The best composers for piano. The most famous classical pieces of music

Listen to something from the classics - what could be better ?! Especially on weekends, when you want to relax, forget about the worries of the day, the worries of the working week, dream about the beautiful, and just cheer yourself up. Just think, classical works were created by genius authors so long ago that it is hard to believe that something can survive for so many years. And these works are still loved and listened to, they create arrangements and modern interpretations. Even in modern processing, the works of brilliant composers remain classical music. As he admits, classical works are brilliant, and all ingenious cannot be boring.

Probably all great composers have a special ear, a special sensitivity to tone and melody, which allowed them to create music that is enjoyed by tens of generations not only of their compatriots, but also of classical music fans all over the world. If you are still in doubt if you love classical music, then you need to meet with, and you will be convinced that in fact, you are already a longtime fan of great music.

And today we will talk about the 10 most famous composers in the world.

Johann Sebastian Bach

The first place deservedly belongs. A genius was born in Germany. The most talented composer wrote music for harpsichord and organ. The composer did not create a new style of music. But he was able to create perfection in all styles of his time. He is the author of over 1000 compositions. In his works Bach combined different musical styles with which he became acquainted during his life. Musical romanticism was often combined with the Baroque style. In life Johann Bach as a composer, he did not receive the recognition it deserved, interest in his music arose almost 100 years after his death. Today he is called one of the greatest composers ever to live on earth. His uniqueness as a person, teacher and musician was reflected in his music. Bach laid the foundations of modern and modern music, dividing the history of music into pre-Bach and post-Bach. It is believed that music Bach gloomy and gloomy. His music is rather fundamental and solid, restrained and focused. As the reflections of a mature, wise person. Creation Bach influenced many composers. Some of them took an example from his works or used themes from them. And musicians from all over the world play music Bach admiring her beauty and perfection. One of the most sensational works - "Brandenburg Concerts"- excellent proof that music Bach cannot be considered too gloomy:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

It is rightfully considered a genius. At the age of 4, he already freely played the violin and harpsichord, at the age of 6 he began to compose music, and at 7 he skillfully improvised the harpsichord, violin and organ, competing with famous musicians. Already at the age of 14 Mozart- a recognized composer, and at the age of 15 - a member of the music academies of Bologna and Verona. By nature, he possessed a phenomenal ear for music, memory and the ability to improvise. He has created an astonishing number of works - 23 operas, 18 sonatas, 23 piano concertos, 41 symphonies and more. The composer did not want to imitate, he tried to create a new model, reflecting the new personality of the music. It is no coincidence that music in Germany Mozart is called "the music of the soul", in his works the composer showed the features of his sincere, loving nature. The greatest melodist attached particular importance to opera. Opera Mozart- an era in the development of this type of musical art. Mozart widely recognized as one of the greatest composers: his uniqueness lies in the fact that he worked in all musical forms of his time and achieved the greatest success in all. One of the most recognizable pieces - "Turkish March":

Ludwig van Beethoven

Another great German was an important figure in the Romantic-Classical period. Even those who know nothing about classical music know about it. Beethoven Is one of the most performed and respected composers in the world. The great composer witnessed the tremendous upheavals that took place in Europe and redrawn its map. These great coups, revolutions and military confrontations were reflected in the composer's work, especially in symphonic ones. He embodied in music the pictures of the heroic struggle. In immortal works Beethoven you will hear the struggle for freedom and brotherhood of people, unshakable faith in the victory of light over darkness, as well as dreams of freedom and happiness of mankind. One of the most famous and surprising facts of his life is that ear disease developed into complete deafness, but despite this, the composer continued to write music. He was also considered one of the finest pianists. Music Beethoven surprisingly simple and understandable for the widest audience. Generations change, and even epochs, and music Beethoven still excites and delights the hearts of people. One of his best works - "Moonlight Sonata":

Richard Wagner

With the name of the great Richard Wagner most often associated with his masterpieces "Wedding Choir" or "Flight of the Valkyries"... But he is known not only as a composer, but also as a philosopher. Wagner considered his musical works as a way of expressing a certain philosophical concept. WITH Wagner a new musical era of operas began. The composer tried to bring opera closer to life, music for him is only a means. Richard Wagner- the creator of musical drama, reformer of operas and the art of conducting, innovator of the harmonic and melodic language of music, creator of new forms of musical expression. Wagner- the author of the world's longest solo aria (14 minutes 46 seconds) and the world's longest classical opera (5 hours and 15 minutes). In life Richard Wagner was considered a controversial person who was either adored or hated. And often both of them together. Mystical symbolism and anti-Semitism made him Hitler's favorite composer, but closed the way for his music to Israel. However, neither supporters nor opponents of the composer deny his greatness as a composer. Great music from the very first notes Richard Wagner absorbs you without a trace, leaving no room for disputes and disagreements:

Franz Schubert

The Austrian composer is a musical genius, one of the best songwriters. He was only 17 when he wrote his first song. He could write 8 songs in one day. During his creative life, he created more than 600 compositions based on the verses of more than 100 great poets, including Goethe, Schiller and Shakespeare. That's why Franz Schubert in the top 10. Although creativity Schubert very diverse, in the use of genres, ideas and reincarnations, vocal and song lyrics are predominant and defining in his music. Before Schubert the song was considered an insignificant genre, and it was he who elevated it to the degree of artistic perfection. Moreover, he combined a seemingly unconnected song and chamber symphonic music, which gave rise to a new direction of lyric-romantic symphony. Vocal and song lyrics are a world of simple and deep, subtle and even intimate human experiences, expressed not in words, but in sound. Franz Schubert lived a very short life, only 31 years old. The fate of the composer's works is no less tragic than his life. After death Schubert many unpublished manuscripts remained, kept in bookcases and drawers of relatives and friends. Even the closest people did not know everything he wrote, and for many years he was recognized mainly only as the king of the song. Some of the composer's works were published only half a century after his death. One of the most beloved and famous works Franz Schubert – "Evening serenade":

Robert Schumann

With an equally tragic fate, the German composer is one of the best composers of the romantic era. He created music of amazing beauty. To get an idea of ​​19th century German romanticism, just listen to "Carnival" Robert Schumann... He was able to break out of the musical traditions of the classical era, creating his own interpretation of the romantic style. Robert Schumann was gifted with many talents, and even for a long time could not decide between music, poetry, journalism and philology (he was a polyglot and fluently translated from English, French and Italian). He was also an amazing pianist. And yet the main vocation and passion Schumann there was music. In his poetic and deeply psychological music, the music largely reflects the duality of the composer's nature, an impulse of passion and withdrawal into the world of dreams, an awareness of vulgar reality and a striving for the ideal. One of the masterpieces Robert Schumann, which everyone must hear:

Frederic Chopin

Perhaps the most famous Pole in the world of music. Neither before nor after the composer was born a musical genius of this level in Poland. The Poles are incredibly proud of their great compatriot, and in his work the music composer repeatedly sings of the homeland, admires the beauty of the landscapes, laments the tragic past, dreams of a great future. Frederic Chopin Is one of the few composers who wrote music exclusively for the piano. There are no operas or symphonies in his creative heritage, but piano pieces are presented in all their diversity. His works form the basis of the repertoire of many famous pianists. Frederic Chopin Is a Polish composer who is also known as a talented pianist. He lived only 39 years, but managed to create many masterpieces: ballads, preludes, waltzes, mazurkas, nocturnes, polonaises, etudes, sonatas and much, much more. One of them - "Ballad No. 1, G minor".

