Saint-Saens Cello Concerto No. 1, David Popper's Elfentanz, Oblivion (Astor Piazzolla Piano Trio), Chopin's Polonaise Brillante, and Alberto Ginastera's Pampeana No. 2, are some ones I can name off the top of my head. I'll pop in with some more if I can remember any besides these.
Bah, so much light stuff. Give me some Schubert string quartets from "Death and the Maiden" (14) to the end. Give me some Mahler 4 & 5. Shostakovich cello concerto #1, his Jazz suite, maybe even #8. Prokofiev #5 and Romeo and Juliet. Beethoven string quartets (14 and 15 work). Dvorak cello concerto in B minor, Slavonic dances, #9 "New World". For a great alternative to old classics, I love Bach's Brandenburg concertos recorded by Richard Egarr and the Academy of Ancient music. Maybe a little too egg-heady to be jazzed by the arrangement and orchestration?
Haven't listened to a lot of Classical music since my college days, but this has always been one of my favorite pieces. (the Smetana piece, not the Dvorak Symphony) <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XDjE6H5HqWk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Mussorgsky (orchestrated by Ravel) - Pictures at an Exhibition Ravel - Daphnis et Chloe Suite Debussy - La Mer and Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun Tchaikovsky - Symphony #6 as well as Piano Concerto #1 Grieg - Peer Gynt Suite as well as Piano Concerto in A Minor Bach - Mass in B Minor, Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Cantata #140, "Sheep May Safely Graze", Air on the G String, Brandenburg Concertos Handel - Messiah, Royal Fireworks Music, and Water Music Beethoven - Symphonies 5, 7, and 9 as well as Violin Concerto and Moonlight Sonata Stravinsky - Firebird, Petrushka, and Rite of Spring Elgar - Pomp and Circumstance Marches, Enigma Variations Holst - The Planets Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue Dvorak - Symphony from the New World Copland - Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, and Billy the Kid Berlioz - Symphonie Fantasquie (sp?), L'enfance du Christ And so much more
They are classics for a reason. Even if it's not the most innovative or unknown, good list of all-time favorites and a place for people to start who are thinking of adding classical to their playlists.
Don't defend him, he is just a front runner (or sellout like ima said). He would have listed eine kleine nachtmusik as well but he doesn't know how to spell it.
