Magical, Other-Worldly, Mesmerizing?

[Varg]

Hi all!

I'm looking for this kind of music, and i'm so tired of searching and finding nothing that i though i'd ask for suggestions here.

Here's an idea of what i mean with the title.

Wagner's Parsifal
Pettersson's Symphonies 6-7-8

That's pretty much it. Surely there must be more music like that?

[Superhorn]

    Bruckner's symphonies should fit the bill.  They certainly are "magical,other-worldly and mesmerizing".

[springrite]

Hi all!

I'm looking for this kind of music, and i'm so tired of searching and finding nothing that i though i'd ask for suggestions here.

Here's an idea of what i mean with the title.

Wagner's Parsifal
Pettersson's Symphonies 6-7-8

That's pretty much it. Surely there must be more music like that?

Invited a couple of friends over last week for their first Pettersson experience and played the 7th. They were absolutely stunned and was in awe. We had to stop listening to other music for days after that. Magical, Otherworldly, mesmerizing, all these word fit the bill.

Langgaard's Music of the Spheres, Ligeti's requiem both came close for me.

[canninator]

Stockhausen-Stimmung

You can lock this thread now mods, problem solved. 

[Varg]

I should've invited you not to mention the obvious ones.

Bruckner, to me, does not apply here.

Pettersson i mentionned in the first post.

Stimmung must be the most boring and ridiculous ''music'' i've ever heard!

Think of the Parsifal Prelude to Act I. It's the perfect exemple of what i mean!

[Scarpia]

    Bruckner's symphonies should fit the bill.  They certainly are "magical,other-worldly and mesmerizing".

The last words I'd use to describe Bruckner.

Hi all!

I'm looking for this kind of music, and i'm so tired of searching and finding nothing that i though i'd ask for suggestions here.

Here's an idea of what i mean with the title.

Wagner's Parsifal
Pettersson's Symphonies 6-7-8

That's pretty much it. Surely there must be more music like that?

Part, but maybe that's an obvious one.   Hovhanes, Mysterious Mountain?

[abidoful]

Hi all!

I'm looking for this kind of music, and i'm so tired of searching and finding nothing that i though i'd ask for suggestions here.

Here's an idea of what i mean with the title.

Wagner's Parsifal
Pettersson's Symphonies 6-7-8

That's pretty much it. Surely there must be more music like that?

Perhaps Sibelius's 7th? Someone (Koussevitzky?) called it "Sibelius's Parsifal"

[springrite]

I should've invited you not to mention the obvious ones.

I do not understand that line. Can you list the "obvious ones" so we'd all avoid them? Are the Langgaard and Ligeti among the "obvious ones"?

[canninator]

Stimmung must be the most boring and ridiculous ''music'' i've ever heard!

Oh well, horses for courses and all that jazz. I think it describes the thread header perfectly. You might not like it but I might also suggest Missa de Difuntos and Oficio de difuntos under Dom Jean Claire by the Solesmes monks (note, this specific recording) and either of the two old Roman chant discs by Ensemble Organum. Failing that I'm sure you'll get lots of recommendations for fairly run of the mill orchestral music 

[Varg]

I do not understand that line. Can you list the "obvious ones" so we'd all avoid them? Are the Langgaard and Ligeti among the "obvious ones"?

That would be too long to list. I'm not new to classical music; that should be a good hint.

''Obvious ones'', off the top of my head, that could be mentionned, are:

Brucker
Part
Shostakovich
Mahler
Ligeti
Schnittke
R. Strauss


Of all the classical music i've heard, only Wagner and Pettersson made me feel ''that'', whatever that is.

Other (less significant) good exemples:

Mozart's Requiem (Celibidache/EMI)
Rachmaninov's Isle of the Dead (Reiner)
Silvestrov has moments that definately apply, too.

[springrite]

That would be too long to list. I'm not new to classical music; that should be a good hint.

