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.

Symphonies: Top 25

Symphonies: The Top 25

This list is devoted to the top symphonies of all time as determined by their overall ranking in Dave’s Music Database. A symphony is generally large in scale, written for an orchestra, and made up of four individual movements. 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. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (1824) 3. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 7 (1812) 4. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 3 in E-flat “Sinfonia Eroica” (1804) 5. Hector Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique (1830) 6. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 “Pastorale” (1808) 7. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 40 in G minor (1788) 8. Antonin Dvorák Symphony No. 9 in E minor (“From the New World”) (1893) 9. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 41 “Jupiter” (1788) 10. Johannes Brahms Symphony No. 4 (1885) 11. Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 in B minor (“Pathetique”) (1893) 12. Franz Schubert Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished”) (1822) 13. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 38 in D major (1787) 14. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 2 in C minor “Resurrection” (1894) 15. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 5 in C sharp minor (1902) 16. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 35 in D major (1782) 17. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 8 in F major (1812) 18. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 39 in E flat major (1788) 19. Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 4 in B flat major (1806) 20. Franz Josef Haydn Symphony No. 104 in D major (1795) 21. Franz Schubert Symphony No. 9 in C major (1828) 22. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 1 in D major (“Titan”) (1884-88) 23. Dmitri Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 in D minor (1937) 24. Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 9 in D major “Farewell” (1912) 25. Johannes Brahms Symphony NO. 1 in C minor (1876) 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.

The Top 50 Classical Composers

Classical Composers: Top 50

This list was originally presented as a note on the DMDB Facebook page on February 2, 2011. That original post was prompted by Anthony Tommasini, who in January 2011, undertook the two-week task in the New York Times of selecting the top 10 classical music composers in history. That list, and 13 others (see sources below), have been aggregated to create the official Dave’s Music Database list below. As always, the goal is to present an objective list based on others’ opinions. Besides, I’m less informed on classical music than any other genre, so I couldn’t compose a list of my own if I wanted to. My apologies for any misspellings. Note: this list was updated on March 9, 2012 to aggregate a total of 22 lists focused on classical composers. See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Categories. 1. Ludwig van Beethoven 2. Johann Sebastian Bach 3. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 4. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky 5. George Gershwin 6. Franz Schubert 7. Richard Wagner 8. Joseph Haydn 9. Johannes Brahms 10. Igor Stravinsky 11. Frederic Chopin 12. Gustav Mahler 13. George Frideric Handel 14. Antonio Vivaldi 15. Giusseppe Verdi 16. Claude Debussy 17. Robert Schumann 18. Sergei Rachmaninoff 19. Dmitri Shostakovich 20. Antonin Dvorák 21. Felix Mendelssohn 22. Béla Bartók 23. Hector Berlioz 24. Kurt Weill 25. Maurice Ravel 26. Franz Liszt 27. John Phillip Sousa 28. Edward Elgar 29. Jean Sibelius 30. Sergei Prokofiev 31. Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina 32. Anton Bruckner 33. Claudio Monteverdi 34. Arnold Schoenberg 35. Modest Mussorgsky 36. Richard Strauss 37. Ralph Vaughan Williams 38. Henry Purcell 39. Charles Ives 40. Giacomo Puccini 41. Domenico Scarlatti 42. Gioacchino Rossini 43. Jean-Philippe Rameau 44. Oliver Messiaen 45. Gaetano Donizetti 46. Ferde Grofe 47. Aaron Copland 48. Camille Saint-Saens 49. Georges Bizet 50. Samuel Barber Resources/Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: Lists of Acts/Music Makers by Categories Amazon.com: Essential Artists Consists of two lists: one of popular music’s essential artists and another of classical composers. Links take you to short bios and more links to works by the artist/composer. Classical list has 52 entries, unranked. Answers.com Greatest Classical Composers. By del_icious_manager (date?) A user posted a question asking for people to list 7 of the greatest classical composers and state reasons for choices. The best answer, as chosen by the asker, was from del_icious_manager who listed seven composers chronologically with sentence-long bios/justifications. BiographyOnline.net Greatest Classical Music Composers of All Time. (date?) Top ten ranked list with brief paragraphs on each entry. Cleveland.com Who are the 10 greatest classical-music composers of all time? You decide. By Donald Rosenberg. (1/30/2011) Response to Anthony Tommasini’s top 10 list in the New York Times. Picks seven composers himself, but doesn’t rank them. DigitalDreamDoor.com The 100 Greatest Classical Music Composers. Edited by Guy/Brian. (12/31/2006) Top 100 ranked list. No commentary. eHow.com 10 Most Famous Classical Composers. By Amber D. Walker. (1/3/2010) This article focuses on ten composers with paragraph entries on each. No ranking. HubPages.com Top 5 Classical Composers of All Time. By Isabella Snow. (date?) This article focuses on five composers with paragraph entries on each. No ranking. Jaltcoh.blogspot.com The Top 10 Greatest Classical Composers. By John Althouse Cohen. (1/22/2011) A personal top ten ranking with detailed entries on each composer. Inspired by the New York Times article. Legends of American Music stamp series (1993-1999) This series of stamps started in 1993 covering various genres. Eight classical composers/conductors were introduced in 1997. Listverse.com Top 15 Greatest Composers of All Time. By FlameHorse. (12/17/2009) Top 15 ranked list with detailed entries and video posts. NYTimes.com The Greatest. By Anthony Tommasini. (1/21/2011) The original post which inspired the DMDB list and several of the other entries in this category. He undertook a two-week series to select the top 10 classical musical composers in history. He laid out the list via articles, videos, and blog posts which garnered more than 1500 responses. Squidoo.com The Best Classical Composers of All Time. By ?. (date?) Unranked list of five composers with links to purchase music and other related products. Writer and date unidentified. The-Top-Tens.com Greatest Classical Composers. By ?. (date?) Users post lists here and then others vote on them. This top ten list has expanded to 23 entries as added by users. Original list generator and date of creation unidentified. Very few commentaries. First posted 7/28/2012; last updated 1/26/2022.

Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Music Maker Inductees (March 2021)

Originally posted 3/22/2021. 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 ninth class of music maker inductees is comprised of the top 10 classical composers according to Dave’s Music Database. See the full list of music maker inductees here.

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer born in Eisenach, Germany. Recordings of his Cello Suites and Goldberg Variations have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Those two and his Mass in B Minor are also in the National Recording Registry. Those works as well as his Brandenburg Concertos and St. Matthew Passion all rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time and the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time. Read more.

Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born in Germany. Recordings of his Violin Concerto in D Major, Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Piano Concerto No. 5, Symphony No. 7, Piano Sonatas (32), and The String Quartets (16) have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Those works, as well as Symphony No. 3 in E-flat "Sinfonia Eroica" Symphony No. 6 "Pastoral", and Symphony No. 9 all rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time and the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time. Read more.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer born in Hamburg, Germany. His Symphony No. 4 in E minor ranks as one of the top 100 classical works of all time and the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time. A recording of his Piano Trio No. 1 in B major been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin in Duchy of Warsaw, Poland. Recordings of his Nocturnes for Piano, Waltzes, and Mazurkas have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. A recording of Polonaise, op. 40, no. 1 ("Polonaise Miltaire") is in the National Recording Registry. Read more.

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born in Rohrau, Austria. He has been called “Father of the Symphony” and “Father of the String Quartet.” He composed more than 100 symphonies and nearly 70 string quartets. He was influential in the development of chamber music such as the piano trio. Read more.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart in Salzburg, Austria. His operas The Marriage of Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro), Don Giovanni, and Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute) rank among the top 50 operas of all time. Those works as well as Symphony No. 40 in G minor, Symphony No. 41 "Jupiter", Requiem Mass in D minor, Clarinet Concerto in A major, and his Piano Concertos (27) all rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time and the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time. Read more.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born in Himmelpfortgrund, Vienna, Austria. His works Piano Quintet in A major ("Trout"), Symphony No. 8 "Unfinished"), Winterreise, Symphony No. 9 in C major ("The Great"), and String Quintet in C major all rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time. Read more.

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer born Oranienbaum, Russia. His ballets Pétrouchka (aka "Petrushka") and Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Those and The Firebird (L’Oiseau de Feu) rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time. Rite of Spring is also one of the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time and is in the National Recording Registry. Read more.

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer (Swan Lake) born in Votkinsk, Russia. Wrote Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, and the 1812 Overture, which all rank amongst the top 100 classical works of all time as does his Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, which is also one of the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time and is in the National Recording Registry and Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

Richard Wagner (1813-1883) Inducted March 2021 as a “Top Classical Composer”

Classical composer and pianist born Wilhelm Richard Wagner in Leipzig, Germany. His operas Tristan Und Isolde and The Ring Cycle (Der Ring Des Nibelungen) rank among the top 50 operas of all time, the the top 100 classical works of all time, and the DMDB’s top 1000 albums/works of all time. They are also both in the National Recording Registry and Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

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.