Best Classical Music of All Time – Ranked

I found more than 17 lists of “best classical music” and combined them into one meta-list. Here are the results – every piece of music that was on three or more of the original source lists, organized by rank, that is, with the works on the most lists at the top. I’ve arranged works on the same number of lists chronologically by date of composition.

There are three other versions of this list (click on links):
Organized chronologically by date of composition
Organized by composer
Organized by musical genre

On 16 lists
Johann Sebastian Bach: Six Brandenburg Concertos (1721)

On 15 lists
George Frideric Handel: Messiah (1741)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Requiem (1792)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C minor (1808)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D minor “Choral” (1824)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 “Pathetique” (1893)

On 14 lists
Antonio Vivaldi: Violin Concertos, Op. 8, Nos. 1-4 “The Four Seasons” (1725)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Mass in B minor (1749)
Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 in E minor “From the New World” (1893)
Igor Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) (1913)

On 13 lists
Johann Sebastian Bach: Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello (approx. 1717-1723)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 (1741)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 41 in C major “Jupiter”, K. 551 (1788)
Hector Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique (1829)
Giuseppe Verdi: Messa da Requiem (1874)
George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue (1924)

On 12 lists
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 14 in C# minor “Moonlight” (1801)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A major (1812)
Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 8 in B minor “Unfinished” (1822)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 14 in C# minor, Op. 131 (1826)
Edvard Grieg: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 (1868)
Richard Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen (1. Das Rheingold; 2. Die Walküre; 3. Siegfried; 4. Götterdämmerung) (1853-1874)
Georges Bizet: Carmen (1874)
Edvard Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46 (1888)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovksy: The Nutcracker (1892)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 4 in C major (1927)

On 11 lists
George Frideric Handel: The Water Music (1717)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K. 467 (1785)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 40 in G minor (1788)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61 (1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in Eb major “Eroica” (1804)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 in Bb minor, Op. 23 (1874-1875; revised 1879 and 1888)
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 3 in F major (1883)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64 (1888)
Edvard Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite No. 2, Op. 55 (1891)
Richard Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 (1896)

On 10 Lists
Johann Sebastian Bach: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 (1727)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466 (1785)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), K. 492 (1786)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Serenade No. 13 in G major, K. 525 “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik” (1787)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K. 620 (1791)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, K. 622 (1791)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 “Pastoral” (1808)
Gioachino Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) (1816)
Franz Schubert: Piano Quintet in A major “The Trout” (1819)
Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Overture, Op. 21 (1826)
Franz Schubert: String Quintet in C major, D. 956 (1828)
Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Incidental Music, Op. 61 (1842)
Robert Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54 (1845)
Giuseppe Verdi: La Traviata (1853)
Johannes Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem), Op. 45 (1865-1868)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovksy: Swan Lake (1875-1876)
Johannes Brahms: Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77 (1878)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E major (1881-1883, revised 1885)
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98 (1884-1885)
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, Op. 35 (1888)
Claude Debussy: Prelude a l’apres-midi d’un faune (1894)
Antonín Dvořák: Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104 (1894-1895)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 (1900-1901)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 5 in C# minor (1901-1902)
Claude Debussy: La Mer (1903-1905)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 9 in D major (1910)
Béla Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (1943)

On 9 Lists
Johann Sebastian Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin (1720)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Orchestral Suites, BWV 1066-1069 (approx. 1725-1739)
George Frideric Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks (1749)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Don Giovanni, K. 527 (1787)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 94 in G major “Surprise” (1791)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 104 in D major “London” (1795)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 3 “Emperor” (1796 or 1797)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58 (1805-1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 in Eb major, Op. 73 “Emperor” (1809-1810)
Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4 in A major, Op. 90 “Italian” (1833)
Frédéric Chopin: 24 Preludes, Op. 28 (1839)
Giuseppe Verdi: Rigoletto (1851)
Max Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 (1866, revised 1867)
Modest Mussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain (1867; orchestration by Rimsky-Korsakov, 1886)
Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition (1874; orchestration by Ravel, 1922)
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 (1855-1876)
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73 (1877)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 (1878)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 (1877-1878)
Johannes Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb major, Op. 83 (1878-1881)
Camille Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 “Organ” (1886)
Camille Saint-Saëns: Carnival of the Animals (1886)
Gabriel Fauré: Requiem (1887-1890)
Richard Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28 (1894-1895)
Arnold Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (1899)
Claude Debussy: Préludes, Book 1 (1909-1910)
Igor Stravinsky: The Firebird (1910)
Gustav Holst: The Planets, Op. 32 (1914-1916)
Maurice Ravel: Boléro (1928)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, Op. 43 (1934)
Carl Orff: Carmina Burana (1935-1936)
Sergei Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf, Op. 67 (1936)
Samuel Barber: Adagio for Strings (1936)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47 (1937)
Aaron Copland: Appalachian Spring (1944)

