, so I'll just mention three that I like. I've probably already over-promoted Crumb's Black Angels and Takemitsu's From Me Flows What You Call Time, so here are three others:
> 
> Rzewski's Coming Together
> Enescu's Oedipe
> Nono's Como una ola de fuerza y luz


Don't worry about the word masterpiece. Critical consensus means nothing here, they are all great works that stand on their own. I also really like that Takemitsu's From Me Flows....


----------



## lehnert

In no particular order:

Gya Kancheli - Evening prayers (1991)





Igor Stravinsky - Symphony of Psalms (1930)





Arthur Honegger - Symphony no. 3 "Liturgique" (1946)


----------



## mathisdermaler

Mathis der Maler opera
Moses und Aron opera
Lulu opera


----------



## Phil loves classical

mathisdermaler said:


> Mathis der Maler opera
> Moses und Aron opera
> Lulu opera


Always thought Mathis der Maler was a symphony. looks Like Hindemith did it in both.


----------



## Sloe

Phil loves classical said:


> Always thought Mathis der Maler was a symphony. looks Like Hindemith did it in both.


I really like Hindemith´s operas Cardillac, Neues Vom Tage and Das Nusch-Nuschi.


----------



## Bluecrab

Casebearer said:


> ... Bartók - String Quartet 4


I couldn't agree more. In the first movement, the sheer, raw energy that Bartok coaxes from four unamplified string instruments is almost beyond belief. I find the entire work, including its "arch" structure, a twentieth-century masterpiece.

Another vote for Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste

Pierrot Lunaire


----------



## Janspe

A. Berg: _Wozzeck_, Op. 7
A. Schoenberg: Piano Concerto Op. 42
O. Messiaen: _Turangalîla-Symphonie_

But there's an enormous amount of "modern" works that I consider to be masterpieces. Those three are just off the top of my head...


----------



## Gaspard de la Nuit

Are there parameters to what 'modernist' means......would it mean Schoenberg and Prokofiev but not Puccini and Richard Strauss even though they were all contemporaries.....


----------



## Casebearer

As I posted above I see this thread as an inspiring example of how exchanges on modernist classical music can work. No discussions that lead nowhere, just sharing our love for this kind of music. Also more people than I imagined really love modernist classical music. For this reason I think we should have a separate forum on TC devoted to modernist classical music.

I've proposed this to TC-staff. They want to hear your opinion on it. Therefore I started a thread in Area 51 which I hope you'll visit and give your view on it. Go to: http://www.talkclassical.com/48273-proposal-lets-have-separate.html#post1214508


----------



## musicrom

Hard to choose just 3, but here are a few of my favorites:

Lindberg: Clarinet Concerto
Schnittke: Symphony No. 1
Gubaidulina: Viola Concerto


----------



## Woodduck

Warlock: The Curlew
Britten: Serenade for tenor, Horn and Strings
Martinu: Double Concerto for Two String Orchestras, Piano and Timpani


----------



## Art Rock

Woodduck said:


> Warlock: The Curlew


A very underrated work. Love it.


----------



## KenOC

Woodduck said:


> Warlock: The Curlew
> Britten: Serenade for tenor, Horn and Strings
> Martinu: Double Concerto for Two String Orchestras, Piano and Timpani


Good call on Britten's Serenade! I'll add his War Requiem and Cello Symphony, that nobody much likes but is magnificent. And throw in the Young Person's Guide as well, because every so often we just want to have a good time.


----------



## Woodduck

Another wonderful English work for strings, from 1953: Tippett's _Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli_, which I was tempted to mention instead of the Martinu _Double Concerto_. So to make another trio I'll include it and mention a couple more English favorites, Britten's _Peter Grimes_ and his striking _Violin Concerto._


----------



## Guest

Phil loves classical said:


> No post-Romanticism.


According to Brittanica, that would exclude Schoenberg.

https://www.britannica.com/art/Postromantic-music

I can't name masterpieces either, but Rite of Spring, Turangalila, and Prokofiev Symphony no 2 are pieces that I like to listen to. More important, I can see recommendations by others that I really must make an effort to explore.


----------



## Woodduck

MacLeod said:


> According to Brittanica, that would exclude Schoenberg.
> 
> https://www.britannica.com/art/Postromantic-music
> 
> I can't name masterpieces either, but Rite of Spring, Turangalila, and Prokofiev Symphony no 2 are pieces that I like to listen to. More important, I can see recommendations by others that I really must make an effort to explore.


Good point about Schoenberg. Phil probably means "no composers writing in basically nineteenth-century idioms." But that's problematic too, since works such as Puccini's _Turandot,_ Sibelius's _Tapiola,_ and Rachmaninoff's _Symphonic Dances_ could only have been written in the 20th century. What do we do with Vaughan Williams, deeply Romantic but distinctly modern? And there's no clearer a line to be drawn where "modern" gives way to "contemporary" than where it departs from Romantic.

This, among other considerations, makes me skeptical of the notion of a separate forum for "modern" music.


----------



## chill782002

I have real trouble distinguishing between modernism and very late romanticism. I guess I consider modernism to rely more heavily on atonality. With that in mind, here are three great pieces that I would consider to be modernist although others may disagree:

Bartok - Piano Concerto 2

Prokofiev - Piano Concerto 3

Stravinsky - The Rite Of Spring


----------



## Art Rock

I did not feel like checking the thread whether it has been mentioned already, but Berg's violin concerto is another masterpiece from the modernist era.


----------



## Phil loves classical

MacLeod said:


> According to Brittanica, that would exclude Schoenberg.
> 
> https://www.britannica.com/art/Postromantic-music
> 
> I can't name masterpieces either, but Rite of Spring, Turangalila, and Prokofiev Symphony no 2 are pieces that I like to listen to. More important, I can see recommendations by others that I really must make an effort to explore.