Franz Liszt

He is one of the greatest composers in the world. He lived a relatively long and surprisingly rich life, experienced poverty and wealth, met love and faced contempt. In addition to his talent from birth, he had a fantastic capacity for work. Franz Liszt has earned not only the admiration of connoisseurs and fans of music. Both as a composer and as a pianist, he received universal acclaim from European critics of the 19th century. He has created over 1300 works and similar Frederic Chopin gave preference to works for piano. A brilliant pianist Franz Liszt he knew how to reproduce the sound of an entire orchestra on the piano, skillfully improvised, possessed a fantastic memory of musical compositions, he had no equal in sight-reading. He had a pathetic style of performance, which was also reflected in his music, emotionally passionate and heroically uplifting, creating colorful musical pictures and making an indelible impression on the listeners. The composer's calling card is piano concertos. One of these works. And one of the most famous works Liszt – "Dreams of love":

Johannes Brahms

A significant figure in the romantic period in music is Johannes Brahms... Listen to and love music Brahms is considered good taste and is the hallmark of a romantic nature. Brahms did not write a single opera, but he created works in all other genres. Special glory Brahms brought his symphonies. Already in the first works, the originality of the composer is manifested, which over time transformed into its own style. If we consider all the works Brahms, it cannot be said that the composer was strongly influenced by the work of his predecessors or contemporaries. And in terms of the scale of creativity Brahms often compared to Bach and Beethoven... Perhaps this comparison is justified in the sense that the works of the three great Germans represent the culmination of an entire era in the history of music. Unlike Franz Liszt life Johannes Brahms was devoid of turbulent events. He preferred calm creativity, during his lifetime he earned recognition of his talent and universal respect, and was also awarded considerable honors. The most outstanding music in which creative power Brahms had an especially vivid and original effect, is his "German Requiem", a work that the author has been creating for 10 years and dedicated to his mother. In your music Brahms glorifies the eternal values ​​of human life, which lie in the beauty of nature, the art of the great talents of the past, the culture of their homeland.

Giuseppe Verdi

What are the top ten composers without ?! The Italian composer is best known for his operas. He became the national fame of Italy, his work is the culmination of the development of Italian opera. His achievements and merits as a composer cannot be overestimated. His works to this day, a century after the death of the author, remain the most popular, universally performed, known to both connoisseurs and lovers of classical music.

For Verdi the most important thing in the opera was the drama. The musical images of Rigoletto, Aida, Violetta, Desdemona created by the composer organically combine bright melody and depth of heroes, democratic and sophisticated musical characteristics, violent passions and bright dreams. Verdi was a real psychologist in understanding human passions. His music is nobility and power, amazing beauty and harmony, inexpressibly beautiful melodies, wonderful arias and duets. Passions boil, comedy and tragedy intertwine and merge together. Plots of operas, according to himself Verdi, should be "original, interesting and ... passionate, with passion above all else." And most of his works are serious and tragic, show emotional dramatic situations, and the music of the great Verdi gives expressiveness to what is happening and emphasizes the accents of the situation. Having absorbed all the best that was achieved by the Italian opera school, he did not deny opera traditions, but reformed Italian opera, filled it with realism, and gave it the unity of a whole. At the same time, he did not declare his reform, did not write articles about it, but simply wrote operas in a new way. Triumphal procession of one of the masterpieces Verdi- operas - swept across Italian stages and continued in Europe, as well as in Russia and America, forcing even skeptics to recognize the talent of the great composer.

10 most famous composers in the world updated: April 13, 2019 by the author: Helena

Here's a list of 10 composers you should know. It is safe to say about each of them that he is the greatest composer who ever was, although in fact it is impossible, and indeed impossible, to compare the music written over several centuries. However, all of these composers stand out from their contemporaries as composers who composed music of the highest level and sought to push the boundaries of classical music to new limits. The list does not contain any order, such as importance or personal preference. Just 10 Great Composers You Should Know.

Each composer is accompanied by a fact of his life worthy of a quote, remembering which you will look like an expert. And by clicking on the link to the names, you will find out his full biography. And of course, you can listen to one of the significant works of each master.

The most important figure in world classical music. One of the most performed and respected composers in the world. He worked in all genres that existed in his time, including opera, ballet, music for dramatic performances, choral compositions. The most significant in his heritage are instrumental works: piano, violin and cello sonatas, concertos for piano, violin, quartets, overtures, symphonies. The founder of the romantic period in classical music.

Interesting fact.

At first Beethoven wanted to dedicate his third symphony (1804) to Napoleon, the composer was fascinated by the personality of this man, who seemed to many at the beginning of his reign to be a real hero. But when Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor, Beethoven crossed out his dedication on the title page and wrote only one word - "Heroic".

"Moonlight Sonata" by L. Beethoven, listen to:

2. (1685-1750)

German composer and organist, representative of the Baroque era. One of the greatest composers in the history of music. During his life, Bach wrote over 1000 works. All significant genres of that time are represented in his work, except for opera; he summarized the achievements of the musical art of the Baroque period. The founder of the most famous musical dynasty.

Interesting fact.

During his lifetime, Bach was so underestimated that less than a dozen of his works were published.

Toccata and Fugue in D minor by J.S.Bach, listen to:

3. (1756-1791)

The great Austrian composer, instrumentalist and conductor, a representative of the Vienna Classical School, a virtuoso violinist, harpsichordist, organist, conductor, he possessed a phenomenal ear for music, memory and the ability to improvise. As a composer who excelled in any genre, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of classical music.

Interesting fact.

As a child, Mozart memorized and recorded Miserere (a cat. Chant to the text of the 50th Psalm of David) by the Italian Grigorio Allegri, having listened to it only once.

"Little Night Serenade" by W.A. Mozart, listen:

4. (1813-1883)

German composer, conductor, playwright, philosopher. He had a significant impact on European culture at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries, especially modernism. Wagner's operas amaze with their grandiose scale and eternal human values.

Interesting fact.

Wagner took part in the failed revolution of 1848-1849 in Germany and was forced to hide from the arrest with Franz Liszt.

"Flight of the Valkyries" from the opera "Valkyrie" by R. Wagner, listen to

5. (1840-1893)

Italian composer, central figure of the Italian opera school. Verdi had a sense of the stage, temperament and impeccable craftsmanship. He did not deny the operatic traditions (unlike Wagner), but on the contrary developed them (the traditions of Italian opera), he transformed Italian opera, filled it with realism, and gave it the unity of a whole.

Interesting fact.

Verdi was an Italian nationalist and was elected to the first Italian parliament in 1860, after Italy's independence from Austria.

