Classical Music - Greatest Pieces & Greatest Composers

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https://classicalmusiconly.com/list/100 ... s-f164de5b

1 - Mass in B Minor - Johann Sebastian Bach - Mass / Requiem
2 - Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), WWV 86 - Richard Wagner - Opera
3 - Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony
4 - Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony
5 - St Matthew Passion (Matthäus-Passion), BWV 244 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Choral orchestral
6 - Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde), WWV 90 - Richard Wagner - Opera
7 - Don Giovanni, K. 527 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Opera
8 - String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 131 - Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet
9 - Messiah, HWV 56 - George Frideric Handel - Choral orchestral
10 - The Rite of Spring (Le Sacre du printemps) - Igor Stravinsky - Unsorted Orchestral
11 - Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major (Heroic Symphony), Op. 55 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony
12 - Symphony No. 6 in B Minor (Pathétique), Op. 74 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Symphony
13 - Otello - Giuseppe Verdi - Opera
14 - Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor (Appassionata), Op. 57 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Sonata
15 - The Marriage of Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), K. 492 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Opera
16 - Symphony No. 41 in C Major (Jupiter Symphony), K. 551 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Symphony
17 - Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor, K. 466 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concerto
18 - The Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 846–893 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Piano Sonata
19 - Symphony No. 9 (From the New World), Op. 95, B. 178 - Antonín Dvořák - Symphony
20 - Winterreise, D. 911 - Franz Schubert - Lieder / Song
21 - Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 83 - Johannes Brahms - Piano Concerto
22 - Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54 - Robert Schumann - Piano Concerto
23 - String Quintet in C Major (Cello Quintet), posth. 163 - Franz Schubert - String Quartet
24 - Aida - Giuseppe Verdi - Opera
25 - Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major (Emperor Concerto), Op. 73 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Concerto
26 - The Nutcracker, Op. 71 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Ballet
27 - Symphony No. 6 in F Major (Pastoral Symphony), Op. 68 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony
28 - Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor, BWV 582 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Organ
29 - Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Symphony
30 - Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98 - Johannes Brahms - Symphony
31 - Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Piano Sonata
32 - A Midsummer Night's Dream Overture, Op. 21 - Felix Mendelssohn - Unsorted Orchestral
33 - Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64 - Felix Mendelssohn - Violin Concerto
34 - Symphony No. 9 in C Major (The Great C major), D. 944 - Franz Schubert - Symphony
35 - Pictures at an Exhibition - Modest Mussorgsky - Piano Sonata
36 - Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Clarinet Quintet
37 - Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun), L. 86 - Claude Debussy - Symphonic Poem
38 - Symphonie fantastique, H 48 - Hector Berlioz - Symphony
39 - Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op. 115 - Johannes Brahms - Clarinet Quintet
40 - Petrushka - Igor Stravinsky - Ballet
41 - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Violin Concerto
42 - La bohème - Giacomo Puccini - Opera
43 - Sonata in B Minor, S. 178 - Franz Liszt - Piano Sonata
44 - Cello Concerto in B Minor, 104, B. 191 - Antonín Dvořák - Cello Concerto
45 - The Four Seasons (Le Quattro Stagioni) - Antonio Vivaldi - Violin Concerto
46 - Swan Lake, Op. 20 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Ballet
47 - Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto
48 - Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-flat Major, D. 960 - Franz Schubert - Piano Sonata