On 8 Lists
Josquin des Prez: Missa Pange Lingua (ca. 1515)
Johann Sebastian Bach (attribution in question): Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 (1707?)
Johann Sebastian Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I (1722)
Johann Sebastian Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II (1742)
Domenico Scarlatti: Harpsichord sonatas (between approx. 1719 and 1757)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488 (1786)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13 “Pathetique” (1798)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata” (1804-1805)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 29 in Bb major, Op. 106 “Hammerklavier” (1819)
Felix Mendelssohn: Octet for Strings in Eb major, Op. 20 (1825)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 13 in Bb major, Op. 130 (1825)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Grosse Fugue, Op. 133 (1826)
Franz Schubert: Winterreise (1827)
Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 9 in C major “The Great” (1828)
Frédéric Chopin: Etudes, Op. 10 (1829-1832)
Felix Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 (1844)
Frédéric Chopin: Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58 (1844)
Richard Wagner: Tannhäuser (1845)
Franz Liszt: Piano Sonata in B minor (1852-1853)
Giuseppe Verdi: Il Trovatore (1853)
Richard Wagner: Tristan und Isolde (1859)
Johann Strauss II: An der schönen blauen Donau, Op. 314 (The Blue Danube) (1866)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 in Eb major (1874; revised through 1888)
Bedřich Smetana: Má Vlast (1. Vyšehrad (1874); 2. Die Moldau (1874); 3. Šárka (1875); 4. Z českých luhů a hájů (1875); 5. Tábor (1878); 6. Blaník (1879))
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 8 in C minor (version 1: 1887; version 2: 1890)
Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88 (1889)
Johannes Brahms: Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115 (1891)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection” (1888-1894)
Giacomo Puccini: La bohème (1896)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 in D minor (1896)
Edward Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme For Orchestra, Op. 36 “Enigma Variations” (1898-1899)
Giacomo Puccini: Tosca (1900)
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43 (1900-1902)
Gustav Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde (1908-1909)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 (1909)
Igor Stravinsky: Petrushka (1910-1911; revised 1947)
Richard Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59 (1911)
Maurice Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé (1909-1912)
Edward Elgar: Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85 (1919)
Sergei Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C major, Op. 26 (1921)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 3 (1927)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 5 (1934)
Sergei Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet, Op. 64 (1935; revised 1940)

On 7 Lists
Claudio Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine (1610)
Henry Purcell: Dido and Aeneas (1689)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto for 2 Violins in D minor (Double Concerto), BWV 1043 (1730-1731)
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi: Stabat Mater (1736)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 38 in D major, K. 504 “Prague” (1786)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 39 in Eb major, K. 543 (1788)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 100 in G major “Military” (1793 or 1794)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 101 in D major (1793 or 1794)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 103 in Eb major “Drum Roll” (1794-1795)
Joseph Haydn: Trumpet Concerto in Eb major (1796)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 2 “Fifths” (1796 or 1797)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37 (1800)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major “Waldstein” (1804)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 7 in F major, Op. 59 “Razumovsky” (1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 8 in E minor, Op. 59 “Razumovsky” (1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 9 in C major, Op. 59 “Razumovsky” (1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Trio No. 7 in Bb major, Op. 97 “Archduke” (1811)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93 (1812)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 (1821-1822)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Missa Solemnis, Op. 123 (1819-1823)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 15 in A minor, Op. 132 (1825)
Franz Schubert: Piano Sonata No. 21 in Bb major, D. 960 (1828)
Gioachino Rossini: William Tell Overture (1829)
Frédéric Chopin: Nocturnes, Op. 15 (1830-1832)
Robert Schumann: Carnaval, Op. 9 (1834-1835)
Frédéric Chopin: Nocturnes, Op. 27 (1835)
Frédéric Chopin: Piano Sonata No. 2 in Bb minor, Op. 35 (1837-1839)
Richard Wagner: Lohengrin (1850)
Giuseppe Verdi: Don Carlos (1867)
Richard Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (1868)
Giuseppe Verdi: Aida (1871)
Cesar Franck: Violin Sonata in A major (1886)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 1 in D major (1887-1888)
Pietro Mascagni: Cavalleria Rusticana (1890)
Claude Debussy: String Quartet (1893)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 3 (1894-1896)
Richard Strauss: Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40 (1898)
Claude Debussy: Nocturnes (1899)
Jean Sibelius: Finlandia, Op. 26 (1899, revised 1900)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 4 (1899-1901)
Maurice Ravel: String Quartet in F major (1903)
Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly (1904)
Jean Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47 (1904)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 1 (1909)
Ralph Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (1910; revised 1913 and 1919)
Claude Debussy: Préludes, Book 2 (1912-1913)
Charles Ives: Three Places in New England (1911-1914, revised through 1929)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 2 (1915-1917)
Sergei Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 in D major, Op. 25 “Classical” (1917)
Giacomo Puccini: Turandot (1926)
George Gershwin: An American in Paris (1928)
Béla Bartók: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta (1936)
Béla Bartók: String Quartet No. 6 (1939)
Aaron Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man (1942)
Dmitri Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110 (1960)
Benjamin Britten: War Requiem, Op. 66 (1961-1962)

