Classical Masterpieces: Recommended Works You Should Hear at Least Once
Classical music, the foundation of all music.
It began with chants sung in churches and led to the birth of countless composers and works.
In Japan, classical music remains close to us even today—taught in music classes and played as background music in a variety of settings.
In this article, we’ll introduce a wide range of classical pieces: from famous works you’ve likely heard somewhere at least once, to lesser-known pieces that will still linger in your ears.
Please enjoy these masterpieces of classical music—performed in many forms, from sacred music and symphonies to piano solos and concertos, including works arranged for different instruments.
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Classical Masterpieces | Recommended Works You Should Hear at Least Once (21–30)
Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minorGustav Mahler
This piece is the first symphony Mahler wrote in the 20th century, and after composing vocal symphonies for Nos.
2 through 4, it is a purely instrumental symphony written once again for orchestra alone.
Mahler held Beethoven in extremely high regard as a composer, and the trajectory from the first movement, “Funeral March,” to the fifth movement, “Rondo–Finale,” follows the same program of “from anguish to joy” as Beethoven’s Fate Symphony.
In Visconti’s film Death in Venice, the fourth movement of this work is used.
Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68Johannes Brahms
Brahms’s First Symphony, which he finally completed after the age of forty, came to fruition only after twenty-one years of deliberation from conception to completion in his effort to create a symphony worthy of succeeding Beethoven.
Crafted with fearsome care and burning passion, the work earned such high praise for its perfection that conductor Hans von Bülow called it “Beethoven’s Tenth Symphony.” Steeped in dramatic tension that seems to reflect Brahms’s own struggles, it embodies the trajectory “from suffering to victory.”
“Hallelujah Chorus” from the oratorio MessiahGeorg Friedrich Händel
Handel’s Messiah conducted by Georg Solti with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Along with Bach, he is a representative composer of the Baroque era.
He primarily wrote music for the theater, such as operas and oratorios.
“Messiah” refers to the Savior and tells the story of Jesus Christ.
RequiemGiuseppe Verdi
Verdi’s Requiem, conducted by Toscanini with the NBC Symphony Orchestra.
It is included on “Verdi: Requiem & Te Deum.” Known for celebrated works such as La Traviata and the Wagner-influenced Aida, Verdi is the greatest composer of Italian opera in the Romantic era.
Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 “Pathétique”Pyotr Tchaikovsky
It is Tchaikovsky’s final symphony, and the subtitle “Pathétique” was chosen by the composer himself.
Tchaikovsky experienced as many as twelve bouts of depression in his life, and some say this work may reflect that state of mind.
Although the Pathétique is shrouded in a dark atmosphere overall, the third movement is enveloped in a glittering mood.
It fuses a scherzo with a march, beginning with a light, airy melody and culminating in a resplendent finale at the climax.
ValkyrieRichard Wagner
Conducted by Hans Knappertsbusch and performed by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.
Raised in an environment rich in theater and music, Wagner was inspired by Beethoven and created the “music drama,” an opera in the form of a symphony.
PhoenixIgor Stravinsky
Stravinsky is also one of the composers who represent modern music.
Although his style changed over time, one of the hallmark works from the period when he created highly impactful “primitivist” music—incorporating multiple tonal centers into his pieces and using rhythms rarely found in classical music—is The Firebird.
Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14Hector Berlioz
The best-known piece by the Romantic composer Berlioz.
The music unfolds according to the titles and program notes supplied by the composer himself, and according to these, the piece depicts a young artist, heartbroken, who takes opium to commit suicide; the dose is not fatal, and he instead experiences bizarre hallucinations.
The “young artist” is Berlioz himself, and the “beloved” is Harriet Smithson, the leading actress of a Shakespearean troupe.
Each of the five movements has a subtitle, giving the work a strong sense of narrative.
Symphony No. 4, Op. 54 “Poem of Ecstasy”Скрябiн
Scriabin was a composer who displayed extraordinary individuality even among the late Romantics.
Deeply influenced by theosophy and philosophy, he brought the very nature of music closer to mysticism, and as the years went on he placed increasing importance on mystical sonorities.
RequiemGabriel Urbain Fauré
Since the Classical period, the German cultural sphere—centered on Germany—has led Western classical music.
However, in parts of France, a musical current entirely different from Germany’s began to emerge.
Fauré was the composer who spearheaded this movement, and in his Requiem, the church modes—nearly forgotten during the Romantic era—were revived and employed.