Nate Brown, Composer

It's Week 7 of The Works! Start with episode 7 of the Listening to the Works podcast, including a review of the pieces from Week 6 and a discussion of musicality.

Here's the Spotify playlist for the coming week.

Here are the works on the list for Week 7, along with links to scores where available and texts for vocal works:

Jelly Roll Morton
Selected recordings from 1923-1927 with Morton on solo piano and leading a trio and the Red Hot Peppers
A few piano scores of Morton's compositions are available here. Don't forget to check in the “collections” tab.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 10 (for two pianos)
(recommended recordings: Argerich/Rabinovitch; Labèque Sisters; Emil and Elena Gilels)

Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 3
This symphony includes vocal parts. Here is the text and translation.
(recommended recordings: Berlin Philharmonic/Abbado; New York Philharmonic/Bernstein)

Maurice Ravel
Works for solo piano (note: You have to click on the “arrangements and transcriptions” tab to find the scores of the orchestrated versions, even though they are Ravel's own orchestrations.)
 - Menuet antique (also an orchestral version)
 - Pavane pour une infante défunte (also an orchestral version)
 - Jeux d'eau
 - Sonatine
 - Alborada del gracioso (No. 4 from Miroirs; also an orchestral version)
(recommended piano recordings: Robert Casadesus; Alexandre Tharaud; orchestral recordings: Cleveland Orchestra/Boulez; Montréal Symphony/Dutoit)

Here is a list of all 270-ish pieces, titled “Symphony” or something similar, that will be part of The Works project. 

The list is arranged in roughly chronological order by composer, based on the earliest piece in the list by each composer. Where the symphonies are numbered, just the numbers will be shown. Many numbered symphonies also have descriptive titles, but these are not included.

All of these pieces are for orchestra except where noted. A few are for strings only, but most include woodwinds, brass and percussion. Several also include chorus and/or solo voices. These are marked with an asterisk (I probably missed some, but will edit as the project progresses).

Classical Era
William Boyce: 1-8
Haydn: 6-8, 13-16, 22, 26, 30, 31, 43-45, 48, 49, 53, 55, 59, 60, 63, 64, 73, 82-104 (and maybe a few others!)
Mozart: 25-27, 29, 31-36, 38-41
Beethoven: 1-9 (9*)

Romantic Era
Carl Maria von Weber: 1, 2
Schubert: 3-6, 8, 9 (Schubert's symphony numbering is tricky; this assumes that the sketches from 1821 are assigned number 7)
Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique, Symphonie funebre et triomphale*, Romeo et Juliette*
Wagner: Symphony in C
Mendelssohn: 3-5
Schumann: 1-4
Franz Berwald: 1-3
Georges Bizet: Symphony in C
Liszt: Dante Symphony*
Camille Saint-Saens: 2, 3
Bruckner: 1-9 (but not "number 0")
Tchaikovsky: 1-6 plus Manfred Symphony
Borodin: 1-3
Rimsky-Korsakov: 2
Dvorak: 5-9
Brahms: 1-4
Mahler: 1-9 (2*, 3*, 4*, 8*) plus the Adagio movement of the unfinished number 10
Cesar Franck: Symphony in D minor
Charles Gounod: Petite Symphonie (for 9 winds)
Ernest Chausson: Symphony in B flat
Alexander Glazunov: 4, 5, 7
Sibelius: 1-7
Nielsen: 2-6
Elgar: 1-3
Richard Strauss: An Alpine Symphony
Janacek: Sinfonietta

