# Recommendations Please



## Pav1 (May 14, 2013)

Hello friends at Talk Classical,

I've been a longtime listener of classical music, but unfortunately haven't had much time to delve into it. My favorite period is Baroque and my favorite composer is JS Bach. Am I correct that some of Mozart's works are Baroque sounding? I very much like the interlude in the song In My Life by The Beatles and would like to find similar music. Would this be considered Baroque style? Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Thank you,
Craig


----------



## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

There is one work by Mozart that sounds Baroque - because he wanted it too. I don't recall the K number (416?). Other than that, not so much. That interlude in 'In My Life' does have a resemblance to 17th C. English Baroque (may have been borrowed); there's a lot of that on records, should be easy to find.

Dig in and stay awhile, eh?


----------



## hello (Apr 5, 2013)

There should be a stickied recommendations thread.


----------



## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Baroque pretty much ended with JS Bach. He was already sort of old fashioned in his own time. Mozart was a generation or two later with a newer stripped down "style galante" or classical style. To go for baroque you'll need Bach's contemporaries, Handel, Telemann, Scarlatti, Vivaldi, Rameau, and a number of others. That should be plenty to get you warmed up.


----------



## Pav1 (May 14, 2013)

Thanks for the responses. Are there any compilations I should look into?


----------



## Cheyenne (Aug 6, 2012)

First, it is important to ascertain exactly what flavor of Baroque music you are looking for. I'll recommend some things of the top of my head, if you don't mind; you can look them up on Youtube and amazon to see what appeals to you and perhaps buy something.

Bach's German contemporary Telemann could be a good start, if you find yourself enjoying the German baroque style, but Telemann has an unusually large oeuvre, so specific recommendations are difficult. His most famous work is _Tafelmusik_, and as it is the most versatile of his orchestral output, it is likely the best starting point. His vocal pieces are outside of my field of expertise, unfortunately, given the only vocal works by him that I own appear to be out of print, but look around and you shall find!

Haendel is the other quintessential Baroque composer, especially well remembered for his cantatas. His Messiah and Te Deum are good starts, as are most things in his operatic output. As for the orchestral works, his Music for the Royal Fireworks and Water Music, which are the most known, are very British - if you don't like that, go for his concerto grosso or organ concertos. The Italians are best represented by Corelli (best remembered for his concerto grosso op. 6) and Vivaldi. Both their outputs are relatively consistent, so specific recommendations aren't necessary.

L'orchestre de Roi Soleil, L'orchestre de Louis XV and L'orchestre de Louis XIII give a nice overview of the development of French orchestral music during the Baroque era. You could back it up with some Couperin, Rebel and Marais if you desired to explore French baroque music more. Some composers, Lully and Rameau most notably, also composed some exceptional operas. Most things released by Harmonia Mundi will be satisfactory in that department.

If you are looking for a good box-set to start with, I recommend _Les Lumières_, an overview of music from the enlightenment. You will find a big amount of Baroque music in there, as well as some Mozart, Haydn and even Beethoven.

http://www.amazon.com/Music-Enlight...368647616&sr=8-2&keywords=music+enlightenment


----------



## bigshot (Nov 22, 2011)

Pav1 said:


> Thanks for the responses. Are there any compilations I should look into?


The recent Vivarte box set is wonderful and it's a tremendous value too.


----------



## schuberkovich (Apr 7, 2013)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fran%C3%A7ois-Couperin-Keyboard-Music-Vol/dp/B00008IHWH/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368653539&sr=8-1&keywords=hewitt+couperin


----------



## Head_case (Feb 5, 2010)

The whole baroque period is practically defined by Bach's accomplishments for me - especially the flute repertoire.

Only Quantz comes close, and his flute concertos are poignantly coloured with baroque dance rhythms. The G minor and G major concertos are very lively and emotive, and his countless flute sonatas, some of which have remained unpublished are a trove for flute lovers. The death of Bach and Quantz signalled the end of the baroque era, although Quantz carried it beyond the mid 18th century. Danzi, Mozart ...for some reason I find rather irritating, unlike Handel and Telemann who are interesting in a studied kind of baroque manner. Both have fascinating repertoire for either flute or recorder. But again, its Bach's wide ranging metaphysically driven and fussy precision in composition which constantly leaves me astounded that I like baroque music at all. His cello concerto transcriptions for various instruments are just iconic.


----------



## Pav1 (May 14, 2013)

As far as instrumentation, I prefer piano and strings. I'd also like to find some darker sounding pieces, similar to Toccata & Fugue. Thanks again, your responses are very helpful.


----------

