The Greatest Piece of Music Ever Written

What do you consider to be the greatest (not your personal favorate) piece of music ever written?

This is a difficult question, because there are so many different types of musical composition. It is impossible to compare, say, a great violin concerto to a great piano solo and say which is "better". Instead, works of a similar type, such a symphonies, should be compared.

Don't tell me it's another mind invasion here. * grins *

Symphonies eh?

Dvorak No.9 - best one EVER!! :closedeyes: :laugh: :)

Don't tell me it's another mind invasion here. * grins *

Heeehee.. :closedeyes:

I'm tempted to say Grieg piano concerto in a minor, but no, Beethoven's emperor (piano conc no 5) is pure brilliance.

Greatest, well thats plain silly!

Avro Part symphony n.2 or......... yah, I don't think you can really leave personal opinion out of this.

the music that had the most emotional impact on my was Mahler's first symphony

This is tough. What makes a piece great? Is it the asethic beauty it offers or the difficulty? Is the ability to be hum by all and be known for hundreds of years? It really is tough to guage. I'll get back to you on this

I have not yet heard the greatest piece of music ever written, if it even exists yet.

I enjoy the sound track to the movie Siamese Twins and the City of Angels sound track in a more classical vein. That said, the best music I've heard isn't written, it's mostly improvised on Afghani Rebab by Khaled Arman with tabla drum accompaniment.

Gongchime

The concertos and symphonies of Mozart and Beethoven.

I could say sonatas as well, but i want to keep the "greatest piece" to below 100 pieces....

greatest piece in the history of music:

Mozart Requiem

followed by Bach Mass B minor

Cherubini Requiem

Brahms German Requiem

Beethoven Missa Solemnis

Handel Messiah

Yea can you tell I like masses and requiems? I really do consider that list the greatest music e'er writ though, and I consider choral polyphonic music to be the highest form of musical expression.

hm. what is cherubini's requiem like?

Beethoven considered it to be greater than Mozart's.

Verdi wrote a Requiem right?

Yeah.

http://www.unitel.de/uhilites/150601.htm

Brahms, Berlioz and Schumann all considered Cherubini's requiem to be the greatest ever written and I've heard of various composers requesting it to be played at their funerals.

I'd hardly ever even heard of Cherubini up until I kept reading various quotes about the composers I worship speaking of him like he was pretty immense. Beethoven flat out considered him "the greatest dramatic composer in all of Europe" (i.e. in the world) and in Brahms apartment at the time of his death he had only about 4 things famously adorning his wall, a Beethoven bust, a painting of Cherubini, and the emperor's portrait. I got interested and read up on him and ended up discovering he only wrote one or two things of great note although he was a noted counterpoint teacher and master.

I was utterly blown away by his requiem it is the single most haunting piece ever written in the history of music and after I heard it I considered it greater than Mozart's but I place Mozart atop my list only because it has great sentimental value to me and it helped me through a lot of hard times many years ago whereas the Cherubini is a new discovery. Also I must say I wasn't immediately taken by it for whatever reason, I had actually listened to it at first and didn't think too much of it but then days or a week later certain melodies kept creeping into my head haunting me and I said let me listen to this thing again. Upon doing so I became obsessed and listened to it nonstop for 1 month straight all day long every day and concluded that it was indeed the most haunting piece I had ever heard. I thought Mozart's famous Dies Irae was incredible but Cherubini's Dies Irae blew me away and blows the Mozart one away in my opinion.

The Cherubini requiem is more of a traditional composition, it features no soloists and is more solemn and in true requiem style unlike the Mozart at times operatic style. Furthermore, at times it sounds like Palestrina-esque motet writing. To this day the Mozart and Cherubini requiems are probably the only two pieces in this world that I cannot really listen to anymore. Only if I am in the proper mood or am feeling depressed to the point of suicidal, they are just too haunting to me and get me into terrifying nihilistic moods that I really do not feel good being in.

The Beethoven missa and Brahms Ein Deutches Requiem on the other hand give me the most uplifting feelings I have ever experienced in life and make me feel close to god or the universe or eternity or whatever, whereas the Mozart and Cherubini make me feel close to death and the hideous feelings associated with that.