Schoenberg's earlier output is definitely in the postromantic in feel. His 12-tone is more in the modern vein. But the lines can be blurred, I agree, and there can be some overlap. Don't worry about the word masterpiece, as I said in another post. In the spirit of modernism, pretty much any work can be a masterpiece if it touches you.


----------



## hpowders

Berg Wozzeck
Ives Concord Piano Sonata
Schoenberg Piano Concerto


----------



## Omicron9

I'm going to cheat by calling this all one work: Elliott Carter's string quartets.


----------



## MissKittysMom

Shostakovich: Piano Trio No. 2 (the horrors of war, far more personal and immediate than Penderecki)
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3
Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra


----------



## MissKittysMom

Going just with quartets. It was a brilliant century for chamber music.

Janacek: String Quartet No. 1
Boris Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 6
Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 12


----------



## hpowders

Find the connecting theme:

Berg Violin Concerto

Schoenberg Violin Concerto

Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2

CORRECT!!! Lang Lang can't mess any of them up!!


----------



## Bettina

hpowders said:


> Find the connecting theme:
> 
> Berg Violin Concerto
> 
> Schoenberg Violin Concerto
> 
> Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2
> 
> CORRECT!!! Lang Lang can't mess any of them up!!


Yeah, but Andre Rieu can...


----------



## hpowders

Bettina said:


> Yeah, but Andre Rieu can...


He'll be in Tampa soon. One thing-he can't bring this area down culturally-it already has hit rock bottom.

Since I didn't buy a ticket, I won't Rieu the day that he is here.

However my PBS TV station seems to be obsessed with him. He always seems to be there. Cable News keeps me safe.


----------



## Janspe

Bettina said:


> Yeah, but Andre Rieu can...


I'd be very interested to see him play the Schoenberg concerto, if only to see how his schmaltz-loving audience would deal with it. It _is_ Viennese, after all...

Talking of violin concertos, I'd like to nominate Britten's wonderful take on the genre, his Op. 15 from the late 1930's. It's a stunning work full of intense expression, and it deserves to be more well-known all around the world.


----------



## Portamento

Looks like I'm back for more.

Kapustin: 24 Preludes in Jazz Style, Op. 53





Schnittke: Piano Quintet





Toch: Symphony No. 3





Screw this, we're going over.

Herrmann: _Psycho_ Suite





Feldman: _Coptic Light_


----------



## Portamento

Cardew: _Treatise_





Ustvolskaya: Piano Sonata No. 6





Gubaidulina: Viola Concerto





Koechlin: The Seven Stars' Symphony, Op. 132 





Ornstein: Cello _Sonata No. 2_, SO 612


----------



## Portamento

Milhaud: String Quartet No. 18, Op. 308 





Ginastera: Piano Sonata No. 1, Op. 22





Holmboe: Symphony No. 8, "_Sinfonia Boreale_", Op. 56





Emmanuel: Piano Sonatina No. 6, Op. 23





Vierne: Piano Quintet, Op. 42





That should keep you busy for a while!


----------



## Portamento

I'll post 5 new works to this thread every other day. Stay tuned!


----------



## Woodduck

Janspe said:


> I'd be very interested to see him play the Schoenberg concerto, if only to see how his schmaltz-loving audience would deal with it. It _is_ Viennese, after all...
> 
> Talking of violin concertos, I'd like to nominate Britten's wonderful take on the genre, his Op. 15 from the late 1930's. It's a stunning work full of intense expression, and it deserves to be more well-known all around the world.


I caught the Britten Violin Concerto one day on radio without knowing what it was. I was stunned and captivated. Does anyone ever program it? Do any of the front-rank violinists play it?


----------



## KenOC

Woodduck said:


> I caught the Britten Violin Concerto one day on radio without knowing what it was. I was stunned and captivated. Does anyone ever program it? Do any of the front-rank violinists play it?


It's kind of rare, and I've never heard it on the radio. But given its quality, I'm sure it will catch on sooner or later.


----------



## schigolch

Yes, it's programmed for sure, though certainly it's not very popular. Recently, it has been somewhat better known due to Janine Jansen.

I have listened to it a couple of times live, myself.


----------



## Phil loves classical

Portamento said:


> Milhaud: String Quartet No. 18, Op. 308
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Ginastera: Piano Sonata No. 1, Op. 22
> 
> That should keep you busy for a while!


Just listened to The Milhaud Quartet. It is really something.


----------



## Janspe

Woodduck said:


> I caught the Britten Violin Concerto one day on radio without knowing what it was. I was stunned and captivated. Does anyone ever program it? Do any of the front-rank violinists play it?


I think the piece is - albeit slowly - becoming a repertoire staple. I managed to catch a live performance by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2013, with Simone Lamsma playing the violin and Stéphane Denève conducting. It was a lovely experience indeed, I hope to hear it again soon! Jansen's recording is also a fine rendition, and there are plenty of others - the concerto's Wikipedia page lists violinists such as Ida Haendel, Maxim Vengerov, Frank Peter Zimmermann and James Ehnes, among others.

Also, I'd like to add Varèse's _Amériques_ on the list of works that I consider to be masterpieces. The combination of fierce energy, eerie lyricism and bombastic noise makes it a piece that rewards re-listening, and it opens up gradually just like _Le sacre du printemps_ does. It's a veritable virtuoso showpiece for orchestras, a fantastic urban jungle.


----------



## Barbebleu

Woodduck said:


> I caught the Britten Violin Concerto one day on radio without knowing what it was. I was stunned and captivated. Does anyone ever program it? Do any of the front-rank violinists play it?


Woodduck, you astonish me that you weren't aware of the Britten Violin Concerto. I have a few versions of it and along with the Walton imo it is one of the finest twentieth century British concertos ever written.


----------



## Omicron9

jailhouse said:


> Messiaen - Vingt Regards sur l'enfant jesus
> Ligeti - Etudes books 1-3
> Schnittke - Choir Concerto


All excellent choices, but an extra-large YES for Schnittke's Choir Concerto. Under-rated for sure.


