15 Most Epic Symphony Finales
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 ธ.ค. 2011
- This is my opinion of the most epic and powerful finales of symphonies of different composers. Your opinion is very important for me and if you have different variants tell me.
In order of the appearence:
XV.Gustav Mahler - Symphony №7 E-moll, Riccardo Chailly and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 00:11-02:08
XIV.Robert Schumann - Symphony №2 C-Dur, Sergiu Celibidache and Munchner Philarmoniker 02:10-02:27
XIII.Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony №3 Es-Dur, Claudio Abbado and Berliner Philarmoniker 03:30-04:23
XII.Gustav Mahler - Symphony №5 Cis-moll, Claudio Abbado and Berliner Philarmoniker 04:25-07:09
XI.Johannes Brahms - Symphony №1 C-dur, Sir John Barbirolli and Wiener Philarmoniker 07:10-08:00
X.Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphiny №5 C-moll, Mikhail Pletnev and Russian National Orchestra 08:01-09:24
IX.Gustav Mahler - Symphony №1 D-Dur, Leonard Bernstein and Wiener Philarmoniker 09:26-12:56
VIII.Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Symphony №4 F-moll, Herbert fon Karajan and Berliner Philarmoniker 12:58-14:48
VII.Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony №10 E-moll, Paavo Jarvi and Cincinati Symphony Orchestra 14:49-16:43
VI.Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony №12 D-moll, Evgeny Mravinsky and Leningrad Philarmonic Orchestra 16:44-18:31
V.Anton Bruckner - Symphony №4 Es-Dur, Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 18:33-21:14
IV.Gustav Mahler - Symphony №3 D-moll, Pier Boulez and Wiener Philarmoniker
21:18-22:49
III.Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony №7 C-Dur, Kurt Masur and National Orchestra of France 22:51-25:22
II.Ludwig van Beethoven - Symphony №9 D-moll, Klaus Tennstedt and London Philarmonic Orchestra and Choir 25:23-26:59
I.Gustav Mahler - Symphony №8 Es-Dur, Sir Simon Rattle and City of Birmingham Symphony orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus, London Symphony Chorus, City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus, Toronto Children's Chorus, Christine Brewer (Soprano), Soile Isokoski (Soprano), Juliane Banse (Soprano), Birgit Remmert (Mezzo-Soprano), Jane Henschel (Mezzo-Soprano), Jon Villars (Tenor), David Wilson-Johnson (Baritone), John Relyea (Bass). 27:00-32:29
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Excellent choices but I am curious why someone with such a heavy leaning towards Mahler completely omitted the Resurrection?
Where's Auferstehung?
Thats what we mean!
Yes. All the epic (as opposed to quiet) Mahler finales are here except the Resurrection. Also, with all the Shostakovich, in my opinion the two most epic of all were left out. The 5th of course, but also the 4th - the finale pages of this work literally sounds like the end of life as we know it (although it ends very quietly). I would also add the Rachmaninoff 2nd.
Another thought - with Mahler - his most "epic" movements are often the first. The outrageous ending in #3, the incomparable beauty of #9, or the fascinating and avant garde #7 and #10. And can anyone here name anything in the history of music more epic than the Veni Creator Spiritus from the 8th??!!
I think the Mahler Resurrection finale deserves just a separate video
Greatest symphony ever composed- in my opinion
Thank you for your comment. About Mahler 2 I must say that i don't know why, but I just forgot about it maybe, because in that moment I thought about other symphonies... I of course agree with you about Mahler 9 (actually it's my favourite of his symphonies) and power of its finale. And you know I must say, that Mahler one of 3 my most favourite composers - others are Beethoven and Shostakovich.
Your 3 favorite composers are the 3 greatest symphonists in history!
@@hillcresthiker I would argue Bruckner ;)
The finale of Mahler's first has to be the conclusion of the most impressive first symphony by any conductor. What a way to announce your presence in the classical world...and then came #2 and #3!!!
Mahler 1 finale is vain, noisy, and repetitive. It’s all about volume, not thematic development or harmonics. I still like it, but it’s not great.
@@MD-md4th the latter three movements are all right, but the first one is a journey made up entirely of aimless wandering.
I think you meAnt to say composer instead of conductor
Taken as as trilogy , the first 3 Mahler. Symphonies taken as a whole would surely con stitute the greatest musical piece in all of western civilization
Mahler was a pretty established conductor before he wrote his first symphony, so his presence was already known.
Glad to see someone else is onto Mahler No 7s awesome finale!
Couldn't get enough of Shostakovich's Seventh. Thank you sincerely for posting these.
