Introduce me to Bartók.

[Benjamin Strange]

I am starting to see a young lady who is a classically trained violist, and she's turned me on to Bela Bartók, a composer I was not previously familiar with. I've started checking out his stuff on the Youtubes, and I am most impressed. Apparently he has quite a large body of work - where should I start? So far I'm attracted to his denser, later works, but beyond that I really don't know anything about the dude.

Anybody?

[BlacksHole]

I like Bartok, but cannot direct you to any particular work.

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by BlacksHole

I like Bartok, but cannot direct you to any particular work.

why limit yourself....try ives,messiaen,stravinski,part,ligetti.....i bet your local university has recitals regularly....they are a great place to hear that stuff.... costs little and supports the artists

[KJung]

The string quartets have brought me much joy over the past many years. I have the Takac's Quarter recording, and it is just stunning.

I do not consider myself a classical or '20th century' music fan, but there are certain recordings by Stravinsky, Bach, Bartok, etc. that seem to really appeal to the jazz and/or prog rock fan. The Bartok string quartets are definely in that group!

Highly recommended.

[cupples]

Have a listen to his Concerto for Orchestra, and the Miraculous Mandarin Suite, I think those pieces are relatively accessible. Depends what you're into, really.

I have the string quartets sitting on my shelf waiting to be listened to, hmm, maybe I should put that on the record player now....
Andrew