Making sense of modern (classical) music. The Orange County Register, July 23, 2010.
This is another list of 10 recordings. The challenge here was to pick 10 recordings of modern and contemporary music that would help guide the novice, but curious, listener. Some of the usual suspects are included, but I picked a few surprises too, I think.
I have found a lot of resistance to modern classical music in O.C. But I have also encountered many listeners who, while they don’t understand it, want to.
classical life 
Thank you Tim!
Kay
Nice list, especially the Lutoslawski > Xenakis > Ligeti trio of discs. A little surprised that there’s no Second Viennese School listed, especially as the Schoenberg 5 Orchestral Pieces + Berg 3 Orchestral Pieces + Webern 6 Orchestral Pieces is a common pairing.
Henry, that’s a fair objection. There were several Second Viennese pieces I considered for this list, including the Webern you mention. I was also thinking of Schoenberg’s piano Suite (the first twelve tone piece) and Webern’s Symphony and Berg’s Violin Concerto, and some others. In the end, I would have had to chuck the Ligeti, I think, to make room. At any rate, my list wasn’t exhaustive, so I can do another one sometime and include some Seconder Wieners.
A list of my top 10 would have to include Dutilleux’s Symphony no. 2 “Le Double” and his Metaboles. He’s a very underrated composer in my opinion.
Keith, my list wasn’t my “Top Ten.” It was just a list of 10 pieces that might help curious listeners to get more attuned to modernism. A top ten list of my own favorite modern pieces, if I could even make one, would be very different, though it probably wouldn’t include any Dutilleux. Not that I don’t admire and enjoy his music;.
Nice to see modern music getting some press out there. Thanks for sharing this information. You talked of your own top 10 list, I wonder, would you include Steve Reich’s Music for 18 in there?
Thanks again,
American Composer Ralph Kendrick