Your Favorite Mendelssohn Pieces

[USMC1960s]

Looking for your favorite three or four. Trying to do more exploring re the music of Mendelssohn. Thanks in advance, as always.

[Karl Henning]

Certainly the e minor violin concerto.

The string symphonies.

The Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream.

And the Scottish Symphony (№ 3 in a minor).

[Gurn Blanston]

Symphony #3

Octet for Strings

Violin Concerto

Piano Sextet

I have about 30 more I could add to the list, Mendelssohn is one of the more ingratiating composers ever.

[USMC1960s]

Please add a few more.

[San Antone]

Songs Without Words

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[Gurn Blanston]

Please add a few more.

His string quartets are excellent, especially the late ones.

The Piano Quartets

The Piano Trios

The 2 Piano Concertos, they really kick butt with the right player (like Serkin)

Symphony #4 'Italian'

As san antone says the Songs Without Words

That's start you out. 

[MishaK]

Songs Without Words

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Yes, and that recording in particular is gold.

I'd add the Hebrides Overture

[San Antone]

Don't forget the oratorios: Elijah, St. Paul

[Holden]

Songs Without Words

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+1 though I've yet to hear this particular recording. Babayan and others also do a great job.

[Jo498]

Octet for strings
String quartets in a minor and f minor (but all 6 opussed ones are worth listening to)
Ouverture Fingal's Cave/Hebrides (also the somewhat lesser known "Calm Sea and prosperous voyage" and "Fair Melusina")
5th symphony

The 2nd piano trio is unfairly in the shadow of the very famous first one; the cello sonatas are first rate as well (if maybe a little on the brilliant, but not very deep side)

The most underappreciated part of Mendelssohn's oeuvre might be the choral music, though. Besides the two grand oratorios, there are Motets, Psalm settings, also secular works.

[EigenUser]

String Symphonies
1st Symphony
String Octet
Violin Concerto
Midsummer Night's Dream

[amw]

Piano preludes & fugues
Piano capriccios & rondos
Piano quartets op. 1-3
String symphonies (esp the later ones)
Variations concertantes & Variations sérieuses
Cello sonatas & piano trios already mentioned
String Quartets op 12 and 13 (all six are good, but those two especially)

Probably more stuff too since I don't know any of the choral works. My mum absolutely loves Elijah for instance.

[Ken B]

Symphony 3
Hebrides Overture
Songs without Words
Symphony 4
Violin Concerto
Octet
String symphonies
Midsummer Night's Dream

That's a pretty standard list of his most performed stuff!

[king ubu]

Violin Concerto
Octet
Piano Trios
Paulus

four, I know (or rather five) ... some recommendations:

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there are *many* recordings of this concerto that I love, but among the more recent ones, this is a favourite!

also need to mention this here, at least:

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as for the piano trios ... this one is pretty good:

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for hip, there's this one, pretty darn good, too:

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Then there's the Rubinstein/Heifetz/Piatigorsky of the a minor trio of course - easiest found in this box nowadays, I assume:

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As for "Paulus", I very much like this here:

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Not entirely sure I found my "THE" octet recording yet, but this one (Huggett again) is good (all of it, not just the octet, but I've not really started digging into the string quartets at all):

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The Heifetz/Piatigorsky box depicted above contains another terrific recording of the octet!

[Jo498]

The Hausmusik is pretty good but probably the best of the handful of octets I have heard is for me the Archibudelli recording (coupled with a not terribly interesting rarity by Gade).

[USMC1960s]

Thank you.

[Marc]

Here are 5 works that always touch me:

Motets Mitten wir im Leben sind op. 23/3 and Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener in Frieden fahren op. 69/1, Organ Sonata in D-minor, op. 65/6 (based on Vater unser im Himmelreich), Ouvertüre Die Hebriden, op.26 and the beautiful Violin Concerto in E-minor, op. 64.

[Dax]

Does anybody know the 2 Konzertstucke op 113/4 for clarinet, basset horn and piano?

[jochanaan]

I'm very fond of his Overture in C for concert band.

[Wakefield]

Violin Concerto

... some recommendations:

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there are *many* recordings of this concerto that I love, but among the more recent ones, this is a favourite!

Hilary is supreme in this concerto.

I still hope someday will be commercially released this performance with Paavo Järvi/Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, available on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=885dkfMF9Sc