Convert me to the Symphony! (1 Viewer)

[Jason Kirkpatri]

Hey everyone,

I need some advise on music.

Currently, I mostly listen to metal bands who made their mark in the the eighties such as Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, etc. :b

I would love to listen to heavy Gothic sounding organ music, but due to my current music preferences, I have no idea where to start. I "think" that I like some of the Phantom of the Opera stuff, but I don't know for sure.

Any music suggestions as in specific CDs or artists (symphonies ensembles or whatever you would call the "band")?

Thanks,

Jason

 

[Stefan A]

Jason
It would be difficult to match your current musical preferences with classical. But I can try.
Perhaps a cd of some J.S. Bach organ music. Be sure you pick a disc with Tocatta and Fugue in D Major. It is one of his most well known pieces - and you would probably recognize it.
Because of your interest in death , maybe "Symphony Fantastique" by Hector Berlioz. This is program music - which means it tells a story - that deals with the subject of love, death, hell.... Also some of the greatest music ever written.
Music of Beethoven, especially stuff he wrote later in his life, would probably be considered the "hard rock" of his day. His compositional style was ahead of its time and a bit edgy. It was a bit harder than what the public was used to. Maybe go for his 7th or 9th symphony. I am sure others can give better Beethoven advice though.
I wouldn't consider music from "Phantom of the Opera" to be especially "classical". I don't think it is on the same level as the big name composers. But, if you think you would like it, go ahead and get it. I am just saying not to use this as your reference to classical music.
If you like your music to be a bit out of control, maybe some music be Arnold Shoenberg would be appropriate. He had a very different compositional style that started a musical revolution in the early 20th century. The style has no roots in traditional classical music, but explores the idea of music as sound. It sounds like a lot of notes that do not seem to make any sense. Some people would call it noise. You just have to listen!
Brahms' German Requiem is a great dark piece for orchestra and chorus. Also any of his symphonies would be a great intro to 19th century orchestral music.
And of course, don't forget about the Russians. Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Ballet is not to be missed by a beginner.
This is a very brief and basic place to start. The world of classical music is huge. And, it was the "rock" of it's day.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

It's hard to start from square one in classical music.....
Classical music has been written for about 1400 years so there's a lot of it out there. It's even hard to classify it by periods other than Gregorian chant, medieval, renaissance, baroque, roccoco, "classical", romantic, post-romantic, modern, and post-modern.
And it's hard to make recommendations because (1) popular pieces get recorded over and over again by different artists starting around 1930, (2) titles go in and out of print, and (3) many artists record the same piece over and over again every decade or so. Many classical music types have been collecting for decades. I have some great organ recordings but I got them on CD around 1985 and they are way out of print.
So you need a guide such as The Penguin Guide to Compact Disks. It gets revised ever year or two. Costs about $25 but it has 1600 to 1700 pages of information. The team of reviewers go over most all of the available disks. For example, for Beethoven's 9th Symphony the guide lists 28 (! ) separate CDs. Each version is ranked with a paragraph describing stong and weak points of the recording.
For organ music, the two big composers are JS Bach and the earlier Dietrich Buxtehude. There should be no end of good Bach organ recordings out there. Just go to Amazon or the like and type "Bach" "organ" and you should get lots of hits (the classical music search function lets you search by composer, artist, type of instrument, etc.) Don't be put off by the cheapness of many recordings. There are many "budget classical" recordings that feature artists that either recorded before the present time (e.g. Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony in the '50s and '60s - great stuff!) or are European artists that aren't big names in America. When you get the hang of it, you can collect great classical CDs for about $5 each - no fooling! Public libraries loan out classical CDs so you can try things out before purchasing.
Try the Peter Hurford 2 CD set on London records (#443485), simply titled "JS Bach Great Organ Works". Amazon has it for $16.49 and it includes a lot:
Disc: 1
1. Toccata & Fugue in d, BWV 565
2. Herzlich tut mich verlangen, BWV 727
3. Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 645
4. Fantasia & Fugue in g, BWV 542
5. Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier, BWV 730
6. Passacaglia & Fugue in c, BWV 582
7. Prelude & Fugue in E flat ('St. Anne'), BWV 552
8. Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 659
9. Fantasia & Fugue in c, BWV 537
Disc: 2
1. Toccata, Adagio & Fugue in C, BWV 564
2. In dulci jubilo, BWV 729
3. Prelude & Fugue in a, BWV 543
4. Fantasia in G, BWV 572
5. Prelude & Fugue in D, BWV 532
6. Nun freut euch, lieben Christen g'mein, BWV 734
7. Wo soll ich fliehen hin, BWV 694
8. Fantasia in c, BWV 562
9. Toccata & Fugue in d ('Dorian'), BWV 538

 

[Zen Butler]

Since your refering to gothic as more of an aura than the actual time period and based on your experience and interests. I would suggest branching from your current interests:
Beethoven's 9th
Bach Organ Works, (Toccata and Fugue Dmi.)
Gabriel Faure-Requiem
Orff's-Carmina Burana
Guseppe(

 

[Julian Reville]

All good suggestions; let me also add Sergei Rachmaninov's (Rachmaninoff's) Symphony No. 2 & Vocalise; Telarc CD-80312; David Zinman conducting the Baltimore Synphony Orchestra.

Play the sucker LOUD!!!!

