Favourite Classical Piece?

My utterly favourite piece of classical music is Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis by Ralph Vaughn Williams.

I first heard it, I mean really HEARD it, when I was coming back from an NCT coffee morning when M was about 6 months old. The sky was that particular shade of eggshell blue you only get on late spring mornings. There were a few white fluffy clouds lazily making their way across it.The sun was shining. The air coming through my window was sweet and clear and softly warm. The fields were full of spring wheat or early rape seed. The day glowed. This came on Classic FM and it fit.

I have a few other classical bits I really like, but this is my favourite. When my granddad died, I played it non-stop for two days because it took me home. G was in utero at the time and when I played it again after I had him he stopped whatever he was doing just to listen to it.

So, what's your favourite?

Hmm,

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky is my favourite composer so anything by him - 1812 overture top of the list though. Also like Prokovief.

There is very little classical music I don't like tbh. I'm not so keen on atonal 20th century "modern" music, I like my music to have a flowing melody.

Modern composers, mostly theme tunes/sound tracks - I think John Williams is fab, also theme tune to Inspector Morse and Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence.

Gosh I could list so many more.

I very much love a piece of church music called Locus Iste by Bruckner, and Schubert's Ave Maria gets me every time. Tears and everything.

But I don't like classical music after about 1918 either.

I enjoyed Mendelssohn week on Radio 3 last week. I've spelt that wrong i know - can't quite be bothered looking it up (sorry Felix!).

Ooooh, my absolute all time cannot fail to sit and listen to it in a sort of general haze of emotion and good feeling is Prokofiev's Dance of the Knights (March of the Montagues and Capulets) from his ballet score for Romeo and Juliet.

Although am not liking the fact they're using it for the trailers for the current series of The Apprentice (and apparently for the theme tune since before that too only I've never seen it before).

YouTube it (by clicking on the rather long link as links aren't being highlighted very well) Dance of the Knights from Macmillan's version of Romeo and Juliet

Actually, go watch this version by Northern Ballet Theatre cos it's blooming fab! NBT Romeo and Juliet

Other favourites would be Vaughn Williams' Variations on Greensleeves, any of Tchaikovsky's ballet scores, particularly The Nutcracker, and I love the Pizzicati from the score for the ballet Sylvia by Léo Delibes.

RVW is good, though I suppose I like Lark Ascending better (predictably!). Classical guitar music is good. I like Kurt Schneeweiss. He does Tarrega's Adelita better than anyone.

It has to be The flower duet by lackme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Qx2lMaMsl8

It's what I walked down the isle too.


Catherine

Oh that's a fabulous piece of music too, Lakme is a fantastic opera and it's another gorgeous piece by Delibes!

I do love the Flower Duet! I worked as call centre staff on one of the BA ad campaigns and by far the most common call we had was 'What IS that piece of music?' (this was a long time before Classic FM was in existence!). I happened to know, because my dad is a complete opera nut, and so I was allowed to write it on the top of our target calls white board...LMAO! They were very pleased with me and the following week asked me to do outgoing calls!

Evelyn Glennie's marimba 'a little prayer' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhgOZlRvZXs