GMG's Greatest Symphony Poll of 2017

[TheGSMoeller]

Nice work, GSMoeller. 

A lot of variety in that top 30 for sure, and a worthy top work!

Thanks! I have fun putting these together. Go vote on the new one Greatest Concertos!

[Sergeant Rock]

Damn! I forgot to vote for La mer.

I was gonna say something while the pol was still live, and then I thought ... naaaah

I didn't forget it. I considered listing it along with a dedication to Ken...but then I reconsidered: I figured that joke was getting old 

Sarge

[North Star]

I didn't really forget it either...

[vandermolen]

Where was Klaus Egge's First Symphony?!!! 

Seriously - great poll. The Ives Symphony 4's position surprised me although I really like the work.

[Mahlerian]

Thanks for everyone that participated! There were 122 symphonies listed, but I'm only posting the top 30 right now, but if someone really wants to see all of the dozens of works that received a low single digit vote I would be more than happy to post them. 
And I would really like to read what you all thought of the results.
The next poll I would like to start is Greatest Concertos, which would be even more interesting because of the mix of all the different instruments available for concertos.


1.   Mahler: Symphony No. 9 - 82
2.   Brahms: Symphony No. 4 - 78
3.   Mahler: Symphony No. 6 - 57
4.   Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 – 55
5.   Beethoven: No. 9 - 44
6.   Ives: Symphony No. 4 - 43
7.   Shostakovich: Symphony № 4   - 37
t-8.   Bruckner: No. 8 – 34
        Mozart: No. 41 - 34
10.   Sibelius: No. 7  - 33
11.   Bruckner: No. 9 - 32
12.   Tchaikovsky: No. 6 "Pathetique" - 30
13.   Beethoven: No. 7 - 27
14.   Berlioz:  Symphonie Fantastique - 25
t-15.   Nielsen: No. 5 - 23
        Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms: - 23
        Shostakovich: Symphony 5 - 23
        Schubert: Symphony No.9 - 23
19.   Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5 - 22
20.   Brian: No. 1 "Gothic" - 21
21.   Webern:  Symphony op 21 - 20
22.   Messiaen: Turangalila-Symphonie - 19
t-23.   Mozart: Symphony No. 38 - 18
        Schnittke: Symphony No. 1 - 18
        Vaughan Williams: Symphony 6 - 18
26.   Mahler: Symphony 2 - 17
t-27. Shostakovich, № 10 in e minor, Op.93.  -16
        Beethoven 6 - 16
t-29  Sibelius: Symphony No. 6 - 15
        Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No. 1 in E: - 15

There's only one I dislike, a few I'm more or less indifferent to, but a very strong list from my standpoint all the same.

[TheGSMoeller]

I would say for the most part the list doesn't surprise me, most of the heavy hitters are represented although having Mahler taking 2 of the top three did.

What I truly was surprised by, was that Mozart's 40th didn't get a strong showing, and same goes for Sibelius' 5th. I love that his 7th cracked the top ten, but I would've  believed the 5th was more popular. 

[Sergeant Rock]

Three of the top 4 I voted for. I'm happy 

Sarge

[Karl Henning]

As I think about how to cast my votes in the Concerto poll, one of my takeaways from this poll is:  Even if I put a great personal favorite in the top, 10-pt slot, it won't place at the end unless there is another voter or two to bespeak it.

I am not disheartened;  it is only that I perceive the Nature of the Thing  0:)

[Christo]

Three of the top 4 I voted for. I'm happy 

Sarge

Happy to be average. 

[TheGSMoeller]

As I think about how to cast my votes in the Concerto poll, one of my takeaways from this poll is:  Even if I put a great personal favorite in the top, 10-pt slot, it won't place at the end unless there is another voter or two to bespeak it.

I am not disheartened;  it is only that I perceive the Nature of the Thing  0:)

I completely understand, Karl. It's why I was asking for more of an objective view, greatest rather than strictly favorites in hopes of getting a clearer list of top symphonies. My favorites list would've consisted of at least 7-8 works that only I would've given a score to. Also because I wasn't sure how may would vote, if I knew I could get over 50 - 60 lists rather than 25 then there would be a greater chance of seeing the same works on favorite lists.

Thank you for participating though, it's a fun little project. 

[Karl Henning]

Thank you for participating though, it's a fun little project. 

It's all fun and games, until your favorite composer gets voted off the island . . . .

[mc ukrneal]

I completely understand, Karl. It's why I was asking for more of an objective view, greatest rather than strictly favorites in hopes of getting a clearer list of top symphonies. My favorites list would've consisted of at least 7-8 works that only I would've given a score to. Also because I wasn't sure how may would vote, if I knew I could get over 50 - 60 lists rather than 25 then there would be a greater chance of seeing the same works on favorite lists.

