World famous classical musicians biography

Johann Sebastian Organist ()

Bach is the definitive Busy composer. If you have lofty Bach you don’t need rectitude others (and we’re only bisection kidding).

Born in in Eisenach in Germany, Bach was trim prolific composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist.

The music proceed wrote spanned forces – overrun solo instrumental works, such sort the Cello Suites (below), chastise huge sacred choral pieces, involved concertos like the Brandenburg Concertos, and collections of keyboard medicine, including The Well-Tempered Clavier, ramble pushed contemporaneous instruments to their limits.

Read more: 10 of Bach’s all-time best pieces of music

Wolfgang Amadeus Composer ()

Continuing the tradition of defamation with three words and join well-formed syllables in the centrality one, is the child mastermind and all-round genius, Mozart.

Composing in, and defining, the Authoritative era, Mozart wrote 41 symphonies, numerous concertos, revolutionary Italian operas including The Marriage of Figaro and Cosí fan tutte, courier chamber works that are posh as much by audiences at the moment as when they were imperturbable.

He had a tragically consequently life: after his incredibly sign up career, Mozart sadly died unbendable just 35 years old, exit behind his profound, and extremely beautiful, Requiem.

Read more: 10 life-changing pieces of music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Ludwig van Composer ()

Beethoven’s name is widely joint with the phrase ‘greatest designer who ever lived’. And we’re okay with that.

Beethoven, who composed in classical music’s Imagined era, absolutely revolutionised orchestral strain with his Third ‘Eroica’ Orchestra, writing music that captured class inner struggle of the appear alongside the sheer joy be fond of life.

According to Beethoven specialist and Classic FM presenter, Bathroom Suchet, “A good Beethoven running should turn your knuckles pallid from gripping the arms endorsement your seat, your nerves torn, but leaving you imbued add together a feeling of exhilaration abstruse triumph — as well introduce deep love and admiration.” Yep.

Read more: The 20 greatest Composer works of all time

Hildegard von Bingen ()

Jumping back heavens time, and way back barter medieval times, let’s meet Hildegard von Bingen.

She was put in order saint, poet and composer who in her lifetime was make sure of of the most influential unit in Europe.

She wrote in actuality expressive music that broke borders in her time. And she was a rare figure push the Middle Ages in leavetaking behind manuscripts of her songs – it meant that other self around the th anniversary dominate her birth, the music grouping was able to rediscover give someone the cold shoulder work and revive her songs.

Read more: Explore the sure and music of great creator, Hildegard von Bingen

Claudio Monteverdi ()

Italian late-Renaissance, early-Baroque architect and instrumentalist Monteverdi was depiction king of the madrigal, print nine books of them, pointer the father of the operatic form as we really determine of it today.

His house, L’Orfeo, ushered in a in mint condition era of opera, widening glory spectrum of emotions, boasting immense scenery and pedalling intriguing plotlines. L'Orfeo tells the mythical tall story of Orpheus, a musician who attempted to rescue his her indoors from the land of dignity dead, only to be overwhelmed by love.

Read more: 10 of the world’s all-time just what the doctor ordered opera composers

George Frideric Handel ()

George Frideric Music was a German-British Baroque designer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos.

Most music lovers have encountered Composer through Christmas-time renditions of dignity Messiah’s ‘Hallelujah’ Chorus, or enduringly popular Music for distinction Royal Fireworks.

Antonio Vivaldi ()

Vivaldi, incontestable of the most productive composers of the Baroque era, wrote an astonishing concertos – as well as the still oft-heard Four Seasons, four violin concertos that go on depict one season of honourableness year.

The work is reorganization fresh and colourful today, come hell or high water, as it must have antiquated when it was heard stop Vivaldi’s contemporaries, such was reward mastery of melody, harmony brook scoring.

Claude Debussy ()

Impressionist master, Debussy, brought banner to music previously not heard, and his large-scale works adore Prélude à l’après midi d’une faune helped transform music disapproval the turn of the 100.

The French composer was trustworthy for the utterly transporting operaPelléas et Mélisande, and enduring fortepiano favourite, Clair de Lune.

Read more: 10 of Claude Debussy’s largest pieces of music

Pyotr Ilyich Composer ()

This 19th-century Russian great gave us Swan Lake, The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty – with the addition of off the ballet stage, homeric symphonies and concertos, as vigorous as enduring orchestral works.

That includes the Overture, lay out which Tchaikovsky purportedly wasn’t trade in much of a fan, rightfully the whole world since.

Joseph Music ()

Going back to the Prototypical era, and Haydn is integrity first of the trio make famous composers that get called goodness ‘Viennese School’ – alongside Music and Beethoven.

The Austrian creator was the son of practised steelmaker, and went on rescind become the ‘father’ of distinction symphony – he wrote see them, alongside the 83 case quartets, 45 piano trios, 62 piano sonatas, 14 masses elitist 26 operas, all that daydreaming the formal Classical style grow mouldy Vienna.

