Help me build a starter kit for my students.

[Wanderer]

I think a better strategy would be to bring various recordings to class over a period of time and then have the kids choose and purchase what they like, only as long as they express any interest to do so. I'd also suggest that strategically chosen excerpts and sole movements (not entire works) would be more appropriate.

I wouldn't recommend Chopin, Bach, any violin concertos or the Rite of Spring, unless it's on sufficiently small doses. If you have to stick with Stravinsky, I'd opt for the Firebird or Petrouchka instead. In my view, Bartók's Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta would make a more powerful first impression (especially the second movement).

[Philoctetes]

I don't know ...the sheer motor rhythmic power & force of The Rite of Spring is pretty irresistable! You'd have to be a zombie not to react to it...

..or an AI construct.

[Florestan]

Grieg: Piano Concerto

Mozart: Symphony No. 40

Chopin: Polonaise op. 53

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1

Bizet: excerpts from Carmen (including of course Introduction, Habanera and Toreador's Aria)

These worked perfectly fine for me and dragged me into classical music.

Throw in Rimsky-Korsakov's Sheherezade and if your pupils will abhor classical music at least you can blame it on me.

[rappy]

Of course it isn't boring.
But to some it is. My mother, by the way, found the slow movements of the Tchaikovsky serenade for strings and the Mendelssohn 3rd symphony boring (I made a CD with beautiful slow movements which are easy to get for my parents because they like calm music).
When there was a forte tutti in the Mendelssohn symphony (yes, only the slow movement), she found it bombastic and distracting.

What would she say if I gave her the Rite of Spring?  0:)

[Philoctetes]

Of course it isn't boring.

Yes, it is.

[Wanderer]

You'd have to be a zombie not to react to it...

An irrelevant comment. The original goal here is not any reaction, but positive reaction. The risk factor in any recommendation made here remains, however universal we consider our own preferences to be; especially considering the target audience is a bunch of musically inexperienced 12 year-olds.

Throw in Rimsky-Korsakov's Sheherazade

Seconded! 

[karlhenning]

Throw in Rimsky-Korsakov's Sheherezade

Beauty, Andrei!

[Christo]

Some orchestral starters for 12-years old pupils? Many suggestions made here - e.g. those by Florestan - are quite useful. I would suggest to consider as well:

* Frederick Delius, La Calinda (an intermezzo from his opera Koanga, which made me fall in love with music when I was 12)
* Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Russian Eastern Ouverture (better fit for your age group than Sheherezade, perhaps, the same applies to his Flight of the Bumble Bee from Czar Saltan, perhaps you can find it in its original, extended version).
* Camille Saint-Saëns, Danse Macabre (otherwise, Le Carnaval des Animaux)
* Sergei Prokofiev, Peter and the Wolf
* Manuel de Falla, Noches en los jardinos de España
* Antonín Dvořák, Polednice (The Noon Witch)
* George Gershwin, An American in Paris

[Henk]

That one is okay by me. But my standard joke with the Vingt Regards is that Dix would do, or Cinq, or even Deux. And I tried getting through St. Francis once; you'd need the patience of a saint . . . .

I think catalogue d'oiseaux will work. Bird songs will be recognizable.

[Henk]

I'd:

(1) Keep Grieg (although you could sub the Piano Concerto for PG)
(2) Keep the Moussorgsky, especially if the sonics are good
(3) Ditch the Chopin. It'd be a snore for too many. I recommend Tchaikovsky (either Sym#4, R&J, PC#1)
(4) Ditch any Baroque and go with Stravinsky Firebird Suite
(5) Keep the Orff.

Isn't that too much russian music? I agree with Drogulus that some 21 century works will be preferable, young people might like it more then "old music". Some mimimalistic music would be nice and easy to listen to, I recommend Glass' S 2,3 (on naxos) in additition to Catalogue d'Oiseaux. I also agree with the choice of Rite of Spring. They of course also should digest some Beethoven (S. 9) and Bach (Goldberg variations). Grieg is nice for some late-romantic vibes. I also second the choice for Orff because you should have some italian music also. Then you have a rather diverse and also modern compilation. Remove catalogue d'oiseaux because otherwise it's too many and too expensive . Probably add some Satie or Chopin (nocturnes) instead. If it's still too much cd's, eliminate Grieg for Satie or Chopin, I think they don't dig late-romantic music much in the beginning.

[not edward]

This is some kind of music school, right? 

