Like many, I consider symphonies to be the highest expression of the western canon of classical music. Partisans of opera, chamber music, and solo piano music may disagree, of course. I've put together a list of the symphonies which I believe to be the most important and/or interesting from the Classical and Romantic periods, as well as a few early Moderns. I was tempted to include piano and violin concertos as "honorary" three movement symphonies with extended solos, but decided against it. I've also excluded symphonic poems, e.g. those of Franz Liszt (even those he called symphonies), Richard Strauss, Claude...