Overture to the opera "La Traviata" by D. Verdi, listen to:

7. Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky (1882-1971)

Russian (American - after emigration) composer, conductor, pianist. One of the most important composers of the twentieth century. Stravinsky's work is the same throughout his career, although the style of his works was different at different periods, but the core and Russian roots remained, which were manifested in all of his works, he is considered one of the leading innovators of the twentieth century. His innovative use of rhythm and harmony has inspired and inspires many musicians, and not only in classical music.

Interesting fact.

During World War I, Roman customs officials confiscated Pablo Picasso's portrait of Stravinsky when the composer was leaving Italy. The portrait was painted in a futuristic manner and the customs officers mistook these circles and lines for some kind of encrypted classified materials.

Suite from the ballet by I.F. Stravinsky "The Firebird", listen to:

8. Johann Strauss (1825-1899)

Austrian light music composer, conductor and violinist. "King of waltzes", he worked in the genre of dance music and operetta. His musical heritage includes more than 500 waltzes, pollekas, quadrilles and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas and ballets. Thanks to him, the waltz became extremely popular in Vienna in the 19th century.

Interesting fact.

The father of Johann Strauss is also Johann and also a famous musician, therefore the "king of waltzes" is called the younger or the son, his brothers Joseph and Edward were also famous composers.

Waltz by J. Strauss "On the beautiful blue Danube", listen:

9. Sergei Vasilyevich Rahmaninov (1873-1943)

Austrian composer, one of the outstanding representatives of the Viennese classical music school and one of the founders of romanticism in music. During his short life, Schubert made significant contributions to orchestral, chamber and piano music, which influenced an entire generation of composers. However, his most striking contribution was to the development of German romances, of which he created more than 600.

Interesting fact.

Schubert's friends and fellow musicians got together and performed Schubert's music. These meetings are called "Schubertiads" (Schubertiads). Some kind of first fan club!

"Ave Maria" by F.P. Schubert, listen:

Continuing the topic of the great composers you should know, new material.

Concerts for soloists and orchestra

Each part of this list is accompanied by a playlist with all the works mentioned in it.

Johann Sebastian Bach

Brandenburg concerts

Simultaneously large-scale and compact cycle of six chapters from ten to twenty minutes long. Six completely different concerts, united by a purely Bach's joy of life, each of which became the first of its kind: for example, the Fifth Brandenburg Concert, the first ever concert for clavier and orchestra.

Alban Berg

"In memory of an angel"

If the opera Wozzeck is one of the highest achievements of the new Viennese school in the field of musical drama, then the Violin Concerto is a masterpiece of lyrical expression. It will not leave you indifferent, although there are no catchy melodies here; but the concert finale is based on a quotation from Bach, organically woven into the fabric of the piece.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Concerto for violin and orchestra

Forget everything you've heard about the ponderousness of Beethoven's symphonies - this concert seems to be talking to you personally, and there is not a penny in it. If you get bored in the middle, you will be rewarded in the finale: he will give you such a beautiful and sad melody that you can hardly resist crying grateful. One of the greatest violin concertos ever.

Johannes Brahms

Concerto for violin, cello and orchestra

While not so many concertos for cello and orchestra have been created as for violin or piano, there are even fewer concertos for violin and cello, and the more valuable each one is. The brightest among them is Brahms' Double Concerto, which has absorbed the best features of his symphonic and chamber works. It is full of the most beautiful melodies and, with all the external restraint, is unusually emotional.

Antonio Vivaldi

"Seasons"

One of the most popular pieces of classical music, an absolute hit known to everyone. Four seasons - four violin concertos, each better than the other.

George Gershwin

Blues Rhapsody

The first successful attempt to cross classics and jazz, which gave rise to more than one new direction and yet remained unique.

Antonín Dvořák

Concerto for cello and orchestra

One of the first large-scale compositions with a cello in the lead role, where the harmony and sophistication of the composition are combined with the incredible accessibility of melodies that fit the ear without any effort.

Felix Mendelssohn

Concerto for violin and orchestra in E minor

Everyone knows the wedding march from A Midsummer Night's Dream, although it is by no means Mendelssohn's main work. He owns excellent Italian and Scottish symphonies, beautiful trios, quartets and oratorios, as well as the Violin Concerto: no less important than Beethoven's, but much more intelligible.

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 3

The music of Rachmaninoff and Mahler does not have much in common, but it was Mahler who conducted one of the first performances of the concert. Although the Third Concerto initially remained in the shadow of the famous Second, it also belongs to the highest achievements of the genre and is one of the most serious tests for participants in pianistic competitions. And its main theme is one of the best melodies in all musical literature.

Jan Sibelius

Concerto for violin and orchestra

By the end of the 19th century, the supremacy of the Austro-German tradition in music became questionable: one after another, new national schools - Hungarian, Czech, and Polish - announced themselves. The founder of another, Finnish, and today one of the most advanced in the world, was Sibelius, whose concert is unlike any other and still hits the heart.

Opera: from Monteverdi to Bizet and the masterworks of the 20th century

Georges Bizet

"Carmen"

It is hard to believe that the premiere of Carmen was not successful: hits here follow one another with such a density that no other great opera can boast of. Overture, habanera, Toreador couplets, seguidilla, "Gypsy dance" - just to name a few. One can only envy those who have not heard them yet.

Richard Wagner

"Tannhäuser"

You must have flinched as a child at the sound of "Flight of the Valkyries" and heard a lot of unpleasant things about Wagner. Try to form your own opinion about his music; if Wagner's operas are too long for you, orchestral fragments are enough to start with. The incredibly beautiful overture from the opera "Tannhäuser" is a masterpiece in itself that you will surely enjoy, regardless of sympathy for the socio-political views of the author.

Giuseppe Verdi

"La Traviata"

Don Giovanni, Carmen and La Traviata are among the top three operas in the world. It is impossible to resist the charm of La Traviata, even if you are indifferent to Italian opera: the music is so delightful - light and at the same time permeated with a foreboding of trouble. The famous love story that is born and dies before our eyes.

Claudio Monteverdi

"Orpheus"

It makes no sense to place any of Monteverdi's three operas on any list of the best operas: this Italian genius is so original, who actually founded opera as a genre. Start with "Orpheus", especially since the toccata that opens it sounds from everywhere and you probably know: you will not be able to tear yourself away.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

"Don Juan"

Opera of operas, the main one for all times and peoples. No other great opera has such a balance between the tragic and the comic, the high and the low, the will to live and the inevitability of death. As Svyatoslav Richter said, “Così fan tutte” is a greater mysticism than “Don Juan”. There, the statue is to blame for everything, that it came to life ... And here the woman is to blame for being born into the world at all. "

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

"All women do this" ("Così fan tutte")

The middle-aged cynic Don Alfonso undertakes to prove to two young men that the fidelity of their brides is a relative concept. The guys seem to go to war, return in the guise of strangers in love, and each looks after the other's bride. The girls submit to their new destiny not without pleasure and are going to get married, but then the real suitors return. They decide to play two weddings, although no one looks happy. An opera that women are more mysterious and more unpredictable than men.

Leos Janacek

"The Adventures of a Cheating Fox"

According to the writer Milan Kundera, Janacek accomplished a feat by opening the world of prose for the opera. Indeed, Janáček's melodies are based on human speech in all its psychological nuances. "The Adventures of a Cheating Fox" is the most lyrical opera by a Czech composer, which tells about the coexistence of two worlds - the world of humans and the world of animals - and calls for their rapprochement.