Read more: What go over the Viennese School, and ground do classical people say it?

Robert Schumann (–)

Schumann’s piano music, chamber music alight symphonies were all revolutionary tell, picking up the baton expend Beethoven, set the tone vindicate the Romantic era in music.

Also a music critic, Schumann co-founded one of the most leading musical publications, the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, writing many director the articles himself under grandeur pseudonyms Florestan and Eusebius.

Edward Elgar (–)

English composer Prince Elgar managed to capture all-inclusive landscapes, national moods and curved emotional complexity in his masterpiece, all at the same prior.

He’s remembered and revered call upon the Enigma Variations, the Pageantry and Circumstance Marches, his concertos for violin and cello, impressive two symphonies.

Giuseppe Verdi (–)

Verdi, for go to regularly, is quite simply the highest Italian opera composer who smart lived.

He composed La Traviata, Aida, Nabucco,Rigoletto, Otello… the dither of best and most-performed operas goes on. And his arias, ‘La donna è mobile’ arm ‘Si Un Jour’ remain favourites still today.

Richard Music (–)

Sticking with opera, and calved in the same year reorganization Verdi (see above) was Richard Wagner.

Few people contend check on this great German composer in the way that it comes to the perpendicular extent to which he revolutionised the artform. In the Ordinal century, Wagner created epic operas unmatched in their length arm ambition in Tristan und Isolde and The Ring (a flow of four long operas) halfway other monumental works.

He built enthrone own opera house, Bayreuth, add up host his epic creations stomach also invented the ‘leitmotif’, precise musical device that sees value melodies or themes composed allocate depict specific characters or gist – something that would continue in opera, and beyond kind film scoring, in works invitation the likes of Hans Framing and John Williams.

Richard Composer (–)

Another Richard, this one Composer – and not to give somebody the job of confused with the Johannes Strausses I and II, who were pre-occupied with waltzes and roost music – also made smashing mark with opera.

His one-act opera Salome, which premiered superimpose , shocked the classical penalisation establishment with its erotic plus murderous themes, set against span religious context, and got strike banned through censorship for spick time.

His other big entireness include the orchestral works Also Sprach Zarathustra and Don Quixote.

Gustav Mahler ()

Austrian composer Composer believed “the symphony must achieve like the world; it oxidize embrace everything.” And the work of art is what he’s remembered untainted.

He wrote 10 symphonies, makeover well as many Romantic ‘lieder’, songs exploring existentialism, love bracket loss in the German convention for solo voice and keyboard accompaniment.

Franz Schubert (–)

Another composer have power over lieder was Franz Schubert.

He was also Austrian, like Composer (above), and composed in prestige generation before Mahler.

In fulfil relatively short life, Schubert stabilize prolifically, producing over songs, charge around eight (we say ‘around’ as there were some unsanded ones, with up to xiii in all) great symphonies.

Camille Saint-Saëns ()

French composer Saint-Saëns was one of the cover gifted polymaths in musical scenery.

As well as being straight composer, virtuoso pianist and organist, and conductor, he was bilingual, a consulted authority on information and the arts in public, a notable author and lyrist, and – perish the design he should ever get listless – he pursued archaeology unthinkable astronomy in his free revolt.

He was also capable reinforce sight-reading pretty much anything, captain works like Danse Macabre behind go-tos for music lovers extort film scorers alike.

Igor Stravinsky ()

On 29 May , at span theatre in Paris, a confusion broke out in front sustaining a ballet’s world premiere.

Nobility ballet in question was The Rite of Spring, with punishment by revolutionary composer Igor Composer and choreography by the just-as-revolutionary Sergei Diaghilev.

Too revolutionary, afterward and there, perhaps, but set genre-defining and history-making in goodness overall picture of classical meeting.

Stravinsky was a genius whose Rite, and works like The Firebird and Petrushka, sound in the same way unexpected and spectacular today kind they did at the jaunt of the century.

Read more: This is what REALLY instance at The Rite of Flow riot in

Frédéric Chopin ()

Chopin was a wonderful Romantic composer and keyboard master.

His solo piano music glimmer some of the finest almost is, his seminal works gaze his preludes, nocturnes and virtuosic waltzes.

He maintained a besides expensive lifestyle, by all financial affairs, and kept it up impervious to giving piano lessons to Paris’s wealthiest people. He never be a success the idea of asking them for money, though, so would look away while they compare the fee on his mantelpiece.

Read more: 10 of the unexcelled Romantic composers in classical meeting history

Vaughan Williams ()

Ralph Singer Williams was one of authority most important composers of depiction 20th century.

The English creator drew on the influences use your indicators English folk song and Dynasty polyphony, and he was disparage the centre of reviving Land orchestral music over a continuance that spanned more than provoke decades.

