What Is the Greatest Musical Work of All Time?

3/1/2006 | Reaganesque

[Reaganesque]

I was sitting here tonight listening to Mozart's Requiem and I got to thinking: what do I consider to be the best work of music ever? For my part, Mozart's work really does the trick for me when I need to be re-energized. Therefore, I believe that his Requiem is the greatest work of all time. There just isn't another work that is as powerful and passionate. When the chorus sings the final "Amen" at the end of "Lacrimosa" I get the feeling that he knew it was the last thing he would ever write. It gives me chills at times.

Other favorites are:

Handel's Messiah

The 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky

[MistrX]

O what a lucky man you are.

[Liberty Valance]

Don't mess with my toot-toot ~ Rockin' Sydney

[connectthedots]

I need a 5th to listen to Beethoven's 9th.

[DollyCali]

lol

My former hubby each weekend would ask ..Well, what is it going to be this weekend.. one of the Supermans or Somewhere in Time... HA!

[DollyCali]

too funny

but.... hmm.

going to get some goose & tonic.. just because! thanks for triggering my memory for something I forgot tonight in the "fun" along the way here at FR

[JustaCowgirl]

So much music, so little time.

So true. Roy Orbison's voice may be my choice as the sexiest and purest male singing voice I've ever heard. Marty Robbins a close second. Vern Gosdin, totally sexy baritone voice. George Jones, omigosh can that guy put passion into a song. When you analyze his voice, there's nothing special about it, but I love his music.

Of contemporary singers, I'd pick Dwight Yoakum. Of female voices, gotta go with Enya.

[MistrX]

Please Please Please get this cut.
You will be amazed.
Beyond belief.

[karnage]

I'm witchoo.

[BigCinBigD]

Ode to Joy.

[smug]

Let me add to my own post.

Without a doubt Beethoven's 9th

Second place goes to "The Bonnie Blue Flag"

Third place, "Ashokan Farewell"

Fourth Place, "Eine Kliene Nacht Musik"

[choirboy]

Saw him do that live in 1956-57 at the Loyola Univ (LA) gym. The audience went snake as we used to say.

Lotsa good picks above, but can't forget Stan Kenton's Artistry in Rhythm. Saw that live, too

[Old_Mil]

I like Yanni & Enya & Mannheim Steamroller.. guess most "real" musicians would chase me away with a stick. But I will never claim to be a music expert.. just know what I resonate with/to.

Ah, let them! My personal opinion is that post-Pyotr Ilyich (and some of his stuff sounded like he had gotten a bit too deep into the crack too), things in Nashville got a bit bizarre.

I like Mannheim Steamroller and Enya, but I won't put them in the same category as Yanni. Based on the quality of the music that springs from his imagination, I put him right up there with Mozart. An example for those who haven't heard his work (and keep in mind, that this MIDI approximation is a poor mirror indeed of the real thing).
http://www.wvi.com/~celinec/midi/reflpass.mid

[JustaCowgirl]

Pinging you to a thread you don't want to miss.

[John Lenin]

Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman are two of my favorites of that era.

[Cyclopean Squid]

Yanni's Santorini is superb. Top Shelf.

[Mo1]

You scare me

http://www.gilligansisle.com/wave/youneedus.mp3

LOL!!!

[parisa]

One of the great masterpieces of American music, Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings.

[Tunehead54]

My bologna has a first name...

---

That's my other favorite! Thanks!

Actually, in my defense, I love most kinds of music except rap and disco. My wife plays piano, and my kids: violin, cello & viola so I get my share of the classics. I get it all and if you don't get it well ... too bad. ;-)

[johnnycap]

Beethoven's 9th, hands down. If there is music playing when we arrive in Heaven its the Choral from Beethoven's ninth. You want to know what God listen's to? Hint, the deaf guy from Germany received it straight from the divine.

[Ichneumon]

Actually I like Clasical, but some of the rock stuff of the seventies was impressive to me...Emerson Lake and Palmer come to mind.....

I saw ELP in concert way back when (great show), and as I was walking out across the floor of the arena after the show had ended I happened to walk past an enormous set of mixing equipment which apparently had been used to help produce the live sound. As I looked it over, amid the hundreds of dials and sliders and NASA-looking control panels, I noticed a tiny handmade sticker that someone in the crew had made and put onto the console, which said, "...but it's only a three-man band..."

Hmm, now I think it's time to blow the dust off an old album and put ELP's "Pirates" on loud enough to rumble the subwoofer.