----------



## Omicron9

Breaking the rules again as I am again voting. I mention this piece(s) because I don't see it already mentioned here, and it really deserves wider recognition (as do so many of the fine nominations/votes in this great thread). 

Britten: The Three Solo Cello Sonatas


----------



## Portamento

Have any of you listened to some of the 15 works that I posted? If so, what do you think?


----------



## Chronochromie

Woodduck said:


> I caught the Britten Violin Concerto one day on radio without knowing what it was. I was stunned and captivated. Does anyone ever program it? Do any of the front-rank violinists play it?


I've heard it live, performed by Ray Chen.


----------



## Portamento

Here's a new one:

Jongen: String Quartet No. 3, Op. 67

















Fun and lively work in French tradition.


----------



## Ekim the Insubordinate

Hmmm - not sure whether these all fit in to the criteria, but for me, in terms of what I really enjoy, I would list:
Pärt - Spiegel im Spiegel
Barber - Adagio for Strings
Messiaen - Quartet for the End of Time


----------



## Portamento

Toch: String Quartet No. 11, Op. 34


----------



## Portamento

Christophe Bertrand: _Scales_ for large ensemble


----------



## Skilmarilion

Phil loves classical said:


> 1900-1960


*Poulenc*: Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra
*Prokofiev*: Piano Concerto No. 2
*Martinů*: Symphony No. 4

And post-1960

*Schnittke*: String Trio
*Rautavaara*: Vigilia
*Glass*: Symphony No. 8


----------



## Ingélou

Phil loves classical said:


> What are 3 works in the Modernist era that you view ARE Masterpieces
> No post-Romanticism. Maximum 1 work per composer.


Fabulous thread, @Phil loves classical! :tiphat:
I can't answer but I shall be reading the posts of others and using them (over the next few weeks) to become better informed.
Thank you, TC!


----------



## hpowders

Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3

Schuman Symphony No. 9

Shostakovich Symphony No. 4


----------



## Pugg

Stravinsky, Le sacre du printemps

Stravinsky ,The Rake's Progress

Copland - Appalachian Spring


----------



## Phil loves classical

Ingélou said:


> Fabulous thread, @Phil loves classical! :tiphat:
> I can't answer but I shall be reading the posts of others and using them (over the next few weeks) to become better informed.
> Thank you, TC!


Don't feel intimidated by the the word masterpiece. Some work for some, and some just don't work for others.


----------



## poodlebites

schigolch said:


> Yes, it's programmed for sure, though certainly it's not very popular. Recently, it has been somewhat better known due to Janine Jansen.
> 
> I have listened to it a couple of times live, myself.


I saw it live last Friday played by Vilde Frang. I liked it a lot even though she had an ear inffection and looked quite pale and sick.


----------



## Portamento

Reinecke: Flute Concerto in D major, Op. 283 (1908)





Bozza: _Jour d'été à la montagne_ for flute quartet (1953)





Berio: _Sequenza I_ for flute (1958)





Vine: _Piano Sonata_ No. 1 (1990)





Ferneyhough: _String Quartet No. 6_ (2010)


----------



## R3PL4Y

I am not sure if I can keep it to just 3. 
Strongly modernist:
Messiaen: Eclairs sur l'au dela
Berio: Sinfonia
Ives: Symphony 4
Not as Modernist:
Hindemith Symphonic Metamorphosis
Villa Lobos Bachianas Brasileiras 7
Shostakovich symphony 13
Not really modernist but still 20th Century:
Barber Violin Concerto
Rachmaninoff Symphony 3
Sibelius Symphony 7


----------



## Phil loves classical

Here is Lutoslawski's Symphony 4 completed in 1992. One of my favourite 20th century symphonies, and is an acknowledged masterpiece:


----------



## janxharris

Phil loves classical said:


> Here is Lutoslawski's Symphony 4 completed in 1992. One of my favourite 20th century symphonies, and is an acknowledged masterpiece:


Just having a listen.

How would you define 'is an acknowledged masterpiece'?


----------



## Phil loves classical

janxharris said:


> Just having a listen.
> 
> How would you define 'is an acknowledged masterpiece'?


In this case it was in a review I read, uses by the author.


----------



## Portamento

Arnold: _Guitar Concerto_, Op. 67 (1959)





One of the top three guitar concertos IMO.


----------



## Selby

Since you expanded the definition into the present, I will choose 3 masterpieces from this decade:

Georg Friedrich Haas: Limited approximations (2010) for 6 micro-tonally tuned pianos and orchestra 
Anna Thorvaldsdottir: Aeriality (2011) for orchestra
Hans Abrahamsen: Let me tell you (2013) for soprano and orchestra


----------



## Portamento

No! This thread is not allowed to leave the first page!


----------



## Phil loves classical

Portamento said:


> No! This thread is not allowed to leave the first page!


Good one, pretty easy going. Gilels is my favourite. Was listening to this the other day. Didn't know it was composed in the 60's before, always assumed a bit earlier.


----------



## Phil loves classical

Here is one I posted on another thread, which I definitely can't see as a masterpiece. Does anyone like this?


----------



## Portamento

Phil loves classical said:


> Here is one I posted on another thread, which I definitely can't see as a masterpiece. Does anyone like this?


I am speechless. As much as I love Reich, this is torture!


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Phil loves classical said:


> Here is one I posted on another thread, which I definitely can't see as a masterpiece. Does anyone like this?


I like it, though maybe that reflects badly on me, but either this is a masterpiece or nothing by Reich is. (Probably not quite as great as "It's Gonna Rain," though also probably more mature/smart/thoughtful, which maybe proves that mature/smart/thoughtful isn't Reich's greatest strength.)


----------



## Phil loves classical

Concercto for Birds and Orchestra


----------



## Portamento

Phil loves classical said:


> Concercto for Birds and Orchestra


One of Rautavaara's best works, right alongside Symphony No. 8 and the First Piano Concerto.