On 6 Lists
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: Missa Papae Marcelli (Pope Marcellus Mass) (ca. 1562)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Cantata No. 140 “Wachet Auf, Ruft Uns Die Stimme” (1731)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante in Eb major, K. 364 (1779)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385 “Haffner” (1782)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K 491 (1786)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Così fan tutte (1790)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 96 in D major (1791)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb major, Op. 19 (1787-1795)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 1 (1796 or 1797)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 4 (1796 or 1797)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 5 (1796 or 1797)
Joseph Haydn: String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 6 (1796 or 1797)
Joseph Haydn: Die Schöpfung (The Creation) (1796-1798)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 5 in F major, Op. 24 “Spring” (1801)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Concerto for Violin, Cello and Piano in C major (Triple Concerto), Op. 56 (1803)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in Bb major (1806)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 10 in Eb major, Op. 74 “Harp” (1809)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95, “Serioso” (1810)
Niccolò Paganini: 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Op. 1 (1802-1817)
Franz Schubert: String Quartet No. 14 in D minor “Death and the Maiden” (1824)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 16 in F major, Op. 135 (1826)
Frédéric Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11 (1830)
Frédéric Chopin: Ballade No. 1 in G minor (1836)
Hector Berlioz: Grande Messe des Morts (Requiem), Op. 5 (1837)
Robert Schumann: Dichterliebe, Op. 48 (1840)
Frédéric Chopin: Polonaise No. 6 in Ab major, Op. 53 “Heroic” (1842)
Robert Schumann: Piano Quintet in Eb major, Op. 44 (1842)
Johannes Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15 (1858)
Johannes Brahms: Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34 (1864)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet (1st version: 1870; 2nd version: 1872; 3rd version: 1880)
Johann Strauss II: Die Fledermaus (1874)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Eugene Onegin, Op. 24 (1879)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture, Op. 49 (1880)
Richard Wagner: Parsifal (1882)
Giuseppe Verdi: Otello (1887)
Richard Strauss: Don Juan, Op. 20 (1888)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: The Sleeping Beauty (1889)
Giuseppe Verdi: Falstaff (1893)
Hugo Wolf: Lieder (1888-1897)
Claude Debussy: Pelléas et Mélisande (1902)
Manuel de Falla: El sombrero de tres picos (The Three-Cornered Hat) (1919)
Alban Berg: Wozzeck (1914-1922)
Ottorino Respighi: Pines of Rome (1923-1924)
Leoš Janáček: Sinfonietta (1926)
Edward Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance Marches, Op. 39 (1901-1930)
Maurice Ravel: Piano Concerto in D major (for the left hand) (1929-1930)
Maurice Ravel: Piano Concerto in G major (1929-1931)
Alban Berg: Violin Concerto (1935)
Béla Bartók: Violin Concerto No. 2 in B minor (1937–38)
Joaquín Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez for Guitar and Orchestra (1939)
Aaron Copland: Rodeo (1942)
Aram Khachaturian: Gayane (1942)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 8 in C minor, Op. 65 (1943)
Sergei Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 in Bb major, Op. 100 (1944)
Benjamin Britten: Peter Grimes (1945)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93 (1953)
Leonard Bernstein: West Side Story (1957)
Tomaso Albinoni (attrib.)/Remo Giazotto: Adagio in G minor for Strings and Organ (1958)

