> > If only [Beethoven's] symphonies weren't so overplayed!=20
>=20
> I could be happy for a long time with only Beethoven's concerti, esp=
ecially
> the Emperor and the Violin Concerto.
Not to mention the piano sonatas. There's always something new to
discover, especially in the Gould recordings.
> But, eventually, I would miss Bach,=20
> Handel, Mozart, which are all pretty easy to like. Not to mention Z=
appa,=20
> Floyd, Zeppelin, Kottke, Costello, and Lovett.
Costello, I believe, is a heavily addicted to classical music.
> How about Mahler's symphonies? I'm mostly familiar with the 4th, wh=
ich I love.
I enjoy Mahler very much, especially the 8th. Calling it a symphony,
however, is slighly misleading. This is rock'n'roll anno 1910. No
amplifiers, but 1000 people.
In gereral, I find Bruckner's symphonies more inspiring, though.
They're certainly not overplayed -- can you really enjoy Mahler's 5th
after seeing Visconti's "Death in Venice"?
Also, I think Carl Nielsen is a much undervalued composer of this
century.
> > > So, what do you like?
> >=20
> > In the orchestral realm, almost anything EXCEPT:
> > 1.=09Aimless featureless romantic pieces suggestive of landscapes =
written
> > by mediocre composers (I don't like Bax)
>=20
> So, no Debussy (Prelude To The Afternoon Of A {Fawn, Clover, Wendy, =
...})?
> Or Elgar, Britten or Von Williams? Not even Grieg or Sibelius?
Debussy ends up at the bottom of my lists, but Grieg and Sibelius are
steady climbers. I dont't think the they should be grouped together
with Debussy who's been credited with starting modern music (he has a
lot to answer for). Grieg and Sibelius are much more romantic. I could
be biased here since their tonal language comes right out of the
forests where I grew up.
Did anyone read "The Gold Bug Variations" by Richard Powers [1]? The
book is structured around Bach's Goldberg variations along with Watson
& Crick's double helix. Truly an amazing travel through music, science
and computer codes. Up there with Hofstadter.
[1] http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/quicksearch-query/1618-0141843-91=
8378
-h&kon
H =E5 k o n W i u m L i e
howcome@w3.org http://www.w3.org/people/howcome
World W i d e Web Consortium