Your Top 10 Favorite Obscure Composers

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

The Ornstein pianoconcerto is terrific: https://youtu.be/s9zpBnn8Flk

Piano Concerto (1921/23)
Pianist : Alain Feinberg
Dir : Leon Botstein
American Symphony Orchestra

1- Moderato assai -- Allegro con moto (16.50)
2- Andante (8.02)
3- Allegro (9.51)

P.

Great piece, i agree

[listener]

Score at http://ks.imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/f/f1/IMSLP378725-PMLP611307-ornsteinpianoconcertofullscore.pdf

[Simula]

I agree with Furtwangler. Pettersson is an excellent but neglected composer.

[Maestro267]

1. Havergal Brian
2. George Lloyd
3. William Alwyn
4. William Mathias
5. Arnold Bax
6. Krzysztof Penderecki
7. Michael Daugherty
8. Boris Tishchenko
9. Daniel Jones
10. York Bowen

[Mirror Image]

6. Krzysztof Penderecki

How is Penderecki obscure? His music was featured in The Shining, The Exorcist, and more recently Shutter Island. Also, his music seems to have found cross-over appeal thanks in part to Radiohead guitarist, Jonny Greenwood. His music has a larger audience than any of the other composers in your list and he's regarded time and time again as one of the greatest composers of the 20th Century.

[71 dB]

How is Penderecki obscure?

For many even Jean-Philippe Rameau is obscure! I don't even try to make my list, because the obscurity of composers is so controversal.

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

How is Penderecki obscure? His music was featured in The Shining, The Exorcist, and more recently Shutter Island. Also, his music seems to have found cross-over appeal thanks in part to Radiohead guitarist, Jonny Greenwood. His music has a larger audience than any of the other composers in your list and he's regarded time and time again as one of the greatest composers of the 20th Century.

Well I can assure you that most of the world's population have not seen any of those films.

[North Star]

Well I can assure you that most of the world's population have not seen any of those films.

With that kind of logic, all composers are obscure.

[Jo498]

It is often fuzzy, but from Maestro267's list, I'd say that Penderecki clearly is the least obscure.
He certainly is among the most famous living composers and among the best known ones of the last 50 years.

Whereas I would call all others on that list, except for Bax and maybe Brian, quite obscure. I recognize most of the names and I think they are all 20th century composers, but I don't think I have heard any of their music or would know where to put them stylistically.

[vandermolen]

Mine are mostly 20th Century - an era that is still in the process of being sorted out, party due to the predominance of Modernism in the second half. But no, that's only about culture, no rules of nature here. 

Ruth Gipps
William Wordsworth
Arnold Cooke
Marc Lavry
Sulkhan Tsintsadze
Anthon van der Horst
Leon Orthel
John Kinsella
Eivind Groven
Charles Tournemire - as a symphonist

Great list with which I largely agree (don't know nos 5 and 6). Nice to see Lavry mentioned here. I only know 'Emek' which I like very much.

My list for today:

Klaus Egge
John Kinsella
Popov
Rootham
Kurka
Madetoja
Bate
Arnell
Balanchivadze
Ivanovs

[North Star]

You call Madetoja obscure? He has a concert hall and conservatory named after him in my hometown!

[Christo]

With that kind of logic, all composers are obscure.

They are. Most of my students aren't even aware of the sheer existence of composers überhaupt. 

[North Star]

They are. Most of my students aren't even aware of the sheer existence of composers überhaupt. 

Sure, but, as most things, this is relative. If we define obscurity so broadly, it is utterly meaningless.

[Sergeant Rock]

2. George Lloyd

Ackk!!! How did I forget Lloyd when making my list? Well, that proves his obscurity, I guess, when even I forget him 

Sarge

[Christo]

Akkk!!! How did I forget Lloyd when making my list? Well, that proves his obscurity, I guess, when even I forget him 

Sarge

Let's change this thread's title into 'Your Top 10 Favourite Obscure Composers Even Sarge Won't Think About'.

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

I agree with every list which have no names I recognise

[Mirror Image]

You call Madetoja obscure? He has a concert hall and conservatory named after him in my hometown!

But the question is: how well is Madetoja's music known outside of Finland?

[PerfectWagnerite]

But the question is: how well is Madetoja's music known outside of Finland?

How well are Roy Harris, Walter Piston and Howard Hanson known outside of the US?

[Jo498]

How well are Roy Harris, Walter Piston and Howard Hanson known outside of the US?

From my limited experience slightly better than Madetoja, but I would accept all as (considerably) more obscure than Penderecki. The latter was somewhat notorious for a few works in the 1960s (St. Luke's Passion, Threnos etc.) and he is at least well known as a name.

[Mirror Image]

How well are Roy Harris, Walter Piston and Howard Hanson known outside of the US?

Is this a game you're trying to play with me? Anyway, my main point about Penderecki still stands. He's not obscure and is the most well-known composer mentioned so far.