I've had a go at this 'Desert Island Discs' lark a couple of times. Generally these posts of mine have had a bent towards classic rock, so I thought I'd have a go at my top classical pieces this time. The musical musings and humour continue in '2021: A Musical Odyssey' - now available in digital and paperback formats.
12) Tchaikovsky - Sleeping Beauty, Act 1: Pas D'Action
We open with a bit of drama. Tchaikovsky couldn't help but be melodic even at his most dramatic. This was a kind of a shoo-in because eleven was a weird number to have in a list. Upon listening again it seems criminal to place it in such a lowly position!
11) Wagner - Prelude to Tristan and Isolde
I first encountered this piece when watching Lars Von Trier's film 'Melancholia.' It has a romantic feel that builds interminably (similar to Ravel's Bolero which would be my 'number 13'), but perhaps like my number one choice, there is a sense of impending darkness beneath.
10) Mascagni - Intermezzo from Cavaleria Rusticana
We begin our top ten with a short three-and-a-half-minute piece which has a bitter-sweet quality about it - a kind of peacefulness coupled with a resigned sadness. I always imagine this as a great funeral piece, with the final notes drifting away as the curtain closes on somebody's life. Less dramatic types will remember it as the music from an advert that I can't quite recall!
9) Holst - The Planets
Yes, it's commercial, but who cares? The most famous movements are the dramatic war theme of Mars and the 'jollity' of Jupiter, which should bring to mind a little bit of pride (in an inclusive way of course) to all British folk. As the suite progresses and we reach the mysterious distant planets the pieces become more surreal. As an aside, for a true sense of the distance we are dealing with, the scale model of the solar system at Otford in Kent is well worth a visit.
8) Bach -Tocata and Fugue in D minor
Originally composed for a harpsichord, this piece is much better known as an organ piece, routinely heard at Halloween. From the dramatic opening to the virtuoso gymnastics (IMO) on the keys, the piece regularly interjects the dramatic long chords that we know and love. Bach's 'Air on the G String; is a close second for me, as well as for those with a penchant for cigars!
7) Beethoven - Symphony No 3 (Eroica)
This one opens with the famous melodic first movement (I prefer the full 17-minute version), which I once dubbed over a video I made of a country drive through Kent, thus it will forever bring to mind the B2067 for me! This is followed by a dramatic funeral march, a light third movement and a rousing finale. Initially composed to honour Napoleon, Beethoven changed his mind as the leader's lust for power became apparent. The 5th, 6th and 9th symphonies are also pretty essential.
6) Mozart - Piano Concerto No. 21 in C
The whole piece is very pleasant with plenty of contrasting moods, but it is the middle movement that steals the show with its sense of contentment and just a touch of decadence. I first took notice of this piece when I heard it at a friend's wedding, previously having known it as 'the music from the Yardley advert.' These days it almost makes my top five.
5) Rossini - The Thieving Magpie Overture
It is hard for me to disentangle this piece from the scenes of 'ultra-violence' in Stanley Kubrick's 'A Clockwork Orange,' but for me this only adds to the drama when hearing it. Following the opening drum roll, this is predominantly a cheerful melodic piece which repeatedly builds to a crescendo of dramatic full-orchestra chords, each time dying away, until the finale whips up the pace into a fitting conclusion. Ten minutes of good fun!
4) Beethoven - Piano Sonata No 14 (Moonlight)
The piece begins with the famous moody section during which it is easy to imagine moonlight reflecting on a lake with all its drama kept safely beneath. The middle section is a cheerful little ditty, before the finale repeats the melody of the first movement but this time at speed, with a sense of triumph but always with the brooding feel trying to break through.
3) Rossini - William Tell Overture
I am not familiar with the legend of William Tell beyond 'arrows and apples' but this is not necessary to appreciate this twelve-minute piece which seems to take us through the entire gamut of human emotions. It begins with a resigned sadness and builds to a storm-like passage of anger and turmoil which then gives way to a relaxed section which feels a bit like the sun coming out after the rain has passed. Then comes the triumphant finale which everybody will recognise and what seems like one of the longest and most dramatic conclusions you'll encounter - you can hear the end coming about a minute before it does!
2) Gershwin - Piano Concerto in F
The version I have features Daniel Blumenthal on piano, and with Rhapsody in Blue and An American in Paris, this may have even been the first classical album I appreciated, having plenty of time on my hands to listen to vinyl during short days at college. 'Piano concerto in F' always returns fatalistically to the same dramatic orchestral chord, with variations that include the bluesy second movement and a high-speed summary of all that went before in the third movement. A sense of the bustling positivity of the 1920s seems to crop up several times throughout the piece. It was the pop music of its day and much more besides.
1) Tchaikovsky - Romeo and Juliet
Sit back and enjoy twenty minutes of dramatic bliss. The piece begins slowly with a fatalistic feel, presaging the story's ultimate destiny. The romantic theme has graced many a film and TV programme, perhaps to the point of becoming a cliche, but heard in its context with the turmoil of the feuding Capulets and Montagues seeming to butt in on the romantic vibes, the piece becomes much more interesting. The romantic theme reasserts itself only to collapse into an almost funereal finale with a sense of resigned defeat. You'll struggle to find a more impassioned piece of music. For more Tchaikovsky I'm assuming you know the ballets inside out, so have a bash at symphonies number 4 and 6 for a glimpse into the man's tumultuous mind!
Like all music, classical music is a very subjective thing and I'm sure you'll have your own favourites and recommendations.
