AIBU to ask for what you think is the most beautiful piece of classical music you have ever heard

[Myworstnightmare123]

I want to put together a playlist for my DD as she has a horrendously difficult time ahead of her (you can search my username to see why) I am hoping it will help her in some way...calm her. Take her mind off things.

Not sure if it counts but Like a bridge over troubled water makes me teary. I love moonlight sonata too.

Montagues and Capulets Prokofiev. I'm so cross with Alan Sugar for using it for The Apprentice-i know it's unreasonable but I feel it cheapens it.

This is one I've always loved.

Saw Romeo and Juliet last week and as always when that starts there is a ripple of recognition through the audience and whispers etc but frankly the choreography at the point is so wonderful that it somehow doesn’t ruin it or break the spell. !

There are some great playlists on YouTube if you put in relaxing or beautiful piano .

Elgar Introduction and Allegro

The second movement of the Bach double violin concerto in B minor - beautiful - and also famous for the scene with William Hurt in Children of a lesser god...

No classical music but I love the piece of music in the movie Hanibal 'Vide Cor Meum', it's opera, but is stunning; emotional and evocative

*Not

Barber’s Adagio for Strings, gets me every time

Nadias Theme

Adagio for Strings
Miserere (the version by The Sixteen is glorious)
Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix from Samson and Delilah
The Flower Song from Carmen
The Pearl Fishers duet
The 3 big arias from La Boheme - Che gelida manina, Sì, mi chiamano Mimì and O soave fanciulla) - Actually the whole of La Boheme - gets me every single time

There's an album I have on my iPod called '40 Most Beautiful Arias' which has some absolute crackers on it, including all the ones mentioned above.

Wormentrude beautiful isn't it x

Handel's water music
Fingals cave
Concierto de aranjuez
Cantares sung by UX choir

Hard to beat Ravel's Pavane pour une infanta defunte. It's exquisite. Makes me cry!

I also like Farewell to Stromness by Peter Maxwell Davies.

Dvorak's symphony no. 9 for the New World is one that I'd add to this brilliant list, along with Chopin's piano concerto no.2.
The end credits to Braveheart are also very beautiful. for you and your dd.

Barbers adagio for strings and Swan lake is also so haunting

I love the oratorio called The Dream of Gerontius by Sir Edward Elgar, especially the choir singing: Praise to the Holiest. Very uplifting. If you can find the version with Janet Baker, singing the part of the Angel that's the best in my opinion. The piece from the oratorio lasts about 15-20 minutes. I have a passion for classical music. An alternative could be The Lord is my Shepherd by John Rutter. You don't have to have a faith, in order to be moved. The third alternative could be I dreamed a dream.

Not classical but baroque: Dido’s Lament by Purcell.

(Alison Moyet covered it in an interesting way recently).

There is some lovely music in video games. To Zanarkandd from Final Fantasy 10 is beautiful.

I love the second movement of the New World symphony by Dvorak.

Did you know the theme is actually played by a very unusual instrument that is something of a misnomer? It's called an English horn. It's broadly similar to an oboe. Ironically it's not a horn at all, it's a woodwind, and it's not even English. It's of French origin.

Towards the end of mozart’s Opera cosi fan tutti there is a sublime quartet of 4 voices weaving around each other - like music from heaven. I’ve known it for many years but only recently saw it performed for the first time on stage with translation. Turns out the bass is saying really mean things about the other three singers behind their backs. Still it is all the more wonderful for that.

Also wonderful is the ravel piano concerto in G. The slow movement is one of those pieces you just have to stop everything for to listen as it is so unbelievably lovely, and the final movement is as if everyone is getting ready for a crazy but fantastically exuberant circus.

Also has someone suggested the soundtrack to the Mission? Such fantastic film music. The best.

Mozart's clarinet quintet in A major. The second movement is sublime.

Another vote for Soave Sia Il Vento - it made me cry the first time I heard it performed.

I love the clarinet and would also recommend Gregory Finzi's clarinet concerto.

For piano, Chopin's Etude in E major (all the etudes are great, but this is my favourite) and Erik Satie's Trois Gymnopedies.

Has anyone mentioned the Elgar cello concerto yet?

Fuck, how could I have forgotten the Concerto D'Aranjuez? So uplifting.