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Pellinore
Metal newbie

Joined: Sun Feb 17, 2019 3:58 am
Posts: 58
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Mar 19, 2020 10:14 pm 
 

For those of us who love both Metal and Classical Music (which is a pretty substantial portion, in most metal communities), who are your favorite composers? I'll start with mine;

Igor Stravinsky (check out his "Basle" string Concerto in D)
Alban Berg (3 songs for Orchestra)
Olivier Messiaen (Fete des belle eaux)
Alfred Schnittke (8th Symphony)

As you can probably tell, my favorite composers are (roughly) modern ones, typically with dark music, though I also love romanticism.
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Timeghoul
Metalhead

Joined: Wed Jul 12, 2017 2:00 pm
Posts: 419
Location: Hello from the gutter
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 7:05 am 
 

I was only aloud to listen to classical music as a child. I still have a deep love and passion for it today. Normally though I listen to what's more known as the dark classical material, although I do listen to some "happier" pieces. I really don't like too much though of that happy stuff. Some of my favorite pieces are:


Chopin is my favorite composer. Some of my favorites of his are Nocturne in No 19 E minor, 15 No. 2 F sharp.
I also highly recommend a modern composer by the name of Peter Gundry. The full album is on Spotify/Youtube, but give the Witching Hour by him a listen. Absolutely mind blowing.
Lacrimosa - Mozart
Vampyre Theme - Peter Green
Love Eternal and Love Remembered - Wojciech Kilar
Memories of Autumn - Fariborz Lechini
Haunted Waltz - Maureen Gregory
Cease to Breath - Die Verbannten Kinder Evas
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InnesI
The Goat Fucker

Joined: Sat Jun 01, 2013 3:19 pm
Posts: 2187
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 10:00 am 
 

I had classical music around me all throughout my childhood, both in the house and at concerts. I never did explore this style of music to really know it until I was an adult however. And still now I'm only scratching the surface. I don't have a favourite composer but I have a few favourite pieces:

Mendelssohn - Concerto in E Minor for Violin. Fantastic and emotional piece. When I discovered this there was a lot of debate online as to which version was preferable. Many recommended Isaac Sterns version and that one caught my ear also.

Brahms Hungarian Dances. Beauty, playfulness and sadness all in these pieces, and sometimes prevalent within one individual piece.

Saint-Saens - Danse macabre. This one has a score feel to it. I’m not sure if this is one I used to hear as a youngster or if it is resembling a modern film score but this one always get me especially the main themes of the dance macabre piece itself.

Mozart Requiem. Maybe the most powerful and dark piece here. It is amazing and it was also the piece that got me to explore symphonic music more closely. There isn’t a weak part to this but the powerful passages are my favourites like Dies irae.

Beethoven - Symphony No 5 in C minor. I was sceptical at first. This is one of the most overplayed pieces of symphonic music but it really is worth giving this a chance. One of my favourite pieces.

Wagner the ring without words. Yes this is a cheat. I admit, I have a hard time with opera in general (although there are a few exceptions). However I really like Wagners instrumental pieces and/or when he uses a choir instead of straight opera style singing. The ring without words is just what it sounds like – a collection of instrumental pieces, greatest hits style, from his Ring of Nibelungen opera.
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Amosofnlm
Metal newbie

Joined: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:43 am
Posts: 162
Location: Ireland
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 11:22 am 
 

Debussy is amazing, especially his pieces for solo piano: Clair De Lune and Reverie have never been bettered.
Holst. I've still only listened to The Planets suit but that's brilliant.
Dvorak. The New World Symphony is so melodically and harmonically rich.
Scriabin, who in a way reminds me of a dark megalomaniac Debussy.

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Unity
Metalhead

Joined: Wed Nov 27, 2013 5:42 pm
Posts: 1886
Location: Portugal
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 11:39 am 
 

I've always enjoyed classical music, my all-time favourite composers are Bach and Vivaldi. My favourite Bach work is the "St. Matthew Passion", it's amazing stuff. As for Vivaldi, check out his sacred works, especially "Credo In Unum Deum".

I also like Prokofiev (especially "Romeo And Juliet"), Alfred Schnittke, Carlos Seixas, Dvorak (especially the "New World" symphony), Shostakovich, Penderecki, Danny Elfman and Wojciech Kilar.
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Sepulchrave
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Joined: Mon Jul 27, 2015 7:29 pm
Posts: 1994
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 12:52 pm 
 

My mother is a classical violinist so there was a lot of classical music around the house growing up. I was never really that into it but I have a very deep appreciation for Bach. I have been into more modern forms of classical, briefly, especially Erik Satie. But for most of my life, when I'm not listening to metal or rock I usually enjoy some medieval classical music. Whether it's the sacred stuff Pérotin or Guillaume de Machaut composed, or just the fun troubadour compositions, I like how it can be interpreted in so many interesting ways.

