Classical music, being one of the oldest and most influential forms of music to ever exist, is naturally not only widely-known and appreciated, but enjoyed as well. Still, much about classical music is, as are all forms of art, hotly contested by the very nature of the quality of art being entirely subjective.

With that in mind, what classical pieces are you playing or enjoying right now and why? Similarly, who are some of your favorite composers? What works of theirs do you think are best or enjoy the most?


Right now, I'm focusing mainly on a handful of pieces - mostly the two I have selected for an audition coming up in August - but listening to many others besides:

• "Premiere Rhapsodie" by Claude Debussy
• "Clarinet Concert in A Major KV622" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• "Russian Christmas Music" by Alfred Reed
• "Sleep" by Eric Whitacre
• "Grand Russian Fantasia" by Jules Levy

The first two will feature selections for the aforementioned audition, whereas I just particularly enjoy the others at the moment.

my parents' first date was 'tristan und isolde' (what the hell was my mother thinking?). i saw my first opera when i was three ('la boheme'. to me, coat equaled teddy bear and i was horrified by colline's fate). having majored in music, i'm now a singer and voice teacher. that said, i finally got sick of classical music (it's not like it didn't give it a chance). i think the last classical thing i listened to was either 'meistersinger' (wagner), or steve reich's 'music for mallet instruments'.