As I get older I find that I appreciate music that is stripped of all pretensions and is simple and direct. While my first love is Jazz, of late I've been listening to alot of blues. Its music that speaks straight to the heart. My current favorite is the music of Mississippi John Hurt. If you don't feel chills up and down your spine when you hear him sing "Since I've Laid My Burden Down" you've got a hole in your soul. Something more recent is Kelly Joe Phelps's CD "Lead Me On". His superb slide guitar work and haunting vocals have the same effect. |
Hmm
Bach - Chaconne fr Violin Partida # 2 as Played on Guitar by Andres Segovia. Taste, restraint, perfect technique. Segovia stretches the notes in a way that no one else dares.
Mozart - "Martin aller Arten" from Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail as played on Trumpet by Maurice Andre - Every soprano who ever attempts this should be required to hear what Andre wrests from this , absolutely simple, perfect. Perfect phrasing, perfect intonation, perfect control, perfect balance. Perfect
Diana Krall singing "Garden in the Rain" from "Love Scenes" |
Holst's The Planets: Charles Dutoit conducting Montreal Symphony Orchestra!! |
Oooh, one more...any Diana Krall vocals ("besame mucho", "look of love", etc.) |
It's been a while since I posted on this thread, and the A-goN computer seems to have forgotten to remind me of new posts, so I'll add another one, Gerald Finzi's Eclogue for piano and strings. Very soothing and contemplative music. |
Federic Chopin - Variations on "La ci darem la mano," Op. 2 for Piano and Orchestra (Largo) |
I don't think any of these have been mentioned.
1-Beethoven "HammerKlavier" Sonata op.106 (slow movement)
The words "achingly beautiful" were invented for this piece.
The approximately 90 seconds in the middle of the piece where the main theme transforms into an almost whispered refrain is the most orgasmic 90 seconds I have ever experience,listening to music that is:)
2-Beethoven Quartet opus 131.
The middle child or the brilliant "late quartets". Unlike the Hammerklavier, this one has to be experienced in its entirety. Unfathomably beautiful.
3-Jeff Buckley's cover of Len Cohen's "Hallelujah"
It's rare, but pop music can occasionally achieve "achingly beautiful" status. I feel like a selfish bastard always wishing he had not left us, just so he could make more music that touches the soul. |
Rachmaninoff Piano Concertos No. 2 & 3; Horacio Guttierez/Lorin Maazel on telarc --
IMHO, the ULTIMATE recording of the ULTIMATE composition. |
Ravel and Prokofiev. has anyone mentioned these geniuses? Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe and Piano Concertos demand great equipment. huge dynamic range. Prokofiev's romeo & juliet, piano concertos 1,2, and 3, and violin concerto no. 2 are essentials. Especially listen for the excellent contrast at the beginning of Romeo & Juliet montagues & capulets theme! (before the famous lumbering melody strikes) A true test of concert hall aptitude. |
Van Morrison, almost anything by him moves me. |
Oh boy, music which I cannot perform without a good ,long period of desensitization to get my emotions under control.Also, have any of you noticed that the emotional impact seems to increase as we get older? The Allegri "Misereri", the Brahms motets, in particular, "Warum?" and "Las Dichts Nur nichts nicht dauren" but all of them are great The J.S. Bach motets also persist in blowing me away after 30 years of exposure. |
Right on Brownie. That is a beautiful recording of The Planets. I also have to go along with previous posts about Margo Timmins of The Cowboy Junkies, (Sweet Jane), as well as putting forward Maggie Reilly on some of the Mike Oldfield albums (eg Five Miles Out, To France etc.) Haunting....
Paul |
Klemperer's Mahler 2
Kim Kashkashian's Britten Lachrymae
Byron Janis
Shostakovich 11 'The Year 1905'
Peter Pears singing Britten |
ah, Milstein's Goldmark Violin Concerto
(what was Sarah Chang thinking!? pardon my bitchiness. ) |
Just about every single classical music piece can qualify - it just takes a bit of a commitment on our part to come to appreciate it. Since we all have nice systems I am sure, why not try to branch out and appreciate all sorts of music? |
Can something be beautiful and ache? What is soothingly-ugly music?
Just a thought. |
Poets and psychologists have pondered the question "why we respond to beauty with tears..." without arriving at a final solution, except to wonder if it is becuase it reminds us of the rest of the times in our lives, that are not filled with constant beauty and happiness... making the satisfying listening moments that much more precious.