Charles Liles Yeeaaaahh!!!! The same with Shostakovitch 10th, 11th, 12th, 6th, ...
the finale to the 11th is even better!
i actaully played the 1st movement of his 7th at Interlochenon esummer. it was awesome.
yesyesyes
Good choices! My favorites from this list are Eroica, Mahler 7, and Tchaik 4. I really think Mozart 41 should be on here, it really pushed the envelope for later symphonies.
...Very wise of you to mention the Mozart 41
I,m a very big fan of Mahler,s Symphony No. 1 and if done right with a slam bang ending, it beats anyone elses hands down Period !!!!!
@@photo161 you must be joking.
Agreed. Mahler 2 is my favorite piece of music of all time. (Plus I'm a horn player!)
Welcome to a large club+
Alex Mejia -- No need to Apologize for being a Horn Player.....You may be otherwise a Very Nice Person.
I really love Bruckner's Symphonies, the finale of his 4th is simply awesome, you can not explain it with words, you need to feel it.
Add the finale of Bruckner's 5th Symphony is magnificent too!
PD: Sorry for my english!
What about his magnificent Eighth?
L
You speak English 1000 times better than the majority of the youtube comment section population.
You are absolutely right. And your English is perfect. xxx
The best thing about Bruckner symphonies is that they do, eventually, end ;)
If music is frozen architecture, then these are cathedrals. Thank you so much, not only for the pieces, but for the performances.
The finale of the Mahler 6th is about as epic as it gets. Sure, it doesn't end joyously, but that's what sets it apart.
Замечательная подборка этих шедевров, глаза слезятся, горло перехватывает... из Мексики.
Haydn's Farewell symphony deserves a mention... An epic finale doesn't need to be noisily climactic
Many Haydn symphonies have epic finales.
Great choices. I might of included Saint Sean’s Organ Symphony, but most of all, I would have Mahler’s 2nd symphony in #1 followed by Beethoven then Mahler’s 8th. Nevertheless; Thumbs Up!
I also have to give a shout out to the Sibelius 4th. It is epic it is utter lack of "epicness". A difficult work to get into but I think one of the greatest symphonies ever written. The darkest saddest, most grief-stricken music you can imagine ends with a movement of total indifference and hopelessness. You have to be in the mood but it really is quite remarkable.
His most personal work- something I like to listen to at night in bed when I can devote my complete attention to getting immersed in his sound world. I have similar feelings about the Mahler 9
I agree. It is one of the most profound symphonies.
Also how about the endings of Sibelius's first , second and fifth symphonies ; all spectacular in their own right !
@@misterb5073 absolument d'accord. Ces deux symphonies sont parmi mes 5 symphonies préférées, avec la 8eme de Shostakovich, la 6eme de Pettersson et le concerto à la mémoire d'ange de Berg (pas une symphonie, je sais:) )
I love listening to a recording I havent heard and getting that feeling of "holy crap! they're nailing it!"
Wonderful selection. Any piece a gem 💎.
Yes. Totally agree on Mahler’s 3rd, and that it is so high on your list. The entire 6th movement is spellbinding.
This is AWESOME! Thanks for this potpourri of symphony finales. :)
말러 2, 8번을 들으면 항상 수많은 악기들이 날고 긴다지만.. 역시 세상 최고의 악기는 사람의 목소리가 아닌가 생각이 듭니다.
청음E 맞습니다
Chailly's Mahler always epic, and Decca's sound always exemplary, even recorded live ...
Total sensory and emotional overload! Great!
Personally, my favorite endings are the ones where I, myself, am playing my ________ off, and the audience loses their minds, and cheers like they have never cheered before. THOSE pieces are my favorite! 😍
And then you wake up. Yeah, I have those dreams very frequently.
You left out the penultimate movement of the Pathétique Symphony, the one just about everybody thinks IS the finale. But thanks to you I am now inspired to listen to Shostakovich's Twelfth again.
Nothing can compare to the finale of Scriabin's 2nd symphony. But he is almost completely ignored.
And his "Poème de l'Extase"
Fascinating!!!
what happened to Mahler 2? And Sibelius 5? How can these finales not be in the top three, let alone 15? And Mahler 2 not featuring whilst there so much Mahler here? Nuts?
Thank you! I thought about what pieces I might include... and you already had!
Thank you for recognizing the phenomenal ending to Mahler 3!
Great compilation, Nikita.
MAHLER 2!!! Where?!?
I love your choices - there are so many great ones to choose from!
I would add the end of Mahler 2 as well, and Saint-Saens 3.
