Your Favorite 50-Year-Period in Music History

[some guy]

1897-1922, which is the sparsest 25 year stretch ever.

Possibly the funniest thing anyone has ever posted, ever.

Certainly the most ridiculous.

But funny. Very very funny. My jaw aches from laughing.

[Ken B]

1897-22 is the meat of Mahler, all of Debussy, the early 2nd Vienesse school, early Stravinsky

Exactly. Plus a lot of Sibelius and Ravel.  That's not an overwhelming amount of great stuff for a whole 25 years. That corpus you list doesn't match the 5 last years of Schubert's life, or just the works of Brahms in the preceding 25 years.   No period is devoid of great music, but this one is ... deficient.

[Marc]

[...]
I would easily skip 1609-1703, from the death of Gesualdo to the start of Bach's career
[...]

Which was probably the period that 'taught' Bach.

Without Sweelinck (and his pupils), Frescobaldi, Froberger, Schütz, Reincken, Pachelbel, Buxtehude, Böhm, and all the others I won't mention, Bach wouldn't be possible.

[bwv 1080]

Which was probably the period that 'taught' Bach.

Without Sweelinck (and his pupils), Frescobaldi, Froberger, Schütz, Reincken, Pachelbel, Buxtehude, Böhm, and all the others I won't mention, Bach wouldn't be possible.

Yes, but thankfully there was Bach, so I can just skip over the lot of them.  Bach, Scarlatti & Rameau is all the Baroque I need

[Marc]

Yes, but thankfully there was Bach, so I can just skip over the lot of them.  Bach, Scarlatti & Rameau is all the Baroque I need

Well, tastes differ. Of course I could say: check them out or listen again, but... why?

I'm happy, hope you're happy, too.



I was mostly surprised by the word 'easily', I guess.
Anyway, as you might have guessed, I love the 17th century, that great 'whirlpool' of phantastico and antico, of north and south, of all the various pitches and temperaments.

[Sergeant Rock]

Any choice would omit 1897-1922, which is the sparsest 25 year stretch ever.

Wrong thread, Ken. This belongs in the unpopular opinion thread 

Sarge

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

Another thing I just remembered about my preferred piece of music history is the early music revival and also it was when historically informed performance really began taking off. Some of my favourite musicians are associated with that movement.

[Mister Sharpe]

1900-1950, hands down, not merely for the work composed therein but for music history's broader appreciation for all or much that came before, which makes it a most singular half-century in time, give or take a few years... 

[Ken B]

Wrong thread, Ken. This belongs in the unpopular opinion thread 

Sarge

It surely does.

[Dancing Divertimentian]

Late Romantic, early modern period for me: 1878-1927

That is essentially right-on-the-dot with what I was thinking.

That covers Parsifal, Bruckner 1-9 (at least the later versions of the early symphonies), Brahms 3 & 4, Mahler, Dvorak 6-9, Sibelius,Fauré, Magnard, Elgar, Debussy, much of my favorite R.Strauss and Stravinsky, early Second Viennese School, and, of course, Havergal Brian's Gothic.

Good coverage. I'd add Liszt, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, Martinu, Janacek, Bartok, Saint-Saens, Britten, and Ravel.

[Sergeant Rock]

That is essentially right-on-the-dot with what I was thinking.

Good coverage. I'd add Liszt, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, Martinu, Janacek, Bartok, Saint-Saens, Britten, and Ravel.

We'd miss some of the great late works (Paganini Rhapsody, Symphonic Dances, Corelli Variations, Third Symphony) but yeah, Rach is essentially covered with a 1927 cutoff (most of the solo piano works, First and Second Symphonies, Bells, all the Concertos, operas, choral works).

Sarge

[Dancing Divertimentian]

We'd miss some to the great late works (Paganini Rhapsody, Symphonic Dances, Corelli Variations, Third Symphony) but yeah, Rach is essentially covered with a 1927 cutoff (most of the solo piano works, First and Second Symphonies, Bells, all the Concertos, operas, choral works).

Sarge

Yeah that is some meaty Rach. More of a stretch might be my inclusion of Liszt, but I'm very partial to his late period. It sneaks up on you...

[71 dB]

Yes, but thankfully there was Bach, so I can just skip over the lot of them.  Bach, Scarlatti & Rameau is all the Baroque I need

Man are you missing a lot a great music with that attitude. Not even Handel? 

For example, the cantatas of Nikolaus Bruhns are imo very beautiful and sophisticated music and the model for Bach's early cantatas. Bruhns was such a talented genius who died too young but was nevertheless a "superstar" of his time. But you don't need that stuff do you? Your loss. My loss is that Bruhns' chamber music is completely lost. 

[Sergeant Rock]

More of a stretch might be my inclusion of Liszt, but I'm very partial to his late period.

As am I. Do you have this?

[asin]B000BRBLY6[/asin]


Sarge

[71 dB]

Which was probably the period that 'taught' Bach.

Without Sweelinck (and his pupils), Frescobaldi, Froberger, Schütz, Reincken, Pachelbel, Buxtehude, Böhm, and all the others I won't mention, Bach wouldn't be possible.

The greatness of Bach is the combination of his Einstein-level genius of counterpoint AND the legacy of Northern-Germany baroque before him. He met Buxtehude and studied the works of composers such as Bruhns and Kuhnau. No wonder he had superb premises to become the giant of baroque he is. 

[Dancing Divertimentian]

As am I. Do you have this?

[asin]B000BRBLY6[/asin]


Sarge

No, don't have it. I've actually never heard of Peter Toth. Went hunting around on the Amazons to learn more about him but came up with zilch. Seems to be on the obscure side.

But then headed over to YouTube and found some great stuff! Yeah, I like his Liszt, what there is of it on YouTube, anyway. You got me pining for this disc now, Sarge. But damn you it's expensive!

[Ken B]

Man are you missing a lot a great music with that attitude. Not even Handel? 

For example, the cantatas of Nikolaus Bruhns are imo very beautiful and sophisticated music and the model for Bach's early cantatas. Bruhns was such a talented genius who died too young but was nevertheless a "superstar" of his time. But you don't need that stuff do you? Your loss. My loss is that Bruhns' chamber music is completely lost. 

One of my great discoveries of recent years is Purcell. Smack in the middle!

[aleazk]

1) 1950-2000

2) 1900-1950

3) 1150-1200

4) 1200-1250

5) 1250-1300

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

3) 1150-1200

I need recommendations

[bwv 1080]

I need recommendations

https://www.youtube.com/v/gtkmnhnHWhw