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Casssandra Wilson-Harvest Moon, Jane Siberry-Taxi Ride, Bill Evans-Peace Piece. |
Ella Fitzgerald singing "I Loves You Porgy" on her 40th birthday concert recording
Stevie Wonder singing "You and I" on Innervisions
The Beatles "Something"
Luciano Pavarotti singing the aria "Nessum Dorma" from Turandot
World Saxophone Quartet peforming "Ming" on Revue
Joan Baez singing "All My Trials" on her first eponymous Vanguard LP
Cesaria Evora singing "Sodade" from Miss Perfumado
John Coltrane playing "Naima" from Giant Steps
Does this kind of list actually have an end? |
Too many classical pieces to mention but in the rock world,"Soon","And you and I","Close to the Edge" from Yes,"Afterglow","Ripples" and "Your Own Special Way" from Genesis,and "Shine on you Crazy Diamond" from Pink Floyd aways get my emotions flowing. |
Tiny Tim: Tip Toe Through The Tulips (LOL)
Miles davis, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Byrd, Santana
These guys could speak beatiful words through the playing of their individual instruments.
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Some may laugh at this one, but oh well! A few years ago, I think it was the Grammy Awards, Lucianno Pavorotti was to perform but became ill at the last minute. Aretha Franklin volunteered to sing the same piece of music and did so. I've never been more moved by a vocal performance before or since. It may have been a combination of the circumstances plus Ms. Franklin's unbelievable voice. I have no explanation. It was truly moving as well as achingly-beautiful. |
Mazzy Star's "Fade into you" is a great song with beautifully haunting vocals. I also found Sarah Brightman's CD "Dive" to be chock full of great songs. |
Others that may have been missed
1) Karrin Allyson "It's easy to Remember" Ballads album.
2) Dianne Reeves "The Twelvth of Never" That Day album.
3) Natalie Cole "The Music That Makes me Dance" Ask A Women Who Knows album.
4) Bob Dylan "To Make You Feel My Love" Hope Floats album done by Garth Brooks.
5) Hollies "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother".
6) Yo-Yo Ma "Doce De Coco" Obrigado Brazil album.
7) Renee Fleming "You'll Never Walk Alone" By Request album.
8) Renee Fleming "River Songs" Two Worlds album of Dave Grusin.
9) Sarah Brightman "Time to Say Goodbye" with Andrea Bocelli.
10) Diana Krall "Your looking At Me" All For You album.
11) Alison Krauss "When You Say Nothing AT All" Live album.
12) Jane Monheit "A Case OF You" Come Dream With Me album. Also on Diana Krall Live album. By Joni Mitchell.
13) Mary Chapin Carpenter "The Long Way Home" Time Sex Love album.
14) Holly Cole "I Can See Clearly Now" Don't Smoke In Bed album.
15) Arvo Part "Fur Alina and Spiegel Im Spiegel"
These are my three. John Dean
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I'm no DeadHead, but Garcia and Grisman's version of Friend of the Devil can soak most people up- probably the most musical thing Jerry has done. |
for achingly-beautiful you might try rachmaninoffs vocalise featuring sylvia mcnair & the baltimore symphony orchestra- almost 7 minutes of total bliss. i actually tried to sit down and answer this question, but picking three is impossible...but here goes (in no particular order)..dvorak symphony 9, bach violin concertos, beethoven symphonies..arrrrrgh what about brahms, mozart, mahler, sibelius,, this is futile.. hayden, tchaikovsky, rimsky-korsakov..aaaarrrrghhh |
Samba Pa Ti from Abraxas, Santana |
Stevie Ray Vaughan's rendition of Hendrix's "Little Wing" (Jimi's wasn't too bad either), Bruce Springsteen "My City of Ruin" from "America: Tribute to Heroes" (could include several cuts from that set). On the other end of the emotional spectrum, "Key to the Highway" from Derek and the Dominoes "Layla and other assorted love songs". Something magical was going on between Clapton and Duane Allman in the studio during those sessions, and it may have been captured best on this track.
FWIW,
Mike |
Panufnik Sinfonia Sacra
U2 - Elvis Presley and America (Unforgettable Fire)
Nascimento - Sao Vicente |
OK, herewith my contributions from the Baroque catalog:
From the 2-CD album of the complete Albinoni Concertos, Opus 9, with Christopher Hogwood (Decca 289 458 129-2), the following movements:
a) Concerto No. 2 in D minor - Adagio - Track 5 CD 1
b) Concerto No. 11 in B flat minor - Allegro - Track 13 CD 2
And from Frederic Chopin, as interpreted by Arthur Rubenstein in a 2 CD set on EMI Classics (1992), the Nocturne in C sharp minor, possibly the most symmetrically beautiful of Chopin's creations. |
Pictures At An Exhibition, especially "The Great Gates..." at the end, either in Piano ala Janis or Ravel's orchestration versions...
To Be Over,,,a YES tune in their Relayer album...
Awaken,,,Yes tune from Going For The One.. |
Glenn Gould's 1981 release of the Goldberg Variations.
