Pieces of Music that don't really do it for you

Thanks for the helpful advice. I tried listening to Mahler about 5 years ago, and could never stand more than ten minutes of it. However, I recently acquired an LP of Solti conducting Mahler's first symphony, and it was stunning (in a good way!). I don't know whether that's down to a better system, more mature ears, or a better performance, but it was encouraging in that it pointed a way for me into more modern classical music. I am now exploring French orchestral music, my appetite whetted by hearing Debussy's Prelude d'Apres Midi d'un Faun on Radio 3.

 

I like Debussy's orchestral and pianistic output, but, more than fifteen years after first hearing it, I still don't quite get his opera 'Pelleas et Melisande'. It's the aural equivalent of watching a large tank of jellyfish slowly blobbing around for two and a half hours. Its characters all sing as if they are in a sonnambulistic, half-drugged state. Still the music is strangely compelling. One of Debussy's weirdest genius creations. Either that or he's not cut out to be an opera composer.

 

yeah, I guess most stuff written after 1827 are gonna be overshadowed somewhat by the massive legacy of Beethoven. Personally I can't get away with SOME 20th Century music, either. This, however, with some notable exceptions: I'm really into the Rite of Spring, most Schostakovich, and some of Britten as well as the, shall we say, "less challenging" stuff: (minimalism). To conclude: There's alot of crap out there, but keep at it, mate: there are some real jems to be unearthed, too!

 

Benjamin Britten. The Tim Henman of classical music.

 

You might take a listen (brief if you like) to Gregorian Chant as performed by groups such as Organum and Hillier. Here is a link to Organum's site with a couple of examples of their latest recording:
http://www.organum-cirma.fr/index_fichiers/Page340.htm

 

Pretty much any Mahler - it dithers around making an infernal racket but doesn't actually seem to go anywhere. Even Barbirolli's 5 with the Philharmonia can't save it for me.

Also not much of a fan of Sibelius' symphonies, for somewhat similar reasons to the above.

 

Panis Angelicus - except the vesion that duets with Sting!

 

I can understand what you say about Mahler (the 7th, for instance is really hard). But Sibelius? Quite straightforward, it seems to me. The last one is a marvell (he described it as «when the shadows grow larger»), and his Violin Concerto a precious moment of expressionist introversion.

 

First of all, I completely subscribe lordsummit's opinion. When I was very young there was this advert on the radio (for a shoestore) that had Fur Elise as background music. Whenever we went on longer car drives (tedious for a child) I would end up listening to this and I never overcome the associations made at that time.:SLEEP:
Also, any piano player begginer, or even people playing other instruments, will sooner or later have a go at Fur Elise and I can't bear listening to this boring piece of music anymore...:gould:

I also agree with this. There's something about Chopin's musical melancholy that doesn't feel right to me... and, I must say, melancholy is an emotion I deeply appreciate. Whenever I'm in a gloomy mood and feel like exploring this emotion/sensation I prefer french composers, particularly the piano works by Débussy and Satie. Though Satie might be regarded as the opposite to what I'd call intellectual musical, most of his music really sets me into a state of [positive] alienation... like a foggish, nighty atmosphere... if this even makes sense....

Anyway, I'm a bit offtrack here...
I can't say there's something I really hate, but I don't like atonal music and almost all Mozart seems cold and empty to me. The kind of background music you don't even notice; considering music is one of the ways I use to experience emotions... he really doesn't do it for me... However, I do like to go through his sonatas on the piano as I find them a good sight reading practice, specially to identify visual patterns and overcome note by note reading.

 

Hi Zohia, welcome to ZeroGain. And I see you are from Lisbon, too! I absolutely understand the 'foggish, nighty atmosphere... if this even makes sense' - it dies make sense to me!

I am happy you are not a baroque maniac as most of us. There have been several claims that post-Bach music is not sufficiently represented, and I think you could be of help.

 

John Dowland, perhaps too simple for my quirky taste

 

Ive only just joined the forum, But this thread interessed me, so hear goes my dislikes (I apologise if I rant a bit, and I mean no offense to people who enjoy the music I dislike ):

1) I can understand peoples liking of baroque, its cleverly written and moderately soothing, but I cannot help but find it boring. I cannot for the life of me identify one peice of baroque from another, it lacks inventiveness, and feeling. I love classical with Umph (yeah, its a word my grandfather made up, but it describes it best) Baroque seems to just twiddle along for an eternity.

2) Atonal music, I cannot even comprehend why people would listen to atonal for pleasure, Its only use as far as I can see is as background music in films, and admittedly it's quite effective when used there, but it needs the pictures. Also, I like inventive composers, but am I the only one who finds atonal music takes it a bit too far ( I remember a concert by the northern symphonia vividly, We had the pleasure of sitting above the percussion in an atonal peice of music, I distinctly recall pingpong balls bounced in coffee jars and vibraphones played with double bass bows, lol )

3) SINGING, Dont ask me why, I have an irrational hatred of singing in all kinds of music ( I especially dislike Opera ), though oddly I do enjoy singing myself.

4) The odd peice here and there completely confuses me e.g. Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe, Vaughan William's Arctic symphony, Shostakovich's 2nd 3rd and a few of his later symphonies etc etc

hmmmmmmmm, I think thats my rant over, LoL, Its amazing how nerdy you can make yourself appear by moaning for a long time.

oh and by the way, mabye this Is a juvenille thread,
But being 15 I think have a right to be

 

I'm mostly OK with Baroque, but when harpsichords are involved, Sir Thomas Beecham's simile of 'like two skeletons copulating on a tin roof' springs to mind.

 

Give it a few more years, Manic. Like yourself, I initially didn't care for it and couldn't understand the attraction. I was all for the music that started with Haydn and ended with Mahler, and what happened before wasn't at all interesting. However, gradually, it snuck up on me, until I find I listen to it more than to classical-romantic period music (which I still like, by the way). It has its own language and its own way of expressing things, and it takes a while to absorb the "language".

Curiously, like yourself, I also started off disliking sung music, but again I've changed. I'm still not a big fan of opera (although there are many I now enjoy), but I'm on my third collection of Bach cantatas!

 

Ser Beecham perhaps did not have the advantage of listening to the gorgeous acoustics of more current harpsichord recordings. These are some superb CDs, both in interpretation and sound: Christophe Rousset's Rameau, d'Anglebert, Bach partitas and French Suites, Skip Sempe's Louis Couperin, Pierre Hantai's first Goldbergs, Frescobaldi and latest Scarlatti, Edward Parmentier's English Suites, Kenneth Gilbert's, Glen Wilson's and Bob Van Asperen's Well-tempered Clavier.

They may perhaps change your perspective.

 

I have a few harpsichord recordings (eg Kenneth Gilbert's Couperin set, Maggie Cole's Goldberg Variations). I find I like the first ten minutes or so, then the sound begins to grate. Philistine that I am, I much prefer piano interpretations of Bach's keyboard music.

 

Me too... but if someone can recommend a really good Goldbergs or WTC on harpsichord I'll give it a try.

 

OK, Mabye baroque will grow on me ( though at present I seem to be going towards more modern classical ), I may even be tempted to give it another attempt someday, But harpsichords!?!? youve got to be joking!!

 

Mmmm... I don't like pointing to me, but there actually is a sticky thread on that...

 

Why?