49 - Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche (Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks), Op. 28 - Richard Strauss - Symphonic Poem
50 - Symphony No. 8 in B Minor (Unfinished Symphony), D. 759 - Franz Schubert - Symphony
51 - Missa solemnis in D Major, Op. 123 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Mass / Requiem
52 - Requiem - Giuseppe Verdi - Mass / Requiem
53 - Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor (Moonlight Sonata), Op. 27 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Sonata
54 - Symphony No. 5 - Gustav Mahler - Symphony
55 - Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43 - Jean Sibelius - Symphony
56 - Requiem in D Minor, Op. 48 - Gabriel Fauré - Mass / Requiem
57 - Madama Butterfly - Giacomo Puccini - Opera
58 - String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor (Death and the Maiden), D. 810 - Franz Schubert - String Quartet
59 - Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18 - Sergei Rachmaninoff - Piano Concerto
60 - La mer (The Sea), L. 109 - Claude Debussy - Unsorted Orchestral
61 - 24 preludes, Op. 28 - Frédéric Chopin - Piano Sonata
62 - Water Music, HWV 348-350 - George Frideric Handel - Unsorted Orchestral
63 - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77 - Johannes Brahms - Violin Concerto
64 - Piano Quintet in A Major (Trout Quintet), D. 667 - Franz Schubert - Piano Quintet
65 - String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major, Op. 130 - Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet
66 - Also sprach Zarathustra (Thus Spoke Zarathustra), Op. 30 - Richard Strauss - Symphonic Poem
67 - Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, BWV 1001–1006 - Johann Sebastian Bach - String solo
68 - Préludes, L. 117 & L.123 - Claude Debussy - Piano Sonata
69 - Piano Concerto, Op. 16 - Edvard Grieg - Piano Concerto
70 - Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony
71 - Polonaise in A-flat Major (Heroic), Op. 53 - Frédéric Chopin - Piano Sonata
72 - Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection) - Gustav Mahler - Symphony
73 - Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Concerto
74 - Symphony No. 10 in E Minor, Op. 93 - Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony
75 - String Quartet No. 15 in A Minor, Op. 132 - Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet
76 - Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47 - Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony
77 - String Quintet No. 4 in G Minor, K. 516 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - String Quintet
78 - Parsifal, WWV 111 - Richard Wagner - Opera
79 - Finlandia, Op. 26 - Jean Sibelius - Unsorted Orchestral
80 - Ein Heldenleben (A Hero's Life), Op. 40 - Richard Strauss - Symphonic Poem
81 - Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose), Op. 59 - Richard Strauss - Opera
82 - Appalachian Spring - Aaron Copland - Unsorted Orchestral
83 - Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111 - Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Sonata
84 - Boris Godunov - Modest Mussorgsky - Opera
85 - Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90 - Johannes Brahms - Symphony
86 - La traviata - Giuseppe Verdi - Opera
87 - Carmen - Georges Bizet - Opera
88 - Scheherazade, Op. 35 - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov - Unsorted Orchestral
89 - The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflöte), K. 620 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Opera
90 - Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concerto
91 - Piano Concerto No. 24 in C Minor, K. 491 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concerto
92 - Requiem in D Minor, K. 626 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Mass / Requiem
93 - Missa Papae Marcelli - Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina - Mass / Requiem
94 - Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, WWV 96 - Richard Wagner - Opera
95 - Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major, K. 543 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Symphony
96 - The Creation (Die Schöpfung), Hob. XXI:2 - Joseph Haydn - Choral orchestral
97 - The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Ballet
98 - Symphony No. 7 in E Major (Lyric), WAB 107 - Anton Bruckner - Symphony
99 - Romeo and Juliet - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Symphonic Poem
100 - Concerto for Orchestra, 116, BB 123 - Béla Bartók - Unsorted Orchestral

