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Discover the 50 greatest classical composers of all time - do you agree with our choices? Meet the great composers with BBC Music Magazine.
- Johann Sebastian Bach
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Ludwig Van Beethoven
- Joseph Haydn
- Claude Debussy
- George Frideric Handel
- Frédéric Chopin
- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
- Johann Strauss II
- Antonio Vivaldi
Holding the #1 spot in our list has to be none other than Johann Sebastian Bach, who is highly regarded as one of the best composers of all time. He grew up in a musical family with parents who were composers, with many of his own children later going on to become musicians and composers too. Throughout his career, Bach was a prolific composer, wri...
If there is one person who epitomizes the word composer, it is none other than Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Born in Salzburg, Austria, in 1756, Mozart was a musical prodigy composing his first piece of music at the age of five. By the time he was eight, he had performed for royalty all across Europe. Another prolific composer, Mozart, composed over 600...
Even non-musicians will recognize the name Ludwig van Beethoven, who is widely considered one of the greatest composers in history. Born in 1770, Beethoven began his musical training at an early age and quickly developed into a prodigy. Some of his most loved pieces include his nine symphonies and some of his piano works, like “Fur Elise” and “Moon...
Often called the Father of the Symphony, Joseph Haydn was one of the most prolific and influential composers of the classical era. Born in Austria in 1732, Haydn showed an early aptitude for music and was given rigorous training by his uncle, a professional musician. He went on to study with some of the leading composers of the day, and by his earl...
We now move on to France for Claude Debussy, considered the first Impressionist composer. Born August 22, 1862, Debussy was a child prodigy of music, showing great talent in playing the piano before he was even 10. He then studied at Conservatoire de Paris under pianist Antoine François Marmontel and other notable musicians and composers of the tim...
Born on February 23, 1685, German-born English composer, George Frideric Handel was gifted in music as a child, like other composers on this list. He studied under Friedrich W. Zachow when he was young and eventually joined the opera orchestra in Hamburg before traveling through Italy between 1706 to 1710. The years spent in Italy greatly influence...
March 1, 1810, in Warsaw, Poland saw the birth of another virtuoso composer and pianist named Frédéric Chopin. Also a child prodigy, he was performing for royalty before he was 12. Chopin moved to Paris in the 1830s, where his popularity rose, and he would be known as one of the most distinguished solo pianists of the Romantic period. His compositi...
If you love ballet, then you must know the person behind the music: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. He revolutionized ballet with the poignant and colorful orchestration we now know. Born on April 25, 1840, the Russian composer started young in composing music and became one of the first students to study at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Swan Lake was...
Johann Strauss Sr. never wanted his son to follow in his footsteps as a composer; he didn’t want Junior to experience the hardships of that career. Nevertheless, Johann Strauss II—born on June 3, 1899, in Vienna—defied his father and secretly studied violin with recognized composers of the time and even founded a small orchestra. And the classical ...
Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi was born on March 4, 1678, in Venice. His father, a professional violinist, taught him violin at a young age. Vivaldi, however, did not immediately pursue a musical career. He became an ordained priest, and when he was forced to stop celebrating mass due to health issues, he focused on composing and being an opera i...
- Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Bach is the definitive Baroque composer. If you have sublime Bach you don’t need the others (and we’re only half kidding).
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Continuing the tradition of names with three words and four well-formed syllables in the middle one, is the child prodigy and all-round genius, Mozart.
- Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Beethoven’s name is widely interchanged with the phrase ‘greatest composer who ever lived’. And we’re okay with that.
- Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) Jumping back in time, and way back to medieval times, let’s meet Hildegard von Bingen. She was a saint, poet and composer who in her lifetime was one of the most influential women in Europe.
By Anthony Tommasini. Jan. 21, 2011. See how this article appeared when it was originally published on NYTimes.com. HERE goes. This article completes my two-week project to select the top 10...
- Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750) Music poured out of Bach, all for the greater glory of God and, in Bach’s words, “the refreshment of the soul.” Organ music, church cantatas and incidental music for his employers were his daily bread.
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791) Forget all that stuff about taking dictation from God. Mozart was always working, teaching himself to be a better composer and trying to be more than just a maker of music.
- Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827) It’s not just the tunes, the blazing triumphs, the thundering highlights or the contemplative hymns and the rhapsodies.
- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 – 1893) The beau idéal of the Romantic composer, Tchaikovsky, put Russian music on the European map. A devotion to Mozart, Bellini and Donizetti reflects his own endless melodic gifts, which he yoked to a brilliant orchestral sense, plus his own very intense emotionality.
Apr 4, 2022 · 1. Johann Sebastian Bach. Johann Sebastian Bach ( Credit: Elias Gottlob Haussmann / Wikipedia) Though a handful of internet listings placed Mozart and Beethoven at the top,...
From the hundreds of classical music composers working in the Western tradition during the last 600 years, we list 10 that are generally regarded as the most essential composers to know, including Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Wagner, and more.