''Obvious ones'', off the top of my head, that could be mentionned, are:

Brucker
Part
Shostakovich
Mahler
Ligeti
Schnittke
R. Strauss


Of all the classical music i've heard, only Wagner and Pettersson made me feel ''that'', whatever that is.

Other (less significant) good exemples:

Mozart's Requiem (Celibidache/EMI)
Rachmaninov's Isle of the Dead (Reiner)
Silvestrov has moments that definately apply, too.

The reason I asked the question was because most of the people here are not new to classical music either. By dismissing some of the suggestions as "obvious ones", I don't feel like it is encouraging suggestions. Hey, unless it is a piece hardly anyone has ever heard of, it could be either "an obvious one" or not magical, otherworldly or mesmerrizing enough. You are either being too obvious or wrong.

[Varg]

The reason I asked the question was because most of the people here are not new to classical music either. By dismissing some of the suggestions as "obvious ones", I don't feel like it is encouraging suggestions. Hey, unless it is a piece hardly anyone has ever heard of, it could be either "an obvious one" or not magical, otherworldly or mesmerrizing enough. You are either being too obvious or wrong.

The thing to do is to simply say what's on your mind; if it doesn't apply, then it doesn't, and, if it does, i will thank you for being dead on. It's as simple as that, no need to do ''wind phylosophy'' here.

[springrite]

The thing to do is to simply say what's on your mind; if it doesn't apply, then it doesn't, and, if it does, i will thank you for being dead on. It's as simple as that, no need to do ''wind phylosophy'' here.

Not philosophizing, but if you can thank someone for being dead on, then you know it already an does not need suggestions. That is not philosophy. That is common sense, isn't it?

Well, never mind. I don't mean to pick an argument, just... well, never mind.

[Varg]

Not philosophizing, but if you can thank someone for being dead on, then you know it already an does not need suggestions. That is not philosophy. That is common sense, isn't it?

Well, never mind. I don't mean to pick an argument, just... well, never mind.

Good Lord! You must be one bored person to pick-up on everything like that.

No; that is plain stupidity. Believe it or not, but i will actually check out (listen) the suggestions, and by doing so, i will know if they are, or not, what i'm looking for.

Anything else, Socrate?

[DavidW]

I might find stark disagreement here, but I think that Haydn's Creation fits the bill especially the way that it opens.

[Cato]

Scriabin's Piano Sonatas VI-X as well as Vers la Flamme and the 40-minute version of his Prefatory Action, called Universe and Mysterium, as finished by Alexander Nemtin.

[jowcol]

It's been my experience that one person's mesmerizing is another person's boredom. 

Reich's Music for 18 Musicians has a very hypnotic effect on me-- sometimes, when I'm in the right mood.  Some can't stand it.

I'll echo Cato for a vote for Scriabin.  His later works are definitely other worldly.  In a similar vein, Syzmanowski's 3rd symphony has a very ethereal feel to it.

Sumera's 2nd Symphony?  If you like Part, that may be a place to go.

I've really fallen for Koechlin's orchestral works-- Spring in the Forest is a good place to start.

Debussy's Nocturnes?  Or is that too obvious?

Tragedy of Salome by Florent Schmitt?

Vaughan Williams Antarctica Symphony?

I'd also include the first ten minutes or so of Ravel's Daphne et Chloe.

As a final disclaimer-- your mileage may vary.  I find people's opinions tend to vary more dramatically when describing "other wordly".  I really like Petterson 6-8, but I've found them to be introspective more than other-worldly-- if that means anything. 

[Verena]

For me, nothing is more mesmerizing than the second movement of Schubert's D 960 Quintet, and in some interpretations the second movement of the D960 sonata. But I guess these are obvious too.

And from a different era, Victoria's Requiem (Missa pro defunctis), specifically the Sanctus (in a beautiful interpretation). Also his Lamentationes Jeremiae.

[Franco]

Durufle Requiem

[CD]

I've really fallen for Koechlin's orchestral works-- Spring in the Forest is a good place to start.

Ya! The "le ciel etoilée" movement of Le Docteur Fabricius sounds like music from another planet.