Some random medieval stuff:




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Bishop_Drugsalot
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Jun 10, 2012 10:42 am
Posts: 828
Location: Purgatory
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 12:59 pm 
 

Most of my favorites are russians, both from the romantic and modern classical period. Top 3 would probably be Prokofiev, Mussorgsky and Stravinsky. But give me almost any russian/soviet composer from between 1800-1950 and I'm a fan.

Other frequently listened composers from other countries are pretty typical choices: Wagner, Sibelius, Grieg, Schubert, Holst, Vivaldi, Mahler...

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Secret Glory
Mallcore Kid

Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2016 12:47 pm
Posts: 24
PostPosted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 2:03 pm 
 

I love many of the composers already mentioned here: Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, Mahler, Prokofiev, etc. The classics that you would need multiple lifetimes to truly appreciate.

So I'll focus on personal favorite composers that have been scarcely mentioned as of yet. Note I'm no music theorist so I'm going to use a lot of subjective buzzwords.

Alexander Scriabin - A symbolist composer of the sacred and the profane. His symphonic poems evoke lofty mysticism, like soundtracks to Jean Delville's paintings. Listening to "The Poem of Ecstasy" or his Symphony No. 3 is probably the closest thing I've ever had to a religious experience, which is by all means the intent of the music.

Anton Bruckner - Bruckner was a late Romantic Wagner fanboy who wrote large scale symphonies that can be easily described as "monumental". Though he was hugely influenced by Wagner, Bruckner's musical language also draws heavily from the Baroque and Medieval periods. I think of him as like a more conservative Mahler. I can't help but love the sheer majesty and ambition of his compositions, though some may find them too slow overdrawn.

Richard Strauss - His music being the pinnacle of hot blooded romanticism - adventurous, heroic, passionate and thrilling. Virtuoisic musicianship, lush strings and triumphant horns. Tone poems like "Eine Heldenleben" and "Eine Alpensinfonie" are some of the most evocative pieces of music I've heard. It is no wonder that many of the most influential film composers turned to his music for inspiration.



As for Modern/Contemporary "Classical"... I do not appreciate much atonal/serialism.

Einojuhani Rautavaara
- This angel-obsessed Finnish composer experimented with both traditional Romantic and atonal music languages, and it somehow works to his benefit to create a truly otherworldly experience. RIP.

Arvo Pärt - "Spiegel im spiegel" is beautiful and sorrowful in all of its profound simplicity. His music has been called "holy minimalism". I need to listen to more of his music.

John Tavener - Often mentioned alongside Pärt. There seems to be a certain power to music born of intense religious devotion of any kind. According to Tavener himself he didn't make music for music's sake, but as a channel for spiritual expression. The recording of "The Protecting Veil" with Yo-Yo Ma is a must listen, its simply glorious. Also of note are his pieces for the score of Children of Men.

Henryk Gorecki - If you do not weep at any point during his Symphony No. 3 you must have a heart of stone. There are few pieces that are as emotionally moving as his Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, listen to the recording with Dawn Upshaw as soprano.

Zbigniew Preisner - Neoromantic film composer, notable for his work with Kieslowski's "Three Colors" trilogy.


And I doubt it needs to be said on this forum but Basil Poledouris' soundtrack for Conan the Barbarian is simply incredible. Neo-romantic score of barbaric proportions.

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hells_unicorn
Veteran

Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 8:32 pm
Posts: 3053
Location: United States
PostPosted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 5:04 pm 
 

I majored in Classical Guitar back in the day, so a lot of my old favorites are known primarily for composing works for said instrument, though I have listened to a fair number of orchestral and piano compositions as well. Here's a short chronological list of my favorites by era:

Renaissance era:

John Dowland - English composer, his lute songs are considerably sad and gloomy, to the point where he was known as "Woeful" Dowland.
Alonso Mudarra - Spanish lute composer, his Fantasia no. 10, also known as the Harp Fantasia, is a true piece of art and also somewhat forward looking for its era.
Luis De Narvaez - another Spanish lute composer, played some of his works for my recital, very cheerful but also deep and intricate stuff.
Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa - choir composer (also royalty) who's madrigals were extremely dissonant and modern for its time, actually one of his biggest fans was Igor Stravinsky.

