[allaroundmusicenthusiast]

I do not know. There are desert island works in every period from 1700 on.

I agree, and I would also say that also holds true for any period from the late medieval/early renaissance period onwards. But forced to choose between these, it'd either be 1875-1899 or 1950-1974

 

[SanAntone]

The simple breaking up the centuries along 25 year lines does not match my own preferences, which usually tend to straddle the turn of centuries, e.g. 1885-1910 or other periods which are not so cleanly articulated. Also, there is really no single 25 year period which contains most of the music I love.

So no vote from me.

 

[Olias]

1775-1799

Mozart's best operas, piano concerti, string quartets, clarinet concerto, etc.
Haydn's Paris, Channel, and London Symphonies, along with all those great string quartets.
Beethoven has already come out with 10 piano sonatas, a piano concerto, and is composing his 1st symphony and Op 18 quartets

Josephine Vienna in the 1780s is the one place I would time travel to if I could.

 

[haziz]

I would pick the entire 19th century, where the vast majority of my favorite compositions lay. However, if forced to pick only one quarter century it would be 1801 to 1825, thanks to one composer, Beethoven, although I probably have more favorite compositions in the 1876-1900 thanks to Tchaikovsky and numerous other Romantics.

 

[HerbertNorman]

Very narrow and a very tough one, but I voted 1825-1849 ...

But this is such a hard one . I voted because I like Schubert and he composed some of his finest works in this timeframe...

 

[science]

I'm thinking 1500-1524.

 

[Roger Knox]

'59 to '64? What's your passion in that five year period? There was the Poulenc Gloria, Shostakovich wrote the first cello concerto, Kodaly wrote his only symphony, Walton his second, Ligeti wrote Atmospheres, Shostakovich the Babi Yar symphony, Bernstein came out with Kaddish symphony. There was so much more - works by W. Schuman, Sessions, Stockhausen, Diamond, Henze and so many others. And so little of it is known, played or even recorded.

I voted 1875-1899. All the symphonies of Brahms, most of Tchaikovsky and Dvorak. The early Mahler and the best Bruckner. The Russian Nationalists in full bloom. An enormous part of the standard repertoire came from these 25 years.

Plus the French: Franck, Saint-Saens, Faure, Massenet, D'Indy, Chausson, Chaminade, early Debussy and Satie.

 

[progmatist]

1925-49. That was the peak for non-opera Italians Casella, Respighi and Pizzetti. As well as my favorite English composers like Bax, Walton, Vaughan Williams, etc.