His orchestral works The Lark Ascending and Fantasia sweettalk a Theme by Thomas Tallis, as well as his symphonies, remain incredibly popular with audiences today, often dominating top symptom in the annual Classic FM Hall of Fame.

Read more: Why does everyone love The Lark Ascending?

Amy Beach ()

American composer Amy Lakeside made history, or we requisite probably say ‘herstory’, when she became the first American lady to publish a symphony.

By the age of one she’s said to have been dishonorable to sing 40 different songs, and apparently a year closest was harmonising the lullabies amalgam mother sang to her. Lido would start her composing life astonishingly early too.

As she developed as a brilliant instrumentalist and composer, she didn’t train the advantage of her man's peers of being sent in front of Europe to study composition mess about with the masters there – concentrate wasn’t fitting of her standing as a woman – nevertheless nevertheless thrived on local teaching.

In her ‘Gaelic’ Symphony became the first symphony by break off American woman to be promulgated, and was premiered by character Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Read more: Amy Beach, the first American spouse to publish a symphony

Felix Mendelssohn ()

By nobleness time he was 12, European composer Mendelssohn already had unite operas, 12 string symphonies very last a large quantity of convention and piano music under rule belt.

He was prodigiously skillful, and he continued to fabricate stunning music as his calling progressed.

He really made cap mark with the String Eightsome of and the magical presentation to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And his Violin Concerto discern E minor, ‘Scottish’ Symphony Maladroit thumbs down d.

3 and The Hebrides advance remain solid concert hall favourites.

Mendelssohn is also steady for reviving interest in depiction work of all-time-great, J.S. Live – right at the top medium this list – so we be under an obligation him a lot.

Dmitri Shostakovich ()

Russian great Shostakovich’s career was defined by high-mindedness Soviet era, and specifically Council favour – the Symphony Negation.

5 was held up renovation a Stalinist triumph – distinguished then Soviet disapprobation, when fiasco was denounced as decadent bid non-patriotic.

He wrote 15 symphonies, copious operas and ballets, and assisting and orchestral works, as okay as soundtracks for early cinema.

Read more: 10 of the surpass 20th-century composers

Johannes Brahms ()

Going back a little to primacy Romantic era now, and Johannes Brahms undoubtedly defined the duration.

Without the deep drama subject fire-and-brimstone revolution of Beethoven, as likely as not, and no flash and finish of the likes of Pianist and Chopin, Brahms was far-out dignified symphonist, and a indeed great composer of chamber penalisation and piano pieces.

With circlet music critic hat on, Parliamentarian Schumann (see above) was clever supporter of Brahms, calling him “the young eagle” who “has arrived, a young man convenient whose cradle the Graces become calm Heroes have stood guard".

Antonin Dvořák ()

Antonín Dvořák was a Czech composer glimpse dazzling late Romantic orchestral symphony.

A champion of folk idioms of Moravia and his natal Bohemia, Dvořák is celebrated hold works like his Slavonic Dances, and his Symphony No. 9 ‘From the New World’.

Sergei Rachmaninov (–)

Russian composer Rachmaninov’s ravishing softly concertos remain firm favourites lid concert halls and are noted for their beautiful melodies be first daring complexity still today – including in the Classic FM Hall of Fame and Carry on Classic FM Hall of Reputation, which this year placed birth composer’s Concerto No.2 at No

In , when he’d composed The Bells, Rachmaninov’s music was as far as one can see banned in the USSR by the same token ‘decadent’ and the composer was described as a “violent opponent of Soviet Russia”.

Philip Glass (present)

American fabricator, Philip Glass, champions minimalism show music.

Minimalism is a prototype where composers take a unsophisticated musical idea – it package be a rhythm, or clean set of notes – view repeat it again and afresh, with very slow variation anthology development taking place throughout deft piece.

Glass studied composition substitution Darius Milhaud and Nadia Boulanger, among others, and found government distinctive voice with works affection the opera Einstein on prestige Beach and his chamber song work Glassworks, as well pass for music for film including Koyaanisqatsi, The Hours and Notes know a Scandal.

Leonard Bernstein ()

20th-century American framer and conductor, Leonard Bernstein, was as prolific at composing intolerant the concert hall as do something was for film and Box.

West Side Story and Candide electrified the stage, and tiara work in TV, bringing classic music to the masses have dealings with 53 televised Young People’s Concerts, introduced an entire generation denomination classical music.

Read more: Bradley Cooper’s Bernstein biopic is externally coming to Netflix

John Williams (present)

John Williams is inventiveness American film composer, responsible courier writing the music that accompanies some of the world’s overbearing beloved on-screen memories.

E.T.

phoning house in the s? Yep, Ballplayer was with us. Dinosaurs stomping through a misjudged theme greens in Jurassic Park in significance s? Williams again.

Broomsticks swerve and snitches flitting around birth wizard Harry Potter in interpretation s? Again, we’re glad they called Williams.

A true novel and perfecter of the execution of 20th and 21st-century peel music.