# Suggestions Plz: Very melodic and dissonant works/composers



## SweetDissonantLullabies (Mar 20, 2015)

Hi All. I'm a rock music fan and know that there is great classical music out there that I would love, if I were aware of it. My favorite rock music is very dissonant, with a lot of melody. It isn't necessarily complex, however, and it's often poppy to some degree as well. They are rock songs after all... Here are a few examples:














So, I've signed up here selfishly looking for suggestions. I'm willing to put in the time and effort to explore the suggestions that you people are willing to take the time and effort to make. Many Thanks!


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## Dim7 (Apr 24, 2009)

Bartok string quartets, especially this movement from the no.4:


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## 20centrfuge (Apr 13, 2007)

I will give this some real thought and listen to your examples and try to come up with something that YOU might like, not just something that I like. I like the fact that you are exploring other genres. Classical music is soooo vast. There is so much out there and this is a good place to pick people's minds.


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## 20centrfuge (Apr 13, 2007)

I gave your music a quick listen. There is a permeating dissonance to the music that will have a direct parallel with certain classical music. My only word of advice is to listen to the classical pieces at least 3 times before you pass judgement. It may take time to get accustomed to the sound of the instruments and pace of harmonic progression.

The first one that I would say you absolutely must explore is:

*Stravinsky's Rite of Spring (Le sacre du printemps). *Musicians from many genres love this piece. It speaks to people from a broad spectrum but includes a level of dissonance throughout that I think you would appreciate.

More later....


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3.

Bartók Piano Concerto No. 1 and 2.

Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2.

Schoenberg Piano Concerto.

Persichetti Piano Sonata No. 11.

Mennin Symphony No. 7.

Ives Concord Piano Sonata.


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## 20centrfuge (Apr 13, 2007)

Ingram Marshall: Gradual Requiem


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## maestro267 (Jul 25, 2009)

"Melodic" and "dissonant" seem almost like opposites to me. Melodic should = good, memorable, hummable tunes (melodies). Dissonant music is generally more about challenging harmonies rather than good tunes.


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## Dim7 (Apr 24, 2009)

maestro267 said:


> "Melodic" and "dissonant" seem almost like opposites to me. Melodic should = good, memorable, hummable tunes (melodies). Dissonant music is generally more about challenging harmonies rather than good tunes.


Why?? You can have a hummable tune over dissonant harmony easily.


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## quack (Oct 13, 2011)

Maybe some Schnittke


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## shadowdancer (Mar 31, 2014)

Debussy`s La Mer?


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## HaydnBearstheClock (Jul 6, 2013)

SweetDissonantLullabies said:


> Hi All. I'm a rock music fan and know that there is great classical music out there that I would love, if I were aware of it. My favorite rock music is very dissonant, with a lot of melody. It isn't necessarily complex, however, and it's often poppy to some degree as well. They are rock songs after all... Here are a few examples:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Dissonant and melodic? Try Brahms' symphonies - for example, No.1 in C minor or No. 4 in E minor. Or you may like Beethoven's 5th symphony, Mozart's 25th and 40th, Haydn's 26th, 44th, 45th and 49th, Dvorak's 4th, 7th and 9th, Tchaikovsky's 4th - 6th symphonies and Mendelssohn's 3rd symphony.


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Here you go.


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## Muse Wanderer (Feb 16, 2014)

Dissonant and melodic - try a bit of Bach.

Actually try *all of Johann Sebastian Bach*

His dissonance alternates with consonance all the time with melodies to die for. Even in his cantatas when the text mentions sin or the devil, his dissonance is enhanced, only to be atoned by consonance typified by goodness and God.

Knowing your background ... try this as a starter...






and then remove all preconceptions and focus intently on this...






Welcome to our world :tiphat:


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## Guest (Mar 22, 2015)

Dim7 said:


> Why?? You can have a hummable tune over dissonant harmony easily.


Exhibit A: Ben Johnston's 4th string quartet. Amazing Grace set in a field of lovely microtones


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Setting classical music aside for a moment, listening to the examples in the OP, I'd bet you would love Sleepytime Gorilla Museum if you don't already -- although some people are put off by the occasional cookie monster vocals. They are (or perhaps were) phenomenally creative.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Well, allow me to once again be the self-appointed thread party pooper. 

First, let me say that my comments are in no way intended to be snobbish or dismissive. I like that you are into more experimental stuff within the world of rock and I think you could definitely get into classical music if that's what you want (as anyone could, I think). But, I think if you are going into the world of classical music with the mindset that you are going to find something similar to your examples provided in the OP you might be a little bit disappointed. 

You might find certain sounds within certain classical pieces that fit what you are looking for, but you may not end up liking the entire piece right away. That's because Classical Music pieces are hardly ever about a particular sound or soundworld as most rock music tends to be, but about the evolution of sounds and soundworlds. Themes are constantly evolving, textures are constantly changing, new rhythms are always being thrown in. I think you may find the constant shifting of sounds in Classical Music to be a little disorienting at first, if not frustrating. You may wish the background just stayed in a particular groove or texture throughout the whole piece, but it almost never happens. 

The example that you provided that was closest to the Classical procedure was the Black Flag song. In that song, the background changes over time and morphs into something else besides what it started off as. But even in that example, the texture remains the same throughout, the basic rhythm remains nearly the same, the melody and background is always in the same place. 

I recommend listening to the pieces that people are recommending to you, but don't expect to just hear a melody over a relatively static background for the duration of the piece and don't expect to just hear one sound you like that remains that way throughout. Expect to be taken on a journey, a journey of constant change and evolution, where the melody might be in one place for a few seconds and in a totally different place in the next couple seconds, where you'll hear at least 20 or 30 different combinations of instruments throughout the duration of the piece, where you might lose track of where the beat is or you might not even recognize the main melody when it shows up again halfway through the piece. It's one of the reasons we love classical music, because nothing is obvious on first listen, so it rewards a lifetime of listening. 

I don't have any particular recommendations for you, I think other people have you covered on that one, but I hope I provided some insight on what to expect going into it (and I hope I didn't intimidate you either, that was not my intention). 

Happy listening.


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## norman bates (Aug 18, 2010)

maestro267 said:


> "Melodic" and "dissonant" seem almost like opposites to me. Melodic should = good, memorable, hummable tunes (melodies). Dissonant music is generally more about challenging harmonies rather than good tunes.


it's perfectly possible to have good memorable hummable earworms that are also very dissonant.


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## Nereffid (Feb 6, 2013)

violadude said:


> Well, allow me to once again be the self-appointed thread party pooper.
> 
> First, let me say that my comments are in no way intended to be snobbish or dismissive. I like that you are into more experimental stuff within the world of rock and I think you could definitely get into classical music if that's what you want (as anyone could, I think). But, I think if you are going into the world of classical music with the mindset that you are going to find something similar to your examples provided in the OP you might be a little bit disappointed.


I agree with this. Actually what attracted me to classical music in the first place was that it sounded so different from the rock/pop music that I liked. OK, the first things I listened to were the shorter pieces with the famous tunes, but it didn't take very long to move on to Mahler - not exactly your classic 3-minute pop song!

So you never know what you might like. Personally I don't "hear" any of the suggestions that have been given as corresponding to the examples you gave... they're still good suggestions, though.

My own suggestion comes at the issue from a different angle: try the album "a/rhythmia" by Alarm Will Sound.


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