Since they are 12 year olds it's important to have them hooked. I think these works appeal to children:

Grieg: Peer Gynt (Naxos 8.570236)
Mussorsgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition/"A Night on the Bare Mountain" (Naxos 8.571052)
Chopin: Piano Concertos (Naxos 8.554540)
Vivaldi: Four Seasons (Naxos 8.571071)
Orff: Carmina Burana (Naxos 8.570033)

They are all Naxos for low price and availability. The quality should be good.

I like this list too. I would keep all but the Chopin, and replace it with either Beethoven (probably Kleiber's 5th & 7th) or The Rite of Spring (though a little nagging thought in my mind wonders if you could find a Mozart disc that has both Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and Ein Musikalischer Spaß on it, as I think the latter piece could have a surprising appeal to kids, even if they wouldn't get all of the humour in it).

[karlhenning]

Isn't that too much Russian music?

No 

[Christo]

I also second the choice for Orff because you should have some italian music also.

Why not add some Brahms to give French their share, too? 

[Henk]

Why not add some Brahms to give French their share, too? 

I always thought Orff was Italian, it doesn't sound German. Maybe because of the commercial with van Basten playing for AC Milan .

[Renfield]

So... For up to $75, based on Amazon.com prices:


1.



I might have my gripes with the 5th in this disc, but for the age-group you're talking about, this sort of Beethoven seems to me ideal.


2.



Two superb concertos with melodic, exciting and colourful music; tunes they can hum, as well.


3.



Beautiful, lyrical music, rooted in dance, superbly performed, and just right for providing young listeners with hours of pleasure.


4.



Virile Mozart from Karajan, which should serve both to expose them to Mozart's sound-world, and provide evidence that it can be exciting.


5.



And the necessary Stravinsky: Petrushka should help acquaint them with his world, and the Rite of Spring can then help you explain it.



How do these five sound? They should cost $65 tops, incidentally, if Amazon.com's price ranges are of any indication.

[Christo]

I always thought Orff was Italian, it doesn't sound German.

Hmm, Giancarlo Orfeo, perhaps?

[johnQpublic]

Isn't that too much russian music?   

Hummmm, I guess so but I really wasn't thinking about anything other than attention grabbing stuff.

But in light of that I recomend ditching my #3 (Tchaikovsky) or my #4 (Stravinsky Firebird Suite) and substitute a Chopin compilation album with many of his most popular pieces (i.e. Military Polonaise, Minute waltz, Revolutionary Etude, etc)

[RebLem]

Gimell 345  Byrd:Mass for 3 Voices |Mass for 4 Voices |Mass for 5 Voices |Ave verum corpus--Tallis Scholars.  This will teach them something about basic polyphony, at a little more sophisticated level than Frere Jacques.

RCA Red Seal 884  Mahler: Symphony 1 "Titan"--Levine, LSO.  Speaking of Frere Jacques, they'll love that, and I'll bet they'll learn to love Mahler, too.

DG 439912 Prokofiev: Symphonies 1 & 5--Levine, CSO--speaking of Levine, they'll just want to get up and dance to the Classical Symphony, and # 5 is pretty interesting, too.

CBS 42433  Stravinsky: Le sacre du printemps |Petrushka--Stravinsky, cond. Columbia Sym Orch.  They've heard snippets of the Rite in TV commercials and film music already, probably, and its the core work of 20th century music.

BIS 1263 Mozart: Clarinet Quintet |Clarinet Concerto--Martin Frost, clarinet, Vertano String Quartet; Peter Oundjian, cond. Amsterdam Sinfonietta.  The clarinet is an instrument that maybe, if you're lucky, one of the kids already plays, and its important to have something on the list that someone can maybe see himself playing with some practice.

They'll discover Beethoven on their own, but if you must, I'd recommend either a good recording of the Violin Concerto (the musical argument is sophisticated, but nevertheless easy to follow) or a chamber album--the Rubinstein, Szerying recording of three violin sonatas, or someone's Archduke Trio, or someone's Cello Sonata 3 rather than a symphony.

[PerfectWagnerite]

BIS 1263 Mozart: Clarinet Quintet |Clarinet Concerto--Martin Frost, flute, Vertano String Quartet; Peter Oundjian, cond. Amsterdam Sinfonietta. 

Martin Frost plays the flute too? And what is a flute doing in a clarinet quintet?

[RebLem]

Martin Frost plays the flute too? And what is a flute doing in a clarinet quintet?

I had a brain fart.  Sorry.  Its been corrected.