Alban Berg

"Wozzeck"

Music unlike anything you've heard before. On the second or third try, you will find that the language of this opera about the mad soldier is not so strange: the composer simply does not compose melodies, but puts the natural intonations of human speech into the basis of the music. The difference with Janacek, according to Kundera, is obvious: “German Expressionism is distinguished by a preferable attitude to excessive states of mind, delirium, insanity. Janacek's expressionism is a rich fan of emotions, a close opposition of tenderness and rudeness, rage and reassurance. "

Kurt Weill

"Threepenny Opera"

The work, formally belonging to the classics of the twentieth century, was sold to hits, sung dozens of times, starting with the ingenious "Mackie-Knife" - one of the melodic symbols of the century. Although Weill is a major innovator in the field of academic music, no composer of his generation has received such attention from pop and rock artists.

Igor Stravinsky

"King Oedipus"

The dissimilar "Petrushka" and "The Rite of Spring" still do not seem to be the works of two different authors, whereas in the opera-oratorio Oedipus the King you certainly do not recognize the creator of "Petrushka". It is no coincidence that Stravinsky was called a chameleon and a man of 1001 style. In "Oedipus" they sing in Latin, and the music - perhaps the most beautiful in Stravinsky's - goes back to the late Baroque: no Russian archaic, no pancakes.

Dmitry Shostakovich

"Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District"

Sex and violence were the main themes of one of the key operas of the 20th century; that is why, shortly after the triumphant premiere in 1934, it was officially banned by Stalin himself in 1936. Pay special attention to the dancing of the guests in the third act and the singing of convicts in the fourth - having heard it once, it is already impossible to forget it.

Richard Strauss

"Electra"

The opera is based on the story of the death of King Agamemnon, who was killed by his wife and her lover. The king's daughter hates her mother and lives in the hope of retribution. Driven by noble motives, the heroine feels like an instrument in the hand of God, and this obsession turns her into a monster. In the first moment of such a dark story, the orchestra unleashes such hopeless music on the audience that the hair stands on end. The opera, which runs for almost two hours without intermission, is like a grandiose symphony, from which you cannot tear yourself away.

Solo. Piano and violin

Charles Ives

"Sonata" Concorde "

More than a sonata, a whole study on the topic: can music express anything beyond what it sounds like? One of the most important piano works of the 20th century remained unfinished only because the author himself decided so: “The sonata seems to me unfinished every time I play it. Perhaps I will not deny myself the pleasure of not finishing it at all. " The sonata is imbued with Beethoven's "theme of fate", which restores order in the midst of chaos, then unfolds the narrative by 180 degrees.

Johann Sebastian Bach

"Well-Tempered Clavier" (HTK)

Probably the most perfect piece in the history of music: two cycles of 24 preludes and fugues in all existing keys are like two colossal Gothic cathedrals, each more beautiful than the other. Almost anyone can pick up the first prelude in C major on the piano; however, gradually the cycle becomes more and more complex. And more and more interesting.

Johann Sebastian Bach

Sonatas and partitas for solo violin

Is it boring to listen to a lonely violin for a long time? Not at all - she can do much more than we can imagine. At the very least, Bach strives to fully embrace its capabilities. The pearl of the cycle is the famous chaconne, the shrill of which there is no music in the world.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Piano Sonata No. 14

Among Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas, Moonlight may not be the best, but certainly the most famous; it has been quoted by many, from Shostakovich to The Beatles. Few writing in the world has outgrown its framework to such an extent, becoming a symbol of unrequited love.

Claude Debussy

Preludes

A compressed encyclopedia of the great composer's work, a bizarre combination of romanticism and impressionism, long-standing traditions of piano music and the paradoxes of the twentieth century. The names of each prelude are not at the beginning, but at the end of the notes, as if they ask the listener riddles, checking whether he correctly captured the mood of the play, be it Sails, Footsteps in the Snow, Mists or Fireworks.

Olivier Messiaen

"Twenty Views of the Baby Jesus"

One of the main opuses of Messiaen, even in the year of his century, was more often played in fragments than in whole: this cycle requires too much dedication. The largest piano work of the era, with which only 24 preludes and fugues by Shostakovich can be compared, is an atypical creation for the middle of the twentieth century: where is irony and reflection, where is rigor and calculated? This is a grand prayer, two and a quarter hours of mostly major music with numerous repetitions.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Piano Sonata No. 11

The well-known Turkish Rondo is actually not an independent piece, but the finale of one of Mozart's sonatas, the other parts of which are no less delightful. As, in fact, and other piano sonatas by Mozart, not to mention his own "Fantasies".

Modest Mussorgsky

Pictures at an Exhibition

This cycle is known primarily in the orchestration of Maurice Ravel, which is perceived today as a genius, but very pop hit. Listen to the original version of Pictures, originally written for piano: you will be amazed at how unusual and not at all hit music it is.

Niccolo Paganini

24 caprices for solo violin

A new word in the discovery of the possibilities of violin and violinists, which for the third century has remained a test for virtuosity. The last, twenty-fourth caprice is better known than others - a short but brilliant theme, variations on which many great composers wrote.

Eric Satie

Gymnopedias and other works for piano

Although Sati is a 20th century composer, many of his works appeared in the previous century: in 1888 hymnopedias were written that anticipated the genre of easy listening. Sati also had the idea of ​​music as an unobtrusive background - today there is nowhere to go from it, but a hundred years ago it was new.

Frederic Chopin

24 preludes for piano

An encyclopedia of musical romanticism and at the same time a motley kaleidoscope of genres: elegy, mazurka, march, song without words and much more. The main means of expressiveness that rivets the listener's attention is the contrast of major and minor in each adjacent pair of preludes.

Robert Schumann

"Kreisleriana"

A cycle of fantasy plays, the name of which was given by the image of Johannes Kreisler - a mad bandmaster invented by Hoffmann, who frightens those around him with his devotion to music. One of the finest works by Schumann, the most romantic composer who ever lived.

Masterpieces of vocal music

Johann Sebastian Bach

Cantatas

In addition to the magnificent Passion and Mass in B minor, Bach wrote over two hundred cantatas. Even more than this entire list, they deserve the words "best music ever." You will fill the playlist many months in advance if you decide to gradually listen to them all. For the impossibility of distinguishing the best from the best, we note three: "Heavens rejoice, earth rejoices" (BWV 31) with a magnificent trumpet solo in the finale, "Who will believe and be baptized" (BWV 37) with a wonderful aria "Faith gives us wings for the soul" and probably the most famous “I've had enough” (BWV 82).

Luciano Berio

Folk songs

A truly universal composition; Berio, the most prominent avant-garde artist of the second half of the twentieth century, processed a number of original songs from Europe and Asia, adding to them a couple of his own. The listener, far from the avant-garde, will be delighted that avant-garde artists also have compositions that seem simple and understandable.

