A Guide to Masterpieces of Classical Music from the Middle Ages to the Present Day

Description

Alessandro Fois

Guide to Masterpieces of Classical Music From the Middle Ages to the present day

The 100 works you absolutely must listen to

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Discover the 100 essential works that have marked the history of classical music. This guide will take you on an exciting journey from the Middle Ages to the present day, offering you:

RECORDING RECOMMENDATIONS

Find the best recordings available, with detailed recommendations for an optimal listening experience.

TECHNICAL AND STYLISTIC NOTES

Discover the technical and artistic features that make each work a unique masterpiece.

HISTORICAL ANALYSES

Learn more about the context in which great works were created, gaining a better understanding of the influences and innovations of each period.

COMPOSERS' BIOGRAPHIES

Discover the biographies and works of classical music geniuses, from their inspirations to their immortal legacies.

With this handbook, you will have an indispensable resource for exploring, understanding, and appreciating classical music in all its forms. Whether you are an experienced enthusiast or a curious novice, you will find these pages to be a valuable companion on your musical journey.

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Plan of the Work – Index

Preface
Message from the Author
Introductory notes
Index

Middle Ages

01 Mass of Our Lady (Guillaume de Machaut)
02 Ordo Virtutum (Hildegard von Bingen)
03 Carmina Burana (Anonymous)
04 Cantigas de Santa Maria (Alfonso X)
05 Llibre Vermell de Montserrat Red Book of Montserrat (Anonymous)

Renaissance

06 L’Orfeo (Claudio Monteverdi)
07 Missa Papae Marcelli Mass of Pope Marcellus (Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina)
08 Songs (Josquin des Prez)
09 Mass Hercules Dux Ferrariae (Josquin des Prez)
10 In ecclesiis (Giovanni Gabrieli)
11 The Fifth Book of Madrigals (Claudio Monteverdi)
12 Madrigals (Carlo Gesualdo)
13 Songs to Play (Giovanni Gabrieli)
14 Mass in High Taupe (Josquin des Prez)
15 Toccata and Fugue (Girolamo Frescobaldi)

Baroque

16 Brandenburg Concertos (Johann Sebastian Bach)
17 The Four Seasons (Antonio Vivaldi)
18 Messiah (George Frideric Handel)
19 Musikalisches Opfer The Musical Offering (Johann Sebastian Bach)
20 The Art of Fugue (Johann Sebastian Bach)
21 Cello Suites Suites for cello (Johann Sebastian Bach)
22 Orpheus and Eurydice (Christoph Willibald Gluck)
23 Dido and Aeneas (Henry Purcell)
24 Stabat Mater (Giovanni Battista Pergolesi)
25 Tafelmusik (Georg Philipp Telemann)
26 Church Sonatas (Arcangelo Corelli)
27 Les Indes galantes (Jean-Philippe Rameau)

Classic

28 Symphony No. 6 in F major, Pastoral (Ludwig van Beethoven)
29 Symphony No. 5 in C minor (Ludwig van Beethoven)
30 Symphony No. 40 in G minor (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
31 Symphony No. 41 in C major, Jupiter (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
32 Symphony No. 94 in G major, 'Surprise' (Joseph Haydn)
33 Eine kleine Nachtmusik A Little Night Music (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
34 Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major, Emperor (Ludwig van Beethoven)
35 Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
36 Symphony No. 104 in D major London (Joseph Haydn)
37 Don Giovanni (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
38 The Magic Flute (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
39 Violin Concerto in D major (Ludwig van Beethoven)
40 Concerto for Clarinet in A major (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
41 Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
42 String Quintet in C major (Franz Schubert)
43 Fidelio (Ludwig van Beethoven)
44 Piano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor Moonlight (Ludwig van Beethoven)
45 The Marriage of Figaro (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
46 Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)