Modern Era
Sergei Rachmaninoff: 1-3
Amy Beach: Gaelic Symphony
Charles Ives: 1-4 (4*) plus Universe Symphony
Alexander Scriabin: 3-5
Josef Suk: Asrael Symphony
Igor Stravinsky: Symphony in C, Symphony in E flat, Symphony in Three Movements, Symphony of Psalms, Symphonies of Wind Instruments (for wind ensemble)
Reinhold Gliere: 3
Ralph Vaughan Williams: 1-9 (1*, 7*)
Karol Szymanowski: 3*
Sergei Prokofiev: 1-7
Gustav Holst: First Choral Symphony*
Dmitri Shostakovich: 1-15 (2*, 3*, 13*)
Virgil Thomson: 1
Anton Webern: Symphony for Chamber Orchestra
Arnold Bax: 3
Aaron Copland: 2, 3 plus Dance Symphony
William Grant Still: 1
Albert Roussel: 3
Howard Hanson: 2-4, 6, 7*
Carlos Chavez: 1, 2
Franz Schmidt: 4
William Dawson: Negro Folk Symphony
Paul Hindemith: Mathis der Maler Symphony, Symphony in E flat, Symphony in B flat (for band)
William Walton: 1
Samuel Barber: 1
Roy Harris: 3 (and possibly others)
Benjamin Britten: Sinfonia da Requiem, Spring Symphony*
Florence Price: 3
Arthur Honegger: 2, 3, 5
William Schuman: 3, 6
Lou Harrison: 2
Elliott Carter: 1 plus Symphony of Three Orchestras
Don Gillis: 4
Walter Piston: 2, 6
Bohuslav Martinu: 4, 6
David Diamond: 4
Roger Sessions: 2, 6, 7, 9
Karl Amadeus Hartmann: 2, 4, 8
Witold Lutoslawski: 1-4
Olivier Messiaen: Turangalila Symphony
Leonard Bernstein: 2
Peter Mennin: 5
Robert Kurka: 2
Hans Werner Henze: 4, 6, 7
Alan Hovhaness: 2, 50 (not a typo; he wrote 67!)
Michael Tippett: 2-4
Ned Rorem: 3
Roberto Gerard: 3
Luciano Berio: Sinfonia*
Henryk Gorecki: 3*
Robert Simpson: 6, 9
George Rochberg: 5
John Harbison: 2
Peter Maxwell Davies: 4
John Corigliano: 1
Philip Glass: 1
Michael Daugherty: Metropolis Symphony
Einojuhani Rautavaara: 7
 

It's Week 6 of The Works! Start with episode 6 of the Listening to the Works podcast, including a review of the pieces from Week 5 and a discussion of musical texture.

Here's the Spotify playlist for the coming week.

Here are the works on the list for Week 6:

Giacomo Puccini
Tosca - score; synopsis and libretto with translation
recommended recording: Maria Callas as Tosca at La Scala, conducted by de Sabata
recommended video: Hildegard Behrens as Tosca at the Met, conducted by Sinopoli

Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphonies 6 (Le Matin), 7 (Le Midi), and 8 (Le Soir)
(recommended recording: Northern Chamber Orchestra/Ward; Hanover Band/Goodman)

Mily Balakirev
Islamey for solo piano (and version orchestrated by Casella)
(recommended recordings: Boris Berezovsky; Simon Barere; Philadelphia Orchestra/Ormandy)

Dmitry Shostakovich
Sonata for Violin and Piano
(recommended recordings: Oleg Kagan; Rostislav Dubinsky)

Fats Domino
Selected early recordings

Little Richard
Selected early recordings

Bonus listening selection: Tamara by Balakirev

Week 5 of The Works begins with episode 5 of Listening to the Works, on your favorite podcast platform. We talk about how film music fits into the project and the difference between recordings of piano music and programming for actual recitals and concerts.

Here's the Spotify playlist for the coming week.

Here are the works on the list for Week 5:

Aaron Copland
Fanfare for the Common Man
(recommended recordings: Boston Pops/Williams; US Air Force Band; London Symphony/Copland; Philadelphia Orchestra/Ormandy)
Symphony No. 3
(recommended recordings: New York Philharmonic/Bernstein; Philharmonia Orchestra/Copland)

Leos Janacek
Glagolitic Mass
(recommended recordings: Czech Philharmonic/Mackerras; London Symphony/Tilson Thomas)

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Stanzas to the Blessed Virgin (consists of 8 madrigals)
1. Vergine bella (score; text)
2. Vergine saggia (score; text)
3. Vergine pura (score; text)
4. Vergine santa (score; text)
5. Vergine sola al mondo (score; text)
6. Vergine chiara (score; text)
7. Vergine quante lagrime (score; text)
8. Vergine tale è terra (score; text)
(recommended recordings: Hilliard Ensemble; Akademia)

Original Dixieland Jazz Band
Selected early recordings

New Orleans Rhythm Kings
Selected early recordings

Week 4 of The Works! Here's the new podcast episode, in which I review last week's pieces, talk about listening to music in other languages, and preview the works coming up this week.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing the recordings for Week 4.

