I don't know when I first started to like classical music, but these days I can't listen to much else. Its not a snobby thing, its just that when I am around pop and alternative kinds of music I find it really noisy and harsh to my ears. This is a huge change from being a death metal fan! I think I really got into classical stuff when I started to play piano. I first started with the classic piano pieces (rondo alla turka, moonlight sonata, etc.) and used that as a jumping point for other composers. I still shiver when I listen to a great beethoven sonata or chopin nocturne. I still like some pop and other modern music, but its not the same.
Lately I've been listening to a lot of Mozart (symphony 40 is great), Choral pieces (
Monks and Choirs of Kiev Pechersk Lavra: Chants of the Russian Orthodox Church), and beethoven (trios, piano concertos, symphonies, sonatas... the man is my hero!)
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I have one question for the shostakovich fans here. I have a hard time getting into some of the modern classical stuff, its not as pleasing to my ear as most of the early classical music. So help me out, why do you like shostakovich and other more modern composers? Do I just need to listen more?
Great thread!