Romantic

47 Tristan and Isolde (Richard Wagner)
48 Symphony No. 9 in D minor (Ludwig van Beethoven)
49 Symphonie Fantastique (Hector Berlioz)
50 Carmen (Georges Bizet)
51 Symphony No. 3 in F major (Johannes Brahms)
52 Symphony No. 4 in E minor (Johannes Brahms)
53 La Traviata (Giuseppe Verdi)
54 Symphony No. 8 in B minor, Unfinished (Franz Schubert)
55 Aida (Giuseppe Verdi)
56 Götterdämmerung Twilight of the Gods (Richard Wagner)
57 Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky)
58 Capriccios for violin (Niccolò Paganini)
59 Madama Butterfly (Giacomo Puccini)
60 Violin Concerto in E minor (Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy)
61 Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor (Sergei Rachmaninoff)
62 Peer Gynt (Edvard Grieg)
63 Swan Lake (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky)
64 La Bohème (Giacomo Puccini)
65 Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Pathetique (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky)
66 Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor (Frédéric Chopin)
67 Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major (Franz Liszt)
68 The Barber of Seville (Gioachino Rossini)
69 Kinderszenen Children's Scenes (Robert Schumann)
70 Symphony No. 1 in C minor (Johannes Brahms)
71 Norma (Vincenzo Bellini)
72 An der schönen blauen Donau On the Beautiful Blue Danube (Johann Strauss II)

Post-Romanticism and Impressionism

73 Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (Claude Debussy)
74 La Mer (Claude Debussy)
75 Pelleas and Melisande (Claude Debussy)
76 Nocturnes (Claude Debussy)
77 Das Lied von der Erde (Gustav Mahler)
78 Symphony No. 1 in D major Titan (Gustav Mahler)
79 Gymnopédies (Erik Satie)
80 Boléro (Maurice Ravel)
81 Pavane pour une infante défunte by Maurice Ravel
82 Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Richard Strauss)

Modern

83 Le Sacre du printemps The Rite of Spring (Igor Stravinsky)
84 Pierrot Lunaire (Arnold Schoenberg)
85 Wozzeck (Alban Berg)
86 Turangalîla Symphony (Olivier Messiaen)
87 Music for 18 Musicians (Steve Reich)
88 String Quartet No. 4 (Béla Bartók)
89 Adagio for Strings (Samuel Barber)
90 Peter Grimes (Benjamin Britten)
91 Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano (John Cage)
92 Rhapsody in Blue (George Gershwin)
93 Gesang der Jünglinge Song of Youth (Karlheinz Stockhausen)
94 West Side Story (Leonard Bernstein)

Contemporary

95 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Ennio Morricone)
96 Symphony No. 1 (John Adams)
97 Different Trains (Steve Reich)
98 Asyla (Thomas Adès)
99 Górecki’s Symphony No. 3 Symphony of Sorrowful Songs (Henryk Górecki)
100 Dead Man Walking (Jake Heggie)

Appendix

Biographies of the composers mentioned

John Adams
Thomas Adès
Alfonso X
John Sebastian Bach
Samuel Barber
Béla Bartók
Ludwig van Beethoven
Vincenzo Bellini
Alban Berg
Hector Berlioz
Leonard Bernstein
Hildegard of Bingen
Georges Bizet
Johannes Brahms
Benjamin Britten
John Cage
Frédéric Chopin
Archangel Corelli
Claude Debussy
Girolamo Frescobaldi
Giovanni Gabrieli
Carlo Gesualdo
Christoph Willibald Gluck
Edvard Grieg
Henryk Górecki
George Frideric Handel
Joseph Haydn
Jake Heggie
Franz Liszt
Guillaume de Machaut
Gustav Mahler
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Olivier Messiaen
Claudio Monteverdi
Ennio Morricone
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Niccolò Paganini
John Pierluigi da Palestrina
John the Baptist Pergolesi
Josquin des Prez
Giacomo Puccini
Henry Purcell
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Maurice Ravel
Steve Reich
Gioachino Rossini
Erik Satie
Arnold Schoenberg
Franz Schubert
Robert Schumann
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Johann Strauss II
Richard Strauss
Igor Stravinsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Georg Philipp Telemann
Giuseppe Verdi
Antonio Vivaldi
Richard Wagner

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