# List of the most beautiful+powerful pieces of music



## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

Inspired by people making lists, I would like to hear your opinion about the most beautiful from your point of view pieces of music , yet so called_ powerful_, kinda passionate.

well, in fact I'm trying to create a list with suggestions for an acquaintance of mine who is familiar with CM, like Rachmaninoff's concertos, Stravinsky, some works of Bach, even Saint-Saens third symphony, as for the rest - nothing. and why I mentioned something "powerful and passionate" is that I think an idea of beauty and something powerful is close for some people.

Sophisticated beauty won't work in this case, at least not now.

I've made my list, ( 10-20 works, a bit limited, but it's all right for now) but looking for your suggestions if you can think of something like that.


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## Chordalrock (Jan 21, 2014)

Penderecki: Seven Gates of Jerusalem, 1st movement

Passages from Wagner, let's say Margaret Price singing the famous aria from Tristan.


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

This is beautiful, passionate and powerful


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Mahler - Das lied von der Erde.


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## JamieHoldham (May 13, 2016)

Symphony - Mahler 2nd symphony movement 4
Organ - Bach's Passacagila and Fugue in C Minor
Piano - Schubert Wanderer Fantasy C Major
Religious works - Bach's Mass in B Minor
Chamber music - Bach's Air


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## Judith (Nov 11, 2015)

Can't get more powerful than Beethovens 9th symphony (choral). Especially last movement.


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## Guest (Aug 30, 2016)

I choose a piece for only one instrument,the chaconne for solo violin (Second violin Partita)


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## Retyc (May 10, 2016)

Jonchaies by Iannis Xenakis


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## DaveM (Jun 29, 2015)

Beethoven Piano Concerto #5 1st movement as only one of many applicable Beethoven works since 'beautiful and powerful' applies to many of his works.

Brahms Piano Concerto #1 1st movement.


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

St. Gregory the Great, by Respighi, from Church Windows. A mind-blower:






Added: Prokofiev Piano Concerto #3. So much beauty; so much power!


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## Dim7 (Apr 24, 2009)

Meistersinger Overture.


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## Magnum Miserium (Aug 15, 2016)

helenora said:


> well, in fact I'm trying to create a list with suggestions for an acquaintance of mine who is familiar with CM, like Rachmaninoff's concertos, Stravinsky, some works of Bach, even Saint-Saens third symphony,


Yeah, they're gonna want to hear Tchaikovsky's piano concerto #1.



Chordalrock said:


> Passages from Wagner, let's say Margaret Price singing the famous aria from Tristan.


Because when I think power, I think Margaret Price.


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## Klassic (Dec 19, 2015)

Judith said:


> Can't get more powerful than Beethovens 9th symphony (choral). Especially last movement.


Though perhaps not as catchy, the closing sections of Mahler's 8th rivals Beethoven in power and beauty.


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## cwarchc (Apr 28, 2012)

Another Penderecki - Threnody for the victims of Hiroshima


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## SimonDekkerLinnros (Jun 15, 2016)

Chopin's ballades and scherzos


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## znapschatz (Feb 28, 2016)

Mussorgsky; *The Great Gate of Kiev*, from *Pictures at an Exhibition*, both in piano and orchestrated versions.

Ravel; *Apothéose, Le Jardin de Féerigue* from *Ma mère L'oye*. Never fails to thrill.

Stravinsky; *The Firebird Suite* finale. But I have personal associations with this piece that drive it for me.

Wagner; *Wotan's Farewell* from *Die Walkure*. Another with personal associations. My wife's father, an opera singer, used to sing it to her when she was a child as a bedtime good night. It was a conflicted experience for her, but that wasn't Wagner's fault.


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

This might be too far on the "sophisticated beauty" spectrum for your purposes but, for me, there's plenty of passion and power in evidence here:






"Romance" from _The Gadfly_, by Shostakovich. An absolute gem.


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## znapschatz (Feb 28, 2016)

Reichstag aus LICHT said:


> This might be too far on the "sophisticated beauty" spectrum for your purposes but, for me, there's plenty of passion and power in evidence here:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I agree. It's also a new Shostakovich experience for me. Thank you.


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## Chordalrock (Jan 21, 2014)

Magnum Miserium said:


> Because when I think power, I think Margaret Price.


I chose Margaret Price for the newbie friendly singing style. Opera is generally speaking an acquired taste in its current state. I just wanted to alleviate that issue and make the aria more palatable to someone who isn't already a fan of opera. The music itself is what supplies the power, no added melodrama needed.

From the perspective of someone who was an "adult beginner" and newbie to classical music not too long ago, I could critique a lot of these choices. Choosing to critique the Wagner-Margaret Price choice instead betrays a pretty profound alienation from that perspective and issues like what newbies might be interested in.


