Silly old git.

[Dissily Mordentroge]

Hi!

I am not as well versed on classical as I'd love to be. But I have a tremendous love and respect for Stravinsky, especially how he composed bassoons (my favourite instrument). I also like Mozart (of course), Ravel and Schuman.

I am also a person that isn't pro christianity, but I am pro no religions.

Would love to know your top ten classical pieces!

P.S don't know anything about comedy musical so I am in need of recommendations!

I’m the wrong person to ask about musical comedy, it’s one ‘art form’ I stay well away from having developed an allergy to it from the time my parents insisted on dragging me along to it at a very young age. I have to admit though as a young student of the pipe organ I was more than a bit of a musical snob.
Having said that I can recommend Leonard Bernstein’s ‘West Side Story’ despite the fact I don’t think we can call it a musical comedy. It's one of those rare works that sits between being a musical and an opera.

Ah, the bassoons ! It often strikes me as a ‘jolly’ instrument, at times bordering on comedic.

Stravinsky, Mozart, Ravel and Schumann; ; that’s a powerful list. Having been besotted with J S Back all my life I wonder why he’s not on your list?

My top ten classical pieces? That’s an impossible question for me to answer. It’s easier for me to say I’d put all of Mahler, J S Bach, Hugo Wolf, Arvo Pärt and more than a few others on my list. If there’s one piece I can’t live without, even though I only cope with it once or twice a year, it Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, the old mono recording with Kathleen Ferrier and Julian Patzak and the Vienna Philharmonic under Bruno Walter.

Don’t let not being pro-Christianity hold you back. I’m very much non-religious even though a biblical scholar (know thine enemy!). However that doesn’t prevent me becoming deeply involved in Bach’s religious works or anyone else’s. I won’t go into my reasons for giving up organ studies and turning against the church here. All I’ll say is that I refused to allow a deeply traumatic experience turn me against the music I love. At times though I have to repress an awareness of the texts of religious compositions. One in particular is a piece by Gregori Allegri , part of a body of work titled ‘Musica Prohibita’ where the phrase ‘My mother conceived me in sin’ appears. ERK!
Anyhow let’s not wander down that path or a nasty argument will be triggered with ’true believers’ who post here.