Baroque era:

J. S. Bach - Best known for his keyboard and orchestral music, but actually my personal favorites are his Chaconne for Solo Violin, Partita No. 2, BWV 1004; I played a guitar arrangement for it back in the day. His 6 suites for Lute are also excellent.
Antonio Vivaldi - Love his orchestral work, but fun fact, he actually wrote the first concerto involving a guitar with an orchestra. He actually was responsible for helping move the instrument from a tablature only system into using standard notation like other non-fretted instruments.
George Frideric Handel - Kind of a no-brainer for a guy who enjoys Lutheran church music, the Messiah Oratorio is something I often go back to when wanting something joyful sounding.

In addition to the big names from this era, I've played selected works by Francesco Corbetta, Robert De Visee, Gaspar Sanz, Ludovico Roncalli and Santiago de Murcia on guitar, most of it very fun and engaging.

Classical era:

A lot of the stuff from this era is a little too cheerful and light for my tastes, though it's fun to play on an instrument. Most of the composers I really follow focused on guitar, including Fernando Sor, Dionisio Aguado, Matteo Carcassi, Mauro Guiliani and Francesco Molino. Technically I regard Beethoven more as a transitional figure that leaned towards the Romantic era, but he composed a number of works for piano that were arranged for guitar and he expressed interest in the instrument at a time when it was largely separate from piano and orchestra.

Romantic era:

Kind of a sparse era for guitar composers, but there were some truly amazing works by Francisco Tarrrega and Johann Kaspar Mertz that were game-changers and helped to pave the way for the rebirth in popularity that the guitar experienced in the early 20th century. I do enjoy a lot of the music from this era, particularly material by Berlioz, Chopin and Brahms.

Contemporary era:

I don't think any list would do justice to the explosion of composers for guitar that wrote for the instrument due to connections with the godfather of modern classical guitar Andres Segovia Torres. I'll just give my top 3:

Augustin Barrios - Probably my favorite composer who ever wrote for the instrument. Early 20th century Paraguayan composer who was also a prominent performer during said era. His 3 movement work La Catedral, his restful work Julia Florida and the grueling tremolo technique-oriented work Una Limosna Por El Amor De Dios will forever be my holy trinity of guitar works.

Heitor Villa-Lobos - Brazilian composer who was more focused on Piano, but wrote extensively for guitar. His 1st and 2nd Preludes for solo guitar and his 12 Etudes are standards for anyone interested in the instrument.

Leo Brouwer - Cuban composer and one of the few greats that are still with us. The 3 movement Decameron Negro is an absolute blast to listen to, though a pain in the ass to learn. His 6th Etude was borrowed and rearranged slightly for the title track on Ozzy's "Diary Of A Madman", yet another indication of how massive of a loss Randy Rhodes was given his taste and influences.

Okay, novella concluded. :lol:

P.S. - Guess I'll post a link to a performance of Leo Brouwer's Decameron Negro for anyone who is interested.

Spoiler: show
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Amosofnlm
Metal newbie

Joined: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:43 am
Posts: 162
Location: Ireland
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2020 10:48 am 
 

Secret Glory wrote:
Richard Strauss
Arvo Pärt


I'd forgotten about Strauss -shame on me- and Pärt is sounding really good. Thanks for the rec.

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Wolfhead
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2005 4:33 am
Posts: 634
Location: Poland
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2020 6:26 pm 
 

Carl Orff "Carmina Burana"
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Unorthodox
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Mar 05, 2006 8:08 pm
Posts: 2347
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2020 9:13 pm 
 

Sepulchrave wrote:
Some random medieval stuff


Reminds me of this video, scroll into the comment section for a good laugh.

Anyways, I listen a lot of classical music. Here's some:

Sergei Rachmaninoff
Rach 2
Rach 3
The way she plays both of these with a sort of ease is absolutely astounding. Rach 3 is probably the hardest song to play on piano, but she makes it look easy.


Frédéric Chopin
Fantaisie Impromptu, Op. 66
Nocturne No.1 In B Flat Minor, Op.9 No.1. I highly recommend this entire album, It's Maurizio Pollini playing all of Chopin's Nocturnes, very well done, I honestly will listen to this a lot when I play CSGO.

Antonio Vivaldi
Concerto for 2 Violins, 2 Cellos, Strings and Continuo in G, R.575 - 1. Allegro. Also recommend this album quite a bit, great music to study to.
Concerto in G Minor, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315 "L'estate" - 3. Presto. Everyone knows the four seasons, but I definitey recommend this version of it. Their version of spring is somewhat weak, but it's certainly made up for by this section.

