Classical Music Faves II

While the first warm, sunny day of spring may indicate stirrings of life and signs of rebirth- and makes most people happy- it’s usually a false alarm followed by more miserable weather (not to mention spring allergies). Perhaps it’s my Northern European background (French, Irish, German, and Russian) that makes me prefer long, cold winters to the unpredictability of spring in places like New York and Virginia.

Felix Mendelssohn

I prefer a cold, rainy morning in April sitting in a solarium looking out rain streaked windows to a hike in the woods on a sunny April afternoon when all the trees look dead and the chill in the air stings my soul. Here are some more of my favorite classical music songs that seem to fit my mood as I enter yet another April remembering- and dreaming of- summer’s sweet kiss. Hurry up, May! Hurry! Enjoy!

Springtime by Claude Monet

01. Mendelssohn: “Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 56 MWV N 18 – ‘Scottish’: 2. Vivace non troppo (Live)” 

       – Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Yannick Nézet-Séguin (2016)

02. Shostakovich: “Jazz Suite No. 2: VI. Waltz No. 2”

       – Dmitry Yablonsky, Russian State Symphony Orchestra (2001)

03. The King’s Singers – “Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover” (1992)

04. Granados: “Danza Española, Op. 37, No. 32 – ‘Oriental’”

       – Pepe & Celine Romero (1982)

05. Saint-Saëns: “The Carnival of the Animals: Aquarium”

       – Richard Stamp, Academy of London (1989)

06. Andrea Bocceli – “Con Te Partirò” (1995)

07. Tchaikovsky: “The Nutcracker: Op. 71, TH.14 / Act 2: No. 13 Waltz of the Flowers” 

       – Valery Gergiev, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre (1998)
08. Debussy: “Suite bergamasque: Clair de lune (transcr. Stokowski)”
       – Wolfgang Sawallisch, Philadelphia Orchestra (1996)
09. Vivaldi: “Concerto for Violin and Strings in G minor, Op. 8, No. 2, R. 315 ‘L’estate’: 3. Presto (Tempo impetuoso d’estate)”
       – Sir Neville Marriner, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (1969)
10. Vivaldi: “Concerto for Violin and Strings in E major, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269 ‘La Primavera’: 1. Allegro”
       – Sir Neville Marriner, Alan Loveday, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (1969)

Andrea Bocceli

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...