Beethoven and the Romantics

Beethoven and the Romantics

Apple Music Classical

Though he started composing during the Classical era, Beethoven is probably best remembered as a proto-Romantic, a composer who broadened the emotional range of Western music. Lyrical, demonstrative, even a little tempestuous, the works here (produced between the late 18th century and the early 20th) signal a shift towards expressivity that changed composition forever, culminating in the radical revisions of Modernism. We regularly update this playlist with new recordings. If you like a piece, add it to your library.

I. Vivace ma non troppo – Adagio espressivo – (Live at Suntory Hall, Tokyo, 2025)

4:14

Var. XXIV. Fughetta. Andante

Cédric Tiberghien

3:13

I. Das Lebewohl. Adagio – Allegro (Live at Wigmore Hall, London, 2025)

7:22

IV. Der schwer gefasste Entschluss. Grave, ma non troppo tratto — Allegro

Quatuor Diotima

6:54

No. 5, Einfach

2:27

III. Rondo. Allegro (Cadenza: Benedetti & Marsalis)

Nicola Benedetti, Aurora Orchestra, Nicholas Collon

8:48

Ungarische Melodie, D. 817

George Xiaoyuan Fu

4:04

I. Intermezzo. Adagio

Behzod Abduraimov

3:47

II. Largo

Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Malin Broman, Jonathan Biss

9:52

IV. Finale. Presto

Chiaroscuro Quartet

6:20

II. La chaise à porteurs

Juho Pohjonen, Wu Qian

1:38

IV. Rondo alla Zingarese. Presto

Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective

8:23

I. Von fremden Ländern und Menschen

1:41

I. Allegro amabile

Jorge González Buajasán, Manon Galy

8:38

III. Rondo. Allegro molto

Vadym Kholodenko, Alena Baeva

4:14

I. Allegro vivace

8:56

II. Vivace non troppo

Andris Nelsons, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig

4:19

I. Allegro assai

Alina Ibragimova, Cédric Tiberghien

9:47

No. 2, All'esimio violinista prof. Augusto Michelangeli

Sinfonia of London, John Wilson

2:45

II. Rondo. Allegro

Alessio Bax, Paul Watkins

8:49

Adoration (Arr. for String Quartet by Samuel Araya)

Isidore String Quartet

3:11

I. Vivace ma non troppo – Adagio espressivo

Víkingur Ólafsson

3:59

III. Rondo. Molto allegro (Live)

Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jonathan Biss, Pekka Kuusisto

5:55

II. Andante sostenuto

9:58

II. Larghetto

Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Stella Chen, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

8:22

No. 2, Extase

Massimo Zanetti, Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova, Elsa Dreisig

3:42

German Dance in G Major with 2 Trios and 2 Ländler, D. 618

6:38

III. Leise, einfach

Steven Isserlis, Connie Shih

5:34

III. Marche funèbre. Lento

Benjamin Grosvenor

9:10

II. Adagio

Emanuel Ax, Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos

5:01

II. Alles, was Odem hat

Jone Martínez, Bach Collegium Japan, Masaaki Suzuki

6:41

I. In kräftigem, nicht zu schnellem Tempo

Daniel Dodds, Midori, Festival Strings Lucerne

15:53

I. Allegro assai

9:46

No. 1 in E Major. Andante con moto

Leif Ove Andsnes

1:26

I. Allegro

Chiaroscuro Quartet

10:00

Grande Valse brillante in E-Flat Major, Op. 18

5:21

IV. Largo – Allegro – Allegro risoluto

Nobuyuki Tsujii

11:46

No. 1 in D Minor

3:32

III. Scherzo. Allegro leggierissimo

Belcea Quartet, Quatuor Ébène

4:22

No. 2, Prélude

4:06

III. Finale. Alla breve

Domingo Hindoyan, Nobuyuki Tsujii, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

13:53

III. Menuetto. Allegro molto e vivace

Emanuel Ax, Leonidas Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma

3:40

I. Allegro moderato

Omer Meir Wellber, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jonathan Biss

20:06

No. 7, How Fair This Spot (Transcr. Volodos for Piano)

Nobuyuki Tsujii

2:35

Waltz No. 6 in D-Flat Major, Op. 64 No. 1 "Minute Waltz"

Rafał Blechacz

1:46

III. Andante

4:43

No. 2 in A-Flat Major

8:43

No. 1, Sängers Trost (Arr. Isserlis for Cello & Piano)

