Top 30 Symphonies

[Tapkaara]

What a bizarre and useless list...but what else would one expect from a radio station whose listeners (likely) think that Beethoven's 5th is a pretty song.

The lack of Sibelius immediately invalidates the list for me, as I believe him to be the greatest symphonists of the 20th century. Yet Saint-Saens's Organ Symphony is included, albeit at number 30? Please...Sibelius's weakest tone poems (if there is such a thing!) are probably greater than ANYTHING in Saint-Saens, that Organ Symphony included.

[Brian]

Lol - Well we've quite clearly arrived at the recapitulation, so you get the idea. We'll rejoin the program after a short commercial break.....

The DJ wouldn't be that knowledgeable. It would be like, "Well, we're sort of in the middle, at the quiet bit, so we'll take the opportunity to pause for station identification!"

[Diletante]

WCRB's Top 30 Symphonies

99.5 WCRB's Top 30 Symphonies of all-time

Listen as we feature these complete works all weekend on WCRB!

Why on Earth is Mahler's 1st there and not his 6th, or 2nd, or 5th, or etc.? Why Dvořák's 8th and 9th and not the 7th? WTF this is messed up! 

[Tapkaara]

Why on Earth is Mahler's 1st there and not his 6th, or 2nd, or 5th, or etc.? Why Dvořák's 8th and 9th and not the 7th? WTF this is messed up! 

"This is messed up!" Yes, indeed.

[Josquin des Prez]

Mahler and Sibelius get the shaft, while a lesser genius like Mendelssohn gets to stand among the best? This list is moronic.

[Tapkaara]

Mahler and Sibelius get the shaft, while a lesser genius like Mendelssohn gets to stand among the best? This list is moronic.

Agreed, agreed, agreed.

[legoru]

Haydn 45, 94, 101, 102
Mozart 25
Beethoven 5,7
Schubert 4,5
Schumann 1,4
Brahms 1,4
Bruckner 4,8
Mahler 5,4,9,Das Lied von der Erde
Prokofiev 3, 6
Shostakovich 5,6,8
Borodin 2
Tchaikovsky 1
Scriabin 3
Rachmaninov 3
Sibelius 5,6,7
Stravinsky   Symphony in Three Movements
Honegger 2, 3, 5
Messiaen Turangalila
Vaughan Williams   2, 5
Liszt Dante Symphony
Roussel 1
Villa-Lobos 1
Schnittke 3, 5
Lutoslawski 3
Glazunov 5
Miaskovsky 5, 16, 27
Nielsen 3,5
Dvorak 9
Kalinnikov 1
******************
Bartok Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta
Rimsky-Korsakov Scheherazade:)

[WI Dan]

I had to take a stab at this, to see if I actually knew 30 symphonies. 
Here goes:


Beethoven  -  9, 5, 6, 3, 7, 4, 8, 1

Brahms  -  4, 3

Bruckner  -  9, 4, 7

Dvorak  -  7, 8, 5, 9

Mozart  -  40, 41, 35

Prokofiev  -  1

Shostakovich  -  5

Sibelius  -  6, 7, 4, 5, 2

Tchaikovsky  -  6, 2

Vaughan Williams  -  6



Whew!!  Made it.   

[offbeat]

Nice lists everyone - such a lot ive never heard 
Think everybody gets cross about lists because everybody have their favourites and are furious if not there....
Heres mine in no particular preference
Honegger 3
Dvorak 9
Berlioz Harold in Italy
Bruckner 7 9
Vaughan Williams 3 4 5 6
Liszt Dante Symphony
Bax 3 6
Sibelius 4 6
Mahler 4 6 7 9
Scriabin 2 Poem of ecstasy
Shostakovich 4 5 7 8 10
Schubert 9
Schumann 2 3
Haydn 100 101
Mozart 39
Prokofiev 5 6
Moeran Symphony
Suk Asrael
Messiaen Turangalia
Brahms 3 4
Rachmaninov 2 3
Elgar 1

Must be more but cant think (sorry over 30 

[Joe Barron]

What's heartening is that there are so many great symphonies they wouldn't fit on a list of 30. I mean, you cold fill all of the slots with Haydn's best work alone.

[(poco) Sforzando]

If it weren't for decimal arithmetic, none of these lists would stand a chance.

[abidoful]

just random order

1. Brahms 4
2. Franck
3. Schubert big C-Major
4. Schumann 2nd
5. Sibelius 2nd
6. Rachmaninov 2nd
7. Bruckner 7
8. Sibelius 1
9. Lutoslawski 1
10. Tschaokowsky 6
11. Tschaikowsky 5
12. Grieg
13. Schumann 1
14. Beethoven 7
15. Schubert 5
16. Szymanowski 1
17. Sibelius 5
18. Bruckner 6
19. Rachmaninov 1
20. Madetoja 2
22. Sibelius 3
23. Beethoven 9
24. Mozart 40
25. Wagner C-major
27. Mendelssohn italian
28. Szymanowski 2nd
29. Sibelius 7
30. Mahler 9

[vandermolen]

