I have been listening to classical music for a long time without necessarily knowing I am listening to it as it is often being played in films and adverts etc.
I have on occasions tried to find out what some of these tunes are but it isn’t easy, at least for me.
I tune into Classic FM as background music for my Mum as I have read/heard that listening to classical music is good for you.
To help me get to know these well known and often heard pieces of music, I wonder if you have a personal favourite that you might like to share with me.
I can then listen to it and maybe see if it is one I already know and love without knowing it, or if it is new to me. I would like to create a “greatest hits” list.
One piece of music that I love but can’t always find is by Leoš Janáček - a Czech composer. I believe it was used as the theme tune to a TV show in the 1970s called Sam and starts with a trumpet.
I shall look forward to (re)discovering some of these fantastic tunes.
I’m going to suggest In the Steppes of Central Asia by Aleksandr Borodin. It’s a piece that I return to often and which speaks to me in ways that I’m not sure I even understand. I think it’s just beautiful.
Classic FM is my smart speaker morning alarm, and has been ever since the stroke. Weirdly, I have listened to classical music all my life, yet, never have developed an ear for putting a name to a composition, aside from standout pieces like Flight of the Valkyries or Flight of the Bumblebee. I like Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata and Symphony No.9. I like this one in particular, it was used in the film Being There with Peter Sellers, based on the book by Jerzy Kosinski and directed by Hal Ashby.
"Being There" … a great film, Rups ; hilarious but the music adds another layer entirely… gives it a zany, melancholic, sad, introspective, bizarre dimension
I too like Bach. I would say that my childhood classical composer of choice was Bach. I’m not religious, not atheist, as atheist implies not having a god which implies a god, but I’ve always loved church music and have a deep respect for Bach in particular.
Addendum: Although, I couldn’t name a single piece he did, just know the tunes when I hear them
Classical music is great therapy and very uplifting. If you feel down, it makes you smile. My wife and I had a fair bit of classical at our wedding, played on the harp. It was amazing. Enjoy the rest of your day
When I was a little boy, in the 1950’s, my mother took me to the cinema to watch a Disney production called Fantasia. It featured classical music and created a spectacular event I will always remember.
In particular there were pieces by
Johann Sebastian Bach – Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – pieces from The Nutcracker Suite
Paul Dukas – The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Stravinsky, Beethoven and more.
I really enjoyed my early introduction to these classical composers.
I have an eclectic auditory palette. Music can say so much, do so much.
It makes me feel able to overcome the impossible.