Benjamin Britten

War requiem

An unusual line-up: two orchestras with two conductors, two choirs, three soloists and an organ. The tenor, baritone and chamber orchestra are responsible for the "military" part of the requiem, which is based on the poetry of the poet who died in the First World War. The symphony orchestra, choir and soprano perform traditional parts of the requiem from Requiem æternam and Dies irae to Agnus Dei and Libera me. An amazing result, unlike both the funeral masses of previous eras, and unconventional requiems of the twentieth century.

Antonio Vivaldi

Arias from operas

You should listen at least in order to know: “The Seasons” is not the only and, perhaps, not even the best work of Vivaldi. At least a collection of his arias performed by Magdalena Kozhena will make you forget about the evergreen hit for a while.

Valery Gavrilin

“Russian notebook. German notebooks "

The Russian Notebook reflects the experience of Gavrilin as a folklorist, and this deeply national composition is an analogue of the great cycles of Schubert and Schumann. But with what to compare "German Notebooks", written on the verses of Heine - the most that neither is Schumann's material? How to explain the appearance of such a wonderful cycle as "The First German Notebook" in a sophomore, from whom the professor, under the threat of a deuce, demands "something vocal"? Probably only a miracle.

Georg Frideric Handel

"Messiah"

On the eve of religious holidays "Messiah" is performed all over the world; connected with this is the true story of one orchestra player. To the question "What happened to you?" he replied: “I had a nightmare! I dreamed that I was playing "Messiah" again! Moreover, when I woke up, it turned out to be true! " The best performances of "Messiah" have nothing to do with this reality, it is truly divine music. After completing the "Messiah" in three weeks, Handel said: "I thought that heaven had opened and I see the Creator."

Gustav Mahler

Songs about dead children

One of the most terrifying compositions in the history of music: do we believe in fate or not, but soon after the creation of this vocal cycle, Mahler lost his beloved daughter. Five incredibly beautiful and unspeakably sad songs.

Gustav Mahler

"Song of the Earth"

The first symphony, where they sing from beginning to end, and the large orchestra sounds chamber - so that all the instruments are heard. The author considered the last part - "Farewell" to be suicidal, but one would like to return to it again and again.

Olivier Messiaen

Three small liturgies of the Divine presence

Catholicism, the study of the language of birds and attention to non-European cultures - these features make up the work of Messiaen, a separate direction in the music of the twentieth century. Although Messiaen's language is unlike anyone else's, his music is extraordinarily infectious: listen to the liturgies at least once and you will notice that you are humming them.

Alfred Schnittke

"The Story of Dr. Johann Faust"

Schnittke's cantata has nothing in common with Goethe's Faust: it is based on the 16th century “The People's Book of Faust”. An ingenious find is Mephistopheles, acting in two guises: the devil seducing (countertenor), the devil mocking and punishing (contralto). Although the planned participation of Alla Pugacheva in the Moscow premiere was canceled, the mounted police were on duty at the hall. The hero's humiliation culminates in a swaggering tango with saxophones, unexpectedly intruding into harsh music.

Dmitry Shostakovich

Symphony No. 14

Although Shostakovich's penultimate symphony is dedicated to Britten, it is more closely associated with Mahler. It is essentially a sequel to his Songs of the Earth, a symphony-cantata with two singers, entirely dedicated to death. Even among Shostakovich's gloomy symphonies, this one is especially full of depression and a sense of loneliness. Two voices unite only to sing in the finale: “Death is all-powerful. She is on guard and at the hour of happiness. "

Franz Schubert

"Winter way"

The pinnacle of world vocal music: 24 songs united by a common bitter mood and gloomy images of nature. The final one, "Organ Grinder", is one of Schubert's most hopeless songs (and he has about 600 of them!): A melancholy melody sounds against the background of the dull, monotonous sounds of a barrel organ.

Great symphonies

Hector Berlioz

Fantastic symphony

One of the first - perhaps the most striking - samples of program music: that is, music that precedes a specific scenario. The story of Berlioz's unrequited love for the Irish actress Harriet Smithson formed the basis of the masterpiece, which includes Dream, Ball, Scene in the Fields, Procession to Execution, and even Dream on Sabbath Night.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Symphony No. 7

Of the three most famous symphonies of Beethoven, it is better to start not with the Fifth with its "theme of fate" and not with the Ninth with its ending "Hug, millions". In the Seventh there is much less pathos and more humor, and the brilliant second part is familiar even to listeners who are far from the classics in the processing of the Deep Purple group.

Johannes Brahms

Symphony No. 3

Brahms's First Symphony was called Beethoven's Tenth Symphony, meaning the continuity of tradition. But if Beethoven's nine symphonies are unequal, then out of Brahms's four symphonies each is a masterpiece. The pompous beginning of the Third is just a bright cover for a deeply lyrical statement, reaching its climax in an unforgettable allegretto.

Anton Bruckner

Symphony No. 7

Mahler is believed to be Bruckner's successor; against the backdrop of his canvases, like a roller coaster, Bruckner's symphonies can seem boring - especially their endless adagios. However, each adagio is followed by an exciting scherzo, and the Seventh Symphony will not let you get bored from the very first movement, brooding and drawn-out. The finale, the scherzo and the adagio dedicated to the memory of Wagner are no less good.

Joseph Haydn

Symphony No. 45 "Farewell"

It seems impossible to write easier than Haydn, but in this deceptive simplicity lies the main secret of his skill. Out of one hundred and four of his symphonies, only eleven are written in minor key, and the best among them is Farewell, in the finale of which the musicians leave the stage one by one. It was from Haydn that the group Nautilus Pompilius borrowed this technique for the song "Goodbye, America".

Joseph Haydn

Symphony No. 90

Against the background of the impetuous Farewell, Haydn's later symphonies are much more balanced and positive. They are full of special warmth, artless beauty and harmony. And, of course, humor: the last part of the symphony is crowned with a “false” ending, which even a sophisticated audience takes for a real one and starts applauding while the orchestra is still playing.

Antonín Dvořák

Symphony No. 9 "From the New World"

Collecting material for the symphony, Dvorak studied the national music of America, but he did without quotation, trying to embody its spirit in the first place. The symphony in many ways goes back to both Brahms and Beethoven, but lacks the pomp inherent in their opuses.

Gustav Mahler

Symphony No. 5

Mahler's two best symphonies seem similar to each other only at first. The confusion of the first parts of the Fifth leads to the textbook adagietto, full of vexation, which has been repeatedly used in cinema and theater. And the ominous fanfare of the introduction is answered by a completely traditional optimistic ending.

Gustav Mahler

Symphony No. 6

Who would have thought that Mahler's next symphony would be the darkest and most hopeless music in the world! The composer seems to mourn all of humanity: a similar mood is affirmed from the very first notes and only gets worse towards the finale, which does not contain a single ray of hope. Not for the faint of heart.

