Why No British Classical Greats?

[doctordb]

Ok, there are some works of holst, Elgar, Williams and Britten that are exceptional but nothing to compare to the greats of European classical music.

In all the other arts we are up there. Why not classical music?

[doctordb]

Then again, why are the Europeans so dreadful at pop?

Is there a link?

[Zacs-Master]

ABBA weren't bad. And Roxette. And the scorpions. But yes, generally dire.

[tonyav]

Karma, doc.

[doctordb]

Ric, didn't the nazis adopt beethoven's and wagners music?

Daniel Barenboim is happy to conduct it in Israel, though, not to everyone's approval.

[doctordb]

Kameleon, tony. :)

[Ric.ror]

Wagner and Beethoven were supposed to be hitlers favourite composers and groups played their works to inmates queuing to enter the gas chambers
Can't remember where I heard this

[doctordb]

Actually ric, I seem to recall a documentary showing that Wagner was anti Semitic.

[tonyav]

doctordb
Question Author
Kameleon, tony. :)

Yep, and that doc.

[shoota]

Tallis, Byrd, Purcell.....

[Ric.ror]

Yes doctor I 'm sure I heard something about this just this week

[Peter Pedant]

My late father's German guards when he was a POW in EIchstatt, would twit him on this very point in the forties

[Peter Pedant]

Wagner

The Great Leader at one point said: there is no such thing as too much Wagner.
er obviously he said it in German

[shoota]

Handel chose to become British too

[doctordb]

Shoota, Would you put them alongside Mahler, Sibelius or Chopin?

[doctordb]

Peter,

/Er obviously he said it in German/

Surely you mean 'der obviously he said it in german'

[VHG]

>>>Many of the great musicians from mainland Europe had royal patronage,

I think after about Mozart's time Royal Patronage stopped (remember there was also Church patronage with say Bach).

Certainly Beethoven never had royal patronage (he shunned it).

I think Henry Purcell is considered a great composer, to compare with the best in the world in his time.

Funnily enough Mozart was NOT considered a great composer in his time.

[joggerjayne]

Wagner was a bit anti Semitic.

It's quite easy to see that the Nibelungen, for instance, represented the Jews.

But he was still the greatest.

Perhaps, at the height of classical music, it just wasn't in our blood.mthe Europeans were being all flamboyant and creative, and we Brits were being stoical and sober, and concentrating on engineering etc.

[shoota]

I would DrB because I prefer music from the baroque and classical periods rather than later.
I don't think a direct comparison is possible - it would be like comparing a Model T Ford and a BMW 7 series but in terms of melodic beauty I think the older composers edge it.

[doctordb]

All our ears are different shoota, somehow I can't relate to baroque and chamber.

[Ric.ror]

Who would you say was THE greatest?
I don't know enough about it