Thank you for participating though, it's a fun little project. 

One thing is unclear though - how to define 'greatest'. My issue with these polls is that it covers a potential multitude of reasons. So one can justify any result. For example, because there is no explanation, I cannot understand why Mahler 9 is #1. I don't think it particularly great at all. It certainly isn't a top 20 candidate in my book. And it would be nice if someone could justify their votes. For example, I would think a key justification for a symphony to be great would be some sort of subsequent change directly linked to that work of art. One can see this is Rite of Spring or B3, but not so much in M9 in my view. This is a key reason why I think it totally out of place. I do NOT believe that the apex of someone's work (good as it may be) is necessarily enough to justify a work getting a high rating either. And other posters may disagree., but at least I'll understand why they voted they way they did.

[Ken B]

One thing is unclear though - how to define 'greatest'. My issue with these polls is that it covers a potential multitude of reasons. So one can justify any result. For example, because there is no explanation, I cannot understand why Mahler 9 is #1. I don't think it particularly great at all. It certainly isn't a top 20 candidate in my book. And it would be nice if someone could justify their votes. For example, I would think a key justification for a symphony to be great would be some sort of subsequent change directly linked to that work of art. One can see this is Rite of Spring or B3, but not so much in M9 in my view. This is a key reason why I think it totally out of place. I do NOT believe that the apex of someone's work (good as it may be) is necessarily enough to justify a work getting a high rating either. And other posters may disagree., but at least I'll understand why they voted they way they did.

This is a Dark Night of the Soul kind of group and Mahler 9 is a Dark Night of the Soul symphony. 

[Mahlerian]

One thing is unclear though - how to define 'greatest'. My issue with these polls is that it covers a potential multitude of reasons. So one can justify any result. For example, because there is no explanation, I cannot understand why Mahler 9 is #1. I don't think it particularly great at all. It certainly isn't a top 20 candidate in my book. And it would be nice if someone could justify their votes. For example, I would think a key justification for a symphony to be great would be some sort of subsequent change directly linked to that work of art. One can see this is Rite of Spring or B3, but not so much in M9 in my view. This is a key reason why I think it totally out of place. I do NOT believe that the apex of someone's work (good as it may be) is necessarily enough to justify a work getting a high rating either. And other posters may disagree., but at least I'll understand why they voted they way they did.

The profound influence that Mahler's symphonies had on Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern cannot be overstated.  Berg, Mahler's true successor, wrote the single most influential (and I think the greatest) opera of the 20th century, and he would not have been able to do it the way he did without Mahler's example as much as his teacher's.  Likewise, Schoenberg's ideas about orchestral color and the use of soloistic instruments apart from an ensemble are related to Mahler's own use of the orchestra.

I didn't vote for Mahler's Ninth, masterpiece though I consider it to be, because I admire the Sixth more, and I was keeping strictly to one work per composer.  I was a little surprised by its position myself.

[aesthetic]

For example, I would think a key justification for a symphony to be great would be some sort of subsequent change directly linked to that work of art.

The concept in play here, is influence. But I view this in an opposite way. I think that a great work of art should naturally be influential; whereas an influential work of art may not necessarily be great for its own sake.

In any case, no-one knows what "great" means, so this is all part of that abstract kind of stuff. 

[Mirror Image]

Good to see Mahler's 9th on top. It's simply one of the pinnacles of the symphonic repertoire IMHO. I was going to initially vote for it, but I feel the same way about Mahler's 6th (and not to mention many of his other works).

[Florestan]

I think that a great work of art should naturally be influential

How influential was Schubert's Unfinished Symphony? Or his D960 Piano Sonata?

[Ken B]

How influential was Schubert's Unfinished Symphony? Or his D960 Piano Sonata?

It's like those murals in Pompeii: no fricking influence at all, none, bupkis,  nada, for 1700 years.

[Florestan]

It's like those murals in Pompeii: no fricking influence at all, none, bupkis,  nada, for 1700 years.

Precisely.

[Jay F]

How influential was Schubert's D960 Piano Sonata?

Alfred Brendel playing D960 is what got me listening to classical music on a regular basis. I heard it in a record store in Washington, DC, in January, 1987, just after buying my first CD player, and I just had to have it. The store was having a sale: 3 CDs on DG-Philips-Decca/London for $25, so I also bought Beethoven's 9th (HvK, 1977) and Brendel's Mozart PCs 23 & 27. And I have never stopped listening to classical music.