Classical Music Recommendations

Classical music is a genre that includes compositions from around 500 A.D. all the way up to the present day. Classical music is typically broken down into 6 different eras or time periods. Though there is some overlap, the generally accepted time periods are:

• Medieval (500-1400)
• Renaissance (1400-1600)
• Baroque (1600-1760)
• Classical (1730-1820)
• Romantic (1815-1910) – sometimes further broken down into Late- / Post-Romantic (1850-1880) and Impressionist (1880-1910)
• 20th Century (1910-present) – sometimes further divided into Modern (1910-1975) and Contemporary (1975-present)

Some of the musical forms contained within the classical genre include: the sonata, symphony, concerto, chamber music, solo vocal music, and choral music. Classical music has also influenced many rock and metal bands to varying degrees, from progressive rock groups like Genesis, Yes, and ELP (Emerson, Lake, and Palmer) to heavy metal artists like Deep Purple, Yngwie Malmsteen, Vinnie Moore, Tony MacAlpine, and others.

Classical Music Reference websites
-ClassicalNet – “The Internet’s Premier Classical Music Source”
-Classical Archives
–The World Center for Classical Broadcasting – “The very finest in free online symphonic & orchestral streams”
-ClassTab – An excellent resource for finding classical guitar tablature.

Personal Recommendations
Johann Sebastian Bach
Ludwig van Beethoven
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Georg Philip Telemann

Some Guitarists / Instrumentalists of Note
Andrés Segovia
Christopher Parkening – website
John Williams - website
Julian Bream (guitar, lute)
Narciso Yepes (guitar, lute)
Ronn McFarlane (lute) – website
Paul O’Dette (lute)
Itzhak Perlman (violin)
Yo-Yo Ma (cello)

Composers by Classical Period

Renaissance
Dowland, John (1563-1626); England – wrote over 100 pieces for the lute (the ancestor of the modern guitar)
Milano, Francesco Canova da (1497-1543); Italy

Baroque
Bach, Johann Sebastian (1685-1750); Germany
Handel, George Frederic (1685-1759); Germany/England
Scarlatti, Domenico (1685-1757); Italy
Telemann, Georg Phillip (1681-1767); Germany.
Vivaldi, Antonio (1678-1741); Italy

Classical
Haydn, Franz Joseph (1732-1809); Austria
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus (1756-1791); Austria

Romantic
Beethoven, Ludwig van (1770-1827); Germany
Carcassi, Matteo (1792-1853); Italy
Carulli, Ferdinando (1770-1841); Italy
Chopin, Frédéric François (1810-1849); Poland
Giuliani, Mauro (1781-1829); Italy
Liszt, Franz (1811-1886); Hungary
Mendelssohn, Felix (1809-1847); Germany
Paganini, Niccolò (1782-1840); Italy
Schubert, Franz Peter (1797-1828); Austria
Schumann, Robert Alexander (1810-1856); Germany
Sor, Fernando (1778-1839); Spain
Tárrega, Francisco (1852-1909); Spain

Late- / Post-Romantic
Albéniz, Isaac (1860-1909); Spain
Brahms, Johannes (1833-1897); Germany
Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilyich (1840-1893); Russia
Wagner, Richard (1813-1883); Germany

Impressionist
Debussy, Achille-Claude (1860-1918); France
Ravel, Maurice (1875-1937); France

Modern
Segovia, Andrés (1893-1987); Spain
Villa-Lobos, Heitor (1887-1959); Brazil

Contemporary
Williams, John (1941- ); USA.

Help Identifying Some Jazz Tunes

Hello, all,
I came across an old cassette tape with a bunch of jazz tunes on it. I have no idea what the names of most of the songs are, much less who the artists are. Can anyone out there help me identify these songs and even a guess at the artist(s)? I've made a clip of part for each song. Thanks!!

 Track_1___sample.mp3 ( 700.43K ) Number of downloads: 916
- very familiar, yet elusive...

 Track_2___sample.mp3 ( 700.2K ) Number of downloads: 853


 Track_3___sample.mp3 ( 699.79K ) Number of downloads: 893


 Track_4___sample.mp3 ( 700.22K ) Number of downloads: 823


 Track_5___sample.mp3 ( 700.22K ) Number of downloads: 804
- I think this one might be called "Night Train"

 Track_6___sample.mp3 ( 699.99K ) Number of downloads: 776
- different version of "Night Train"?

 Track_7___sample.mp3 ( 700.6K ) Number of downloads: 805
- yet another version of "Night Train"?

 Track_8___sample.mp3 ( 1.14MB ) Number of downloads: 829


 Track_9___sample.mp3 ( 700.2K ) Number of downloads: 500


 Track_10___sample.mp3 ( 888.49K ) Number of downloads: 530

Check Out "harmony" - Another Great Swedish Metal Band!

I discovered this band a few months ago and love their first CD, "Dreaming Awake". Their guitar player, Markus Sigfridsson, is phenomenal, and their singer, Henrik Båth, is simply one of the best vocalists I've heard in a long time. The rest of the band are also great musicians.

Their style is progressive, melodic power metal with some neoclassical influences. They just released a 5-song EP with some great music, to whet your appetite for their 2nd full-length CD, due out in the next few months. Check them out - you won't be disappointed:

http://www.myspace.com/harmonyofficial

http://www.harmonymetal.net/

Lesson Request - How To Transcribe A Song

Hello. I thought it would be great to have some lessons (maybe a series) on how to transcribe a song - when you hear a song that you really like, what steps do you take as a guitarist to figure out how to play it? Is there a particular piece of software or gear that you use to slow down the song in order to master those fast licks, complex chords, or heavy riffs? Are there any tricks to duplicating that famous guitarist's tone? Etc.

Maybe one of the instructors could even take another instructor's "famous" lesson and show how they would go about transcribing it if they didn't have any guitar tabs for it... Or maybe one instructor could post an mp3 file of a piece they're working on, and another instructor could do a lesson as they are actually transcribing it.

I think this would be a great lesson series: start with a fairly simple lesson and then do an intermediate and an advanced one.

Thanks,
MattG

Seeking Recommendation - Digitech Gnx4, Gnx3000, Or...?

Hi,
I'm in the market for a new guitar effects processor and am trying to find the best thing I can get without breaking the bank. It will be for both live use and recording.

I obviously want something with good sound quality and selection of effects, as well as a built-in drum machine with good sounds, MIDI capability, a USB port, and possibly a phrase trainer. Onboard multi-track recording would be a BIG plus. Right now I'm considering the GNX4 and the GNX3000 from DigiTech, as well as Korg's PX5D Pandora.

Is the GNX4 worth an extra $200 over the 3000? What can it do that the 3000 can't? From what I understand, the 3000 doesn't have an onboard multi-track recorder.

Does anyone have any experience with the GNX4?

Anything else I ought to consider?

Many thanks for any recommendations!!