Classical Works: Top 100

Classical Works: Top 100

This was originally posted as a top 10 on the DMDB Facebook page on 2/21/10 and then expanded to a top 50 on 5/2/2011. This list was determined by an aggregate of more than 30 classical-music-focused, best-of lists combined with the works’ standings in the overall Dave’s Music Database. Here’s the top classical works (which includes operas, symphonies, concertos, etc.) according to the DMDB. Note: most of these are considered “albums” based on their lengths. Those works noted with an asterisk (*) are shorter pieces and not considered album-length works. Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here. Composer Name of Work (year composition was finished) 1. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (1808) 2. Richard Wagner The Ring Cycle (Der Ring Des Nibelungen) (opera, 1848-1874) 3. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 7 (1812) 4. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (1824) 5. Antonin Dvorák Symphony No. 9 in E minor (From the New World) (1893) 6. Antonio Vivaldi The Four Seasons (1725) 7. Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 (1875) 8. George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, & Dubose Heyward Porgy and Bess (1935) 9. Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 in B Minor (“Pathétique”) (1893) 10. Georges Bizet Carmen (opera, 1873-74) 11. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) (1786) 12. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 “Pastorale” (1808) 13. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 3 in E-flat “Sinfonia Eroica” (1804) 14. Hector Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique (1830) 15. Johann Sebastian Bach Goldberg Variations (1741) 16. Johannes Brahms Symphony No. 4 (1885) 17. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Don Giovanni (opera, 1787) 18. Richard Wagner Tristan Und Isolde (opera, 1857-59) 19. Johann Sebastian Bach Brandenburg Concertos (1719-21) 20. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 40 in G minor (1788) 21. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute) (1791) 22. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor” (1811) 23. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21 (1785) 24. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 (1785) 25. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 41 “Jupiter” (1788) 26. Johann Sebastian Bach Cello Suites (1717-23) 27. Giacomo Puccini La Bohème (The Bohemian Life) (opera, 1896) 28. Giacomo Puccini Tosca (opera, 1900) 29. Gioacchino Rossini Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) (opera, 1816) 30. Ludwig van Beethoven Violin Concerto in D Major (1806) 31. George Friedrich Handel Messiah (1741) 32. Franz Schubert Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished”) (1822) 33. Giuseppe Verdi La Traviata (The Fallen Woman) (1853) 34. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor (1904) 35. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A Major (1791) 36. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Requiem Mass in D minor (1791) 37. Dmitri Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 in D minor (1937) 38. Franz Schubert Piano Quintet in A Major (“Trout”) (1814) 39. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 2 in C minor “Resurrection” (1894) 40. Igor Stravinsky The Rite of Spring (Le Sacre Du Printemps) (ballet, 1913) 41. Claudio Monteverdi L’Orfeo (Orpheus) (opera, 1607) 42. Sergei Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor (1901) 43. Johannes Brahms Symphony No. 1 in C minor (1876) 44. Béla Bartók Concerto for Orchestra (1944) 45. Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet No. 14 (1826) 46. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor (1786) 47. Giacomo Puccini Turandot (1926) 48. Giuseppe Verdi Rigoletto (1851) 49. Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet No. 13 (1826) 50. Giuseppe Verdi Aida (opera, 1871) 51. George & Ira Gershwin An American in Paris (classical soundtrack, 1951) 52. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 1 in D major (“Titan”) (1884-88) 53. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 in C minor (1786) 54. Franz Schubert Symphony No. 9 in C major (1828) 55. Henry Purcell Dido and Aeneas (1689) 56. Claudio Monteverdi Vespers of the Blessed Virgin (1610) 57. Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet No. 15 (1826) 58. Ludwig van Beethoven Fidelio (1805) 59. Modest Mussorgsky Tableaux d'une Exposition (Pictures at an Exhibition) (1874) 60. Johannes Brahms Violin Concerto in D major (1879) 61. Felix Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor (1845) 62. Edvard Grieg Piano Concerto in A minor (1868) 63. Giovanni Pierluigi Palestrina Missa Papae Marcelli (Pope Marcellus Mass) (1562) 64. Johann Sebastian Bach Mass in B Minor (1749) 65. Giacomo Puccini Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly) (1904) 66. Antonin Dvorák Cello Concerto in B minor (1895) 67. Vincenzo Bellini Norma (1831) 68. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 38 in D major (1787) 69. Richard Strauss Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose) (1911) 70. George Friedrich Handel Water Music (1717) 71. Sergei Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor (1909) 72. Franz Josef Haydn String Quartet No. 5 in D major (Largo) (1797) 73. Franz Josef Haydn String Quartet No. 3 in C major (Emperor) (1797) 74. Johann Sebastian Bach St. Matthew Passion (1736) 75. Felix Mendelssohn Octet for Strings in E flat major (1825) 76. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Sonatas (32) (1795-1822) 77. Claudio Monteverdi L’incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppaea) (1642) 78. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 8 in F major (1812) 79. Franz Josef Haydn Symphony No. 104 in D major (1795) 80. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 27 in B flat major (1791) 81. Alban Berg Wozzeck (1922) 82. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Clarinet Quintet in A major (Stadler) (1789) 83. Johann Sebastian Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Violin (1720) 84. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 39 in E flat major (1788) 85. George Friedrich Händel Julius Caesar in Egypt (Giulio Cesare in Egitto) (1724) 86. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 35 in D major (1782) 87. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 4 in B flat major (1806) 88. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 14 in E flat major (1784) 89. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major (1786) 90. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 9 in D major “Farewell” (1912) 91. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 19 in F major (1784) 92. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 9 in E flat major (1777) 93. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major (1784) 94. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major (1806) 95. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Cosí Fan Tutte (Thus Do They All) (1790) 96. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio) (1781) 97. Johann Sebastian Bach Violin Concerto No. 2 in E major (1723) 98. Claudio Monteverdi Madrigals of Love and War (Madrigali Guerrieri ed Amorosi) (1638) 99. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor (1800) 100. Luciano Pavarotti/Placido Domingo/Jose Carreras The Three Tenors in Concert/Mehta (1990) Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: Chamber Music: Top 25 Dave’s Music Database: Concertos: Top 25 Dave’s Music Database: Operas: Top 50 Dave’s Music Database: Symphonies: Top 25 Dave’s Music Database: other best-of-genre lists First posted 2/21/2010; last updated 2/27/2026.

