Classical Music: Discussion & Competition - Games

RoundTheBend
I miss the comfort in being sad

Location: Ground Control

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

Husa is a new name to me. I love the Czechs, glad to see Martinu getting some love, so I'll have to "Czech" out Husa. Cool

dihansse

Gender: Male
Age: 60

I think I've heard a lot of classical music in my time and while I appreciate many of the big works (Mozart, Bach, Händel, Mahler, etc) mainly on an intellectual level there's only one piece that I appreciate as much as my favorite rock music and that is that one obvious choice: Beethoven's Ninth.
I've heard many versions and although it's difficult to decide which one's best but I think I prefer the Stokowski version with the London Symphony Orchestra of 1968.
I think there's no doubt that the Ninth is one of the classical pieces of music with one of the highest cultural and historic impacts but what finally counts for me how much of an impact a certain piece on my personal emotional level and as I said there's no other competition here in classical music. I think I can dream every small movement in this piece and the way how it builds up to that grande finale is just majestic. When music gives you the shivers you know it must be of great quality especially taking into account that it's very long and is able to hold my attention even in the slower movements.
If you own an ipad and want a tip, just try out the Beethoven's 9th Symphony app. For just a few euro's/dollars you have 4 different Deutsche Grammophon's recordings (of which those by Bernstein and Von Karajan) at your fingertips and gives a really in-depth overview of the symphony and gives you the possibility to explore the full score in different ways. If ever there's value for money and a way to really get immersed into one of the greatest cultural achievements this is it.

RoundTheBend
I miss the comfort in being sad

Location: Ground Control

dihansse wrote:

I think I've heard a lot of classical music in my time and while I appreciate many of the big works (Mozart, Bach, Händel, Mahler, etc) mainly on an intellectual level there's only one piece that I appreciate as much as my favorite rock music and that is that one obvious choice: Beethoven's Ninth.
I've heard many versions and although it's difficult to decide which one's best but I think I prefer the Stokowski version with the London Symphony Orchestra of 1968.
I think there's no doubt that the Ninth is one of the classical pieces of music with one of the highest cultural and historic impacts but what finally counts for me how much of an impact a certain piece on my personal emotional level and as I said there's no other competition here in classical music. I think I can dream every small movement in this piece and the way how it builds up to that grande finale is just majestic. When music gives you the shivers you know it must be of great quality especially taking into account that it's very long and is able to hold my attention even in the slower movements.
If you own an ipad and want a tip, just try out the Beethoven's 9th Symphony app. For just a few euro's/dollars you have 4 different Deutsche Grammophon's recordings (of which those by Bernstein and Von Karajan) at your fingertips and gives a really in-depth overview of the symphony and gives you the possibility to explore the full score in different ways. If ever there's value for money and a way to really get immersed into one of the greatest cultural achievements this is it.

That app sounds great. I'll have to check it out. And yes, Beethoven's 9th is great on many levels, which I think not only allows a lot of people to like it/attach to it in a deep manner, but also speaks to it's value as a work.

Thanks for sharing!

Also I'm pretty sure I haven't heard Stokowski's version, so I'll have to check that out!