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We always like to hear others' opinions about things, and we're sure you do too. We've set aside this page for you to share your thoughts on the chamber repertoire: favorite pieces, favorite composers, etc... You can click here to air your views, and you can read others' opinions below. We also remind you that we read and moderate every submission that comes in, so please keep everything in good taste.

Name: Andrew Hsieh
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Date: Tuesday, October 22, 2002 at 06:41:49
Text: Hmm... it's hard to pick out the best of the best. A few of my favorites are already on the Top 15 list here: the first Razumovsky, Brahms' Piano Quintet, and Dvorak's "American" Quartet. Among my other favorites: Borodin's 2nd String Quartet, Schubert's C major Cello Quintet, Schubert's Octet for winds and strings, and Mark O'Connor's Quartet for violin, viola, cello, and bass. Just about anything by Villa-Lobos is good too.

Name: Clara
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Date: Friday, July 19, 2002 at 05:04:41
Text: I'd have to say that the Mendelssohn String Quartets are the creme de la creme, especially the 2nd and the last. Beethoven (18/1, 18/4, 59/1, 132) and Borodin (the 2nd one) are up there as well... there is something about the (perfect) balance in a string quartet that I think makes them superior to other chamber genres :-) but Dvorak's Piano Quintet and Schumann's Piano Quintet are beautiful as well. By the way, music lovers, chamber music lovers, string quartet lovers, and Guarneri Quartet lovers should get a hold of the book "Indivisible by Four" by Arnold Steinhardt--what a great book. Read it if you want to find out more about the lives and music of 20th-century conductors & musicians, revered composers, life in a quartet, music, art, the meaning of life...

Name: Anny
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Date: Sunday, April 7, 2002 at 14:17:30
Text: If it's a question of great chamber music....Beethoven's late string quartets, all the way, bar none, no questions asked. They are simply some of the most profound and poignantly written works ever composed.

Name: David R. Cole
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Date: Monday, February 11, 2002 at 11:50:25
Text: Besides the Beethoven quartets, I like Ravel's Quartet in F, the Tchaikovsky Piano Trio in A Minor, The Elegiac Piano Trio by Rachmaninoff, and any chamber music by the Argentinian tango composser Astor Piazzolla. I'm learning the Tchaikovsky Piano Trio at the moment, and it's proving to be a gem.

Name: Alex McLeod
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Date: Tuesday, June 5, 2001 at 09:59:01
Text: Like the other people who responded with their favourites, I have a great deal of trouble identifying mine. I'd have to say that the third Razumovski, which I am now playing, is certainly up there. Others would be Black Angels, by George Crumb, and Ligetti's first string quartet, "Metamorphosis". Of course the old dead white guys are incredible, but new music has a wholly different type of excitement.

Name: emily hall
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Date: Thursday, April 26, 2001 at 22:15:55
Text: umm lets see... stravinsky-rite of spring & 3 pieces for clarinet solo, schubert-death & the maiden, bach-inventions, gershwin-rhapsody in blue, anything by stephen leek(australian composer) and debussy.

Name: Heidi
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Date: Monday, April 16, 2001 at 15:46:54
Text: Hello! I'm a 16 year old girl from Norway.I found this site on altavista.com and I think it's great! The best way to learn about classical music,though, is the book "Classical Music for Dummies" by David Pogue and Scott Speck...it's so funny:) Since I play the clarinet myself, my absolute favourite piece is Mozart's quintet for clarinet and strings.It's really, really beautiful-I hope some day I'll play it myself. Otherwise I like anything by Mozart,and I'm in love with the Moonlight Sonata(Beethoven).Edvard Grieg's a nice guy too.(his music on the other hand...just kidding:)

Name: Julia
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Date: Thursday, February 22, 2001 at 15:05:59
Text: I don't think I really need to post this...but... Any chamber piece by Shostakovich is automatically among my favorites. I really like Dvorak and Borodin as well...There are so many good ones out there. But as I'm infamous for, Shostakovich is my favorite.

Name: Andrew Jones
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Date: Wednesday, December 15, 1999 at 19:31:05
Text: There is so much good music out there, but i would have to raise Steve Reich's Different Trains and Tan Dun's Ghost Opera to the light as being two truly wonderful chamber pieces.

Name: Edward Hall
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Date: Friday, October 8, 1999 at 00:02:45
Text: Personally, the pieces most dear to me are the quartets by Beethoven (even though the later ones get a bit difficult.) Then there are the piano trios by Mendelssohn, Brahms, and (of course) Beethoven. Basically all of the quintets listed on the top 15 list here are also favorites of mine. I guess you could say that this is a pretty conservative favorites list, but then again these are widely loved pieces for a reason :)

Name: Moses Lei
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Date: Saturday, September 11, 1999 at 21:54:10
Text: As I've already said elsewhere, Beethoven's 59#1 is one of my favorites... the Mozart "Dissonant" quartet is also great. I also recommend Ravel's F major quartet (don't remember the number, or if he wrote more than one)

Moses

Name: john burke
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Date: Friday, August 20, 1999 at 23:26:13
Text:

A couple of 20th century US trios that I think should be added to the repertoire ist: Copland: Vitebsk. 1 movement, slow-fast-slow, inspired by the Yiddish play "The Dybbuk"--wonderful piece. David Amam: Dirge and Variations. Composed at Marboro, very appealing, very little known.

A couple of trios by women composers: Clara Schumann G minor--wonderful slow movement. Cecile Chaminade G minor: also a good piece, too little known.

Name: Charles Han
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Date: Tuesday, August 17, 1999 at 18:18:50
Text: Hi, I'm Charles Han, one of the authors of this site. As to my favorite chamber pieces, it's hard to say. Hmm.. there are so many good ones. The 15 greatest section pretty much sum up most of my favorites, but I'll ty to mention some more: the Shostakovich Trio #2 is pretty enjoyable (but very hard!)... let's see, there's the "Death and the Maiden" Quartet by Schubert, also very good... then of course I can't forget the Schubert C major String Quintet, the last (and perhaps best?) piece he ever wrote... and then there's all of the quartets by Beethoven. Oh well, can't seem to think of any more for now...

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