Here are the works on this week's list, including some links to the scores (and other relevant information) where available:

Paragon Ragtime Orchestra
Album: On the Boardwalk (read the liner notes here)

Eubie Blake
I wanted to listen to his appearance on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz, but I don't have access to it. If you do, listen to it this week! Here's information about the album, and here's one piece from it.

Dmitri Shostakovich
Music (Op. 116) from the film Hamlet (not to be confused with the incidental music he wrote for the play)
Watch the film or listen to the recording of the suite (Op. 116a) conducted by Yablonsky (alternate recording conducted by Sinaisky)

Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 2
This symphony includes vocal parts. The texts and translations can be found here.
Recommended recording: Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Klemperer (alternates: City of Birmingham Symphony/Rattle; New York Philharmonic/Bernstein; NYPO/Walter)

J. S. Bach
15 Two-Part Inventions
15 Three-Part Sinfonias (or Inventions)
Recommended recording on piano: Angela Hewitt (alternates: Glenn Gould; Andras Schiff) and on harpsichord: Ton Koopman

Week 3 of The Works begins with the new podcast episode, in which I review last week's pieces, share a little bit about my experience with opera as a non-opera-buff, and preview the works coming up this week.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing the recordings for Week 3.

Here are pieces on this week's list, including some links to the scores where available:

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Missa Papae Marcelli
Missa Inviolata - this video is the only performance I could find.

Franz Liszt
Transcendental Études

Aaron Copland
Dance Symphony
Short Symphony

Giuseppe Verdi
Rigoletto - here is the libretto with an English translation, and here is a synopsis of the opera.

Week 2 of The Works begins with the new podcast episode, in which I review last week's pieces, discuss Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, and preview the works coming up this week.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing the recordings for Week 2.

Here are pieces on this week's list, including some links to the scores where available:

György Ligeti
Cello Concerto

Franz Schubert
Die Schöne Müllerin (find the song texts and translations here)

Agustín Barrios
Guitar Works (see Spotify playlist for specific pieces)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 9

Big Joe Turner
This link shows the compilation album Big, Bad, and Blue as a 3-CD set with 61 tracks, but on Spotify it only has 28 tracks, so I have included all of those plus 6 more of his most important singles.

Eubie Blake
This link shows an LP of piano rolls made from Blake's playing between 1917-1921, recorded in 1973 under Blake's supervision. My Spotify list includes all of these songs, but I can't be sure they're the same recordings. A few other Blake pieces, played by himself, are also on the list. Most of his scores are not yet public domain, but this one is (in the US only).

Other Ragtime Composers
James Scott: Grace and Beauty and Ragtime Oriole
Tom Turpin: Saint Louis Rag
Joseph Lamb: American Beauty and Nightingale Rag

I have embarked upon a new 10-year project: to listen to all the Great Music of the Western World (aka The Works)! Listen to my first podcast episode here to get some background on the project.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing most of the recordings for Week 1.

Here are links to the scores (and sometimes recordings) for this week's pieces:

Scott Joplin
Rags (list below)
Piano roll recordings

Erik Satie
3 Gymnopédies
3 Gnossiennes (just nos. 1-3)
Arrangements by John Hackett and Steve Hackett:

• Gymnopédie No. 1
• Gymnopédie No. 2
• Gymnopédie No. 3
• Gnossienne No. 1
• Gnossienne No. 2
• Gnossienne No. 3

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet, Op. 18 No. 1
String Quartet, Op. 18 No. 2

Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 1

*Joplin rags: Maple Leaf Rag; Original Rags; The Favorite; The Easy Winners; The Entertainer; Elite Syncopations; A Breeze from Alabama; Palm Leaf Rag; Weeping Willow; The Cascades; The Chrysanthemum; The Ragtime Dance (2nd version); Reflection Rag; Gladiolus Rag; Searchlight Rag; Pine Apple Rag; Fig Leaf Rag; Paragon Rag; Wall Street Rag; Euphonic Sounds; Solace; Pleasant Moments; Scott Joplin's New Rag; Magnetic Rag