Mahler 3 ending is like looking up to Heaven!!!
Hi Richard, When will the NRSO be playing the 3rd? (Roy g Biv is aka Myron Bengel )
@@roygbiv7025 The NRSO orchestra is not big enough to play Mahler's 3rd
@@richardwilliams473 Not yet enjoy Khatchaturian: th-cam.com/video/6NTdPMRhKXI/w-d-xo.html
Have you figured out who I am yet? (Hint, trade the first letters around in my pseudonym Myron Bengel)
@@roygbiv7025 Ah yes! Byron Mengal my American comrade. Didn't that Beethoven 8th go well last Sunday ! I am waiting for Marco to download it onto TH-cam
My all time favorite isn't here. It is the finale to the Firebird Suite. At the end, those chords in the brass over the strings and then that piano up to that double forte knocks my socks off very time!
Nice to see Bobby Schumann in there!
The finale of Mahlers 9th is beyond everything i ever heard. I am a total wreck at the end of that masterpiece...
I understand what you are saying, but the Mahler 9th finale does not fit the description of "epic." For me it is draining, almost crushing in its quiet intensity.
@@jgesselberty epic not in excitement, but if one understands what it means, it’s epic in portrayal. Too many to choose from, but probably my favorite Mahler finale.
@@cairnman100mine too. By far. Saw it in Amsterdam with Haitink conducting. I hardly heared it because I was trying sò hard not to cry too loud. It was soulscraping. I was an absolute wreck leaving the Concertgebouw.
Great choices but it's a shame there's nothing from the 18th century here. For sheer joy, the finale of Haydn 104 takes some beating. But the greatest from that era - and one of the greatest ever - must be Mozart 41.
I'm so glad you included Shostakovich 10 and Brahms 1.
Of the ones not mentioned here, I would add:
Messiaen - Turangalila-Symphonie
Sibelius - Symph no.7
Mahler - Resurrection
Prokofiev - Symph no.6
Prokofiev - Symph no.2
There are others of course.
Excelente mahler 👏👏👏👏👏👏
Nobody ever mentions Dvorak's 8th-it's goosebump city. I like your choices here very much, but Mahler 2 has lots of fans and I'm included in that group!
true, dvorak 8 and 9 finales are too much for humans
And his colleague Smetana Má Vlast is interesting like Bohemian forests , Blanik.
The 8th and 9th have good finales, but for 'epic finale' I think the 7th beats them both out!
Mahler 2 is the greatest piece of music in history.
Without a doubt!
@@misterb5073 Beg to differ. Gustav was very full of himself.
@@jamesoliver6625 not a matter of begging to differ- as though one of us is correct and the other wrong- all music is subjective....You may think Mahler was full of himself ( as most great artists are) and at the age he wrote his second symphony, he was really feeling the power of his creative energy...There are legions of us who think his music far surpasses even, the master himself- Beethoven! Entirely subjective.
Legions of dumb people think that.
@@MD-md4th Could you explain, why?
Just in case anyone reads this. The selection by the author is great and I am intrigued to investigate Mahlers 2nd. I wanted to add a much maligned and overlooked piece. If you ignore the self indulgent story notes, Richard Strauss Sinfonia Domestica is a brilliant piece with a stunning ending. Just saying.
I would have chosen Brahms' 2nd over his 1st. It is one of the most spectacular and stirring endings in all of symphonic literature!
How did the finale of MOzarts Jupiter symphony get left off? the end of the 4th movement 2 minutes before it fnishes for a few bars is literally the height of all music of all time.
Carl Nielsens 4th symphony finale ist very epic too.
Howard Hanson's second. I love it when composers bring back the themes of the first three movements in the fourth to bring it all together. No dead time in this entire symphony.
Yes. And Howard Hanson s Symphony No The Romantic Symphony was also used in the film Alien
Great to hear your selections, especially to see Mravinsky. I suggest you could listen to the following: Karel Ancerl conducting Janacek "Sinfonietta", Bernstein conducting Stravinsky "Rite of
Spring" (on you tube), Eduard van Beinum, Concertegebouw Orch Amsterdam finale of Brahms 2nd. Toscanini conducting the Pines, final movement, Gustave Dudemel conducting a Proms concert with Bernstein "West Side Story" Dance Suite, And Dudemel with Mahler 2nd. at Proms., Mravinsky with finale of Tchaikovsky 4th., and the closing of Berg "Drei Stucke" with Antal Dorati.
YES, Dudamel/Proms/West Side Story. I have yet to see another orchestra get as personally involved.