This Man's Soul is imprinted in the performance. |
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That's a great piece. Acid Classical, IMO. |
Pink Floyd's "THE WALL", Roxy music's "AVALON",the Who's "TOMMY" and Holst "THE PLANETS" |
Gounod's "Ave Maria" performed to a Samba rhythum by the Brazilian artist Jorge Aragao. Hard to imagine right? Well it is just a beautiful arrangement and performance and its L!!!I!!V!!E. Label: Universal Mfg's Catalog#: 1001192 |
My 2 cents worth
Rach piano 2 - the whole thing drips emotion !!
Shostakovich piano 2- 2nd movement
Bruch - violin concerto -2nd movement -kyung wha chung on the decca label
of modern music Heart siging live "love hurts" by Nazareth - never cared for the original but boy does she really sound like she means it
and finally Chris Issak - "end of everything" from the forever blue album.
Thanks to all the contributions here - there are some pieces i have never heard but will go out and find that im sure i will love and i hope my selections do the same. |
Jimi,,"Castles Made of Sand","Angel" Sade, Mackenzie & William Jackson "Ba Mo Leanabh(Oh My Baby)on Linn Records. |
Beatles Abbey Road always gets me. Never Fails
Same thing Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, especially So What
Last one hard to choose, but have to go for women vocals given "achingly beautiful" i guess...that's eva cassidy's live album |
Schubert G flat major Impromptu
Mozart Clarinet Concerto 2nd movement
Beethoven "Spring" Sonata for violin and piano 1st and
2nd movement
Lauridsen Lux Aeterna
Allegri Misere
Grieg Piano Concerto 2nd movement
Beethoven Violin Concerto 2nd movement
Schubert Die Schonen Mullerin final song
Strauss Four Last Songs
Vaughn Williams Lark Ascending
Somei Sato Birds in Warped Time II
Korngold Die tote stadt
Wagner Liebestod
Mal Waldron/Eric Dolphy Warm Canto |
Not sure if the most achingly-beautiful music,
but a few pop songs that will bring a tear to my eye:
Peter Paul & Mary - Where have all the flowers gone
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Life by the drop
Smashing Pumpkins - Rocket
The Beatles - Blackbird |
The slow movements from the Shostakovich 5th Symphony and Violin, Cello and Piano Concerti. He had a special knack for writing these movements. |
I am exploring the Dvorak "Cello Concerto", I heard it performed live on Sat. night by The Haddonfield (NJ) Symphony with Mark Kowsower as soloist. Wonderful music. |
Slipknot you may want to check out Jacqueline Dupre's version on EMI Mfg's Catalog # 47614
Highly Recommended! |
Tubegroover,
Thanks for the tip! I'll look for it. |
gotta second mozart's k.466 piano concert #20 D minor. My favorite Mozart work and up with my favorite songs of all time. All three movements are amazing, but how he weaves and builds everything to a climax in the development leading to the recap is just goosebump city for me. I know what's coming, but it still bowls me over.
Nobody sounds as "perfect" as mozart to me. I don't know what perfect means in regards to music, but after hearing his songs I just think "perfect" !!! |
There are too many to mention but I'll name 3 that come to mind because of the way the music moves me. Mary Chapin Carerpenter's "John Doe no. 24" from the "Stones in The Road CD", Diana Krall's rendition of Joni Mitchell's "Case Of You" from "Live In Paris", and some of the music from the soundtrack of the Ken Burns film "Lewis and Clark". |
Solveig's Song on The Very Best of Lucia Popp (EMI Classics double CD). Whenever I play that for someone they are quiet for a few moments before saying that it was one of the most beautiful pieces of music they ever heard. Popp to me has hands down the most beautiful voice of any Soprano on record, and these 2 CD's should be in the collection of everyone who loves the female voice. |
Allright,
gotta step in and rag on this thread for a moment.
For some reason i read the title of this thread and i picture some 45 year old bald guy in extremly expencive clothes sitting on his chair with his head back and hands over his heart with a pained smile and tear in his eye, taking a deep breath and whimpering a little as he exhales.
Oh, it is so beautiful it hurts! It is like it was written for me! -sniff- Me! Oh, how it aches.
BAH HAH HAH HAH SHUTTUP!
I like good music, and yes there is plenty of good music out there, and some very beautiful passages, but there is no music out there that makes me ribbit-up like a frog and cry.
Maybe im just too calloused.
Anyways, in my opinion, some of the most beautiful music is from the Legendary Pink Dots. Either the "Crushed Velvet Apocalyplse LP" or the "9 Lives to Wonder" Cd. Both beautiful, the latter album can get extremly haunting though.
Sorry, but i had to throw that in, ive been too good for too long! :)
-Slappy, Ruler of Planet Earth- |
1. Beethoven's Archduke Trio defines achingly beautiful or maybe just hauntingly beautiful.
2. Kiri singing Dovo Sono from Marriage of Figaro
3. Elgar's Cello Concierto - Jacqueline du Pre - also defines more the ache than the beautiful |