Gustav Mahler

Symphony No. 7

The trilogy ends with a mystery symphony. It is considered to be inconvenient for performance and perception, although it is a real celebration of music: if in the rest of Mahler's symphonies, willy-nilly, you nevertheless look for a conflict, here it is almost impossible to find it. It remains only to guess why, between the extreme parts of the Seventh, there is, as it were, another inner symphony of two octurnes and a central scherzo.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Symphony No. 25

Among Mozart's forty-odd symphonies, only two are written in a minor key, and in the same one: G minor unites a number of his key works. The twenty-fifth and the Fortieth are separated by fifteen years, in the case of Mozart - almost half life. Both are equally sad, but if the Fortieth unfolds thoughtfully and unhurriedly, the Twenty-fifth falls upon you with all the swiftness of the "storm and onslaught" era.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Symphony No. 40

Another super hit, the beginning of which causes involuntary irritation. Try to tune your hearing as if you are hearing The Fortieth for the first time (even better if you are): this will help you experience the ingenious, albeit utterly beaten first part and learn that it is followed by the equally beautiful second, third and fourth.

Sergei Prokofiev

Classical symphony

Prokofiev explained the name of the symphony as follows: "Out of mischief, to tease the geese, and in the secret hope that ... I will beat if over time the symphony turns out to be so classical." After a series of daring compositions that excited the audience, Prokofiev composed a symphony in the spirit of Haydn; it became a classic almost immediately, although his other symphonies have nothing to do with it.

Pyotr Tchaikovsky

Symphony No. 5

Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony is not as popular as his ballets, although its melodic potential is no lower; from any two or three minutes of her could have made a hit, for example, Paul McCartney. If you want to understand what a symphony is, listen to Tchaikovsky's Fifth, one of the best and most complete examples of the genre.

Dmitry Shostakovich

Symphony No. 5

In 1936 Shostakovich was defamed at the state level. In response, calling on the shadows of Bach, Beethoven, Mahler and Mussorgsky for help, the composer created a work that became a classic already at the time of the premiere. According to legend, Boris Pasternak spoke about the symphony and its author: "He said everything he wanted - and he got nothing for it."

Dmitry Shostakovich

Symphony No. 7

One of the musical symbols of the 20th century and certainly the main musical symbol of the Second World War. An insinuating drum roll begins the famous "invasion theme" illustrating not only fascism or Stalinism, but any historical era, the basis of which is violence.

Franz Schubert. ** Unfinished symphony

The Eighth Symphony is called Unfinished - instead of four parts, there are only two; however, they are so rich and strong that they are perceived as a complete whole. Having stopped work on the work, the composer no longer touched it.

Bela Bartok.

Concert for orchestra

Bartok is known primarily as the author of countless pieces for music schools. The fact that this is far from the whole of Bartok is evidenced by his concert, where parody is accompanied by severity, and sophisticated technique is accompanied by cheerful folk tunes. In fact, it is Bartok's farewell symphony, as well as Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances.

Sergei Rachmaninoff

"Symphonic Dances"

Rachmaninoff's last opus is a masterpiece of unprecedented power. The beginning seems to warn of an earthquake - it is both a harbinger of the horrors of war and the realization of the end of the romantic era in music. Rachmaninov called "Dances" his best and favorite composition.

Chamber Music Treasures

Johannes Brahms

Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 3

A chamber ensemble is one of the finest types of music-making: a violin sonata, a piano trio or a string quartet can often express much more than a ballet or symphony. A synonym for chamber music is the name of Brahms, for whom each chamber piece is a masterpiece. Including this sonata, an unforgettable beginning of which is born from a phrase, as if interrupted in mid-sentence.

Ludwig van Beethoven

String Quartet No. 11 "Serioso"

Beethoven's later quartets are one of the pinnacles of chamber music. Before that, the composer had not written them for almost fifteen years, pausing after the brilliant quartet in F minor with the subtitle "Serioso" - "Serious". Despite its laconicism, it is incredibly rich in ideas and mood swings, especially the fast part, the intonation of which rushes non-stop between interrogative and affirmative.

Johannes Brahms.

Quartet for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello No. 1

Another pearl, where each of the chapters is full of surprises, especially the last two: isn't this jubilant march in the middle of the lyrical part surprising? Doesn't the final Hungarian Style Rondo leave any of the Hungarian Dances far behind? The quartet was created by Brahms long before his First Symphony, but four instruments have been gifted with such a wealth of melodies and accords that it would have been enough for an entire orchestra.

Antonín Dvořák

Quintet for piano, two violins, viola and cello No. 2

Dvořák's second quintet was created in 1887, a quarter of a century after the Brahms quartet. Another late romantic composition, even more contrasting and even more densely flavored with Eastern European motifs - there is a place here for both Ukrainian dumka and Bohemian dances. There are three main characters here: the cello and the viola, whose solos open the first and second movements, and the piano, which connects the fabric of the quintet with invisible threads.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 21

The saddest music ever.

Cesar Franck

Sonata for violin and piano

One of the best violin sonatas ever written, it is quite a romantic piece, striving with all its might beyond romanticism. Without a doubt, you will remember the amazingly beautiful first phrase the first time, and not only her.

Pyotr Tchaikovsky

"In memory of the great artist"

For many, Tchaikovsky - "The Nutcracker", "The Sleeping Beauty", the First Piano Concerto. The trio "In Memory of the Great Artist" has nothing in common with these works - a tragic, deeply intimate statement, devoid of any ponderousness and pomp. You have never heard such a Tchaikovsky.

Dmitry Shostakovich

String Quartet No. 8

The title "In memory of the victims of fascism and war" is just a cover for the true name that Shostakovich had in mind: "In memory of the author of this quartet." By no means the last work of the composer, nevertheless, became his monument to himself: a mournful epitaph, layered with quotations from the best works of Shostakovich.

Franz Schubert

Piano Trio No. 2

Schubert's chamber compositions are no less expressive and heartfelt than vocal ones. An example of this is the trio for piano, violin and cello: the main theme of its second movement is remembered from the first time and for life, check it out.

Classics of the XX century

Charles Ives

"Unanswered question"

A small masterpiece is the key to all the music of the twentieth century: the strings play one thing, the flutes another, the trumpet another. There is no catchy melody, but it sounds beautiful and bewitching.

Arnold Schoenberg

Serenade

Another, along with "Wozzeck", is an example of "dodecaphony with a human face." Although hardly anyone will succeed in humming a few bars of the serenade, it is full of drive and humor: among the instruments there is a guitar and a mandolin, which add some informality and even nationality to the chilly sound of the ensemble.

Arnold Schoenberg

"Lunar Pierrot"

If the serenade is an example of a strict, prevailing style, then Pierrot Lunar is just his quest: Schoenberg has not yet discovered dodecaphony, but has already abandoned key, major and minor. To the accompaniment of a small ensemble, the vocal part sounds in the manner of speech singing - in the middle between singing and excited human speech. One of the most revolutionary works of the 20th century.

Pierre Boulez

"A hammer without a master"

The musician who created the reference recordings of Schoenberg's works responded to his death with an article with the defiant title "Schoenberg is Dead." And three years later, “The Hammer Without a Master” appeared for voice and ensemble, a kind of “Moonlight Pierrot” of the second half of the twentieth century. Stravinsky, who defined "Pierrot of the Moon" as the solar plexus of new music, later would not hesitate to call "The Hammer Without a Master" the best contemporary work, sounding "as if ice cubes were clashing in a glass."