Bruckner Symphony 9
Bruckner Symphony 8
Schubert Unfinished Symphony
Beethoven Symphony 7
Mahler Symphony 9
Vaughan Williams Symphony 6
Moeran Symphony
Elgar Symphony 1
Bax Symphony 3
Lilburn Symphony 1
Sibelius Symphony 4
Honegger Liturgique Symphony
Walton Symphony 1
Rosenberg Symphony 3
Bate Symphony 3
Braga Santos Symphony 4
Martinu Symphony 4
Holmboe Symphony 8
Havergal Brian Symphony 8
Rubbra Symphony 5
Copland Symphony 3
Suk Asrael
Bernstein Jeremiah
Arnell Symphony 3
Shostakovich Symphony 4
Prokofiev Symphony 6
Miaskovsky Symphony 6
Hurum Symphony
Popov Symphony 1
Alwyn Symphony 2

[meodingu1]

the delivery of great rewards, they give me many emotions
Thanks everyone 

[RebLem]

I just couldn't limit myself to 30.  I came up with 67, which is my age, and therefore seems appropriate.  Here they are, not in order of preference but in approximate chronological order--

Haydn 6, 7, 8 (the times of day symphonies), 45, 72, 88, 92, 93, 94, 100, 101, 102.
Mozart 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 41.
Beethoven 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

Schubert 4, 5, 6, 8, 9.
Mendelssohn 3, 4, 5.
Schumann 3.
Brahms 1, 4.

Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique.
Franck D Minor Symphony.

Dvorak 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
Sibelius 1, 2, 5.

Mahler 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9.
Bruckner 4.

Tchaikovsky 4, 5, 6.
Prokofiev 1, 5.
Shostakovich 5, 7, 9, 15.

Ives 4.

[quintett op.57]

Should I read it all again?

no one mentioned Bruckner's 5?
how come nobody noticed it's an immense masterpiece?

[Brian]

A year on from my own personal "list" of the top 30 symphonies, my views have changed somewhat. Here would be my new attempt at a list, with revisions as indicated.

Here is my own terrible, no good, completely arbitrary, utterly silly, crassly populist but considerably different Top 30 Symphonies List. 

30)  Atterberg's "West Coast Pictures" Symphony #3 Shostakovich's Symphony #6 NEW
29)  Shostakovich's Symphony #5 Borodin's Symphony #2 -9
28)  Brahms' Symphony #3
27)  Mahler's "Titan" Symphony #1 Dvorak's Symphony #9 -3
26)  Kalliwoda's Symphony #5 Atterberg's Symphony #8 NEW
25)  Sibelius' Symphony #6 Schubert's Symphony #7/8 "Unfinished" -10
24)  Dvorak's "New World" Symphony #9 Shostakovich's Symphony #9 -6
23)  Rachmaninov's Symphony #2
22)  Beethoven's Symphony #4 Mozart's Symphony #39 NEW
21)  Tchaikovsky's Symphony #5 Berlioz' Symphonie fantastique NEW
20)  Borodin's Symphony #2 Sibelius' Symphony #6 +5
19)  Mozart's "Prague" Symphony #38 Beethoven's Symphony #4 +3
18)  Shostakovich's Symphony #9 Tchaikovsky's Symphony #5 +3
17)  Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony #4 Shostakovich's Symphony #5 +12
16)  Sibelius' Symphony #7 Mozart's Symphony #38 +3
15)  Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony #7 (or #8 depending on whom you ask) Tchaikovsky's Symphony #6 -3
14)  Dvorak's Symphony #8 Dvorak's Symphony #7 -4
13)  Sibelius' Symphony #5
12)  Tchaikovsky's "Pathetique" Symphony #6 Beethoven's Symphony #6 -6
11)  Bruckner's Symphony #7
10)  Dvorak's Symphony #7 Sibelius' Symphony #7 +6
9)    Beethoven's Symphony #7
8 )   Mozart's Symphony #40
7)    Shostakovich's Symphony #10 Dvorak's Symphony #8 +7
6)    Beethoven's "Pastoral" Symphony #6 Shostakovich's Symphony #10 +1
5)    Beethoven's "Eroica" Symphony #3
4)    Brahms' Symphony #4
3)    Mozart's Symphony #41
2)    Beethoven's Symphony #9
1)    Beethoven's Symphony #5

Symphonies on the old list which no longer appear on the new one: Atterberg's Third, Kalliwoda's Fifth, Mendelssohn's Fourth, Mahler's First. The Kalliwoda was the hardest to cut, actually. I cut the Mahler because I decided to stop pretending like I know anything about Mahler, which I don't (also, Haydn). One big loser I regret is Shosty's Ninth, which I love to pieces but which I realized probably doesn't slot ahead of Berlioz or Beethoven IV. The big winners in the 11 months which have passed since then are clearly Dvorak's Eighth and Shostakovich's Fifth - which is fitting, since I've spent much of the year finding newer and deeper ways to appreciate them.

With four entrants in the top 15, the number seven is still "the greatest" number for a symphony.

[knight66]

Should I read it all again?

no one mentioned Bruckner's 5?
how come nobody noticed it's an immense masterpiece?

I was about to enter it too. There is no symphony I enjoy more, but some others I value as highly.

Mike

[Brahmsian]

no one mentioned Bruckner's 5?
how come nobody noticed it's an immense masterpiece?

I mentioned it in my listing of favorites on page 1. 

[knight66]

Well, sorry about forgetting that. Anyway, it is so good it needs an individual mention or so.

Mike