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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

Chordalrock said:


> I chose Margaret Price for the newbie friendly singing style. Opera is generally speaking an acquired taste in its current state. I just wanted to alleviate that issue and make the aria more palatable to someone who isn't already a fan of opera. The music itself is what supplies the power, no added melodrama needed.
> 
> From the perspective of someone who was an "adult beginner" and newbie to classical music not too long ago, I could critique a lot of these choices. Choosing to critique the Wagner-Margaret Price choice instead betrays a pretty profound alienation from that perspective and issues like what newbies might be interested in.


here it´s not extreme newbie, but rather should be matched with a personality and if a personality is in search of something"powerful" then "soothing" beauty would not work, just for example


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Wagner's _Parsifal._

The procession to the temple, the chorus of the knights, the prelude to act three, and the Good Friday music, in a magnificent concert performance:


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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> Wagner's _Parsifal._
> 
> The procession to the temple, the chorus of the knights, the prelude to act three, and the Good Friday music, in a magnificent concert performance:


yes, exactly, Wagner is definitely for this thread I think


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)




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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

DeepR said:


>


I would include many Bruckner´s works in this list, but people less familiar with CM aren´t ready to listen to them


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## znapschatz (Feb 28, 2016)

helenora said:


> I would include many Bruckner´s works in this list, but people less familiar with CM aren´t ready to listen to them


Based on your advocacy, I listened to it. Regrets, but I'm still not getting the Mahler. I promise to keep my mind open when I try again.


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## Heliogabo (Dec 29, 2014)

Scriabin´s Promethé and Le Poème de l´extase


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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

znapschatz said:


> Based on your advocacy, I listened to it. Regrets, but I'm still not getting the Mahler. I promise to keep my mind open when I try again.


a very special hint, if you are not yet into Bruckner, start with something like his 6th symphony adagio, or listen to his codas, just to understand this music, because once people begin listening to the entire symphonies they get overwhelmed by their size and simply get bored throughout the process of listening, therefore start with some chunks of Bruckner. Or you can try to listen to Celibidache rehearsing his 9th symphony on youtube - just one movement of a symphony , it gives more insights into Bruckner's music, more understanding, even though it's in German, people can try to grasp some parts, where he asks them to change the way they play, to repeat a place, etc. In Bruckner one should follow the pulse - Bruckner is very known for that as if heart beats in his works, ones you can hear that the other lines of a score will add up , you'll start being able to hear them evolving in time. Many listeners fail to get into his works because of that simple thing, they don't know from where to start, because in Bruckner's music you can't stick to a melody as such, I mean catchy, "beautiful" melody how they can do in Schubert, Mozart music, and the structure is never ending in Bruckner , it's not "quadratisch" as you got used to hear in other compositions, and then next culminations, the very way to those culminations are long and plays with listener's patience....but well, here it's not even about patience, because Bruckner is about process, it's not about achieving. One should observe and appreciate a path ( details, listening to music's development in each bar, it's harmonies ) much more than a destination itself ( by destination I mean clear "summits" of the form, they are many and at the same time few or none).

well, it's not a Bruckner's thread I know....but I didn't want to write in there, because the questions is here, hopefully we don't deviate from the topic very much


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## Magnum Miserium (Aug 15, 2016)

Chordalrock said:


> From the perspective of someone who was an "adult beginner" and newbie to classical music not too long ago, I could critique a lot of these choices. Choosing to critique the Wagner-Margaret Price choice instead betrays a pretty profound alienation from that perspective and issues like what newbies might be interested in.


Recommending to a newbie something second rate because you think it's closer to the kind of thing they already like is an excellent way to avoid arousing their interest. If they want to listen to something they already like, they have the real thing easily accessible and don't need your approximation. Give them the best of your alien world. Whether or not they then do anything with it is up to them.


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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

Magnum Miserium said:


> Recommending to a newbie something second rate because you think it's closer to the kind of thing they already like is an excellent way to avoid arousing their interest. If they want to listen to something they already like, they have the real thing easily accessible and don't need your approximation. Give them the best of your alien world. Whether or not they then do anything with it is up to them.


true!

the best of the best. sometimes it brings wonderful results and definitely bring them closer to what CM is, and refines their taste in any case.


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## chesapeake bay (Aug 3, 2015)

Make sure and post your top 10-20 too helenora


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## Mahlerite555 (Aug 27, 2016)

My choices would be:

1. Adagio from Mahler's 3rd
2. 2nd movement from Schubert's last piano sonata
3. Prelude and finale of Parsifal


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## helenora (Sep 13, 2015)

chesapeake bay said:


> Make sure and post your top 10-20 too helenora


hahaha, yes, yes, not less than 10 , joking


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## Sonata (Aug 7, 2010)

helenora said:


> here it´s not extreme newbie, but rather should be matched with a personality and if a personality is in search of something"powerful" then "soothing" beauty would not work, just for example


It's still a plenty powerful recording...I don't hear Price and necessarily hear a fainting doe. Chordal wishes to recommend Price's Isolde, let the dude recommend Price's Isolde


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## Bachiana (Aug 26, 2016)

The Fantaisie opus 28 of Scriabin. Choose the one with pianist Alexander Melnikov. Around 4'50" a climax starts. It's climbing higher and higher until the summit is reached. Talking about powerful and passionate... You will be exhausted around 6'45".


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## Casebearer (Jan 19, 2016)

You can end this thread immediately because there is nothing more powerful and passionate than Schnittke's Faust Cantata, especially the climax part of course. Play it loud and report back if you're still alive.


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