Concertos: The Top 25

Concertos: The Top 25

A concerto is a solo instrument accompanied by an orchestra. These are the top 25 ranked concertos according to Dave’s Music Database. Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here. Composer Name of Work (year composition was finished) 1. Antonio Vivaldi The Four Seasons (1725) 2. Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 (1875) 3. Johann Sebastian Bach Brandenburg Concertos (6) (1719-21) 4. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor” (1811) 5. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21 (1785) 6. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 (1785) 7. Ludwig van Beethoven Violin Concerto in D Major (1806) 8. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A Major (1791) 9. Sergei Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor (1901) 10. Béla Bartók Concerto for Orchestra (1944) 11. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor (1786) 12. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 in C minor (1786) 13. Johannes Brahms Violin Concerto in D major (1879) 14. Felix Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor (1845) 15. Edvard Grieg Piano Concerto in A minor (1868) 16. Antonin Dvorák Cello Concerto in B minor (1895) 17. Sergei Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor (1909) 18. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 27 in B flat major (1791) 19. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 14 in E flat major (1784) 20. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major (1786) 21. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 19 in F major (1784) 22. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 9 in E flat major (1777) 23. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major (1806) 24. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major (1784) 25. Johann Sebastian Bach Violin Concerto No. 2 in E major (1723) Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “Classical Works: Top 100” Dave’s Music Database: other best-of-genre lists First posted 10/3/2023; last updated 2/23/2026.

Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Albums (Feb. 2021)

Originally posted 2/22/2021. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog. To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This month marks the ninth group of album inductees. These are the top ten classical works of all time, excluding previous inductees George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Johnann Sebastian Bach’s Goldberg Variations, and Monterverdi’s L’Orfeo (Orpheus). See the full list of album inductees here.

Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 5 in C minor (Fate) (1808) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This is “one of the most popular and best-known compositions in all of classical music, and one of the most often played symphonies.” AZ In Howard’s End, E.M. Forster said the symphony satisfies “all sort and conditions” MJ while poet and composer E.T.A. Hoffman called it “one of the most important works of all time.” AZ It took Beethoven more than four years to compose. Read more.

Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major (Emperor) (1811) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This was the last of Beethoven’s completed piano concertos. He never publicly played it. MR. It is often known as the “Emperor Concerto,” so-named by Johann Baptist Cramer, the English publisher of the concerto. WK “There is hardly an adjective that could more aptly evoke the work’s impressive scale and majesty. Despite its considerable technical demands, the ‘Emperor’ Concerto handily transcends the typical role of the concerto as a mere virtuoso vehicle.” MR Read more.

Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 7 in A major (1812) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

Beethoven began writing this in 1809, but didn’t finish the composition until 1812, by which time he was seriously deaf. This was “his definitive break with stylistic conventions practiced by Mozart, Haydn, and a legion of lesser mortals who copied them. He stretched harmonic rules, and gave breadth to symphonic forms that Haydn and Mozart anticipated.” RD Read more.

Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor (Choral) (1824) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This started as two separate works – a symphony with a chorale finale and a purely instrumental work in D minor. Beethoven had worked on the two pieces for almost ten years before deciding in 1822 to combine them. He famously includes Friedrich von Schiller’s “Ode to Joy” in the finale. “The finished work is of visionary scope and proportions, and represents the apogee of technical difficulty in its day.” AMG Read more.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart The Marriage of Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro) (1786) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This four-part comic opera “tells how the servants Figaro and Susanna succeed in getting married, foiling the efforts of their philandering employer Count Almaviva to seduce Susanna and teaching him a lesson in fidelity. The opera is a cornerstone of the repertoire and appears consistently among the top ten in the Operabase list of most frequently performed operas.” WK Read more.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Don Giovanni (1787) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This two-act opera was a mix of serious and comedic action, telling the story of the legendary Don Juan and how he is destroyed by his excesses. Mozart was commissioned to create the opera in 1787 and finished a day or two before it premiered on October 29 of that year. According to Operabase, it is the seventh most-performed opera worldwide. WK Read more.

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina Pope Marcellus Mass (Missa Papae Marcelli) (1565) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

“Arguably Palestrina’s best-known work,” NB this piece has been recorded often in the latter part of the 20th century. This is “primarily a six-voice mass, but voice combinations are varied throughout the piece.” WK He intentionally composed “in a simplified, easily understood style to please church officials” WK after Pope Marcellus II urged “musicians to strive for simplicity, clarity, and intelligibility in their compositions” in 1555. NB Read more.

Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor (1875) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

Tchaikovsky composed his first piano concerto between November 1874 and February 1875. He played it for pianist Nikolai Rubinstein, who he hoped would play the piece, but he responded with a list of demanded changes before he would play it. Tchaikovsky was devastated, initially insisting he wouldn’t change a single note. He did, however, make some minor changes before it debuted in 1875 and revised it in 1879 and again in 1888. Rubinstein later retracted his criticisms and championed the work. WK Read more.

Antonio Vivaldi The Four Seasons (1725) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

This group of four violin concertos are centered around the four seasons of the year, inspired by the countryside around Mantua, where Vivaldi lived at the time. Within the pieces, he represented flowing creeks, singing birds, storms, and warm winter fires. Vivaldi also tied the music to texts from poems. The works stand as some of the earliest examples of program music, or music with a narrative element. Read more.

Richard Wagner Der Ring Des Nibelungen (The Ring Cycle) (1874) Inducted February 2021 as “Top Classical Works.”

All told, this series of four operas, created over a quartet century, stretches to more than 15 hours. The first one is the shortest, running about two and a half hours, while the final one can run as long as five hours. The story follows three generations of protaganists from the Norse sagas. “Wagner wrote for an orchestra of gargantuan proportions;” WK “the music of the cycle is thick and richly textured and grows in complexity as the cycle proceeds.” WK Read more.