Your Top 10 Favorite Composers

[EigenUser]

I really need to give Havergal Brian another chance. What would you recommend I listen to first? I have a decent sized Brian collection.

I've only heard a few Brian works, but the one that I remember enjoying is the Symphony No. 31. It's certainly short enough to not be a waste of time if you end up not liking it (single movement, c.a. 15 minutes).

[Mirror Image]

I've only heard a few Brian works, but the one that I remember enjoying is the Symphony No. 31. It's certainly short enough to not be a waste of time if you end up not liking it (single movement, c.a. 15 minutes).

Cool, I'll check it out, Nate.

[Elgarian]

I don't get what's special about Elgar. To me he is second rate at best and his popularity seems a local phenomenon and I think that he would probably be about as famous as Draeseke or von Hausegger if he had been German or Austrian. A second rate Austrian like Zemlinsky is more interesting for me than stogdy Sir Edward; Brahms or Mahler an entirely different league and Beethoven or Bach a different galaxy...

I'd like to say several things in response to this:

1. These are lists of favourites, not attempts at some sort of objective assessment of greatness (the conclusions of which activity would in any case be questionable I think, as with art of any kind).
2. Elgar is up there for me (and others) quite simply because I've loved his music over most of a lifetime. I loved it when I first heard it at the age of 16. I still love it (in all sorts of ways, some the same, some different) more than 50 years later. I can't justify that in a way that would explain it to anyone else, any more than I could justify any other kind of love that wasn't shared.
3. So it's not about which league or galaxy his music might belong to in relation to other composers, but about impassioned and intuitive personal responses that I couldn't change if I tried. After all, the person you fall in love with may not be 'special' in anyone else's eyes but your own; but it hardly matters.

[Mirror Image]

I'd like to say several things in response to this:

1. These are lists of favourites, not attempts at some sort of objective assessment of greatness (the conclusions of which activity would in any case be questionable I think, as with art of any kind).
2. Elgar is up there for me (and others) quite simply because I've loved his music over most of a lifetime. I loved it when I first heard it at the age of 16. I still love it (in all sorts of ways, some the same, some different) more than 50 years later. I can't justify that in a way that would explain it to anyone else, any more than I could justify any other kind of love that wasn't shared.
3. So it's not about which league or galaxy his music might belong to in relation to other composers, but about impassioned and intuitive personal responses that I couldn't change if I tried. After all, the person you fall in love with may not be 'special' in anyone else's eyes but your own; but it hardly matters.

Great post, Elgarian! I completely concur.

[springrite]

I really need to give Havergal Brian another chance. What would you recommend I listen to first? I have a decent sized Brian collection.

10 and 31.

[Mirror Image]

10 and 31.

Thanks, Paul. I'll definitely give these a listen soon.

[springrite]

Thanks, Paul. I'll definitely give these a listen soon.

Remember me mentioning the 10th so many times as my air disaster symphony? Because as I worked on the victims of the air disasters, that symphony represented exactly how I felt -- the monumental task at hand, the weight, the loss, sadness, grit, determination and, not exactly hope but gradual ... well, it's very personal for me.

[milk]

Depends on the day...but...
Bach
Feldman
Debussy
Schumann
Shostakovich
Beethoven
Xenakis
Koechlin
L. Couperin
Mozart

[ibanezmonster]

Xenakis

I wonder if we're the only two with Xenakis on our list...?

[Jo498]

I like my hot sauce like I like my music: needs to be overwhelmingly strong.

I like music to be varied, therefore I will probably always prefer Beethoven or Mozart to Mahler or Bruckner. I do not like spiciness for its own sake. And I find Beethoven often overwhelmingly strong; I am not sure if I find any Mahler symphony except maybe his 9th or 6th as overwhelmingly strong as e.g. Beethovens 3rd, 5th, 9th.

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

I'd like to say several things in response to this:

1. These are lists of favourites, not attempts at some sort of objective assessment of greatness (the conclusions of which activity would in any case be questionable I think, as with art of any kind).
2. Elgar is up there for me (and others) quite simply because I've loved his music over most of a lifetime. I loved it when I first heard it at the age of 16. I still love it (in all sorts of ways, some the same, some different) more than 50 years later. I can't justify that in a way that would explain it to anyone else, any more than I could justify any other kind of love that wasn't shared.
3. So it's not about which league or galaxy his music might belong to in relation to other composers, but about impassioned and intuitive personal responses that I couldn't change if I tried. After all, the person you fall in love with may not be 'special' in anyone else's eyes but your own; but it hardly matters.

Agree 110% (the extra is for enthusiasm), Elgarian, but I believe there's room here for the telling, however ob- or subjective, of one's loves.  You use the word justify in your explanation, which may be the crux of the matter; you are right - there's no need for justification.  Still, you can do justice to your love by telling us what you hear in Elgar - I'd be appreciative - and you may spur listens, as well as greater appreciation, perhaps conversions...  The difficulty of communication is no reason not to attempt it.  GMGers are empathetic, sensitive and capable of putting themselves in others' listening chairs (that's only a slight exaggeration ).  If your love is too personal, that I can well understand.  To me, Elgar is a composer of the first rank; I esp. enjoy Sea Pictures which is not a work often cited by his fans.  At the same time, much of his work seems to me to present a conundrum - one curiously mirrored by your comments above - he is one of the most extraordinarily personal of composers and yet his musical language is so reflexive that it presents impediments to those who make the attempt to "get him."  (I'm not thinking solely here of the Enigma Variations but it's a good example of his modus operandi).  One suspects he is saying things he would or could not say in any other way; I hope you're not subject to the same conditions! 

