What is the best Symphony ever written ?

[UndertheOcean]

[UndertheOcean]

1. My vote goes to the Beethoven's 3rd , the "Eroica"

An astonishing work that no one could have possibly predicted it's creation in the early 1800's

[cemaphonic]

17. Yeah, I'm tempted to go with the 5th, cliched as that is,

but the 3rd is really where Beethoven became Beethoven.

I like the 7th a lot too, but that horrible 3rd movement disqualifies it.

[Lethe]

2. not an expert here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ENf4VEhI40&feature=related

[UndertheOcean]

4. Dvorak is fine , and if it was possible to have more than 10 choices in a poll

I would have included him . Fine as he may be , I don't think he is top 10 .

[charlie and algernon]

10. I'm a big fan of the New World Symphony as well

I love putting on the 1st movement and playing it full blast. The 2nd Mvt is incredibly moving as well.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

3. This one, and this CD offers the best performance of it I've heard

Jongen: Symphonie Concertante For Organ & Orchestra / Franck: Fantasie In A/Pastorale
Joseph Jongen (Composer), Edo de Waart (Conductor), San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (Performer), Michael Murray (Performer)

http://www.amazon.com/Jongen-Symphonie-Concertante-Orchestra-Pastorale/dp/B000003CTA/

[CBGLuthier]

5. Hard to top Beethoven's 9th for perfection

Watched a DVD of the 9th a few weeks ago. It doesn't get much better.

Personally, I love the second movement of his 7th the most but the rest of the symphony isn't as "good".

And my absolute favorite orchestral work is Holst's The Planets, but that isn't a symphony.

[ipfilter]

6. Saw Beethoven's 9th performed live with a 200 voice choir.

It was an experience I will never forget.

[charlie and algernon]

9. that must've been incredible

the Baltimore Symphony performed Beethoven's 9th over the Summer. I would've gone but it was the same day of a Chelsea-AC Milan match, also in Baltimore and my family was all coming down to see the soccer match, so no Beethoven. :-(

Last December I saw Handel's Messiah performed live at the Kennedy Center, now THAT was a performance I'll never forget and am seriously planning on seeing them do it again this coming December.

[ipfilter]

11. I listened to the 9th many times before I saw it live

so when I heard the first few bars of the first movement I had chills go up my spine. By the end of the finale and "Ode to Joy" there wasn't a dry eye in the theater. I saw it at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center about 14 years ago. Contrary to popular belief, there is some culture in Oklahoma, just not very much.

[charlie and algernon]

19. I can imagine how chilling it was

It was like that hearing The Messiah live. Hearing the opening of the Hallelujah Chorus, you WANT to stand up, it really moves you. Then the ending of the Messiah, the Amen Chorus, might be better than the Hallelujah. The way the Amens slowly build up, very quiet at first, to full choir and orchestra. :chills:

[Rabrrrrrr]

7. You were close - it's Mahler's Second.

But I'm glad to see that Mahler got some good representation in there.

[UndertheOcean]

8. From my perspective , No. 2 was just a warm up .

But you are right, the second should have been in the list.

[cemaphonic]

18. Have you heard Berio's Sinfonia?

Most of it is '60s European avant-garde that I don't really like all that much, but the 3rd movement is a massive deconstruction of Late Romantic-Early Modernist orchestral music, built on a framework of heavy quoting from "In ruhig fließender Bewegung."

[SteppingRazor]

12. Hate to pile on, but I had to go with the 9th.

When the chorus kicks in on Ode to Joy, it's awesome.

[MilesColtrane]

13. I voted for Beethoven's 9th, but...

Prokofiev's 5th is nearly perfect.

[barb162]

14. The Mahler 1st n/t

[datasuspect]

15. the selections are bit pedestrian, nicht wahr?

sorry, i am a classical music snob.

i pair certain pieces with exemplary wines in my spare time.

[UndertheOcean]

21. Well , those are what I like , and they might be famous for a reason after all

What would you recommend ?

[triguy46]

24. A very narrow list, imho.

I'll take Copland's third. Yes, American, and very easy to like, but I do like it more than the germans.

[Burma Jones]

16. Best? There is no "best"

I am partial to Beethoven's Sixth though......

[Captain Hilts]

20. I'm a Tchaikovsky, girl, but I voted Beethoven's 9th here...nt

[Capn Sunshine]

22. Where's Copeland? Gershwin? Grofe?

Euros only, huh?

[UndertheOcean]

23. I know , I know , but I had only ten spots.

[david13]

25. All of the above. These are all in the top 100.

[Doc_Technical]

26. "Symphony for blues" by Joseph Kuhn.