Best Composer ever

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Sun May 04, 2008 3:57 pm

one piece enough?

In my opinion, no. Of course, one bad piece does not make you not great either.

That is why my vote is for Mozart and R.Strauss a very close second. Wagner and Mahler are up there because a large amount of their output is high quality.

Sergeï · Post by **Sergeï** » Sun May 04, 2008 5:36 pm

May I just ask what are your favorites in Mahler?

Quite honestly, I have something of a weak spot for his 4th Symphony - who doesn't? - , and more specifically the Gielen version (as well as the Klemperer and Abbado ones), and I also like his lieder (Kindertoten / Rückert / Knaben Wunderhorn), especially in their Jose van Dam/J-C. Casadeus interpretation (I also have the George London/Otto Klemperer interpretation).

And yeah, I agree one piece isn't enough to downgrade someone. However, one very good piece can give a composer quite a plus (I have in mind Moussorgsky's Boris Godounov).

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Mon May 05, 2008 1:59 am

Yes I agree.

With Mahler, the Pieces I enjoy more (though I do enjoy it all very muchly

) are Symphony 3, 7, 9, 10 and Kindertotenlieder. I don't find that much interest in his 8th, but I do enjoy the more user friendliness of the 4th, it's a relief.

Johanny S. the 3 · Post by **Johanny S. the 3** » Mon May 19, 2008 5:20 pm

I don't thing there is such a thing as "the best composer ever" but I'll tell you who i like the most:
from the barok: Bach of course. (he is the only composer i like in the barok).
Cassical: Beethoven.
Romantic: Schubert.
and.. well... modern!(20's 21's century)
I'll make a list of all of them (theres a lot):
Ralph Vaughan Williams, Claude Achille Debussy (actually he is a bit more romantic), Edward Benjamin Britten, Igor Stravinsky, Paul Hindemith and the two i like the most: Olivier Messiaen and Pierre Boulez who's still alive (he is 83).

and a little bit about me: I'm 16 and i play cello and study composition.

Sanfior · Post by **Sanfior** » Fri May 30, 2008 11:21 am

For me the best is Sergei Rakhmaninov. I can listen him without a break. His 3rd and 2nd concertos (1st and 4th are also very beautiful), Vocalise, cello sonata, solo piano works.

And how beautifull are his vocal pieces! Right now I'm listening his romance Zdes' khorosho, Op.21, No.7 "How fair this spot"
Look, how beautiful sings this song Anna Netrebko.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=zSsuuVvhaHI

I also like Bach, Mozart and Shostakovich.

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Fri May 30, 2008 11:43 am

from the barok: Bach of course. (he is the only composer i like in the barok).

Out of courtesy, I'll point out that it is spelled Baroque, not Barok.

Cassical: Beethoven.

I will strongly argue for the point of view that Beethoven is not classical. His music is innovative, it's 'meaning' or 'reason' is completely different to that of classical and it reflects a change of attitudes in society towards society itself and art.

aldona · Post by **aldona** » Fri May 30, 2008 9:24 pm

Ahh, the eternal argument about whether Beethoven is classical or romantic.

Maybe it's a bit like the physicists asking "is light a particle or a wave?"

(answer = both. or neither. or completely different from our concept of either one.)

aldona

wurlitzer153 · Post by **wurlitzer153** » Fri May 30, 2008 9:50 pm

It really depends on which period of his life you look at. In Symphony #1 and, more prominently, Concerto #2, form is at the forefront rather than emotion. By the second symphony, the emotion gained more prominence. The third broke the Romantic period wide open. He continually experimented with new orchestrations and pushed the limits of the Classical forms.

His orchestra expanded from the late classical full orchestra (2 each of flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, horns, trumpets, and timpani; as well as strings) to a romantic grand orchestra (an additional piccolo, contra bassoon, 4 horns, 3 trombones, and occasionally percussion; however, only 2 timpani)

By the ninth symphony, you could still hear the sonata form of exposition, development, and recap in the first movement, but it is completely blown out of proportion and full of emotion. The scherzo is unlike any other seen before. And then there's the finale...

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Sat May 31, 2008 4:05 am

While his first period is classical, how many of those pieces are famous? Also how many of Mozart's first 35 or so pieces were famous? They were his immature pieces, he matured with his more Romantic pieces.

[q][q]By the ninth symphony, you could still hear the sonata form of exposition, development, and recap in the first movement, but it is completely blown out of proportion and full of emotion. [/q]Ye[/q]Same with Mahler, even Schoenberg.

yaoster · Post by **yaoster** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 5:59 am

Two things.

There is almost never a "best" at anything, anywhere. A more appropriate thread title would be "who is your favorite composer".

Second, many standard definitions of the "classical" period (at least that I've heard) extend it up to Beethoven's death. But why argue over it when the traditional categorizations are obviously inadequate anyway?

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 9:20 am

Because I like to .

Aesthetically there is such thing as good and bad, drawing lines is the difficult part however. Obviously, in a comparison between me and Mahler, Mahler is the 'better' composer.

Vivaldi · Post by **Vivaldi** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 10:21 am

Although slightly off topic, I'd like to think that Beethoven's death in 1827 ended the Classical period the heralded the start of the early Romantic period. However, just like the transition from Old to Middle to Modern English, I believe the transition is not clear cut and abrupt, maybe happening over the course of a few years. I'd also like to note that his Eroica symphony written in 1803-04 contains the foundations of Romanticism.

yaoster · Post by **yaoster** » Wed Jun 04, 2008 5:01 pm

Well, I'm just saying that when someone singles out a composer as the "best", they are (usually) pointing out their favorite. Mine is Brahms, in terms of overall completeness ... I hope that doesn't make people think I'm boring :p

Post by **Yagan Kiely** » Wed Jun 04, 2008 5:40 pm

Yes I agree.

And Brahms, though not my favourite, I do like. Have rarely found something of his I don't like.

sbareg · Post by **sbareg** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 11:38 pm

I have four favorite composers, and two of them haven't been named on this forum yet!

The first one would be Bach (of course...), because with him the balance between emotion and intellect, as well as between harmonic beauty and contrapuntal achievement, is all simply perfect

!

After him, there is the Renaissance composer Jan Sweelinck, whose huge organ fantasias, in their polyphonic and imitative style, foreshadow the fugue later developed by Bach.

Then I must name Max Reger (I hope that doesn't make people think I'm really boring

), who is kind of a post-romantic Bach, combining powerful chromaticism, daredevil Lisztian harmonies, Brahmsian formal rigor and Bachian contrapuntal complexity in monumental fugues, passacaglias, sonatas and variations sets. Does anybody know Reger here, by the way?

I'll finish with Olivier Messiaen, for the faith he puts in his music and for his revolutionary musical language which opens so much possibilities for future composers while remaining in the traditional limits of music (melody, harmony and rhythm).