[Mirror Image]

Remember me mentioning the 10th so many times as my air disaster symphony? Because as I worked on the victims of the air disasters, that symphony represented exactly how I felt -- the monumental task at hand, the weight, the loss, sadness, grit, determination and, not exactly hope but gradual ... well, it's very personal for me.

Ah, yes. I do remember this now, Paul. Will keep this in mind as I listen. Not your experience per se, but the emotion that must have been in the air during this time.

[EigenUser]

Depends on the day...but...
Bach
Feldman
Debussy
Schumann
Shostakovich
Beethoven
Xenakis
Koechlin
L. Couperin
Mozart

and I wonder if we're the only two with Feldman on our list...

[springrite]

and I wonder if we're the only two with Feldman on our list...

Three. Feldman has always been on my list, from the first moment I heard his first note.

[EigenUser]

Three. Feldman has always been on my list...

+1!

...from the first moment I heard his first note.

...and waited and waited for the next note?

[springrite]

...and waited and waited for the next note?

Well, that's what naps are for!

[mc ukrneal]

I'd like to say several things in response to this:

1. These are lists of favourites, not attempts at some sort of objective assessment of greatness (the conclusions of which activity would in any case be questionable I think, as with art of any kind).
2. Elgar is up there for me (and others) quite simply because I've loved his music over most of a lifetime. I loved it when I first heard it at the age of 16. I still love it (in all sorts of ways, some the same, some different) more than 50 years later. I can't justify that in a way that would explain it to anyone else, any more than I could justify any other kind of love that wasn't shared.
3. So it's not about which league or galaxy his music might belong to in relation to other composers, but about impassioned and intuitive personal responses that I couldn't change if I tried. After all, the person you fall in love with may not be 'special' in anyone else's eyes but your own; but it hardly matters.

I would add that what attracted us to the music in the first place will also likely be a factor. When I was younger, I loved the loud/crass/breathless/brassy/etc type of classical music. Think full orchestra playing. Think Russian Sailor's Dance, Sabre Dance, Tchaikovsky's 5th symphony: last movement, Verdi's Requiem: Dies Irae, Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky: Battle of the Ice, etc. This is what first attracted me and it remains a love to this day. I've grown into Baroque/Renaissance and Chamber, for example, but my first love will probably be these thrilling, soul-wrenching climaxes that are the thing I love most.

So depending how far we get from where we start is a factor, at least I think so. And this was why I had to wait quite a long time to really enjoy chamber music (but also explains my love of opera).  I never thought I'd enjoy chamber, but when I was ready I heard a Piano Trio from Brahms and it touched me as much as any piece of music I have heard. From there, I discoved Bach's Cello Suites, which helped open up another world I had not always enjoyed. And the journey goes on. But as our tastes expand, so does our appreciation of composers we once found wanting. It is why I hesitate to bash composers too much (or at all), because it reflects more on us than it does the composer at hand.

But it can also help us appreciate composers we thought we knew. I long liked Donizetti, but always felt there was a certain sameness to his music and stopped exploring after only a handful of operas. But as my tastes expanded and I heard new works, I could come back to Donizetti and realize the great skill he employed throughout his operas, so much so that I now have at least more than a dozen and try to acquire 1-2 new pieces of his every year.

WHich brings me full circle back to Elgar. Here is a composer who I have long enjoyed - one can blast those symphonies or the cello concerto, but there is so much more to his music. It is a rich tapestry, one that I have always gravitated towards. Today, I think I appreciate him (and dozens of others) far more just because my understanding and appreciation has expanded. The two pieces that helped open the door were the second symphony and the Music Makers (particularly the latter). But more importantly, appeciation of Elgar had opened the door to many other composers who I might never have discovered, like Foulds or Butterworth or Parry (just as my appreciation of Donizetti also led me back to Rossini and Bellini).

I just hope I never stop discovering new music or new aspects to music I already know. Personally, I'd never want to go back to a point where I was hearing a piece for the first time. I think life and appreciation make those pieces all the more close to my heart.

[Mirror Image]

Which brings me full circle back to Elgar. Here is a composer who I have long enjoyed - one can blast those symphonies or the cello concerto, but there is so much more to his music. It is a rich tapestry, one that I have always gravitated towards. Today, I think I appreciate him (and dozens of others) far more just because my understanding and appreciation has expanded. The two pieces that helped open the door were the second symphony and the Music Makers (particularly the latter). But more importantly, appeciation of Elgar had opened the door to many other composers who I might never have discovered...

Bravo, Neal! Take a bow. Sorry, I had to single out this section about Elgar.

[Jo498]

I did not mean to offend the Elgar lovers. However, after Greg expressed some puzzlement that Beethoven was so high on many peoples's lists I did likewise for Elgar. And I still find it surprising that Elgar is so highly esteemed. I would not have wondered too much if he had been on some lists hovering around positions 8-10, but for me it is astonishing that several have him as favorite or at least among the top positions. I would be similarly puzzled if a bunch of people had named Franz Schmidt, Reger or Pfitzner as their favorites. (But apparently everybody would be puzzled in such a case... I wonder if anyone here not from the Anglosphere has Elgar among his top ten.)

I like Sea pictures, the Enigmas and the Cello concerto (without finding any of it overwhelming or extraordinary), but the symphonies have been basically colossal bores to me so far, although I keep trying once in a while. I got the violin concerto last year but do not remember much about it (except that it is extremely long).

[North Star]

I wonder if anyone here not from the Anglosphere has Elgar among his top ten.

71 dB