----------



## Pat Fairlea

Phil loves classical said:


> Concercto for Birds and Orchestra


Yes! That's one of my three, alongside Tippett's Concerto for Double String Orchestra and Ravel's Piano Concerto in G.

Barber's Violin Concerto? Can I smuggle that in, too?


----------



## jailhouse

Come out is awesome and extremely influential. I guess some of you guys just don't have much experience with electronica/ambient/drone/etc


----------



## Phil loves classical

jailhouse said:


> Come out is awesome and extremely influential. I guess some of you guys just don't have much experience with electronica/ambient/drone/etc


Does Pet Shop Boys count?


----------



## Portamento

jailhouse said:


> Come out is awesome and extremely influential. I guess some of you guys just don't have much experience with electronica/ambient/drone/etc


Process music is just not my cup of tea.


----------



## isorhythm

I loved those Reich tape phase pieces when I first encountered them, but don't really feel a need to go listen to them again; you kind of get the idea. Reich himself moved on pretty quickly.


----------



## Simon Moon

Since all the classical music I listen to is from the 20th century and contemporary, and I consider quite a bit of it to be masterpieces, it is impossible for me to keep my list to only 3. 

Here's 7, but could easily be many more:

Stravinsky - Le sacre du printemps
Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra
Berg - Violin Concerto
Bartók - Music for Strings, Percussion, Celesta
Carter - String Quartets nos 1 & 2
Pendererecki - Violin Concerto No. 2 “Metamorphosen”


----------



## Pugg

Portamento said:


> Process music is just not my cup of tea.


Or coffee for that matter.


----------



## Magnum Miserium

[Edit: wrong thread]

While I'm here:


isorhythm said:


> I loved those Reich tape phase pieces when I first encountered them, but don't really feel a need to go listen to them again; you kind of get the idea. Reich himself moved on pretty quickly.


Now the question is: if you "kind of get the idea" of "Come Out" and then there's not much reason to go back - and this may all be true - then why doesn't the same go for "Piano Phase"? And if the same goes for "Piano Phase," why not for "Drumming?" And if the same goes for "Drumming," why not for "Music for 18 Musicians" and "Different Trains"?


----------



## jailhouse

....Have you listened to "different trains"? Does it sound like "Come Out" to you?


----------



## norman bates

Ligeti - Requiem
Ohana - Syllabaire pour Phedre
Scelsi - Uaxuctum


----------



## norman bates

Art Rock said:


> A very underrated work. Love it.


one of my favorite works ever, but while certainly it has a more modern sound than Brahms I think it's still romantic music.


----------



## Magnum Miserium

jailhouse said:


> ....Have you listened to "different trains"? Does it sound like "Come Out" to you?


No but it does kind of sound like "Music for 18 Musicians" - except, maybe, that when you replace the exotic instrumentation of the earlier work with the double string quartet of the later, then Reich's music begins to sound less like a higher art pastiched by the likes of Clint Mansell and more just _alarmingly like Clint Mansell_.

And "Music for 18 Musicians" does sound kind of like the parts "Drumming" where pitched instruments play.

And those same parts of "Drumming" sound kind of like "Piano Phase."

And "Piano Phase" is obviously composed in the same way as "Come Out," except using a fragment of piano music instead of a fragment of recorded speech.

Now you might say Reich "developed" from "It's Gonna Rain" and "Come Out" into his later works, but are you really sure that "Piano Phase" is superior to "Come Out"? Or that "Drumming" is superior to "Piano Phase" in any respect except that it sustains itself over a longer period of time? Or that "Music for 18 Musicians" is superior to "Drumming"? Or that "Different Trains" is superior to "Music for 18 Musicians"?


----------



## Pat Fairlea

jailhouse said:


> ....Have you listened to "different trains"? Does it sound like "Come Out" to you?


Speaking of trains:
Honneger, Pacific 231. Brilliant


----------



## Magnum Miserium

Milhaud, "Le train bleu" 



,


----------



## Phil loves classical

Here is an electronic piece which is my favourite, Alongside Stockhausen's Kontakte,


----------



## Portamento

I got a great classical music channel on YouTube to upload one of my favorite string quartets:


----------



## Omicron9

Alban Berg: Violin Concerto.


----------



## Tchaikov6

Berg Violin Concerto
Stravinsky Rite of Spring
Shostakovich Violin Concerto 1

Those were the first three that came in my head- but even now as I write this I am thinking about- perhaps Shostakovich 10, or maybe Bartok Concerto for Orchesetra, hm... maybe Prokofiev fifth symphony- or Stravinsky Petrushka... the list will go on forever.


----------



## Portamento

Time to resurface this thread again.

Alois Hába: String Quartet No. 16, Op. 98


----------



## Phil loves classical

This one is really one of the most wild pieces of music. Listen to the part starting at around 5:20. What a sound!


----------



## Tchaikov6

Phil loves classical said:


> This one is really one of the most wild pieces of music. Listen to the part starting at around 5:20. What a sound!


It sounds like an update on the Rite of Spring.


----------



## Scopitone

I have just been through all 145 posts in this thread, and I was worried I might crash my google play music account from adding recordings to sample (and a few to re-visit). 

Great job, all! I hope it continues going.


----------



## Selby

Phil loves classical said:


> This one is really one of the most wild pieces of music. Listen to the part starting at around 5:20. What a sound!


Henze' symphony cycle is really rich, very unique. I'm surprised its not discussed more.


----------



## Portamento

Resurrection time!

I have recently been listening to a lot of string quartets, and this one has quite frankly blown me away:





As one commenter put it, Nishimura's music is very 'efficient'. I concur completely. The composer is obviously familiar with the various 'voices' of the string quartet and knows how to get his ideas across without writing a single meaningless note.


----------



## Phil loves classical

Simon Rattle called this one of the first masterpieces of the 21st century


----------



## EddieRUKiddingVarese

"Maximum 1 work per composer." - Well that counts me out then..............