On 5 Lists
Thomas Tallis: The Lamentations of Jeremiah (approx. 1560s)
Thomas Tallis: Spem in Alium (c. 1570)
Johann Pachelbel: Canon in D (1680-1706?)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Cantata 147 “Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben” (1723)
Georg Philipp Telemann: Tafelmusik (Musique de Table) (1733)
George Frideric Handel: 12 Concerti Grossi, Op. 6 (1739)
Christoph Wilibald Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice (1762)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major, K. 331/300i (1783)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: String Quintet No. 4 in G minor, K. 516 (1787)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581 “Stadler” (1789)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 95 in C minor (1791)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 27 in Bb major, K. 595 (1791)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 98 in Bb major (1792)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 102 in Bb major (1794)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 1 in C major (1799-1800)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D major (1801-1802)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 9 in A major, Op. 47 “Kreutzer” (1803)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Fidelio (1805; revised 1806 and 1814)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 3 in A, Op. 69 (1808)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 26 in Eb major, Op. 81a “Les Adieux” (1810)
Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 5 in Bb major, D. 485 (1816)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109 (1820)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 in Ab major, Op. 110 (1821)
Franz Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, D. 795 (1823)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 12 in Eb major, Op. 127 (1823-1824)
Vincenzo Bellini: Norma (1831)
Franz Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (1847)
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 3 in Eb major, Op. 97 “Rhenish” (1850)
Franz Liszt: Les Préludes (Symphonic Poem No. 3) (ca. 1848-1854)
Charles Gounod: Faust (1859)
Bedřich Smetana: The Bartered Bride (1866)
Modest Mussorgsky: Boris Godunov (1868-1873)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 3 in D minor (1873, revised 1877 and 1891)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 5 in Bb major (1875-1876)
Amilcare Ponchielli: La Gioconda (1876)
Antonín Dvořák: Slavonic Dances, Op. 46 (1878)
Alexander Borodin: String Quartet No. 2 in D major “Nocturne” (1881)
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 in A major (1879-1881)
Léo Delibes: Lakmé (1881-1882)
Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70 (1885)
Alexander Borodin: Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor (1890)
Claude Debussy: Suite bergamasque (1890, revised 1905)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: 24 Preludes: Prelude in C# minor, Op. 3, No. 2 (1892); Ten Preludes, Op. 23 (1903); Thirteen Preludes, Op. 32 (1910)
Antonín Dvořák: String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96 “American” (1893)
Paul Dukas: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1896-1897)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 6 in A minor (1903-1904)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 7 (1904-1905)
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 8 in Eb major (1906-1907)
Maurice Ravel: Rapsodie Espagnole (1907-1908)
Isaac Albéniz: Iberia (1905-1909)
Arnold Schoenberg: Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (1912)
Alexander Scriabin: Piano Sonata No. 9, Op. 68 “Black Mass” (1912-1913)
Alexander Scriabin: Piano Sonata No. 10, Op. 70 (1913)
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 in Eb major, Op. 82 (1915, revised 1916 and 1919)
Ottorino Respighi: Fountains of Rome (1915-1916)
Alban Berg: Lyric Suite for String Quartet (1925-1926)
Leoš Janáček: Glagolitic Mass (1926)
Leoš Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 “Intimate Letters” (1928)
Igor Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms (1930, revised 1948)
William Walton: Belshazzar’s Feast (1931)
Ralph Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on ‘Greensleeves’ (1934)
Paul Hindemith: Mathis der Maler Symphony (1934)
Igor Stravinsky: Symphony in C (1940)
Sergei Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No. 7 in Bb major, Op. 83 “Stalingrad” (1939-1942)
Olivier Messiaen: Vingt Regards sur l’enfant-Jésus (1944)
Benjamin Britten: The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34 (1946)
Oliver Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie (1946-1948, revised 1990)
Richard Strauss: Four Last Songs (1948)
György Ligeti: Atmosphères (1961)

