Top 11 Composers of Solo Piano Music

[Florestan]

That's really easy... or not?

Chopin
Faure
Debussy
Ravel
Schubert
Schumann
Beethoven
Brahms
Mozart
Enrique Granados
Liszt

[Brian]

I'm doing "favorites" again. I don't really like Liszt (yet).

1. Beethoven
2. Chopin
3. Ravel
4. Schubert
5. Schumann

The other six, in random order:
Rachmaninov
Shostakovich (for the 24 P&F)
Albeniz
Debussy
Grieg
Moszkowski

#12: Alexander Tcherepnin

Notable omissions: I excluded Scarlatti because he wasn't writing for "piano", although his music as played on piano would be in my top 11 for sure. My Brahms journey is only beginning, although in ten years' time he will probably sit in the top five. I've only heard one Prokofiev sonata. Shout-out to the delectable music of Francis Poulenc and Jean Francaix.

[Sammy]

Shostakovich
Mozart
Haydn
Beethoven
Schubert
Schumann
Chopin
Debussy
Ravel
Scriabin
Rachmaninov

I totally forgot about Scriabin so I scratched Brahms.

[aukhawk]

I'd definitely find room for Shostakovich.
Rachmaninov is a good shout.
Then there's Scriabin, Alkan, Messaien ...
Honourable mentions for Ligeti, Stevenson, Janaceck ...

[Florestan]

Rachmaninov, Albeniz, Grieg: good calls indeed.

[Brian]

Rachmaninov, Albeniz, Grieg: good calls indeed.

I think because he wrote "Spanish" music Albeniz is very easy to pigeonhole and treat as a mere composer of encores. Granados too. You don't tend to see "serious" pianists making their music into recital fixtures, and that's a shame.

[Florestan]

I think because he wrote "Spanish" music Albeniz is very easy to pigeonhole and treat as a mere composer of encores. Granados too. You don't tend to see "serious" pianists making their music into recital fixtures, and that's a shame.

Indeed. Oh, and I would add Joaquin Rodrigo on the Spanish list. Check out the Brilliant edition of his complete piano music. It's far from being encores and far from being "folklore-like Spanish".

[Mandryka]

George Crumb
Henry Cowell
Charles Mingus
LaMonte Young
Terry Riley
Michael Harrison
John Cage
Alexander Scriabin
Claude Debussy
Ludwig van Beethoven
J S Bach

[Sammy]

For me numero uno will always be JS Bach.

Same here.  I didn't include Bach because the Subject called for "piano", not keyboard.

[Florestan]

For me numero uno will always be JS Bach.

And your numero undicesimo? 

[Lisztianwagner]

In not a very particular order:

Liszt
Rachmaninov
Chopin
Beethoven
Mozart
Ravel
Debussy
Scriabin
Prokofiev
Schumann
Alkan

[Mandryka]

Same here.  I didn't include Bach because the Subject called for "piano", not keyboard.

Yes but some of his music, WTC 2 and The Goldbergs for example, has been done so very imaginatively  on pianos that it seems a shame  to exclude him. The  music suits a piano very well. That and the fact that it influenced so much later composers who had pianos clearly in mind.

I'm not sure I could say the same for other keyboard composers like Scarlatti or F Couperin.

Also, clavier pieces were meant for any keyboard at hand, including pianos.

[mc ukrneal]

In no particular order:
Godowsky
Grainger
Satie
Grieg
Schumann
Schubert
Rachmaninov
Chopin
Beethoven
Bortkiewicz
Liszt

[Brahmsian]

Don't have that much solo piano music, but these are the composers I enjoy (no particular order):

Bach
Mozart
Brahms
Beethoven
Schumann
Schubert
Prokofiev
Nielsen

I'm not a big fan of Chopin and Liszt.  That's not their problem. 

[Holden]

I am assuming that piano means keyboard so using that criteria I get

Bach
Beethoven
Chopin
Scarlatti
Haydn
Mozart
Schumann
Rachmaninov
Brahms
Liszt
Debussy

The first three are head and shoulders above anyone else IMO.

[Dax]

Taking Beethoven for granted (sorry)

Alkan
Liszt
Scriabin
Medtner
Godowsky
Grainger
Villa-Lobos
Ravel
John White
Cage
Busoni

[Artem]

My knowledge here is rather limited, but if I had to pick i'd choose:

Morton Feldman
Arnold Schoenberg
Claude Debussy
Salvatore Sciarrino
Christian Wolff

[North Star]

Beethoven
Schubert
Schumann
Chopin
Alkan
Janacek
Scriabin
Ravel
Debussy
Bartók
Prokofiev

I've only heard one Prokofiev sonata.

   Get this thing now.

[asin]B004TWOXGC[/asin]

[kyjo]

I assume (and hope) this thread is about "favorites", not "greatest".

Rachmaninov
Debussy
Ravel
Prokofiev
Liszt
Scriabin
Medtner
Bortkiewicz
Szymanowski
Grieg
Glazunov (Piano Sonata no. 1 is unbelievable)

[Dancing Divertimentian]

   Get this thing now.

[asin]B004TWOXGC[/asin]

YES!!