Buzz
This compilation serves two key purposes: first, to challenge the stereotype that Classical music is dull; and second, to provide a means of finding solace in the aftermath of the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. We view this as particularly heartbreaking, as this incident specifically targeted very young children.
This list is dedicated in the hope that some of the families and friends of the victims may find comfort here. Regardless, we all feel the sorrow of imagining a Christmas without our children. Classical music, more than most genres, has a unique timelessness. Its greatest works transcend any particular time or place and offer what the French term an “oubliette,” a “place of forgetting.”
10. Johann Sebastian Bach Fugue in C Major, BWV 545
We begin with one of Bach's most remarkable fugues, crafted by the undisputed master of counterpoint. This selection was made specifically because it is in a major key, offering a light, uplifting atmosphere. Among major-key fugues, this one stands out for its bold exploration of a complex theme, taking on an unusually difficult key for keyboard instruments. It evokes the image of the Pearly Gates opening and the vibrant hues of Paradise stretching out before us.
9. Charles Widor Organ Symphony 5, Toccata
Widor’s Organ Symphony 5 is his most celebrated composition, and rightly so. At a time when Bach’s revival in the 1800s had firmly established Germany as the epicenter of organ music, the French sought to make their own mark. Alongside supporting composers like Couperin, Marchand, and many others, the great French composers of the day—Franck, Widor, Eugene Gigout, Louis Vierne, and Marcel Dupre—produced countless organ pieces in a variety of styles and forms.
Widor’s fifth symphony for solo organ consists of five movements, none of which are fugues. Instead, they follow traditional sonata-allegro form, except for the final movement. The Toccata, meaning ‘touch’ in Italian, is typically light and delicate, often played in an allegro to presto tempo. The most famous Toccata is Bach's in D minor, BWV 565, with Widor’s version being a close second. Its rhythmic repetition makes it accessible even to intermediate organists, as the notes sit comfortably under the fingers.
8. Robert Schumann Symphony 3, 1st Movement
This piece, inspired by The Hobbit and New Zealand (often regarded as a kind of heaven), could be considered the epitome of high-fantasy and sword-and-sorcery music in the Classical world. It evokes the feeling of the Fellowship's epic journey across Middle-earth to destroy the One Ring, or of Bilbo and the Dwarves embarking on their adventure to the Lonely Mountain.
A publisher once dubbed this symphony the 'Rhenish,' from the German word 'Rhein,' meaning the Rhine River, as it reminded him of the Bavarian Rhine valley. The opening theme is grand, beginning with full orchestral half notes, immediately followed by a brass restatement. It’s often called 'heroic' due to Schumann’s prominent use of French horns. Music Appreciation 101: French horns are the signal of a hero.
James Horner borrowed heavily from this for his 'Willow' soundtrack. Though, in truth, almost all film composers take inspiration from Wagner, whether they acknowledge it or not.
7. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Symphony 5, Finale
Tchaikovsky’s last three symphonies – 4, 5, and 6 – represent his finest work, and few symphonies can match the soaring exhilaration of his fifth. The finale, lasting about 15 minutes, reworks the main themes from the first movement into new developments. Tchaikovsky himself called the finale 'pure optimism,' but given the tragic course his life would take, his later critique of the piece makes sense: 'insincere, perhaps criminally so, like a fairy tale for an audience beyond adolescence.'
We can forgive him for that, especially after WWII, when the fairy tale became a reality. While it was never truly in doubt after 1943 that the Allies would triumph, the key to success was to press the attack without hesitation. When victory finally came, the brutality and carnage made this finale’s 'stormy Cossack onslaught' ring more true. WWII cemented this symphony’s enduring popularity.
6. Ottorino Respighi I Pini della Via Appia
This piece is a personal favorite of this lister. Respighi’s 'Pines of Rome' is one of the greatest examples of program music ever composed, ranking alongside Berlioz’s 'Symphonie Fantastique' and Beethoven’s 6th Symphony. It has four movements, each meant to evoke an ancient Italian scene, with the final movement depicting an army marching along the Appian Way towards a triumphant return to Rome. While one might think of Julius Caesar’s 13th Legion, it’s worth noting that the 13th returned from Gaul, and the Appian Way, starting in Rome, connects to Southeast Italy.
Respighi orchestrated this movement for full orchestra, accompanied by 8, 16, and 32-foot organ pedal stops on the lowest B-flat. These organ pedal notes provide a driving pulse, and Respighi emphasizes in the score that the organ is as vital as the heart. The music sounds precisely as he envisioned: a majestic entrance, like Caesar leading the 13th Legion, or Jesus riding a donkey into Jerusalem.
5. Gustav Mahler Symphony 2, Finale
The first of three Mahler symphonies on this list, though the presence of one composer here is no coincidence. Mahler was a symphonist almost exclusively, and although death was a recurring theme in his work, his music is rarely morbid. Most of his symphonies end on a positive note. Mahler was clearly intrigued by the idea of non-existence, and his second symphony was intended as a grand funeral for the hero of his first.