On 4 Lists
Hildegard of Bingen: Ordo Virtutum (c. 1151)
Hildegard of Bingen: O Jerusalem aurea civitatis (1140-1175)
Hildegard of Bingen: O Euchari in leta via (1140-1175)
Hildegard of Bingen: O ignis spiritus Paraclitus (1140-1175)
Hildegard of Bingen: O presul vere civitatis (1140-1175)
Guillaume de Machaut: Messe de Notre-Dame (ca. 1365)
Guillaume Dufay: Missa “Se la face ay pale” (approx. 1452-1458)
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzoni for Brass Choirs (approx. 1597-1612)
Carlo Gesualdo: Madrigals (1594-1611)
John Dowland: Works for Lute (approx. 1597-1612)
Claudio Monteverdi: L’Orfeo (1607)
Gregorio Allegri: Miserere (c. 1630s)
Claudio Monteverdi: MadrigalsBook VIII – Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi (Madrigals of Love and War) (1638)
Claudio Monteverdi: L’incoronazione di Poppea (1642)
Dietrich Buxtehude: Organ Works (approx. 1668-1707)
Henry Purcell: Ode for St. Cecilia’s/Hail! Bright Cecilia (1692)
Arcangelo Corelli: 12 Concerti Grossi, Op. 6 (1714)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Concerto No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042 (ca. 1723)
Alessandro Marcello: Concerto for Oboe and Strings in D minor, Op. 1 (1725)
Georg Frideric Handel: Coronation Anthem No. 1 “Zadok the Priest” (1727)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Die Kunst der Fuge (The Art of Fugue), BWV 1080 (approx. 1740s)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219 “The Turkish” (1775)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:  Piano Concerto No. 9 in Eb major, K. 271 (1777)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Serenade No. 10 in Bb major “Gran Partita”, K. 361 (1781)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 36 in C major, K. 425 “Linz” (1783)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: String Quartet No. 19 in C major, K. 465 “Dissonance” (1785)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503 (1786)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 88 in G major (1787)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 93 in D major (1791)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 97 in C major (1792)
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 99 in Eb major (1793)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15 (1796-1797)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18/4 (1799)
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 6 in Bb major, Op. 18/6 (1800)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Egmont Overture, Op. 84 (1810)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 10 in G major, Op. 96 (1812)
Niccolò Paganini: Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 6 (1817-1818)
Franz Schubert: Fantasy in C major, D. 760 “Wanderer” (1822)
Franz Schubert: Ellens dritter Gesang (Ellens Gesang III), D. 839, Op. 52, No. 6 (1825)
Felix Mendelssohn: String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13 (1827)
Franz Schubert: Piano Trio No. 1 in Bb major, D. 898 (1827-1828)
Franz Schubert: Schwanengesang, D. 957 (1828)
Franz Schubert: Piano Sonata in A major, D. 959 (1828)
Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56 “Scottish” (1829-1842)
Frédéric Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21 (1830)
Felix Mendelssohn: Piano Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25 (1830-1831)
Hector Berlioz: Harold en Italie (Harold in Italy), Op. 16 (1834)
Frédéric Chopin: Fantaisie-Impromptu in C# minor, Op. posth. 66 (1834)
Gaetano Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (1835)
Giacomo Meyerbeer: Les Huguenots (1836)
Robert Schumann: Fantasy in C major, Op. 17 (1836, revised 1839)
Frederic Chopin: 4 Mazurkas, Op. 33 (1837-1838)
Robert Schumann: Kreisleriana, Op. 16 (1838)
Frédéric Chopin: Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op. 38 (1836-1839)
Hector Berlioz: Roméo et Juliette, Op. 17 (1839)
Frédéric Chopin: Ballade No. 3 in Ab major, Op. 47 (1841)
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 4 in D minor, Op. 120 (1841, revised, 1851)
Frédéric Chopin: Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 (1842, revised 1843)
Gaetano Donizetti: Don Pasquale (1843)
Richard Wagner: Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) (1843)
Frédéric Chopin: Waltz in Db major, Op. 64, No. 1 (1847)
Johann Strauss I: Radetzky March, Op. 228 (1848)
Franz Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1 in Eb major (1830-1849)
Jacques Offenbach: Orphée aux enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld) (1858)
Johannes Brahms: Cello Sonata No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38 (1862-1865)
Franz von Suppé: Light Cavalry Overture (1866)
Johannes Brahms: Alto Rhapsody, Op. 53 (1870)
Johannes Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Haydn, Op. 56a (1873)
Camille Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre, Op. 40 (1874)
Alexander Borodin: Symphony No. 2 in B minor (1869-1876)
Johannes Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78 (1878-1879)
Georges Bizet (arr. by Ernest Guiraud): L’Arlésienne Suite No. 2 (1879)
Jacques Offenbach: Les contes d’Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) (1880)
Johannes Brahms: Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80 (1880)
Max Bruch: Scottish Fantasy, Op. 46 (1880)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Capriccio Italien, Op. 45 (1880)
Johannes Brahms: Cello Sonata No. 2 in F major, Op. 99 (1886)
Johannes Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 100 (1886)
Cesar Franck: Symphony in D minor (1886-1888)
Johannes Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108 (1887)
Antonín Dvořák: Carnival Overture, Op. 92 (1891)
Johannes Brahms: String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 111 (1891)
Johannes Brahms: Seven Fantasias for Piano, Op. 116 (1892)
Johannes Brahms: Three Intermezzi for Piano, Op. 117 (1892)
Ruggiero Leoncavallo: I Pagliacci (1892)
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39 (1898)
Maurice Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte (1899)
Richard Strauss: Salome (1905)
Franz Lehár: Die lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow) (1905)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27 (1906-1907)
Alexander Scriabin: Piano Sonata No. 5, Op. 53 (1907)
Frederick Delius: Brigg Fair (1908)
Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la Nuit (1908)
Richard Strauss: Electra (1909)
Edward Elgar: Violin Concerto in B minor, Op. 61 (1909-1910)
Maurice Ravel: Ma mère l’Oye (piano version 1910; ballet 1912)
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 4 in A minor, Op. 63 (1910-1911)
Alexander Scriabin: Piano Sonata No. 7, Op. 64 “White Mass” (1911)
Ralph Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (Symphony No. 2 in G major) (1912-1913; reconstructed 1915; revised 1918, 1919-1920 and 1933)
Manuel de Falla: Nights in the Gardens of Spain (1915)
Manuel de Falla: El Amor Brujo (1915; revised 1916 and 1925)
Carl Nielsen: Symphony No. 4 “The Inextinguishable”, Op. 29 (1914-1916)
Sergei Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Op. 19 (1915-1917)
Maurice Ravel: La Valse for Orchestra (1919-1920)
Darius Milhaud: La Création du Monde, Op. 81a (1922-1923)
Leoš Janáček: String Quartet No. 1 “Kreutzer Sonata” (1923)
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 105 (1924)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 1 in F minor, Op. 10 (1924-1925)
George Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F major (1925)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40 (1926)
Zoltan Kodály: Háry János Suite (1927)
Kurt Weill: Die Dreigroschenoper (The Threepenny Opera) (1928)
Edgard Varèse: Ionisation (1929-1931)
Sergei Prokofiev: Lieutenant Kije Suite, Op. 60 (1933)
George Gershwin: Porgy and Bess (1935)
William Walton: Symphony No. 1 in Bb minor (1935)
Anton Webern: String Quartet (1937-1938)
Michael Tippett: A Child of Our Time (1939-1941)
Oliver Messiaen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time) (1941)
Sergei Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No. 8 in Bb major, Op. 84 (1944)
Heitor Villa-Lobos: Bachianas Brasileiras #5 (1938-1945)
Béla Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 in E major (1945)
Igor Stravinsky: Symphony in Three Movements (1945)
Aaron Copland: Symphony No. 3 (1946)
John Cage: Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano (1946-1948)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77 (1947-1948)
George Crumb: Ancient Voices of Children (1970)
Pierre Boulez: Rituel in Memoriam Bruno Maderna (1974-1975)
Arvo Pärt: Tabula Rasa (1977)