Claude Debussy

"Afternoon of a Faun"

The day of the premiere of the work - December 22, 1894 - became the birthday of musical impressionism. Faun begins with an unforgettable flute solo that has opened up new horizons in world music.

Zoltan Koday

"Dances from Galanta"

A spectacular piece based on authentic folk melodies, where slow tempos are replaced by such fast ones that it will take your breath away. This change of pace is a characteristic feature of the verbunkos, a Hungarian dance performed at recruiting points and on seeing off the army. Fifteen minutes of pure joy.

Darius Millau

"World creation"

The French composers from the Six group offered a European version of what Gershwin succeeded in: combining classical tradition with jazz and big city sounds, turning his face to simple forms and catchy melodies. Millau was particularly successful with his ballets The Bull on the Roof and The Creation of the World. "How, and this is also a classic !?" - you ask. Of course, yes.

Arthur Honegger

Pacific 231

Another musical symbol of the 20th century in general and technical progress in particular. Having finished an energetic orchestral piece, the author jokingly gave it the name of the most powerful steam locomotive in the world. The audience took the joke seriously when they heard in the Pacific a sound portrait of a steam locomotive that accelerates, hums and then slows down; great music that gives a lot of room to the imagination.

Krzysztof Penderecki

Lamentation for the victims of Hiroshima

The play, like Pacific 231, was first glorified by its title. Written in the most advanced language for the middle of the twentieth century, the score was not successful under the original name "8.37", but under the new name it became very popular, although not a single note has changed. As positive as "Pacific" is, just as depressing is "Cry", although you certainly should get to know him.

Sergei Prokofiev

"Romeo and Juliet"

The best of the musical incarnations of Shakespeare's tragedy, numbering several hits - first of all, the well-known theme "Dance of the Knights" (popular under the name "Montagues and Capulets"). It is surprising that the Bolshoi Theater, commissioned by which the ballet was written, at first rejected it, considering the music unstable and unthinkable for the theater.

Maurice Ravel

"Bolero"

Drum roll, flute plays a deceptively simple theme that is gradually picked up by other instruments in the orchestra. It seems to be a simple scheme, but the listener will still be left with an open mouth, even if he knows "Bolero" by heart.

Maurice Ravel

Waltz

A typical Viennese waltz gradually emerges from the indistinct hum. The dancers are spinning faster and faster, and at last the spring bursts at this enraged music box. An eerie and perfect depiction of the end of a beautiful era, which was replaced by the century of world wars.

Arvo Pärt

"Fratres"

Pärt is the most performed contemporary composer, his works are performed around the world hundreds of times a year. In the mid-1970s, Pärt moved from the avant-garde to quiet, slow music, which proved to be extremely in demand: many of Pärt's lovers are far from the classics and perceive his opuses as a kind of musical soothing. The reference composition is "Fratres", which sounds differently in each of the numerous editions, but does not lose the intonation of the sad question mark.

Steve Reich

"Different Trains"

Another living classic, once known as an avant-garde artist. "Other Trains" is a memorial to the victims of the Holocaust: Reich contrasts the trains of his childhood, on which he crossed America more than once, with others that sent his European peers to concentration camps. The work was written for a string quartet and a phonogram, which includes the sound of wheels, locomotive whistles, stories of Holocaust survivors. Fragments of human speech, recorded in notes, became the basis of instrumental parts. Ideal for the first meeting with Reich.

Igor Stravinsky

"Parsley"

One of the most perfect expressions of the Russian spirit in music: Shrovetide, street organ, accordion, gypsies, trained bear, "Along St. Petersburg", "Oh you, my canopy, canopy", carnival, fun, pancakes.

Igor Stravinsky

"Sacred spring"

The complete opposite of "Petrushka": paganism, fear of death, slow gloomy round dances, sacrifice in the hope of appeasing the elements, completely blowing away the consonance - one of the most revolutionary and scandalous scores in the history of music.

Alfred Schnittke

Concerto grosso No. 1

The visiting card of the main Soviet composer after Shostakovich: elements of mutually exclusive styles merge here into a single whole. “As part of the Concerto grosso, I introduced a brisk children's chorale, a nostalgic-atonal serenade - a trio guaranteed to be genuine Corelli (made in the USSR) and my grandmother's favorite tango, played by her great-grandmother on the harpsichord.”

Alfred Schnittke

"Revision tale"

An ideal way to get to know Schnittke's music for those who find it too complicated. The combination of the harpsichord with pop instruments creates a multifaceted space, where there is a place for both Beethoven's "theme of fate" and parodies of Haydn, whose intonations are brought to sweetness, and the shadows of Mozart and Tchaikovsky, dancing tango and cancan.

Just masterpieces

Johann Sebastian Bach

Orchestra suites no. 2 and 3

Compared to the HTK, two suites sound like light music, especially since each contains at least one greatest hit: "Joke" and "Aria", respectively, which have long been sold out in ringtones and TV and radio screensavers. However, this could have happened with other fragments of these suites, which are replete with bright melodies.

Johannes Brahms

"Hungarian Dances"

If the symphony orchestra plays an encore, in one case out of three the conductor will choose the First Hungarian Dance; in extreme cases - the fifth. Two dozen miniatures for two pianos, later arranged for orchestra, were created on the basis of authentic Hungarian melodies; the result is 21 exemplary encore.

Edvard Grieg

"Peer Gynt"

Ibsen's drama Peer Gynt is world famous, and the music by Grieg, written for its premiere, is even more popular: The Song of Solveig and In the Cave of the Mountain King, you undoubtedly know. Do not deny yourself the pleasure of listening to "Pera Gynt" in its entirety.

Alexander Scriabin

"Prometheus"

In his last and, perhaps, his most significant symphonic work, Scriabin strove to express the idea of ​​the triumph of the spirit, to achieve the utmost radiance. Therefore, "Prometheus" (aka "The Poem of Fire") was written not only for orchestra, piano, organ and choir, but also for a light keyboard that immerses the concert hall in the radiance of one color or another. However, the music of Prometheus itself is literally overflowing with sunlight.

Bedrich Sour Cream

"My motherland"

The cycle of symphonic poems is a musical portrait of the Czech Republic, its history, nature and legends. Especially popular is the Vltava, in which one can hear the flow of the river, and hunting in the forest on its banks, and night dances of mermaids. The main theme goes back to the 17th century Italian song "La Mantovana". Later, the same melody formed the basis for the hymn of Israel.

Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov

"Scheherazade"

First, the author gave the parts of the suite the names: "The Sea and the Sindbad's Ship", "The Fantastic Story of Prince Kalender", "The Tsarevich and the Princess", "The Baghdad Holiday. Sea. The ship crashes against the rock with the bronze rider. Conclusion ”, but later decided to remove them. Nevertheless, they are well known, and listening to music we involuntarily associate the violin with the voice of Scheherazade, the exclamations of the wind instruments with the storm at sea, the flute solo with the ship of Sinbad the sailor. One of the best examples of program music.

Richard Strauss

"Don Quixote"

Of the works of Strauss, the most famous is the poem "Thus Spoke Zarathustra", the introduction of which serves as a screen saver for the program "What? Where? When?". However, Don Quixote, where a cello sings on behalf of the famous knight, is much richer in unexpected twists and, like few other music in the world, resembles an exciting movie.

