Lovely classics

Classical masterpieces. Recommended classical music.

Former vocal coach specializing in Western musicRyo
With the motto “Learn the basics and enjoy putting them into practice,” I worked as a vocal coach specializing in Western music. As a teen, I questioned the idea that “Western music equals English,” and started listening to songs from around the world. Today, I devour music from over 80 countries and run a personal blog introducing tracks. I often listen to genres like nuevo flamenco, bolero, canzone, and R&B. I’ll keep updating articles daily to find the one perfect song you’re looking for!
Piano-playing singer-songwriter / Executive Committee Member, Special Music Festival in Rinku OsakaHousui Sachiyo
I learned to hit the keys on a toy piano, started Electone lessons at six, and began piano at ten. I loved the piano so much that I declared, “I want to go to a music college!” and from junior high I studied vocal music, ear training, and music theory (though I never even took the entrance exam in the end). In my childhood, my saxophone-playing father introduced me to jazz, and my mother to rockabilly. I was utterly obsessed with classical music in junior high. In high school, my grandmother took me to hear live tango performances, and before I knew it I’d become an eclectic listener. Lately, influenced by my high-school-aged daughter, I’ve been listening to koto music and nagauta. I hold the rather rare qualification of ‘Music Proficiency Test Level 3, Western Music track.’

Classical music created by various musicians over a long history.

From pieces whose beautiful melodies bring peace of mind to those whose grandeur overwhelms you, the range is truly diverse.

With so much out there, many people may feel, “I want to listen, but I don’t know where to start.”

For you, we’ve picked out some recommendations to get you started—“Begin with these!”

Please take a moment to enjoy the world of classical music that continues to be loved across the ages.

Classical masterpieces. Recommended classical music (21–30)

CanonJohann Pachelbel

Pachelbel Canon

CanonJohann Pachelbel

The original title is “Canon and Gigue in D major for three violins and basso continuo.” The Canon is the first movement.

It is arguably Pachelbel’s most well-known piece.

Since it plays during the interlude of Tatsuro Yamashita’s ‘Christmas Eve,’ it’s a piece you’re sure to hear at Christmastime.

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Rhapsody in BlueGeorge Gershwin

George Gershwin – Rhapsody in Blue – Leonard Bernstein, New York Philharmonic (1976)

Rhapsody in BlueGeorge Gershwin

Highly regarded as “symphonic jazz,” a fusion of jazz and classical music, this piece propelled Gershwin’s name onto the world stage.

Inspired, it’s said, by the rhythm of a train while he was traveling to Boston, the rhapsody vividly evokes a steam locomotive on the verge of departure and then steadily gathering speed.

With its sprightly, jazz-inflected orchestral rhythms, the rich palette of timbres from diverse wind techniques, and a near-improvisatory piano cadenza, it offers countless highlights for listeners.

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Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23Pyotr Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 / Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 – Ryota Yamazaki (Grand Prix 2014, PTNA)

Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23Pyotr Tchaikovsky

When it comes to piano concertos, this piece is the quintessential classic—surely there are hardly any people who haven’t heard it.

Many performers have played it and left landmark recordings.

From beginning to end, it gives not only the piano but almost every instrument in the orchestra a moment to shine.

If you’ve never listened through to the third movement, I strongly encourage you to hear it all the way to the end.

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Triumphal March from the opera AidaGiuseppe Verdi

'Triumphal March' from Verdi's opera Aida

Triumphal March from the opera AidaGiuseppe Verdi

The “Triumphal March” is a piece that appears in Act 2, Scene 2 of Verdi’s opera Aida.

Part of it is also famous as a soccer chant, so even people unfamiliar with classical music may have heard it.

In the piece, so-called fanfare trumpets are used and are performed on stage rather than in the orchestra pit.

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Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

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Fugue in D minorJ.S.Bach

Little Fugue in G minor, BWV 578 (Bach)

Fugue in D minorJ.S.Bach

This piece, affectionately known as the “Little Fugue in G Minor,” is surely one of the most popular works by Bach, the father of music.

Structured as a four-voice fugue, it is meticulously crafted using counterpoint.

With its strong role as music dedicated to God in church, its solemn and majestic sonority becomes ever more magnificent the more you listen, and it never grows tiresome.

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Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

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String SerenadePyotr Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky Serenade for Strings in C major, Op. 48

String SerenadePyotr Tchaikovsky

It’s a famous piece that was used in a temp agency’s TV commercial long ago.

Even though the first movement is composed in the plain key of C major, I can’t help but wonder how it becomes such a sumptuous and weighty melody.

I also love how that melody returns in the fourth movement.

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Radetzky MarchJohann Strauss I

[Vasily Petrenko] Radetzky March Johann Strauss I: Radetzky March

Radetzky MarchJohann Strauss I

This piece is a march composed by Johann Strauss I.

It was written during the Revolutions of 1848 to honor Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky, who suppressed the independence movement in Northern Italy, then part of the Austrian Empire.

It is one of the most popular works in classical music and is often performed as an encore; many of you have probably seen audiences clapping along.

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Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

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