Connie Shih, Steven Isserlis

2:20

II. Allegro molto

2:18

I. Moderato cantabile molto espressivo

6:46

III. Scherzando & Trio

Gould Piano Trio

6:48

III. Finale. Allegro energico

Gemma New, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Johan Dalene

7:39

Rondo in C Minor, Op. 1

Anna Geniushene

10:50

No. 5, Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele (Arr. Busoni for Piano)

1:57

III. Allegretto grazioso (quasi andantino) - Presto ma non assai

Edward Gardner, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra

4:57

Rondo a capriccio, Op. 129 "Rage over a Lost Penny"

6:31

Waltz No. 7 in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 64 No. 2. Tempo giusto (Live)

4:20

Tragic Overture in D Minor, Op. 81

Kirill Petrenko, Berlin Philharmonic

13:31

Romance in B Major for String Orchestra

Ulster Orchestra, Charles Peebles

6:30

III. Andante molto cantabile ed espressivo

Víkingur Ólafsson

2:20

No. 5 in G Minor

Jean-Baptiste Fonlupt

3:38

No. 2 in E Minor, Mazur. Allegretto grazioso

Czech Philharmonic, Sir Simon Rattle

5:26

II. Andante

Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Andris Nelsons

6:17

II. Larghetto

Nicola Benedetti, Aurora Orchestra, Nicholas Collon

9:06

No. 3 in F Minor. Allegro moderato

1:41

Fugue for Piano Four-Hands in E Minor, Op. Posth. 152, D. 952

Bertrand Chamayou, Leif Ove Andsnes

3:56

V. Cavatina. Adagio molto espressivo

6:53

Berceuse in D-Flat Major, Op. 57

4:26

I. Moderato

Víkingur Ólafsson

4:46

III. Allegro molto vivace

Malin Broman, Johan Dalene, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra

6:53

IV. Andante cantabile

4:46

Mazurka No. 41 in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 63 No. 3

Rafał Blechacz

1:48

Leonore Overture No. 2 in C Major, Op. 72

Berlin Philharmonic, Seiji Ozawa

14:34

Erlkönig, D. 328 (Arr. For String Quartet by Eric Mouret)

4:00

No. 1, Morning Prayer

Daniil Trifonov

1:12

II. Hastig

Nikolai Lugansky

4:32

No. 2 in E Major. Un poco più mosso

3:27

II. Tempo di minuetto, ma molto moderato e grazioso (Live)

Renaud Capuçon, Martha Argerich

8:44

I. Der Held

Philharmonia Orchestra, Santtu-Matias Rouvali

4:28

III. Valse. Allegro moderato

Karina Canellakis, London Philharmonic Orchestra

5:33

No. 1, Andante moderato (Live)

Francesco Piemontesi

4:20

I. Moderato cantabile molto espressivo (Live at La Grange de Meslay, Tours, 1965)

Sviatoslav Richter

6:15

IV. Andante

Daniil Trifonov

4:41

III. Andante cantabile

Emmanuel Despax, Piatti Quartet

7:07

No. 1 in A-Flat Major. Hohe Liebe

Mariam Batsashvili

6:07

II. Andante espressivo

6:41

Overture to a Midsummer Night's Dream in E Major, Op. 21

Freiburger Barockorchester, Pablo Heras-Casado

11:28

IV. Allegretto grazioso (Live)

Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Francesco Piemontesi, Manfred Honeck

9:11

III. Adagio espressivo

London Philharmonic Orchestra, Edward Gardner

9:03

No. 1, Im wunderschönen Monat Mai

Jonas Kaufmann, Helmut Deutsch

1:30

X. Wedding March. Allegro vivace

Freiburger Barockorchester, Pablo Heras-Casado

4:25

Nocturne No. 15 in F Minor, Op. 55 No. 1

Benjamin Grosvenor

4:43

Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52

10:53

III. Marche funèbre. Lento

Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

8:55

No. 1 in C Minor

11:34

Nocturne No. 4 in A Major, H. 36

4:48

II. Allegretto

Alina Ibragimova, Cédric Tiberghien

3:51

No. 3 in E Major "Tristesse"

4:14

Nocturne No. 9 in E Minor, H. 46

3:18

II. Adagio

Alexandre Kantorow

6:55