Travelers Digest selected 10 cities in the world with the most beautiful women

In anticipation of the holiday season, the travel magazine Travelers Digest has compiled a rating of cities that are inhabited by the most beautiful girls. For several years, experts from the publication have interviewed representatives of the stronger sex traveling around the world. Moscow took pride of place in the top ten, however, according to this study, there are places where there are more beauties.

Stockholm opens the top ten cities with beautiful women. Here, according to experts, every woman is a beauty.

“You go into any store and see a fashion model behind the counter. And it's not in one store - it's ubiquitous. In addition, these women know a lot about parties and how to receive and at the same time give pleasure to a partner. They are educated, outgoing, friendly and unrestricted, ”says Travelers Digest.

The three leaders in female beauty are closed by the girls of Buenos Aires. There is a huge number of beautiful women who cannot be found in any other city in Argentina. These women are always beautiful and natural.

This is followed by Bulgaria, or rather - Varna. This is where all men's dreams can turn into reality. There is no drug law, cheap vodka, beautiful beaches and a sea of ​​places that amaze with their natural beauty.

Varna girls are well-mannered, polite and well-groomed. Beauty and charm are the hallmarks of all Bulgarians.

"You can talk about the women of Los Angeles incessantly, but when you see these beauties, most likely you will be speechless," the newspaper notes. These women differ from American women from all other cities in how they look and how many of them are there per square kilometer. It is for this reason that all Americans are striving to move to California.

Among Russian women, there are not only many tall blue-eyed blondes, most of them will be attentive to the opinion of a man and will try to make him feel good and comfortable. This unique combination is the main reason so many men strive to get to this city.

As you know, Venezuela has the most winners of the Miss Universe pageant, this alone suggests that there are plenty of beautiful women here. Women from Venezuela are not only beautiful - they are very easy to communicate with and know a lot about how to have fun.

Montreal is far from France, but there are many beauties with French charm. Montreal has many universities and colleges, the city is filled with young fresh faces, fashionably dressed girls, many of whom speak French, which is tantamount to communication in the language of love.

A man who wants to conquer a Montreal lady is advised not only to take care of his style, but also to learn a couple of serenades in French.

Some of the most beautiful women in the world, according to those surveyed, live in Israel. Residents of Tel Aviv are especially attracted to men with expressive large eyes, not only brown, but also intriguingly green.

“It is known that Israeli girls over 18 are serving in the army. This means that if you decide to cheat on her, be prepared to run into trouble. Risky, but how exciting! ”- experts warn.

The last (but still honorable) place in the ranking is occupied by the Dutch capital. On the streets of Amsterdam, women prefer bicycles to cars. Besides the fact that Dutch girls are very athletic, they are always fashionably dressed and quite relaxed.

“All this makes them very beautiful and makes men devote more time to beauties,” writes Travelers Digest.

Top 10 cities with the most beautiful girls
1. Stockholm, Sweden
2. Copenhagen, Denmark
3. Buenos Aires, Argentina
4. Varna, Bulgaria
5. Los Angeles, California
6.Moscow, Russia
7. Caracas, Venezuela
8. Montreal, Canada
9. Tel Aviv, Israel
10. Amsterdam, Holland.

So, the focus of our attention today is the most famous classical pieces of music. For several centuries classical music has been exciting its listeners, causing them storms of feelings and emotions. It has long been a part of history and is intertwined with the present with thin threads.

Undoubtedly, in the distant future, classical music will be no less in demand, since such a phenomenon in the musical world cannot lose its relevance and significance.

Name any classic piece - it will be worthy of the first place in any music chart. But since the most famous classical musical works cannot be compared with each other, due to their artistic uniqueness, the opuses named here are presented only as works for acquaintance.

"Moonlight Sonata"

Ludwig van Beethoven

In the summer of 1801, the brilliant work of L.B. Beethoven, who was destined to become famous all over the world. The title of this work, "Moonlight Sonata", is known to absolutely everyone, from old to young.

But initially, the work had the title "Almost Fantasy", which the author dedicated to his young student, beloved Juliet Guicciardi. And the name by which it is known to this day was invented by the music critic and poet Ludwig Rellshtab after the death of L.V. Beethoven. This work belongs to one of the most famous pieces of music by the composer.

By the way, an excellent collection of classical music is represented by the editions of the newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda" - compact books with discs for listening to music. You can read about and listen to his music - very convenient! Recommended order discs of classical music directly from our page : press the “buy” button and immediately go to the store.

"Turkish March"

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

This work is the third part of Sonata No. 11, it was born in 1783. Initially, it was called "Turkish Rondo" and was very popular among Austrian musicians, who later renamed it. The name "Turkish March" was also assigned to the work because it is consonant with Turkish janissary orchestras, for which the sound of drums is very characteristic, which can be traced in the "Turkish March" by V.A. Mozart.

"Ave Maria"

Franz Schubert

The composer himself wrote this work to the poem "The Virgin of the Lake" by W. Scott, or rather to a fragment of it, and was not going to write such a deeply religious composition for the Church. Some time after the appearance of the work, an unknown musician, inspired by the prayer "Ave Maria", set its text to the music of the genius F. Schubert.

"Impromptu Fantasy"

Frederic Chopin

F. Chopin, the genius of the period of romanticism, dedicated this work to his friend. And it was he, Julian Fontana, who disobeyed the instructions of the author, published it in 1855, six years after the death of the composer. F. Chopin believed that his work is similar to the impromptu of I. Mosheles, a Beethoven student, a famous composer and pianist, which was the reason for the refusal to publish Fantasia-Impromptu. However, this brilliant work has never been considered plagiarism, except for the author himself.

"Flight of the Bumblebee"

Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov

The composer of this work was a fan of Russian folklore - he was interested in fairy tales. This led to the creation of the opera "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" on the plot of A.S. Pushkin. Part of this opera is the interlude "Flight of the Bumblebee". Masterfully, incredibly vividly and brilliantly imitated in the work the sounds of the flight of this insect N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov.

"Caprice No. 24"

Niccolo Paganini

Initially, the author composed all his caprices solely to improve and hone the skill of playing the violin. Ultimately, they brought a lot of new and unknown things into violin music. And the 24th caprice, the last of the caprices composed by N. Paganini, carries a swift tarantella with folk intonations, and is also recognized as one of the works ever created for the violin, which has no equal in complexity.

"Vocalise, opus 34, no. 14"

Sergei Vasilyevich Rahmaninov

This work concludes the 34th opus of the composer, which combines fourteen songs written for voice with piano accompaniment. Vocalise, as expected, does not contain words, but is performed on one vowel sound. S.V. Rachmaninov dedicated it to Antonina Nezhdanova, an opera singer. Very often this piece is performed on a violin or cello, accompanied by piano accompaniment.

"Moonlight"

Claude Debussy

This work was written by the composer under the impression of the lines of a poem by the French poet Paul Verlaine. The name very clearly conveys the softness and touching melody, which affects the soul of the listener. This popular work of the genius composer C. Debussy sounds in 120 films of different generations.

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