As for other requiems there are many more famous ones, some that are considered to be as good or better than Mozart such as the Verdi, Faure, Berlioz, and a few others but it's not to my liking at all, a little too late romantic for my tastes.

p.s. I read somewhere that they played Mozart's requiem at Beethoven's funeral but in another source (I think possibly the Cherubini requiem CD jacket) it says that the Cherubini requiem was played at his funeral. This seems contradictory but seeing as how lengthy the whole ceremony might of been I think it's possible that they were BOTH played at some point.

Also, Chopin was quoted as saying he wanted the Mozart requiem played upon his death as well.

yes I just looked it up to confirm it, several sites say the same:

Cherubini's Requiem (1816) was well renowned in the 19th century and performed at Beethoven's funeral. Quite impressing is his "Dies irae" movement. It opens with a striking fanfare, in the following choral parts humble pleading abruptly alternates with freezing terror.

I would say that among them are Busoni's concerto, Rachmaninoff's 3rd, the Shostakovich 5, and, of his works that have been recorded, Sorabji's Opus Clavicembalisticum, though I believe his great orchestral works like the Jami Symphony (7 hours.....) would be incredible as well.

The best symphony ever written is Beethoven's Fifth. There is no more universally recognized theme on the planet.

As for piano concerti, I personally think Gershwin's Concerto in F is amazing.

Greatest opera? Maybe Mozart's Magic Flute. I haven't heard enough opera.

You kidding? The "greatest" piece of music- Der Ring des Nibelungen! I've not heard it all, but that would certainly earn the title of greatest.

As for the best:

Beethoven's fifth is the most condensely packed work of genius ever. Mozart's requiem may be the best thing he ever wrote, but I can't call it better than the fifth symphony. The ninth is amazing too, I guess it's kind of hard to decide between them.

Cliché but true: the "Matthäus Passion" by J.S. Bach. :-) Simply the best and most expressive work ever written.

Korneel.

The best symphony ever written is Beethoven's Fifth. There is no more universally recognized theme on the planet

Just because it's recognized, that doesn't mean it's the best: the theme stuck because of the rhythm and mood, that's all. It is, obviously, excelent, as it is Beethoven, but the 9th is by far superior: it was also the most innovative of the time.

As for piano concerti, I personally think Gershwin's Concerto in F is amazing

It's gorgeous (and yes, amazing) but far from being the greatest: what can you do with Mozart's, Beethoven's and Brahms' concertos hangin' around?

Greatest opera? Maybe Mozart's Magic Flute. I haven't heard enough opera

That's harder to say: opera can, after all, vary a lot. Here are some recomendations:

1 - Monteverdi's ORFEO

2 - Handel's GIULIO CESARE

3 - Purcell's DIDO AND AENEAS

4 - Mozart's LE NOZZE DI FIGARO

5 - Salieri's AXUR RE D'ORMUS

6 - Mozart's DON GIOVANNI

7 - Beethoven's FIDELIO

8 - Rossini's IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA

9 - Rossini's GUILLAUME TELL

10 - Verdi's NABUCCO

11 - Verdi's LA TRAVIATA

12 - Verdi's RIGOLETTO

13 - Verdi's OTELLO

14 - Verdi's FALSTAFF

15 - Puccini's TOSCA

16 - Puccini's LA BOHÉME

17 - Puccini's MADAME BUTTERFLY

18 - Puccini's TURANDOT

19 - Debussy's PELLEAS ET MELISANDE

20 - Alban Berg's LULU

That should keep you rader busy! :blink:

Ah well here I go:

Chamber: Beethoven's Grosse Fuge

Piano Concerto: Mozart's 22nd, or Beethoven's 3rd. Maybe even Brahms; 1st.

Symphony: Beethoven's 9th, or 4th.

Overture: Beethoven's King Stephen Overture, or Egmont..OR Leonore No. 3!

Piano Miniatures: All go to Chopin. Maybe some Schumann

Violin Concerti: I have no idea.

Piano Sonata: Beethoven's Hammerklavier sonata, or Liszt's B minor.

give me some other types of pieces hahaa

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Finally someone else who really likes Mozart's 22nd!! :)

M_is_D, I didn't say Gershwin's was the greatest, I simply thought it was amazing. Nico, try the following:

+ Piano character piece

+ Orchestral tone poem

+ Opera

+ Musical drama (and under this heading, best SONG)

+ Instrumental solo (example: Debussy's Flute Syrinx)

+ Waltz for either piano or orchestra

And while we're diversifying things, should we add best work by each composer?

I am biased and therefore will say:

Schubert Symphony No. 9 "The Great"