Saint-Saens 3 (Organ Symphony)!!! The power crescendo of the pipe organ as it confidently asserts its raw and unquestioned dominance over the fury of the orchestra is nothing but pure, orchestral genius.
It is powerful, but my favorite element in the finale is the piano for four-hands laying out the main theme.
@@MD-md4th Yes, that rippling effect is so distinctive and completely unique, I think.
Excelente trabajo, te falto el final de la segunda de Mahler, y a mi gusto, la de la quinta de Dvorak, pero que mas da, todas las demás, perfecto, mi final favorito es la de los 1000 de Mahler. Gracias.
Alfredo Casella's Symphony No.2, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda (BBC Philharmonic) is incredible!!
Cool! Good to see people catching onto the idea. If/when I make another volume, I'll try to focus on stuff that hasn't been mentioned yet (so no repeats).
@alexface211
Thanks for your comment!))) It sounds very intresting, I will listen this two symphonies:)
This music is a gift to humanity and should be treated as such
The problem with Mahler finales is that the true highpoint comes a minute or two before the final notes, followed by a Mahlerian chaos of braying brass and cymbal crashes to the end.
Saint Saens 3rd Symphony is also pretty epic :)
I know its not an orchestra piece, but a wind ensemble piece, but David Maslanka's 4th Symphony has one of the most glorious and epic endings to a piece of music I have ever heard. The last six minutes are bonkers.
@alexface211 Some great selections here: May I suggest.
Mahler:Symphony No.2
Sibelius: Symphony No. 2
Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2
Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 1
Scriabin: Symphony No. 4 "Poeme d'Extase"
Bernstein: Symphony No. 2 "Age of Anxiety"
Nielsen: Symphony No. 4 "Inextinguishable"
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 4
Bruckner: Symphony No. 8
on 18:06 is that a picture of Mravinsky and shistakovich together?
My all time favorites are Mahler 1, Sibelius 2 and Tchaikovsky 5. But I can't say any of the suggestions in the comments are less magnificent. I also like Ives #2.
@efmusic5, thanks. Nice to talk with people, who likes good music. It's so rare nowadays.
Et la huitième de Bruckner ? In extenso il en manque beaucoup trop !!!
I love certain Composers every so slightly more than others. Among my very favorites is Dmitri Shostakovich.
Lesser known (?) very satisfying conclusions of symphonies: (my contributions):
Albric Magnard 4th; Alfredo Casella 2nd; Earnest Bloch C# Minor; Joly Braggo Santos 4th; Rachmaninoff 2nd; Sibelius 5th; Nielson 4th; Charles Ives 4th; Kurt Atterberg 3rd
Sibelius 5th many good versions also Brahms 2nd your selections great thank you
Definitively, I need much more Bruckner in this list !
wow, muy buenas
Can you double check your listings . I am almost positive that your Mahler 1 finale is not Bernstein and the VPO. Rather, I’m sure it’s with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. That added bass drum beat on the last note makes me think it’s the RCO recording which I own.
In the Netherlands there was a writer ( Simon Vestdijk) who calls all this moments : "Warehouse" Finales.. . I agree.
Tchaikovsky is very epic in his own way! I do think all of his symphonies are epic!
Tchaikovsky’s 4th and 5th are really good 👍🏻
Me too. You have to have Tchaikovsky up there, with Beethoven, Brahms and Bruckner. I agree that Mahler and Shostakovitch are candidates also.
@@g.l.81 -- Yes, I too was thinking....Manfred, Marche Slav, and that Other One!
@@g.l.81 Don't forget his first symphony (Winter Dreams )... vastly underrated !
31:09 de acuerdo, salvo la 6a.
I fully support the call for Mahler's 2. Also, Rachmaninoff's 3rd symphony - the whole last movement. As far as sheer gut wrenching quiet power, Schmidt's 4th Symphony. Knowing the back story tears your heart out....incredible piece beginning to end.
Where’s Mahler 2??
Ah! Symphony no 5 of Shostakovich?
The symfoni who went right to my inner feelings and more….Bruckner nr.4 the Romantik
Brahms’ Symphony n.1 finale conducted by Bernstein is one of the most powerful and beautiful music ever heard. But my absolute preferite is Respighi, The Pines of Rome: The Pines of the Appian Way.. i love the climax of the piece! And obviously Mahler’s 2nd Symphony!
Whatever happened to the fourth movement of the Jupiter Symphony?
What I like most about Mahler is his subtlety with a hammer.
I also think his transparency of orchestration is right up there with Mozart and Ravel.
