Thread: Is There a Great Composer You Plain Just Don't Like

Originally Posted by Tapkaara

Lovers GENERALLY taking it in stride is the operative word. Mozart-worshippers can't keep quiet when their hero gets a little criticism.

I worship Mozart, but I also believe in freedom of religion and freedom from religion.

Originally Posted by jhar26

Does that make them any different from the worshippers of other composers?

It's OK to worship composers.

Originally Posted by Il Seraglio

I worship Mozart, but I also believe in freedom of religion and freedom from religion.

Me too! Just like I believe in the right to vote and the right NOT to vote if all you have to vote for is a bunch of crap. Don't tell me grandpa died for my right to vote in WWII. He also died for my right to not vote if I don't want to. He died for me to have that CHOICE.

Originally Posted by Tapkaara

Me too! Just like I believe in the right to vote and the right NOT to vote if all you have to vote for is a bunch of crap. Don't tell me grandpa died for my right to vote in WWII. He also died for my right to not vote if I don't want to. He died for me to have that CHOICE.

Actually, I thought the questions was 'is there a composer you dont like?'

lets move on, shall we?

Loads of them including Wagner, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Schubert (except C major quintet) Richard Strauss (mostly), Schoenberg, Berg, Webern, Mozart, Haydn, Bach, Handel and all the other Baroque composers, Berlioz, Stravinsky (mostly), Bizet

Originally Posted by alan sheffield

Loads of them including Wagner, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Schubert (except C major quintet) Richard Strauss (mostly), Schoenberg, Berg, Webern, Mozart, Haydn, Bach, Handel and all the other Baroque composers, Berlioz, Stravinsky (mostly), Bizet

So, what do you like then?

Mozart and Haydn; all their music sounds the same to me. Same goes for (almost) every composer of the Baroque and Classical periods (up to Beethoven, who finally broke through the barrier to progress).

Originally Posted by maestro267

Mozart and Haydn; all their music sounds the same to me. Same goes for (almost) every composer of the Baroque and Classical periods (up to Beethoven, who finally broke through the barrier to progress).

I can't believe this!!! Is this a common belief? Their styles are similar, but in terms of musical ideas, Mozart and Haydn couldn't be more different! Mozart preferred high-class topics and many melodies. Haydn preferred short motifs and his music is full of imaginative humour. It would take me days to list all the differences. T anyone who thinks Mozart and Haydn sound the same, please listen and compare. You will be pleasantly surprised.

Originally Posted by maestro267

Mozart and Haydn; all their music sounds the same to me. Same goes for (almost) every composer of the Baroque and Classical periods (up to Beethoven, who finally broke through the barrier to progress).

Just like someone who does not listen to Classical music in general who says all Classical music sound alike, or someone who does not listen to Jazz who says all Jazz sound alike. Either that or they have no ear at all.

Mozart and Haydn; all their music sounds the same to me. Same goes for (almost) every composer of the Baroque and Classical periods (up to Beethoven, who finally broke through the barrier to progress).

Just like someone who does not listen to Classical music in general who says all Classical music sound alike, or someone who does not listen to Jazz who says all Jazz sound alike. Either that or they have no ear at all.

Exactly. Mozart and Haydn or Bach, Beethoven, and Vivaldi sound no more or less alike than Bruckner, Mahler, Brahms, Wagner, and Richard Strauss. As for "progress"... certainly there is change in art... but "progress"...? This assumes that one era somehow improved upon the previous and in art that is simply a ridiculous idea. Beethoven is no more an improvement upon Bach than Picasso is an improvement upon Michelangelo.

I think it's ok not to like the music of a certain era or composer. We all have our preferences. But I think people should still be open to the possibility of liking other works by a composer even if they may not like a certain work. It's all about flexibility. & I'm sure that, if one goes to a live concert, it sometimes doesn't matter that something might be on the program which you don't exactly love. It's the energy & atmosphere created by the live performance which draws me in more than just necessarily what's being played. That being said, I would never subject myself to going to a live concert of something I entirely despise (like Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony, which seems to be performed at least once a year here in Sydney), but if I am lukewarm on the piece, I might still go, especially if there's something more interesting on the program as well. It's all about variety & contrast, isn't it, one can't always listen to the same type of music, right?

I think it's ok not to like the music of a certain era or composer.

Of course... but certainly there's a difference between saying "I don't particularly like Berlioz," or "Handel's Water Music does nothing for me," and saying Mozart and Haydn and everything before Beethoven all sounds the same... or (as we've had pop up again and again recently) "Modern music sucks." I agree that being open and flexible is a real asset. Hell, I recently ordered Boulez' boxed set of Schoenberg because I'm willing to give him another go... especially at the current price for the Sony set. Of course it takes no less effort to come to an appreciation of virtually any music. Grasping Gregorian chants, Wagnerian opera, 19th century English choral music, Bach's organ music, or Beethoven's quartets can be no less demanding than Messiaen, Takemitsu, or Phillip Glass. WE all make the choice, however, as to whether the pleasure the work affords is commensurate with the effort demanded.

Originally Posted by maestro267

Mozart and Haydn; all their music sounds the same to me. Same goes for (almost) every composer of the Baroque and Classical periods (up to Beethoven, who finally broke through the barrier to progress).

One of the most bewildering comments I have ever seen on a classical music board. If I were you I'd consider packing up up listening to classical music altogether, if it is true that you find everything before Beethoven sounds the same.

Originally Posted by Opal

One of the most bewildering comments I have ever seen on a classical music board. If I were you I'd consider packing up up listening to classical music altogether, if it is true that you find everything before Beethoven sounds the same.

Reading maestro267's other posts and threads suggest maestro267 is musically trained, which makes his/her comment above even more stupid. One of the dumbest comments I've read since joining.

Originally Posted by Andre

It's all about variety & contrast, isn't it, one can't always listen to the same type of music, right?

It can be fun work stretching the brain to understand different types of art as well as being ultimately rewarding. Most though look at music as merely being something that has the right mood for them or not (music that just immediately agrees with them rather than changes them).