A little Info from the Classical Music Crowd

[LarryC]

One way to dip toes in the water is to add occasional live concerts to your other methods such as CDs and YouTube.  For example, Jeff Matthews searched out a very fine concert at the Houston Symphony a year or so ago.  This thread tells the story, and brought in some fine discussions and YouTube examples:

https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/147714-shostakovich-symphony-5/

 

Larry

[garyrc]

 

Good points Schu, but for the record classical is a subcategory.  Tchaikovsky for example falls under the romantic period not classical.

IMO, there are two widely accepted definitions of "classical" music -- one, 1750-1828, largely Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, and, two, any "serious" music from Medieval through current eras that is played in concert halls by classical music players and singers.  You're both right IMO.

 

 

I think of Beethoven as sort of a bridge between Classical and Romantic, Tchaikovsky as Romantic, and "serious" concert hall music of most of the 20th and 21 century as "modern."   It really doesn't matter much, unless someone is wondering what section of a store to go into, or is considering buying a collection, as the OP is, etc.  But, I confess to being a bit annoyed when Copeland, or Bernstein ( e.g., Age of Anxiety), or the concert works of Rozsa, Herrmann, or Williams are considered "classical," even though I like all of the above.

Edited July 29, 2015 by garyrc

[Mallette]

Never been much on opera so glad I made a low offer

 

With you on that, but perhaps for different reasons.  Not being raised in a city or having the money to spend on such things I've had little exposure to live opera.  When I did, I loved it...but listening to an opera you haven't seen is a lot like listening to a movie soundtrack to a movie you haven't seen. 

 

Of course, the great arias and such stand on their on, but the in between stuff is tedious when you are lost to the plot.

 

Dave

[Mallette]

This whole discussion makes it clear how many opinions there are about "classical" music and just how inappropriate the term is.  Thankfully, we don't have such a weird term for painting or poetry.  It's either great and lasting art or it is not.  Certainly plenty of music that is "classical" from day one written in my lifetime.  One authority prefers "concert" music to the term, but I'd prefer no term at all.  At least concert music includes stuff like big band jazz and such which can be every bit as rich and fulfilling as Bartok.   More so than Schoenberg whose disks still languish in my closet.  Not sure I will live long enough to grow into him...

 

Dave

[oldtimer]

The term was originally used to describe a "golden age" from Bach to Beethoven, and was coined sometime in the early 19th century.  Like many English words it's meaning and usage has been modified over time.

[Chris A]

You can make it as hard as you like, I suppose.  Here is an explanation that will suffice for the classical music novice just getting into listening for the aspects of the different periods of music:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_music#Early_period

 

Most people that I've met have clearly defined preferences for different periods of classical music (much like myself)--and exactly like popular music today except that classical music usually doesn't suffer from the "that's the music period and style that I grew up in" syndrome which is quite strong today, I'm afraid to say.

 

Perhaps it's because my mother is a musicologist/music historian that I do see clear definitions and styles over time, along with the reasons for those style changes.  It's just like today: music style changes when our culture changes or develops the need for different music. 

 

Chris

[oldtimer]

You can make it as hard as you like, I suppose

 

True enough, depending upon whom you are trying to communicate with.  It is like taxonomy which has specific terms for scientists, while to the lay people a bug is a bug.

[Jim Naseum]

i once bought a large record collection becasue the deal was so good. never did listen to even half the records, and always felt guilty for not listening to them. i realized later i only did it for the deal. and in the end it was a bad deal. sometimes tyhe collector bug bites me. i try to swat that bug away when ever it buzzes around now. now i try to throw darts and not use a blunberbuss!! LOL one at a time works good for me.

[Dr Morbius]

Joessportster, from what I can see there's not only a lot of great music in that collection but those CD's are recorded at a very high quality, which if you have a nice amp and Klipsch speakers you should be blown away by the sound.  (FWIW - I have a Scott tube amp done by NOSvalves and a pair of Cornscala speakers.  Just listening to Mozart's "Requiem" or J S Bach's "Saint Matthew's Passion" will bring a tear or two of the beauty and richness of the recordings). If I didn't have most of these CD's I would bid - $400 to $500.  Funny, it took me years to get this collection together - here it is in one fell swoop!

Edited July 29, 2015 by Dr Morbius

[Gilbert]

 

Good points Schu, but for the record classical is a subcategory.  Tchaikovsky for example falls under the romantic period not classical.

IMO, there are two widely accepted definitions of "classical" music -- one, 1750-1828, largely Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, and, two, any "serious" music from Medieval through current eras that is played in concert halls by classical music players and singers.  You're both right IMO.

 

 

It's been a few years since I took "Music Appreciation" as a college elective, but I recall the era's (500's through late 1820's) being described as Mideveal, Renaissance, Baroque and Classical.

 

Some of the mideveal stuff we listened too sounded little more than sticks beating on a turtle.