El final único y diferente de la 7ma de Sibelius, por Mravinsky '65 de preferencia. Gracias.
Very good choices - Sebelius 8th is also just amazing in my humble opinion
My apologies i meant the 2nd
The 8th is fiery to say the least!
I understand it is fashionable to suffer acute Mahleria, and all, and stuff such a broad parameter of a thesis with your favorite composer, to the exclusion of so many iconic others. But if you could not conceive to mention a single Berlioz finale (three of his four symphonies end in “epic,” disc-herniating ways,) then you’re terribly, woefully bereft of a lot of listening experience. You might explore a smidgen more repertoire than just Mahler and Shostakovich in your life; you might be gobsmacked at how much beautiful music there is out there!
Worthy of mention in this context: the finale of Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony. Your mind will be blown, when you listen to it sometime!
I'd have to agree with you, being a mahlerian (as the list clearly shows), the Resurrection symphony has one of the grandest, most epic final ever. On the other hand, 7th's finale sounds a bit jumpy for me, not very epic.
And when it comes to epic, how about Sinfonia Drammatica by Respighi, (let alone Pinni di Roma) and symphonic poems like Death and Transfiguration, or Ein Heldenleben by Strauss?
I agree with you fully
@Petri547
Thanks!)
Isn’t the first recording (Mahler 7) made by the Wiener Philharmoniker instead of the Concertgebouw ? The timpani and the woodwinds sound definitely Viennese, don’t they ?
很厲害👍
slayed
Hej what about Harold in Italy of Berloiz.
Mind blowing staff.I think that made bench marks for future any symphony finnale.
Wal
True
I'm sorry, but how could you have left out Mahler 2? It is a piece of music that summarizes life and existence and glorifies humanity more than any other on this list.
I was worried you'd miss the 8th. Rattle does very well with it, but boy does Boulez ever take the cake with that VPO tuba on the low F.
Para mi faltan varias, la octava de Bruckner (Celibidache) y la segunda de Mahler (Klemperer), entre otras, pero la lista y versiones están bien, aunque la tercera de Mahler para mi Horestein es insuperable y la cuarta de Bruckner de Celidibache también.
Pretty sure the Mahler 1 recording you used in the vid is the Royal Concertgebouw recording.
Maybe in my opinion is not just a beautiful music that we listen to but how the composer made that music with struggle, love and passion...
Quite a few more come to mind. Mahler 2, the "Resurrection", Bruckner 5 and 8, especially the latter, which could have the greatest coda of them all. And Mozart 4, the "Jupiter" with that unbelievable fugal writing, and that intense but ultimately tragic (?) ending of Brahms 4.
ショスタコ１２はいいですね。マーラーが複数入っていましたが時代的に１２音の世界に行かなかったのは正解ですね。
やはり指揮者だったからでしょうかね。。。すばらしかったです。ありがとうございました。
Bruckner is missing !
For those who don't know Khachaturian 3rd Symphony, be sure to give it a listen. Fully deserves a spot in this list. The unbelievable barrage of sound he unleashes, including that overpowering organ solo cadenza, is guaranteed to blow your socks off (and those of your neighbours if you aren't careful with your sound system)
Have you ever listened to the symphonies of Allan Pettersson I suggest starting with the 7th then 8th etc etc.
Nice list - I'm especially fond of Shostakovitch 12 and Mahler 1. Not to take away from any of your choices, but I would have to find room for the Shostakovitch 8th. After musically portraying the unimaginable horrors perpetrated by Hitler and Stalin in some of his most hopelessly minor, dissonant - at times almost screeching - music, the final two and a half minutes or so surprisingly conclude the symphony with a quiet, simple, major theme. When nothing in world around him gives reason for hope, it's like Shostakovitch dares hope that somehow the next generation will escape such terror. I close my eyes and imagine a little girl (who has lost most of her family), holding a flower, playing amid the ruins of war. Maybe she will come out of it all alive and free.
No grand finale there, it fades away in a most powerfully emotional conclusion.
It was great. I judge a piece music by it's ending or finally. They all were right by me.
I think that Scriabin’s Poem Of Ecstasy and Mahler Symphony 8 Movement II would be great too.
Hugo Alvèn symphony no 2 is worthy of mention..quite a grand conclusion with full brass.
I must correct the spelling mistake it is Hugo Alfven..
Beethoven’s 9th is my favorite!
I think you started too late in the Brahms 1. Totally missed that epic brass chorale a little further back. It makes the whole finale.
I know I'm biased because I'm a horn player, but I will always love the ending of Mahler's 1st. The triumphant D major coda can't be topped