What made you fall in love with Classical music?

[Octo_Russ]

For me it was Beethoven's Third Symphony conducted by Karajan.

I was in my mid twenties, i was very ignorant about Classical music, one day i felt compelled to study some of the greatest people who ever lived, Writers, Poets, Scientists, Inventors, Artists, Composers etc, i decided to start with Composers, i bought myself a portable cassette player, and a cassette of the above work on the DG Galleria label.

I was blown away by its sheer power and beauty, i played it many times a day every day for days on end, before i got myself some more tapes.

It remains my most favourite Symphony of all, i'll never forget those early days of listening to great works for the very first time.

That's my love affair, anyone want to share theirs?.

[Guido]

I have been playing music since about the age of 6. However I didn't truly love music until many years later.

For me it was playing Hindemith's Kleine Sonata (cello), and Bloch's Supplication aged 14. This ignited the true passion. Love blossomed when I heard Finzi's cello concerto almost by accident aged 15 - I thought if there were pieces like this that hardly anyone knew about, then what other treasure could be lurking out there? Thus the exploration started and I have never looked back.

[Mirror Image]

Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe, Ives' Symphony No. 2, Bartok's The Wooden Prince were my windows into classical music while Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, and Vaughan Williams made me fall in love with this music. From here, the journey has been an amazing one.

[Teresa]

ELO and ELP.

I had just purchased ELO II

which had a long version of "Roll Over Beethoven".  Reading the liner notes I discovered interspaced within Chuck Berry's song was all of Beethoven's Biggest Hits.   Since I loved the instrumental "classical" bits the best, when I saw "Beethoven's Biggest Hits" on an RCA LP with Beethoven waving what I thought was a double-peace sign at the store I purchased it.  I thought it was so cool that Beethoven was waving a peace sign with both hands.  I was so disappointed when I discovered it was a double-victory sign.  It is rather bizarre that peace and victory have the same sign.

Being a fan of ELP (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) I had to get the original versions of all of their works based on classical music as until hearing that Beethoven LP I believed that original classical music was terribly boring and had to be converted to Rock first to be enjoyed.  I bought Mussorgsky's Pictures At An Exhibition by Herbert von Karajan on a DGG LP, Prokofiev's Scythian Suite on Mercury Golden Imports, Copland's Rodeo on Columbia and Janacek's Sinfonietta.  I found I liked the orchestral original of Pictures much better than ELP's version.
http://www.youtube.com/v/RsHkkm0vpNE
Same for Prokofiev's Scythian Suite of which the "The Evil God and the Dance of the Pagan Monsters" was on ELP's Works Volume One, Copland's Hoedown from Rodeo on Trilogy and Knife-Edge (based on Janacek's Sinfonietta) from their first LP.  In all instances the classical orchestral blew away the ELP versions.  I had no idea ANY classical music could be this good, I was shocked to the very fabric of my being as I believed ALL classical music was boring and ugly sounding.   

If not for ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) and ELP (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) I would never have discovered classical music as I had previously rejected the classical music I was exposed to as boring.  Thank you ELO and ELP for prosalitiyng classical music! 

Since then I have explored lots of classical music from nearly 500 classical composers and I like maybe 5% to 10% of the classical works I have heard which is a higher percentage than any other type of music BTW.

[greg]

I can't think of a specific work. I started with Bach, Paganini and Mozart, mainly, but also got a few CDs for Christmas (Schubert's Unfinished, Rachmaninoff's 2nd PC, a late Haydn symphony) and after a few listenings, the stuff started to grow on me. By the time I discovered Prokofiev, there was no return...

[PaulR]

Schubert's 8th Symphony.

I played the first movement of it when I was still in a Youth Orchestra, and decided to find a recording.  (Recording is the Royal Scottish National Orchestra with Sir Charles Mackerras conducting).  It was fun to play as a young bassist, and then when I was listening to it, it really hooked me into the piece.  It made quite the impression on me, and put me on the path loving classical music.

[Air]

Well, I've played the piano ever since I was 5, but it was not until my teenage years that I truly discovered classical music.  Khachaturian's Toccata, I think, was the piece that really began it all.  I remember listening to it for days on end, never ceasing to be in awe of the color and beauty that the sound of the piano (my instrument - which meant a lot to me) brought forth.  Now I know better, but it's still a great piece that brings back a lot of memories for me.

[otare]

It wasn't one specific work. I started playing in a school band when I was 6 (because my big brother was playing), but started listening to music as such in the 60's. I have strong memories of The Everly Brothers and The Beatles on a transistor radio in the back of my parents car on summer vacation in 1963/1964. I started with The Beatles and went via The Small Faces and The Who to John Mayall Bluesbreakers, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, Yes and Fairport Convention. In college I had a teacher who was very interested in classical music, and he invited people from the class home to listen to music. We would bring our favourites and explain to him why we liked it, and he would do the same. After a while I started being bored with pop and rock and ordered my first classical records - The Brahms Symphonies with Vienna P. O. and Istvan Kertesz and Der Freischütz conducted by Carlos Kleiber. After that I was hooked.

[knight66]

An aunt gave me Holst's Planets for my birthday when I was about seven. Around the same time, my father dumped me into an afternoon performance of Rossini's William Tell, then sat with me through the same evening performance of Traviata by the same opera company. He was not interested in music, but a family friend was in both productions.

I went from there, despite an experience that could have pushed me in the opposite direction.

Mike

[mc ukrneal]

Don't remember exactly - was around classical as a child. But I like to attribute it to this (which I always thought was brilliant - there's also the one with Woody Woodpecker, but I prefer this one):

http://www.youtube.com/v/yvapzt8FKLk

[canninator]

I heard Debussy orchestral works at school. I bought a tape (this was 1984), no idea what the recording was, but it had La Mer, Prelude... etc, and the music has stayed with me since. I've had forays into all sorts of music since, and still have a penchant for dirty sounding metal, but classical has always been with me.

[71 dB]

Hearing Elgar's Enigma Variations on radio December 1996 did it for me. After that experience I understood what wonderful treasures could be found in the world of classical music.

[Sergeant Rock]

I grew up hearing classical music: my mother was a very good pianist. But it was hearing Ride of the Valkyries on the radio when I was 13 that really ignited the passion. In Mrs. Rock's case it was hearing Weber's Der Freischütz in a music appreciation class when she was 13. Her father then took her to see it performed in Mannheim, and bought her the Keilberth recording.

Sarge

[Drasko]

Hearing on the radio one day Rachmaninov playing his 3rd Concerto.

[flyingdutchman]

Easy...Redbook CDs.

[knight66]

Easy...Redbook CDs.

Well, I imagine that means something to somebody.

Mike

[flyingdutchman]

Well, I imagine that means something to somebody.

Mike

Not directed at anyone.  CDs brought about an interest in hearing music I heard on the fringes but hesitated to buy.  Prior to that it was rock, pop, and easy listening.  My first was Karajan conducting Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker.  From there, I have bought so many CDs, SACDs, DVD-Audio, etc., of classical it boggles the imagination.

[jhar26]

The fact that most popular music of the mid-80's was so borig to me was a big help. It sorta forced me to check out classical music and I immediately liked what I heard.

[flyingdutchman]

Of course, BMG Music Club helped in the sheer number of recordings I got into.  It's sad they're no longer around.

[Bogey]

Movie scores, probably starting with The Crimson Tide.