On 3 lists
Hildegard von Bingen: O viridissima virga (1140-1175)
Hildegard von Bingen: O vis aeternatis (1140-1175)
Hildegard von Bingen: O quam mirabilis (1140-1175)
Hildegard von Bingen: Caritas Habundat in Omnia (1140-1175)
Hildegard von Bingen: O frondens virga (1140-1175)
Perotin: Viderunt Omnes (c. 1185-1205)
Guillaume Dufay: Nuper rosarum flores (1436)
Anonymous: Missa Caput (c. 1440s)
Guillaume Dufay: Messe L’homme arme (c. 1460)
Jacob Arcadelt: Madrigals (1539-1551)
Orlande de Lassus: Madrigals (c. 1550-1594)
Orlande de Lassus: Motets (c. 1550-1594)
William Byrd: Mass in 5 parts (1592-1595)
William Byrd: Mass in 4 parts (1592-1595)
William Byrd: Mass in 3 parts (1592-1595)
Tomás Luis de Victoria: Officium Defunctorum (Requiem) (1603)
Girolamo Frescobaldi: Toccatas and Partitas, First Book: Toccata No. 3 (1615)
Arcangelo Corelli: 12 Trio Sonatas, Op. 1 (1681)
Arcangelo Corelli: 12 Trio Sonatas, Op. 2 (1685)
Arcangelo Corelli: 12 Trio Sonatas, Op. 3 (1689)
Arcangelo Corelli: 12 Trio Sonatas, Op. 4 (1694)
Henry Purcell: Funeral Music for Queen Mary (1695)
Tomaso Albinoni: 12 Concertos for Oboe and Strings, Op. 7 (1715)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Concerto in A minor, BWV 1041 (1717-1723)
George Frideric Handel: Keyboard Suite in D minor (1720)
George Frideric Handel: Keyboard Suite No. 5 in E major “The Harmonious Blacksmith” (1720)
Giuseppe Tartini: Violin Concerto in D minor (c. 1720-1760)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Magnificat, BWV 243 (1723)
Jean-Joseph Mouret: Fanfare-Rondeau, from Suite of Symphonies No. 1 (1729)
Francesco Geminiani: Concerti Grossi, Op. 3 (1733)
Giovanni Pergolesi: La Serva Padrona (1733)
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Les Indes galantes (1735)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Harpsichord Concerto No. 1 in D minor, BWV 1052 (1734)
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Castor et Pollux (1737)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Harpsichord Concerto No. 5 in F minor, BWV 1056 (1738)
William Boyce: Symphony No. 5 in D major (1739)
George Frideric Handel: Solomon (1748)
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Flute Concerto in A minor, Wq. 166, H. 431 (1750)
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Flute Concerto in Bb major, Wq. 167, H. 435 (1751)
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Flute Concerto in A major, Wq. 168, H. 438 (1753)
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Flute Concerto in G major, Wq. 169, H. 445 (1755)
Franz Joseph Haydn: Cello Concerto No. 1 (1761-1765)
Luigi Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 9 in Bb major (c. 1767-1773)
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Piano Sonata in B minor, Wq. 55/3, H. 245(c. 1774)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201 (1774)
Luigi Boccherini: String Quintets in E, Op. 11, Nos. 1-6 (1775)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Violin concerto No. 3 in G major, K. 216 (1775)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Sonata No. 8 in A minor, K. 311 (1778)
Franz Joseph Haydn: Cello Concerto No. 2 (1783)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart & Michael Haydn: Symphony No. 37 in G major, K. 444 (1783)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, K. 453 (1784)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Horn Concerto No. 3 in Eb major, K. 447 (1784-1787)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: String Quintet No 3 in C major, K. 515 (1787)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2/1 (1793-1795)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 2/2 (1794-1795)
Franz Joseph Haydn: Piano Trio No. 39 in G major “Gypsy” (1795)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 1 in F major, Op. 5/1 (1796)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 5/2 (1796)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 4 in Eb, Op. 7 “Grand Sonata” (1797-1798)
Franz Joseph Haydn: Missa in Angustiis (Lord Nelson Mass) (1798)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 1 in D major, Op. 12 (1798)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 12 (1798)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 3 in Eb major, Op. 12 (1798)
Franz Joseph Haydn: String Quartet No. 66 in G major, Op. 77, No. 1 (1799)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23 (1801)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 6 in A major, Op. 30 (1803)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 7 in C minor, Op. 30 (1803)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 8 in G major, Op. 30 (1803)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Bagatelle in A minor “Für Elise” (c. 1810)
Carl Maria von Weber: Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in F minor, Op. 73 (1811)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 4 in C major, Op. 102/1 (1815)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 5 in D major, Op. 102/2 (1815)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 28 in A major, Op. 101 (1816)
Carl Maria von Weber: Invitation to the Dance, Op. 65 (1819, orchestration by Hector Berlioz, 1841)
Carl Maria von Weber: Der Freischutz Overture (1821)
Ludwig van Beethoven: Diabelli Variations, Op. 120 (1823)
Franz Schubert: String Quartet No. 13 in A minor “Rosamunde”, Op. 29 (1824)
Carl Maria von Weber: Oberon Overture (1826)
Franz Schubert: Piano Sonata No. 21 in G major “Fantasie”, D. 894 (1826)
Franz Schubert: 4 Impromptus for Piano, D. 899 (1827)
Franz Schubert: 4 Impromptus for Piano, D. 935 (1827)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 1 (1829-1830)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 2 (1833-1834)
Robert Schumann: Symphonic Studies (Études symphoniques), Op. 13 (1834)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 3 (1836-1837)
Robert Schumann: Kinderscenen (Scenes from Childhood), Op. 15 (1838)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 4 (1839-1841)
Hector Berlioz: Les nuits d’été, Op. 7 (1841)
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 1 in Bb major, Op. 38 “Spring” (1841)
Mikhail Glinka: Russlan and Ludmilla (1842)
Frederic Chopin: Impromptu No. 3 in Gb major, Op. 51 (1842)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 5 (1842-1844)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 8 (1842-1845)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 6 (1843-1845)