Edited July 29, 2015 by Gilbert

[oldtimer]

Some of the mideveal stuff we listened too sounded little more than sticks beating on a turtle.

 

Awesome stuff.

[garyrc]

Joessportster, from what I can see there's not only a lot of great music in that collection but those CD's are recorded at a very high quality, which if you have a nice amp and Klipsch speakers you should be blown away by the sound.  (FWIW - I have a Scott tube amp done by NOSvalves and a pair of Cornscala speakers.  Just listening to Mozart's "Requiem" or J S Bach's "Saint Matthew's Passion" will bring a tear or two of the beauty and richness of the recordings). If I didn't have most of these CD's I would bid - $400 to $500.  Funny, it took me years to get this collection together - here it is in one fell swoop!

 

I just happen to be listening to Bach's Saint Matthew Passion (excerpts) as I'm writing this.  I'm playing the BIS SACD-1500 by the Bach Collegium with Suzuki, to give this 5 channel surround SACD a second chance, because I wanted it to be a better recording/performance than the old Solti 2 channel (Decca) CD (excerpts -- the old one throws in the Saint John on the same disc).  They both are worthwhile experiences, but the old one may be better.  In the end (to me) it may depend on which has the most Passion.

 

There was an old rule (did it come from J.Gordon Holt?) that the better the recording the worse the performance, and vice versa.

 

I am now on track 10 and am so mellowed out that I'm beginning to regret having written the negative comment above.  See, it works!

 

Dr. Morbius, what is your favorite version?

[joessportster]

Dr Morbius

 

Seller declined my offer, so I will wait it out and see if it sells. (highly doubt it) and upon relist submit another offer

 

I prefer to buy in bulk, save a ton of $$ open myself to new music, Can always resell anything I find I dont like  win-win 

[Mallette]

 

Some of the mideveal stuff we listened too sounded little more than sticks beating on a turtle.

 

Awesome stuff.

 

Incredible stuff.  Hildegaard von Bingen must have been an alien.  Definitely a polymath.  The 12th century Notre Dame crowd...you can hear polyphony being invented.  And the modern works by David Munrow who died before 30, but lived long enough to breath life into the 14th, 15th, and 16th century masterpieces.  A couple of years ago for a Sunday school class I did a study of the development of religious music from the time of King David (c. 1400 BC) to the modern era.  Of course, barely scratched the surface.  But just digging in and finding the path of temple music, to early Christian chant, to the first polyphonic settings of the mass on to the present was a real mind bending trip.  Of course, it's just the slides and the music, but if you have some time to kill and want to hear actual music from the time of King David and what Jesus heard in the temple every day check it out.  Some of it is quite superb quality, some not so much and chosen because of its teaching value or being hard to come by.  http://www.mbsdar.com/MusicClass.htm

 

Dave

[WMcD]

A few notes:

1) Top rated orchestras and top rated conductors get the most fame and dollars. Still, you may wind up with recordings by the second string which are very good. And some pieces are just so darn pretty, performance by any orchestra is wonderful.

Actually, this reminds me of a short bit from a novel. The protagonist has finally clawed his way into a minor league team. He gets up to bat and he pitcher smokes a fast ball past him. He thinks, "This pitcher has a fast ball like that, and he is in the minor leagues? Dang!" It is probably like that in symphonic orchestras too.

2) I too adopted many LPs of "classical" which the college radio station left out for anyone to take.

3) As far as Internet material, I agree there is a wealth of material on YouTube. An example of 1) is

4) Please know that some classical stations stream. The best in the whole world is from my home town of Chicago (naturally):

http://www.wfmt.com/

5) "Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music." You might want to pick one composer, like Bach or Beethoven, and stick with one for a month.

WMcD

Edited July 30, 2015 by William F. Gil McDermott

[LarryC]

Beautiful selection, Gil!!  Is that El Sistema?  You can really see the depth of exquisite player expertise in that great video.

 

Your advice is excellent.  Beethoven seems the best to start with IMO.

Edited July 30, 2015 by LarryC

[Sancho Panza]

Don't forget the Berlin Philharmoniker: Digital Concert Hall.

FREE Ap on my iPhone & Smart TV.

Very limited Free Content, but, beautiful Picture & Sound...

[WMcD]

Larry, you are quite correct about the orchestra, of course.

Those are essentially high school students. Wow.

It makes me recall that at the office we had some visitor from Europe and I brought them to a performance of the CSO. One woman commented, "These are mostly old men." Well, true.

But old guys can crank too. Note this is from the feed which SP recommended.

WMcD

Edited July 30, 2015 by William F. Gil McDermott

[oldtimer]

Beethoven or Mozart?  I'd go with Mozart.  He's funnier.   At my school we had a professor named Lili Kraus, perhaps the foremost interpreter of Mozart in her day.  I loved listening to her play and talk about the music.

[Mallette]

Good natured disagreement with Gil.  Make every attempt to swallow it all...

 

Dave