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1 - Ludwig van Beethoven
2 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
3 - Johann Sebastian Bach
4 - Franz Schubert
5 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
6 - Johannes Brahms
7 - Richard Wagner
8 - Giuseppe Verdi
9 - Richard Strauss
10 - Claude Debussy

I used a simple ranking algorithm based on the Top 100 compositions.

[Live in Phoenix]

Digital Dream Door does indeed have some interesting lists on their site.

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Just an observation. It is easy to assume that classical music was mostly written a long time ago and does not overlap modern popular recorded music.

Here are the 10 most recent classical pieces that were all written in the 20th century and as recently as 1953 (2 years before Rock & Roll exploded). The Rite of Spring which was written in 1913 is considered the 10th greatest classical piece of all time.

1 1953 - Symphony No. 10 in E Minor, Op. 93 - Dmitri Shostakovich - Pos 74
2 1944 - Appalachian Spring - Aaron Copland - Pos 82
3 1943 - Concerto for Orchestra, 116, BB 123 - Béla Bartók - Pos 100
4 1937 - Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47 - Dmitri Shostakovich - Pos 76
5 1913 - The Rite of Spring (Le Sacre du printemps) - Igor Stravinsky - Pos 10
6 1913 - Préludes, L. 117 & L.123 - Claude Debussy - Pos 68
7 1911 - Petrushka - Igor Stravinsky - Pos 40
8 1911 - Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose), Op. 59 - Richard Strauss - Pos 81
9 1905 - La mer (The Sea), L. 109 - Claude Debussy - Pos 60
10 1904 - Madama Butterfly - Giacomo Puccini - Pos 57

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George Gershwin greatest piece of music, Rhapsody in Blue, is rated by AcclaimedMusic as the Number 1 Song for 1924. The artist is listed as "Paul Whiteman & His Concert Orchestra with George Gershwin".

Here are my three observations about this listing:

1- It is very unlikely that the critics lists, used by AcclaimedMusic, that nominate Rhapsody in Blue as one of the great songs, are actually referring to the specific recording by "Paul Whiteman & His Concert Orchestra with George Gershwin". This piece of music has been interpreted and recorded a myriad of times during the 20th century. It is more likely that the critics lists used by AcclaimedMusic is nominating Rhapsody in Blue as a "Composition" and not as a specific "Recording" from 1924.

2- I think AcclaimedMusic "correctly" lists the most acclaimed "Recordings" of songs. For example, "Like A Rolling Stone" is listed as Number 1 not only because the song is a very good composition, which it is, but mostly because of the tone and delivery of Bob Dylan's original performance that was released at a time that caught the zeitgeist of Music and influenced so much great music that followed. The critics list, used by AcclaimedMusic, are definitely referring to Bod Dylan's original performance, when they nominate "Like A Rolling Stone" and are not suggesting that a cover version of that song by The Rolling Stones for example is equally as important or great.

3 - So why is Rhapsody in Blue in the AcclaimedMusic Top 10000, and Symphony No. 10 by Dmitri Shostakovich, and The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky are not? Rhapsody in Blue is genuinely loved by many people and it has crossed over to popular media and movies etc. But it is not as critically admired, i.e. acclaimed, as a composition as other pieces from the 20th century. It would be very difficult to reconcile acclaimed popular recorded music with critically admired compositions. It may not even be possible. But one way around this issue would be for AcclaimedMusic to strictly rank individual recordings of songs. Therefore Rhapsody in Blue by "Paul Whiteman & His Concert Orchestra with George Gershwin" may unfortunately have to be downgraded or removed because of this technicality.

[Fred]

Rhapsody In Blue may appeal to people that need something extra (rock) to reach feelings (deeper) inside. Classical music often plays on feelings (or emotions) close to the surface of people.

"Normal" people are more "relational" while rockers (idealists) often are more individualistic and use (and need) energy to get to the good things. The glas is half empty here. Sid. Protest all you want! People have survived fitting into groups or being hunters. While a third group take their place in a hierarchy and defends its position by keeping opponents below and order in the group and between groups and other animals. Being ready to quickly defend themself by strong emotions or aggression. Think Donald T here. First there is the tweet or the "lie". Along comes the press. And DT reaches his goal when he dismisses them. And he doesn't abandon the little white house (where he used to live) that easy.

So, every person's ancestors have fullfilled important roles for the survival of mankind! Let's celebrate EVERONE!

Just differences in our emotional systems.

[Gillingham]

Rhapsody In Blue may appeal to people that need something extra (rock) to reach feelings (deeper) inside. Classical music often plays on feelings (or emotions) close to the surface of people.

Not completely sure if this statement is serious or ironic?

It's quite subjective, but still, one of the things rock capitalized on big time is feelings/emotions 'to the surface' of people. Especially compared to classical music.

[Fred]

"Close to the surface" is not the same as "superficial". And "deeper" is not meant to be "better". Rock use more "primitive" parts of the brain as amygdala, relatively speaking. Where our learnt dangers are stored. Activation of that part means you become unconsiously afraid but when deactivation takes place less than a second after a stimule a positive feeling arise.

Stop / start dynamics (Pixies and Nirvana etc) used this mechanism more than others imo.