----------



## Phil loves classical

Thanks to Heggelund for his recommendation on Lindberg. This is the most interesting piece I came across in quite a while.


----------



## Agamemnon

Berio: Laborintus II
Messiaen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps
Stockhausen: Gesang der Junglinge


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

Stravinsky, Le Sacre du printemps
Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5
Bartok, Concerto for orchestra


----------



## 20centrfuge

I like questions like this because reading the responses spurs curiosity and more listening!

I wish I could name more than three, but I will limit it to these:

*1. Harmonielehre by John Adams.* I never tire of this piece and find more treasures each time I listen to it. I am convinced that it is one of the greatest works of the last 50 years.

*2. Prokofiev: Piano Sonata no. 8.* I am addicted to this piece right now. Frederic Chiu plays that #[email protected] out of it. As a composition, it is perfection.

*3. Bartok: the Miraculous Mandarin.* This piece doesn't hold up as well to a bad interpretation the way other great works might. Ivan Fischer with the Budapest Festival Orchestra play it superbly. It is a vigorous, modern and beautiful work.


----------



## 20centrfuge

Strange Magic said:


> Prokofiev Symphony No. 3
> Hovhaness Violin Concerto No. 2
> Bartok Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta
> 
> But there are more......


So happy to see that someone else appreciates Prokofiev's Symphony 3. One of the world's great under-rated pieces!


----------



## 20centrfuge

To Portamento: Thanks for the Milhaud recommendation. I love a few of his works but haven't had an idea where to go next. His oeuvre is immense.


----------



## R3PL4Y

Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra
Shostakovich: Symphony no 13
Messiaen: Eclairs sur l'Au Delà


----------



## Portamento

20centrfuge said:


> To Portamento: Thanks for the Milhaud recommendation. I love a few of his works but haven't had an idea where to go next. His oeuvre is immense.


Yes, Milhaud did compose a lot! You probably want to start with his string quartets and chamber symphonies, and then slowly start working through his large-scale symphonies and the other miscellanious works that make up his large output. I find that Milhaud is more effective at scoring for small ensembles than, say, and full orchestra. Still, if you like his music there's not much to complain about.

A great recording of Milhaud's string quartes:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Milhaud-St...50467&sr=8-6&keywords=Milhaud+String+Quartets

Chamber symphonies:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Milhaud-Sy...38&sr=8-1&keywords=Milhaud+Chamber+Symphonies

Complete symphonies:
https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Symphonies-MILHAUD/dp/B00004SH7J

Violin + Viola Sonatas:
https://www.amazon.com/Darius-Milha...oncertos"+by+"Michael+Korstick,+Alun+Francis"

Complete Works for Piano and Orchestra:
https://www.amazon.com/Milhaud-Comp...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=XAZYCSPC5JH9VS3EVJK6

I would start here.

Good luck with Milhaud - his ouevre is one beast to tackle, but it's sure as hell worth it in the end!


----------



## 20centrfuge

Phil loves classical said:


> Here is Lutoslawski's Symphony 4 completed in 1992. One of my favourite 20th century symphonies, and is an acknowledged masterpiece:


Thanks for this video. I've been listening to it just now and realizing how much I've been missing!


----------



## Portamento

"*The Alois Hába Tribune*"


----------



## ST4

Why only three? and not ten, that's a little too limiting


----------



## Portamento

ST4 said:


> Why only three? and not ten, that's a little too limiting


We can't all be ST4, ST4.


----------



## ST4

Stravinsky - Requiem Canticles
Stockhausen - Licht
Xenakis - Lichens (to name only one)

Messiaen - Éclairs sur l'Au-Delà
Webern - Op. 5/6/9/10/11/18/20/21/22/24/26/27/29/20/31
Bartok - Music For Percussion, Strings & Celesta
Grisey - Les Espaces Acoustiques
Kagel - Der Schall 
Murail - Disintegrations 
Debussy - Jeux


----------



## ST4

Just from attempting that, I can already thing of 80 other works :kiss:


----------



## ST4

Seriously, so much more extremely awesome and important music to choose from!

Scriabin
Schoenberg
Cage
Gershwin
Nancarrow
Varese
Kurt Weill
Herrmann
Ravel
Boulez
Lutoslawski
Zorn
Milhaud
Scelsi
Babbitt
Neauwirth
Feldman
Moondog
Reich
Stalling 
Gerhard
Crawford-Seeger
Romitelli
Bogdanovic
Maciejewski
Sciarrino
Ligeti
Ferneyhough
Shostakovich
N. Senada
Berio
Busoni
Crumb
Partch
Cardew
Nono
Wuorinen
Young
Johnston
Bitwhistle
Ohana
Kurtag
Lachenmann
Rihm
Rautavaara
Sorabji
Korndorf
Schnittke
Harrison
Goldsmith
Riley



I'm still going.....


----------



## Portamento

ST4 said:


> Stravinsky - Requiem Canticles
> Stockhausen - Licht
> Xenakis - Lichens (to name only one)
> 
> Messiaen - Éclairs sur l'Au-Delà
> Webern - Op. 5/6/9/10/11/18/20/21/22/24/26/27/29/20/31
> Bartok - Music For Percussion, Strings & Celesta
> Grisey - Les Espaces Acoustiques
> Kagel - Der Schall
> Murail - Disintegrations
> Debussy - Jeux


Here's some more:

Weinberg - Solo Violin Sonata #3
Lajtha - Symphony #8, 9, String Quartet 10
Tubin - Symphony #8
Lloyd - Symphony #7
Schmitt - Op. 38/50/51/53/64/68/82/96/105/112/137
Schnittke - Choir Concerto, Concerto Grosso #1, Symphonies #1, #5, #8, #9, Piano Quintet, String Quartet #3 and 4, String Trio, Piano Trio, Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto #4, Cello Concertos #1 and 2, Viola Concerto
Ustvolskaya - Piano Sonata #6
Gubaidulina - Viola Concerto, String Quartet #4
Wellesz - String Quartet #6
Haba - Quarter-tone Sonata, String Quartet #7
Hovhaness - Symphonies #2, 4, 6, 19, 50
Jongen - String Quartet #3, Symphonie Concertante, Sonata Eroica
Emmanuel - Piano Sonatinas nos. 3-6
Pierne - Piano Quintet, Trio
Vierne - Piano Quintet
Dusapin - String Quartet #2 
Krenek - Piano Sonata #7, String Quartet #7
B. Tchaikovsky - Sebastopol Symphony, Piano Concerto
Moondog - Madrigals, Rounds, Canons
Cardew - The Great Learning, Treatise, Piano Albums 1973 & '74
Christiansen - Requiem of Art, Symphony Natura
Foulds - A World Requiem
Langgaard - String Quartets #6, Symphony #6
Toch - String Quartets nos. 9 & 11, Symphony #3
Skalkottas - 36 Greek Dances, Piano Concerto #3
Bloch - Piano Quintet #1, Concerto Grosso #1
Ornstein - Piano Quintet, Piano Sonatas #4 & 8, Cello Sonata #2
Hauer - Zwölftönespiel, Nomos
Raitio - most of the 8 tone poems
Korngold - Cello Concerto, Violin Concerto, Symphony
Shankar - Symphony
Schulhoff - String Quartets, Solo Violin Sonata, Hot-Sonate, Communist Manifesto
P. Haas - String Quartet #2
Stanford - Piano Concerto #3, Irish Rhapsody #2, 3, 4, Preludes and Fugues 
Shchedrin - Polyphonic Notebook, Preludes and Fugues
Barraque - Piano Sonata
Honegger - Symphonies #2, 3, 4, 5
Englund - Symphony #4
Valen - Symphony #2, Violin Concerto, Churchyard by the Sea
Tveitt - Piano Concerto #4, Hardanger Concertos
Persichetti - Symphony #6, Harpsichord Sonatas (some of them), Piano Sonatas (most of them)
Cowell - Banshee, Symphony #11, Piano Concerto
Janacek - Piano Sonata, Glagolitic Mass, String Quartets
Francaix - L'apocalypse seron St. Jean, Piano Concerto
Bozza - Aria
Beach - Piano Quintet
Warlock - Capriol Suite, Curlew
Gliere - Symphony #3
Popov - Symphony #1
Protopopov - Piano Sonatas
Roslavets - Piano Trios
Piazzolla - Historie du tango, Libertango, Oblivion, Le Grand Tango, Four Seasons 
Ginastera - Piano Concerto #1, Piano Sonata #1, Guitar Sonata
Turina - Danzas fantasticas, Piano Trios, Piano Quartets, Circulo
Myaskovsky - Symphonies #6, 27, Piano Sonatas #4, 9, String Quartet #13, Cello Concerto, Cello Sonata #2
Ligeti - Viola Sonata, Etudes...
Radulescu - Piano Concerto, String Quartet #4, Das Andere
Ruggles - Sun-treader
Piston - Symphonies #3, 4, String Quartet 5
Sessins - String Quartet #2, Symphony #7, 8
CPE Bach - 1712 Overture!

.........
...
Xenakis - Psappha :tiphat:

I'll leave it there. I tried not to pick "obvious" ones.


----------



## Portamento

ST4 said:


> Seriously, so much more extremely awesome and important music to choose from!
> 
> Scriabin
> Schoenberg
> Cage
> Gershwin
> Nancarrow
> Varese
> Kurt Weill
> Herrmann
> Ravel
> Boulez
> Lutoslawski
> Zorn
> Milhaud
> Scelsi
> Babbitt
> Neauwirth
> Feldman
> Moondog
> Reich
> Stalling
> Gerhard
> Crawford-Seeger
> Romitelli
> Bogdanovic
> Maciejewski
> Sciarrino
> Ligeti
> Ferneyhough
> Shostakovich
> N. Senada
> Berio
> Busoni
> Crumb
> Partch
> Cardew
> Nono
> Wuorinen
> Young
> Johnston
> Bitwhistle
> Ohana
> Kurtag
> Lachenmann
> Rihm
> Rautavaara
> Sorabji
> Korndorf
> Schnittke
> Harrison
> Goldsmith
> Riley
> 
> I'm still going.....


We'll be here all day!


----------



## EddieRUKiddingVarese

Cage 4'33"
Varese Ionisation
Partch Windsong


----------



## EddieRUKiddingVarese

Cage 4'33"
Varese Ionisation
Partch Windsong


----------



## EddieRUKiddingVarese

Twice as good the second time


----------



## ST4

EddieRUKiddingVarese said:


> Cage 4'33"
> Varese Ionisation
> Partch Windsong


I looove Windsong, Partch is so awesome :kiss:


----------



## Phil loves classical

EddieRUKiddingVarese said:


> Cage 4'33"
> Varese Ionisation
> Partch Windsong


Never listened to the Windsong till now. It's great.


----------



## Omicron9

-- Britten: solo cello works
-- Berg: Violin Concerto
-- Elliott Carter: string quartets


----------



## mathisdermaler

Charles Ives - Symphony No. 4






(or Charles Ives - Concord Piano Sonata)






Karlheinz Stockhausen - Gesang der Junglinge






(or Karlheinz Stockhausen - Gruppen)






Pierre Boulez - Le Marteau sans maitre


----------



## Omicron9

mathisdermaler said:


> Charles Ives - Symphony No. 4
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> A big +1 for Ives 4.