 

[Jason Kirkpatri]

Whoah!!!
Thanks everyone!!! Just having the aforementioned will give me enough to go on for quite a while. My ignorance is blissfully apparent when it comes to this genre, but hopefully I'll progress with these recommended starting points.
I'll give some feedback in a month or so on how I make out.
Thanks again!
Jason

 

[Jack Briggs]

Jason, even though it's 9:30 in the evening here in California, I'm hitting the sack real soon. But tomorrow, I promise to come back here with some recommendations from the world of serious music that you might cotton to.

At this stage, I won't even recommend the essentials--Beethoven, Mozart, J.S. Bach, etc.--but pieces I think you might find interesting, coming fresh off the heavy-metal boat as you are.

But here are some composers that I think might appeal to you: Krystof Penderecki, Igor Stravinsky, Charles Ives, Alexander Scriabin, and Dmitri Shostakovich.

Stay tuned for recommendations as to specific works.

I'll also provide pithy explanations what the various ensembles that perform serious music are called.

 

[Justin Doring]

Not too much organ music, but here are a few spine-tingling suggestions:
Mephisto & Co. (A CD with various accessible yet frightening selections. Good performance and superb sound.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Hector Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique (My favorite performance of this important symphony. Superb performance and good sound.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 6 (Dark and relentless. I'm not a fan of Boulez's Mahler, but this recording, which features good sound, is an exception.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Bernard Herrmann's Psycho (The complete score and great sound.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Franz Waxman's The Bride of Frankenstein (The complete score and good sound)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Jerry Goldsmith's The Final Conflict (One of the composer's finest scores, and great sound.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
Jerry Goldsmith's The Omen (This is not as good or complex as Goldsmith's The Final Conflict, but The Omen has some nice satanic chanting for you! )
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...367250-6933504
NP: John Williams' Cello Concerto (SACD)

 

[MattCPT]

Jason,

I also love both metal and classical (as well as many other types of music). I'm not able to give you advice on good "goth" type classical, but if you enjoy Metallica I highly recommend their S&M DVD. They have this in cd as well, but I find that I love the DVD. It is easily one of my favorite. They perform live with a symphony.

 

[Stefan A]

But here are some composers that I think might appeal to you: Krystof Penderecki, Igor Stravinsky, Charles Ives, Alexander Scriabin, and Dmitri Shostakovich

Jack,

Although the composers you recommend are great composers, I don't think they are the best for a beginner classical music listener. Considering Jason's current likings, I think there is plenty of "essential" composers that would fit the bill. With the exception of Shostakovich and maybe Stravinsky, I think these composers would turn off a newbie. Even my suggestion of Shoenberg is questionable. When you start dealing with contemporary composers, you get into the philisophical debate of "what is music." A beginner doesn't need to be concerned with that. I say, learn the basics in a style that you like. The basics are more well known, and Jason may even recognize some of the melodies. A standard educational theory is relating the known to the unknown. If you start with relatively unknown composers, you have lost your student. Where is the connection?

Respectfully,
Stefan

 

[Zane Charron]

Jason,

I think there is a lot of 'classical' music out there that you would enjoy. But here are just two recommendations that are easy to get and fantastic discs.

Beethoven's 5 & 7 from DG with Carlos Kleiber conducting. One of my fav discs, and certainly the first movement will strike a chord with you. Great recording.

Mussgorsky's Night on Bald Mountain/Pictures at an Exhibition from Telarc. Boding and dark, just like you like it (and of course, the ELP connection).

There is so much out there, just use your ears (and HTF's members' ears).

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

OK Jason, how did you make out?

 

[Mark Lee]

Because of your interest in death

Death + Symphony = Gustav Mahler. End of discussion.
If there was a more angst-ridden, death-obsessed classical composer out there, I'd like to know about him! Not "beginners'" symphonies by any stretch, but perhaps somewhat along the lines of what you're looking for. As someone else suggested, his 6th Symphony is suitably dark and brooding. His 9th Symphony, which I own in a mid-priced recording on Deutsche Grammophon w/Carlos Kleiber conducting, might also fit the bill. Less dark, but just as compelling, would be his 1st and 2nd symphonies, and might be better places to start.
And re: Jack Briggs' rec for Penderecki -- if you've seen Kubrick's The Shining, you know his work. If you can find recordings of his Polymorphy or his majestic religious works, the St. Luke's Passion and Utrenja (I've got recordings from some obscure Polish label), you might be pleasantly surprised. I dunno if there have been less-expensive recordings done of Utrenja or the Polymorphy (I know there was a recording on the Argo label of the Passion some years ago.), so I'm not sure how pricey such exploration might be.

 

[Jeremy Stockwell]

Jason,
You might want to consider an appropriate classical "Sampler" so that you could try out a few excerpts and then expand from there.
Telarc has a CD called "Chiller" that features several of the classical and movie selections that others have suggested above.
I've seen other such samplers called "Heavy Classics," etc.
Also, I definitely suggest looking at your local library for CDs. This will be much easier on your wallet until you zero in on a particular composition/recording that you would like to add to your collection. My library has tons of CDs and DVD, videos, etc. that I make good use of.
JKS

 

[Nigel McN]

have you ever listened to any Apocalyptica? They have 3 quite interesting albums

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

OK Jason, you owe us a report!