Felix Mendelssohn: Songs without Words, Book 7 (1843-1845)
Hector Berlioz: Le corsaire Overture, Op. 21 (1844)
Hector Berlioz: La damnation de Faust, Op. 24 (1845-1846)
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 2 in C major, Op. 61 (1846)
Franz Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 3 (1847)
Franz Liszt: Totentanz (1838-1849, revised 1853, 1859)
Robert Schumann: Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 129 (1850)
Franz Liszt: Transcendental Études (1852)
Franz Liszt: A Faust Symphony (1857)
Hector Berlioz: Les Troyens, Op. 29 (1856-1858)
Johann Strauss II: Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka (1858)
Johannes Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25 (1856-1861)
Henryk Wieniawski: Violin Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 22 (1856-1862)
Camille Saint-Saëns: Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A minor, Op. 28 (1863)
Johannes Brahms: Wiegenlied “Lullaby”, Op. 49, No. 4 (1867-1868)
Camille Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 (1868)
Richard Wagner: Siegfried Idyll (1869)
Leo Delibes: Coppélia (1870)
Georges Bizet: L’Arlésienne Suite No. 1 (1872)
Antonín Dvořák: Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22 (1875)
Bedřich Smetana: String Quartet No. 1 in E minor “From My Life” (1876)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Marche Slave, Op. 31 (1876)
Pablo de Sarasate: Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), Op. 20 (1878)
Johannes Brahms: Tragic Overture, Op. 81 (1880)
Émile Waldteufel: The Skater’s Waltz, Op. 183 (1882)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50 (1882)
Isaac Albéniz: Suite Española No. 1, Op. 47 (1882-1889)
Emmanuel Chabrier: España, rhapsody for orchestra (1883)
Jules Massenet: Manon (1884)
Gustav Mahler: Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer) (1884–1885, orchestrated 1896)
Antonín Dvořák: Slavonic Dances, Series II, Op. 72 (1886)
Antonín Dvořák: Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major, Op. 81 (1887)
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: Capriccio espagnol, Op. 34 (1887)
Johannes Brahms: Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor (Double Concerto), Op. 102 (1887)
Erik Satie: Trois Gymnopédies (1888)
Johannes Brahms: String Quintet No. 1 in F major, Op. 88 (1888)
Richard Strauss: Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration), Op. 24 (1889)
Erik Satie: Six Gnossiennes (1889-1897)
Johannes Brahms: Six Pieces for Piano, Op. 118 (1893)
Johannes Brahms: Four Pieces for Piano, Op. 119 (1893)
Umberto Giordano: Andrea Chénier (1896)
Leoš Janáček: Jenůfa (1896-1902)
Richard Strauss: Don Quixote (1897)
Gabriel Fauré: Pelléas et Mélisande, Op. 80 (1898)
Edward Elgar: Sea Pictures, Op. 37 (1899)
Edward Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius, Op. 38 (1900)
Arnold Schoenberg: Gurre-Lieder (1900-1903, 1910)
Ferruccio Busoni: Piano Concerto in C major, Op. 39 (1901-1904)
Charles Ives: Symphony No. 3: The Camp Meeting (1901-1904, revised 1911)
Gustav Mahler: Kindertotenlieder (Songs on the Death of Children) (1904)
Claude Debussy: Images, Set 1 (1905)
Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No. 1 in E major, Op. 9 (1906)
Claude Debussy: Children’s Corner (1906-1908)
Claude Debussy: Images, Set 2 (1907)
Frederick Delius: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring (1912)
Maurice Ravel: Valses nobles et sentimentales, Op. 51 (1912)
Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending (for piano, 1914; for orchestra 1920)
Charles Ives: Piano Sonata No. 2 “Concord” (1915)
Ernest Bloch: Schelomo: Rhapsodie Hébraïque for Violoncello and Orchestra (1915-1916)
Karol Szymanowski: Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (1916)
Maurice Ravel: Alborada del gracioso (1918)
Igor Stravinsky: Suite from Histoire du soldat (1918-1919)
Maurice Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin, Op. 68a (1919)
Igor Stravinsky: Pulcinella (1920)
Leoš Janáček: The Cunning Little Vixen (1921-1923)
Anton Webern: Symphony for Chamber Ensemble, Op. 21 (1927-1928)
Albert Roussel: Symphony No. 3 in G minor, Op. 42 (1929-1930)
Francis Poulenc: Songs (c. 1930-1949)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor, Op. 35 (1933)
Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 4 in F minor (1935)
Sergei Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 63 (1935)
Aaron Copland: El Salón México (1936)
Zoltán Kodály: Variations on a Hungarian folk song “Peacock Variations” (1939)
Sergei Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky, Op. 78 (1939)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 54 (1939)
Karl Hartmann: Concerto Funebre (1939, revised 1959)
Dmitry Kabalevsky: The Comedians, Op. 26 (1940)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 60 “Leningrad” (1941)
Maurice Duruflé: Requiem, Op. 9 (1947)
Milton Babbitt: Three Compositions for Piano (1947)
Pierre Boulez: Piano Sonata No. 2 (1948)
Arthur Honegger: Symphony No. 5 in D major “Di tre re” (1950)
Heitor Villa-Lobos: Guitar Concerto (1951)
Elliott Carter: String Quartet No. 1 (1951)
Bohuslav Martinů: Symphony No. 6 “Fantaisies symphoniques” (1953)
Witold Lutoslawski: Concerto for Orchestra (1954)
Alan Hovhaness: Symphony No. 2 “Mysterious Mountain” (1955)
Henri Dutilleux: Symphony No. 2 “Le Double” (1955-1959)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1 in Eb major, Op. 107 (1959)
Elliott Carter: String Quartet No. 2 (1959)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 12 in D minor, Op. 112 “The Year 1917” (1961)
Terry Riley: In C (1964)
Roger Sessions: Symphony No. 7 (1967)
Toru Takemitsu: November Steps (1967)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 2 in C# minor, Op. 129 (1967)
Karlheinz Stockhausen: Stimmung (1968)
Luciano Berio: Sinfonia (1968-1969)
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 14, Op. 135 (1969)
Karlheinz Stockhausen: Mantra (1970)
Elliott Carter: String Quartet No. 3 (1971)
Leonard Bernstein: Mass (1971)
Henryk Górecki: Symphony No. 3, Op. 36 (1976)
Steve Reich: Music for 18 Musicians (1976)
Philip Glass: Einstein on the Beach (1976)
Arvo Pärt: Fratres (1977)
George Crumb: Makrokosmos (1979)
Witold Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 3 (1983)
György Ligeti: Etudes for Piano, Book 1 (1985)
Elliott Carter: String Quartet No. 4 (1986)
Terry Riley: Salome Dances for Peace (1989)
György Ligeti: Etudes for Piano, Book 2 (1988-1994)