----------



## ST4

Portamento said:


> Here's some more:
> 
> Weinberg - Solo Violin Sonata #3
> Lajtha - Symphony #8, 9, String Quartet 10
> Tubin - Symphony #8
> Lloyd - Symphony #7
> Schmitt - Op. 38/50/51/53/64/68/82/96/105/112/137
> Schnittke - Choir Concerto, Concerto Grosso #1, Symphonies #1, #5, #8, #9, Piano Quintet, String Quartet #3 and 4, String Trio, Piano Trio, Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto #4, Cello Concertos #1 and 2, Viola Concerto
> Ustvolskaya - Piano Sonata #6
> Gubaidulina - Viola Concerto, String Quartet #4
> Wellesz - String Quartet #6
> Haba - Quarter-tone Sonata, String Quartet #7
> Hovhaness - Symphonies #2, 4, 6, 19, 50
> Jongen - String Quartet #3, Symphonie Concertante, Sonata Eroica
> Emmanuel - Piano Sonatinas nos. 3-6
> Pierne - Piano Quintet, Trio
> Vierne - Piano Quintet
> Dusapin - String Quartet #2
> Krenek - Piano Sonata #7, String Quartet #7
> B. Tchaikovsky - Sebastopol Symphony, Piano Concerto
> Moondog - Madrigals, Rounds, Canons
> Cardew - The Great Learning, Treatise, Piano Albums 1973 & '74
> Christiansen - Requiem of Art, Symphony Natura
> Foulds - A World Requiem
> Langgaard - String Quartets #6, Symphony #6
> Toch - String Quartets nos. 9 & 11, Symphony #3
> Skalkottas - 36 Greek Dances, Piano Concerto #3
> Bloch - Piano Quintet #1, Concerto Grosso #1
> Ornstein - Piano Quintet, Piano Sonatas #4 & 8, Cello Sonata #2
> Hauer - Zwölftönespiel, Nomos
> Raitio - most of the 8 tone poems
> Korngold - Cello Concerto, Violin Concerto, Symphony
> Shankar - Symphony
> Schulhoff - String Quartets, Solo Violin Sonata, Hot-Sonate, Communist Manifesto
> P. Haas - String Quartet #2
> Stanford - Piano Concerto #3, Irish Rhapsody #2, 3, 4, Preludes and Fugues
> Shchedrin - Polyphonic Notebook, Preludes and Fugues
> Barraque - Piano Sonata
> Honegger - Symphonies #2, 3, 4, 5
> Englund - Symphony #4
> Valen - Symphony #2, Violin Concerto, Churchyard by the Sea
> Tveitt - Piano Concerto #4, Hardanger Concertos
> Persichetti - Symphony #6, Harpsichord Sonatas (some of them), Piano Sonatas (most of them)
> Cowell - Banshee, Symphony #11, Piano Concerto
> Janacek - Piano Sonata, Glagolitic Mass, String Quartets
> Francaix - L'apocalypse seron St. Jean, Piano Concerto
> Bozza - Aria
> Beach - Piano Quintet
> Warlock - Capriol Suite, Curlew
> Gliere - Symphony #3
> Popov - Symphony #1
> Protopopov - Piano Sonatas
> Roslavets - Piano Trios
> Piazzolla - Historie du tango, Libertango, Oblivion, Le Grand Tango, Four Seasons
> Ginastera - Piano Concerto #1, Piano Sonata #1, Guitar Sonata
> Turina - Danzas fantasticas, Piano Trios, Piano Quartets, Circulo
> Myaskovsky - Symphonies #6, 27, Piano Sonatas #4, 9, String Quartet #13, Cello Concerto, Cello Sonata #2
> Ligeti - Viola Sonata, Etudes...
> Radulescu - Piano Concerto, String Quartet #4, Das Andere
> Ruggles - Sun-treader
> Piston - Symphonies #3, 4, String Quartet 5
> Sessins - String Quartet #2, Symphony #7, 8
> CPE Bach - 1712 Overture!
> 
> .........
> ...
> Xenakis - Psappha :tiphat:
> 
> I'll leave it there. I tried not to pick "obvious" ones.


That's a damn nice list!


----------



## Tallisman

Despite my ceaseless mocking of Schoenberg, I actually find myself drawn back to his Piano Concerto.
2. Gurrelieder
3. Rite of Spring (obviously)


----------



## Kajmanen

Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


----------



## Chronochromie

Kajmanen said:


> Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


Hard to tell who's being serious here. But if you are, I'll just say that Ravel is a Modernist and you can take it from there.


----------



## Tchaikov6

Chronochromie said:


> Hard to tell who's being serious here. But if you are, I'll just say that Ravel is a Modernist and you can take it from there.


We could add Vaughan Williams, Rachmaninov (arguably "modernist"), Respighi, Elgar, Prokofiev, and so many others. In fact, in some ways, even Berg or Schoenberg have "melodies" or ideas maybe that get stuck in my head- therefore memorable.


----------



## Chronochromie

Tchaikov6 said:


> We could add Vaughan Williams, Rachmaninov (arguably "modernist"), Respighi, Elgar, Prokofiev, and so many others. In fact, in some ways, even Berg or Schoenberg have "melodies" or ideas maybe that get stuck in my head- therefore memorable.


I didn't want to make a list. Debussy, Messiaen and Ligeti have melodies. Schoenberg certainly. It would be easier to list those who don't.


----------



## silentio

*From 1900 to 1950:*
Debussy's Pelleas et Melisande (1902)
Berg's Violin Concerto (1935)
Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra (1943)

*Post 1950:*
Messiaen's La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ (1969)
Aribert Reimann's Lear (1978)
James Macmillan's Seven Last Words from the Cross (1993)

I'm biased towards vocal music.


----------



## hpowders

Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1

Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2

Shostakovich Symphony No. 4


----------



## Tchaikov6

Chronochromie said:


> I didn't want to make a list. Debussy, Messiaen and Ligeti have melodies. Schoenberg certainly. *It would be easier to list those who don't.*


Yes, I completely agree.


----------



## hpowders

Berg Piano Sonata Op.1

Ives Concord Piano Sonata

Mennin Symphony No. 7


----------



## Portamento

hpowders said:


> Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1
> 
> Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2
> 
> Shostakovich Symphony No. 4


Bettina hasn't liked this post yet!


