I toyed with the idea of making a top ten must-have Classical music list. The more I thought about the order of how I'd rank various pieces, the more the list became dominated with Bach and Beethoven. Plus, comparing and ranking various pieces becomes impossible. How could someone compare Mozart's Don Giovanni with Bach's Mass in B Minor? They're completely different categories.
Instead, I thought it'd be easier to create a sampler. Try to span many genres, composers, and composition types while staying small. Even this was difficult for very prolific composers. So the following is a mix of compositions and music periods. All of these pieces are great and (I think) needed for a basic music library. However, I don't know if these are their respective composers' greatest works.
Bach - Brandenburg Concertos (up to 1721)
Mozart - Requiem (1791)
Beethoven - Symphony No. 9 (1824)
Mendelssohn - Violin Concerto (1845)
Mussorgsky (Ravel) - Pictures at an Exhibition (1874)
Rachmaninoff - Piano Concerto No. 3 (1909)
Stravinsky - Rite of Spring (1913)
Glass - Akhnaten (1983)
Quick Discussion
Bach's Brandenburg Concertos - Bach is a monster; there is no bad Bach. These concerti are very accessible yet intricate. The six pieces range in instrumentation and tone. Overall, an excellent Baroque sample and one of Bach's best.
Mozart's Requiem - Another giant among men; Mozart is amazing. My choice for a Mass, even though it's a bit dark and many parts of it aren't even written by Mozart. Still, the Confutatis maledictus is one of the most moving pieces of music and it has such a rich history by itself. (For extra credit, listen to Faure's Requiem for a more "upbeat" Mass for the dead.) This was a difficult choice as there are better Mozart compositions to be had, but this Mass is a keeper.
Beethoven's 9th - The older I get, the more I savor Beethoven. His symphonies are the yardstick for all others and (since I'm not a huge Mahler fan) they all fall short. The Ninth is almost cliche, but just sit down and really listen to it. It's a no-brainer to be on the list and may be the best piece of music ever.
Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto - I wanted to pick a good violin concerto, and this piece is probably the most virtuostic one that leapt to mind. While Bach and Mozart may have more melodic violin concertos (and Beethoven's is pretty good too!), this piece just blows your socks off.
Mussorgsky's Pictures (arr. Ravel) - This piece represents those pieces of music telling a story (as does Respighi's Pines of Rome), but also illustrates how an arranger can breathe life into a work. Ravel's arrangement is certainly the most famous, but Stokowski's is no slouch either. Still, the piece is very evocative and moving.
The Rach 3 - It's famous or infamous as being very demanding and is an excellent example of how the piano is a truly amazing instrument. Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto may be my personal favorite, but I wanted to pick the 3rd for its history and sheer moxie.
Stravinsky's Rite of Spring - Another historical piece (it caused a riot when premiered); it's not one of my favorites, but I included it to represent that tumultuous early 20th-century music that pushed the boundaries. Plus, it was originally for a ballet, so I wanted to include some ballet music that wasn't Tchaikovsky. The drums take center stage and the sounds almost drive you crazy.
Glass's Akhnaten - I have a thing for Glass; my rational brain says his music must be crap, but I just love it. Here we have my opera choice (though I enjoy Mozart's operas more) and a very easy introduction to Glass. His Einstein on the Beach may be more famous, but it's hard-core minimalism (1,2,3... 1,2,3...) that easily turns off most people. Here we have a bit more traditional opera and a great representation of modern music.
The next step is to pick superlative recordings for these; I'll dust off my Penguin Guide and see what it says.