20 thoughts on “Best Classical Music of All Time – Ranked

    1. beckchris

      I’m sorry for the error – I will make the correction. Thank you for pointing it out – I have tried to be as accurate as possible but I am sure there are mistakes and I truly appreciate careful readers such as yourself.

      Reply
  1. AfoRhapsody

    I don’t understand:

    7:
    Frédéric Chopin: Preludes, Book I, Op. 28 (1839)

    6:
    Frédéric Chopin: 24 Preludes, Op. 28 (1839)

    Is this two separated works?

    Reply
  2. Anonymous

    The Four Seasons by Vivaldi doesn’t appear to be on this list even though it’s in the other classical list organized by composers.

    Reply
  3. Noel Cross

    Just wanted to say how useful this list is to me as someone who’s just getting into classical music! It’s so helpful to have an idea of what the most highly-rated pieces are when you’re deciding what to buy first. Thanks!

    Reply
  4. Genki Kids

    Impressive list. If I wanted to listen to all the classical songs without missing anything then this would be a list u recommend?

    Reply
  5. visceralstomik

    Johannes Brahms: String Quintet No. 1 in G major (1882) -> Johannes Brahms: String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 111 (1891)
    Johannes Brahms: String Quintet in F major, Op. 88 (1882) -> Johannes Brahms: String Quintet No. 1 in F major, Op. 88 (1882)
    I think it should be like this

    Reply
    1. beckchris Post author

      That’s a great idea! I can’t access the Google Doc – I get an error message saying I don’t have permission.

      Reply
  6. Pingback: Classic Hits: The Updated Classical Music Lists | Make Lists, Not War

  7. Ed Tomme

    Could you add a section where you list the individual lists again? That was very useful!

    Reply

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