Hildegard von Bingen
Canticles Of Ecstasy. I hate to put this in a section of "classical" music, almost as classical as Deftones is metal. Still, really gorgeous music, dating back to the 1100's.


Igor Stravinsky
Le Sacre du Printemps. This performance on YouTube is especially good because of the choreography done by Pina Bausch. Tremendous job.

Nils Frahm
Wintermusik. Modern classical, very relaxing, very pretty.

Dmitri Shostakovich
Symphony 4. Probably the most aggressive classical composer, great for metalheads.

And of course there's Mozart/Beethoven/Tchaikovsky/etc, but we already knew about them ;)
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Sang Dalang Abu
Metalhead

Joined: Wed Jul 23, 2014 1:18 am
Posts: 422
Location: Switzerland
PostPosted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 2:57 pm 
 

Here's my top favorite composers:
1. Iannis Xenakis This guy is pure insanity (I mean his music)
2. Witold Lutosławski
3. Karlheinz Stockhausen
4. Morton Feldman For Philip Guston (1984) one of the most beautiful classical piece I've ever heard, recommended for classical music fans.
5. György Ligeti Requiem (1963-1965) is amazing.
6. Johann Sebastian Bach of course him, Bach.
7. Arnold Schoenberg This guy ruined the music.
8. Krzysztof Penderecki
9. Horațiu Rădulescu
10. Friedrich Cerha

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Inkshooter
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Nov 02, 2009 6:55 pm
Posts: 1064
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 6:41 pm 
 

My three favorites are all Russian, not sure if that's a coincidence or not.

Alexander Borodin is my favorite 19th century composer, I like the Slavic influence on his music, at a time when most other composers outside of Western Europe felt obliged to slavishly copy the style of that region's composers.

Borodin's Polovtsian Dances:
Spoiler: show


Soviet composer Alfred Schnittke was mentioned by OP, he's probably my favorite overall. I'd describe him as the most "metal" of the classical composers, due to the incredibly dark and avant-garde style he brought to the genre. The score he wrote for the film Агония (Agony) was my first exposure to his work, but his Requiem, a choral work, is my favorite composition by him.

Agony:
Spoiler: show

Requiem:
Spoiler: show


I also like Tchaikovsky a lot, but everyone knows him.
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Eyesofhorror44
Mallcore Kid

Joined: Wed May 06, 2020 12:30 am
Posts: 11
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2020 12:49 am 
 

Great to see other metalheads into classical music, Rachmaninov and Mozart are my absolute favourites!

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FirebathDan
Metalhead

Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2004 2:32 pm
Posts: 1621
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2020 9:38 am 
 

Philip Glass.

Einstein On The Beach is a complete mindfuck.

The local community/amateur concert band (basically an orchestra without strings for those who might not know the distinction) I play percussion in plays a lot of pieces by John Mackey and Frank Ticheli. These pieces are usually very challenging, somewhat weird but not too avant garde, yet very rewarding to play.

Ticheli’s Angels In The Architecture

Mackey’s Aurora Awakes
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VenTaur
Mallcore Kid

Joined: Wed May 13, 2020 1:26 pm
Posts: 1
Location: Germany
PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2020 2:07 am 
 

I highly recommend this entire album, It's Maurizio Pollini playing all of Chopin's Nocturnes, very well done.

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Amosofnlm
Metal newbie

Joined: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:43 am
Posts: 162
Location: Ireland
PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2020 2:16 pm 
 

Philip Glass has composed some wonderful music. I remember when I first saw/heard Koyaanisqatsi. I was around 18/19 and I'd just recorded two instrumental tunes with a friend of my stepdad's. Afterwards he threw on the film as background music and I was hypnotised! Such an amazing experience!

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Collarbones
Mallcore Kid

Joined: Fri May 22, 2020 9:57 pm
Posts: 14
Location: United States
PostPosted: Fri May 22, 2020 11:04 pm 
 

My favorites (with favorite pieces) include:

Johnnes Brahms- Violin Concerto in D Maj Op 77- THE CADENZA, OOH MAMA MIAA
Bach- Chaconne Parita No 2 BMV 1004 in D minor- Jascha Heifetz's rendition is my favorite
Prokofiev- Battle on the Ice
Penderecki- Concerto no 1- Teitanblood got me into him

Classical music is amazing and I feel it shares a lot of good pathways with metal
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