----------



## Bettina

Portamento said:


> Bettina hasn't liked this post yet!


LOL, thanks for pointing that out. I must have missed it - I've fallen behind on many threads because I'm spending all my time in STI!! :lol:


----------



## hpowders

Portamento said:


> Bettina hasn't liked this post yet!


Surprising. She knows posting quality when she sees it.


----------



## Lenny

Kajmanen said:


> Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


Resistance is futile!


----------



## ST4

Kajmanen said:


> Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


Nice try but I'm not fooling for that :lol:

If you want random though, you could look into maths? https://mathsstarters.net/random

I don't know what relevance it has to music but you may enjoy it anyway :tiphat:


----------



## hpowders

Portamento said:


> Bettina hasn't liked this post yet!


After much rumination, I have decided to let that remark _slide_, _Portamento._


----------



## mathisdermaler

Kajmanen said:


> Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


----------



## Portamento

Kajmanen said:


> Is there anything in the "modernist" era that has clear memorable melodies/themes etc or is it just random ?


----------



## flamencosketches

Reviving an old thread...

*Anton Webern* - 6 Pieces for Orchestra, op.6
*Igor Stravinsky* - Symphony of Psalms
*Dmitri Shostakovich * - String Quartet No.8 in C minor

Many contenders... this is my favorite era in music lately, specifically the early modern. Though I'm sure it won't be terribly long before I come around on Boulez, Penderecki, Ligeti, Stockhausen etc. etc.


----------



## Schoenberg

Not sure if it has been mentioned, but Reich's Clapping Music, and as well 4'33" are both masterpieces.


----------



## Larkenfield

What three Modern works?

I’m thinking… thinking!


----------



## paulbest

Modern period composers born 1880-1940...masterpieces in the thousands. 
Composers born after 1940,,are the post modern,,,a era I am not at all interested in.


----------



## Enthusiast

Just choosing a year at random I got 1937. That year many great works were premiered, including

Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste 
Schoenberg: 4th quartet
Shostakovich: Symphony 5

There are three masterpieces (few who know them would disagree) from one year. I suspect you could do the same for any year in the 20th century but the consensus concerning their greatness would decline as you progress to the later part of the century.


----------



## paulbest

Enthusiast said:


> Just choosing a year at random I got 1937. That year many great works were premiered, including
> 
> Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste
> Schoenberg: 4th quartet
> Shostakovich: Symphony 5
> 
> There are three masterpieces (few who know them would disagree) from one year. I suspect you could do the same for any year in the 20th century but the consensus concerning their greatness would decline as you progress to the later part of the century.


Yes good point, Thats what I am getting at in my post above, Composers born 1880 (Wagner though was the 1st modern, born earlier, exception to every rule),,going through 1940,,,,anyone born after 1940 is the post modern period. ,,,a era I am not at all interested..
So this 1880 - 1940 composers,,,the number of masterpieces,,is staggering. 
More masterpieces than all previous 300 yrs prior to 1880. taken together. 
The Pinnacle of the High Arts,,after 1940 its mostly a wide desert,,,why even look for master pieces of composers born after 1940.


----------



## norman bates

Enthusiast said:


> Just choosing a year at random I got 1937. That year many great works were premiered, including
> 
> Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste
> Schoenberg: 4th quartet
> Shostakovich: Symphony 5
> 
> There are three masterpieces (few who know them would disagree) from one year. I suspect you could do the same for any year in the 20th century but the consensus concerning their greatness would decline as you progress to the later part of the century.


same year, there's the Serenata (for nine instruments) of Giovanni Salviucci, a masterpiece of neoclassical music. Certainly not a famous composer like the three guys above, but it's such a beautiful work. Especially the second movement, the canzone andantino is gorgeous melancholic piece that should be a well known classic like Barber's Adagio or something like that.


----------



## PeterFromLA

Regarding "Come Out," mentioned upthread: I had the opportunity to witness Come Out "played" in the context of a concert that also featured Léonin, Pérotin, and Reich's own Music for 18 Musicians. In this broader context, it became very clear how Reich's Come Out echoed both into the distant past as well as foretold 18. It was a brilliant bit of programming, and apparently the first time that Reich's Music for 18 had been presented in this context, which the composer himself recognized and applauded.

Come Out may not be a masterpiece in and of itself, but it was certainly a masterpiece of inspiration, one that stimulated Reich for years, resulting in some milestone works.

https://www.sfcv.org/reviews/none/monday-evening-concerts-breaks-the-reich-barrier


----------



## mikeh375

I'd have to include Britten's War Requiem and The Prince of the Pagodas, Dutilleux's Cello concerto and Ainsi La Nuit and Tippet's 4th Symphony and Corelli Variations. All music with a tangible link to the great tradition.


----------



## BabyGiraffe




----------



## Enthusiast

My randomly chosen year this time in 1955. Among the masterpieces of that year are 

Tippett - Piano Concerto
Boulez - Le Marteau sans Maitre
Vaughan Williams - Symphony 8

It was a challenge to keep it to three and I omitted Metastaseis (Xenakis) as I felt it might not be as widely recognised as the pieces I chose.


----------



## BabyGiraffe

Enthusiast said:


> My randomly chosen year this time in 1955. Among the masterpieces of that year are
> 
> Tippett - Piano Concerto
> Boulez - Le Marteau sans Maitre
> Vaughan Williams - Symphony 8
> 
> It was a challenge to keep it to three and I omitted Metastaseis (Xenakis) as I felt it might not be as widely recognised as the pieces I chose.


It is actually way more known than all of these three, actually more than most modern stuff discussed on this forum... Just check the youtube views...


----------



## Enthusiast

^I was meaning on this forum. Also I was concerned to demonstrate the range of modernism and having chosen Boulez gave Xenakis an honourable mention! But my main point is the old OP asking for 3 modernist masterpieces overall when there must be more than 300!


----------