The second movement begins in darkness, deepening as it progresses, yet it transforms into an apotheosis of death, leading ultimately to new life. The lyrics that open the finale of the final movement are Mahler’s, drawn from a poem by Friedrich Klopstock. Translated from German, Mahler’s addition reads: 'Oh, believe, you were not born for nothing! You have not lived, or suffered, for nothing! What was created must perish, and what perished must rise again! Stop trembling! Prepare yourself to live!'
Mahler composed this music so magnificently that at its premiere, women fainted in the aisles and grown men were brought to tears.
4. Gustav Mahler Symphony 3, Finale
While this symphony does contain some tragic moments, it is arguably Mahler’s least morbid work. It also holds the distinction of being the longest symphony in the standard repertoire, with some performances extending over an hour and a half. Mahler composed it as program music, with the movements titled to tell a story. The final movement, titled 'What Love Tells Me,' runs for about 30 minutes and is notoriously difficult for orchestras to play at the necessary slow pace. It requires a conductor with a firm hand to prevent the tendency to rush.
The movement steadily builds toward a climax, retreats, then ascends once more to a more intense peak, only to pull back again before ultimately reaching an overwhelming state of elation. If you will excuse the expression, this movement is like passionate musical intercourse—a culmination of love, not merely in its physical form, but in every aspect and level of love as Mahler interprets it, and what he aims to convey through his music.
Following the climax, there is a lingering afterglow that ensures the full completion of love, eventually fading into a vibrant yet serene quiet on the tonic, with no dramatic conclusion to signal its end.
3. Gustav Mahler Symphony 8, Finale
In all of music, there is no more awe-inspiring and radiant conclusion to the exploration of any theme than the final 15 minutes or so of this symphony. The true finale, if it can be called that, may be marked by the last six minutes, during which the Chorus Mysticus sings: 'Everything transitory is only an approximation; what could not be achieved comes to pass here; what no one could describe is here accomplished; the Eternal Feminine draws us on high.'
This begins 'as a breath,' according to Mahler’s notes, and gradually swells into a triumphant expression of love, eternal life, and the triumph over death. It transcends the very notion of a 'finale' and resists being captured in a single term. Several have been attempted: 'celestial,' 'euphoric,' 'jubilant,' 'overwhelmingly ecstatic,' among others. Perhaps 'empyrean' is the most fitting. The orchestration demands colossal forces, including an organ and an off-stage brass band with 4 or 5 trumpets and 3 trombones. While the exact images that arise in each listener’s mind may vary, Mahler provides little ambiguity. It sounds like paradise.
2. Ludwig van Beethoven Gloria, from Missa Solemnis
Beethoven set out to compose his finest sacred work with this mass, much like he aimed to create his finest symphony with his ninth, his finest sonatas with his last five, and his finest chamber music with his late quartets. By the time he composed these masterpieces, he was completely deaf, incapable of hearing even a cannonball explode beside him.
The term 'Solemn Mass' simply refers to the traditional Latin mass, distinguished from the 'Missa brevis,' or 'Brief Mass.' A Solemn Mass typically consists of five movements: the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei. While Bach’s Mass in B minor could be considered a solemn mass, it stands out as one of the few 'Missa tota' ('Total mass') works, encompassing all the minor lyrics without omission.
Beethoven’s intention for his Gloria was to create the most magnificent music he could. His religious beliefs are the subject of much debate, but there’s no question that he had faith in God, as evidenced by his note in the Gloria manuscript: 'Gott über alle Dinge!' ('God over all things!').
This setting of praise to God is expressed with primal intensity, embodying a pure, ecstatic celebration, a Bacchanalia of sorts without sin, where the sole intoxication is the worship of God. It features one of Beethoven’s finest and most grandiose fugues, on the words 'In gloria Dei patris. Amen.' This leads seamlessly into a powerful coda of full orchestra and chorus with soloists, exchanging phrases until the orchestra storms from the tonic D major to the dominant G, carrying the chorus into an ethereal 'Gloria!' ending on the V chord.
1. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Symphony 4, 4th Movement
No 1812 Overture? No – in fact, this piece is even more thrilling, and it doesn’t rely on the theatrics of siege cannons. Tchaikovsky had the ability to craft music with an undeniable intensity, perhaps more so than any other composer. This isn’t to say his music is objectively better, but when it comes to pure exhilaration, he can grip you on the edge of your seat like few others.
The final movement of his Fourth Symphony is essentially one long crescendo. It begins with a blazing fortissimo and ends with an even faster, more intense fortissimo, drawing inspiration from the Russian folk tune 'In the Field Stood a Birch Tree.' Much like the 1812 Overture, Tchaikovsky makes use of these folk melodies to evoke the spirit of the Russian countryside.
This conclusion is magnificently accentuated by the thunderous tympani, reminiscent of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which is striking considering Tchaikovsky’s critical stance on Beethoven. Tchaikovsky’s true love was melody, and he even called Mozart 'the Christ of music.' This movement is packed with variations of the main theme, crashing through two dramatic climaxes before presenting another triumphant iteration, ultimately building into an exuberant burst of joy.
