Classical vs Digital: 6 Pianists vs 6 Techno Artists

The talents of the following people can’t be any less impressive than the music icons that we know today. Who among these pianists is most worthy to be called the greatest classical composer?

Johannes Brahms

In contrast to many great composers of the Romantic Period, this guy isn’t fond of attaching descriptive titles to his hymns. In this regard, he belonged to the league of the classical tradition of music, though he still personifies the image of romantic passion. Before the age of 30, he wrote 2 large-scale piano sonatas, which became 2 of the most recognizable ballads in classical music history.

He borrowed a lot of styles from other similar artists and improvised them in unpredictable ways. From humorous to whimsical, from small scale to large scale, Brahms used them all to describe music which at its best, is an intimate communion between composer and listener.

Frederic Chopin

He is treated in high regard by other artists of his time like Robert Schuman who views him as a true genius. Born from a French father and was later brought into Polish adoption, Chopin’s works were largely interpreted as due to his fondness of the city of Paris, which was believed to be the center of his life.

His works which sprouted from the lifestyle he got from it are strongly reinforced with aristocratic undertones. Although he was declared to be a performer who couldn’t play in accurate rhythm and timing, he was nonetheless known to be one of the most gifted proponents of romantic music.

Felix Mendelssohn

Popularized by historians as a “drawing-room composer,” he is known to be a musician who wrote hymns that are meant to be played in high levels of difficulty. He wrote 8 books of “Songs Without Words,” which apparently met the musical demands for his time then. His outputs were said to be the greatest influence of the musical terms “Duetto”, “Gondola Song,” and “Folk Song.”

Truly, Mendelssohn is a spring from where musical evolution originates from, as he is one of the artists who inspired a trend that we now greatly indulge in. His name is etched forever in Grove’s Dictionary of Music – a legendary book that now serves as some kind of religious scriptures for musicians then and for those of the generations to come.

Claude Achille Debussy

Poetry over technical showmanship – this is the mantra that separates his style from other musicians of his time. In his music, he symmetrically incorporates the ideas of contemporary artists who were more interested in melody and harmony than in explicit statements.

Call him the precursor to rappers or the non-biological father of pop lyricists today and you will never be wronged… he deserves to be hailed as such. He favored words more than musical elements so to speak. Musically, he was known to use the piano pedal a lot more than his peers which resulted in a unique and refined style that’s never been witnessed before him.

Franz Liszt

His original works were analyzed to reflect the conflict in the composer’s nature between devilish brilliance and divine sensitivity. His tunes were thought-provoking and emotionally captivating as well – it projects some kind of melodic hallucinogen. This could be due to his music which has transcendental motifs that were believed to suggest impure thoughts to his listeners.

He was a child prodigy that came before a public audience at the age of 9 and later evolved into one of the most celebrated pianists in history. With his amazing talent and generosity of spirit, Liszt bestowed to the world a great deal of legacy that is a lot more than sentiment and sensation.

Ludwig Van Beethoven

Known as a very demanding and meticulous person, he is very touchy with his pianos that he broke some of them. He seems to have wanted them to do all the work on every performance he makes. In the process of doing so, he gave the world some of the greatest musical pieces known to man which included 32 piano sonatas.

Critics declare that there is no Beethoven sonata that does not repay the attention of any learner or audience for the series of tonal ranges that his music gives. From brisk cheerfulness to some of the most profound of all musical expressions, Beethoven is the most ideal musician for such an aspect.

They are the heralds of a new kind of tunes that might replace the typical standard ones that we hear today. Who among these DJs is the greatest techno artist?

Laurent Garnier

He had a broad stylistic range, able to span deep house, Detroit techno, trance, and jazz – all in the name of taking advantage of the variety of musical samples available for DJs to exploit. Such exploitation isn’t just for the sake of the act though, for he amazingly concocted recognizable tunes during the 90s that would become the foundation and inspiration of the other techno newbies after him right into this generation.

Moby

Apart from his work in electronic music, he is well known for his veganism, charity work, and support of animal rights. Because of this, he is almost equally known for his outspokenness and his musical work. His musical endeavors led him in collaboration with other famous artists that range from the likes of Britney Spears to Metallica. He is known worldwide as one of the most important pillars in the earliest days of techno and remains as such in these recent years.

Recondite

Most e-musicians are motivated by the glitter and allure of technology in constructing their outputs. With this guy, however, it’s the landscapes and natural structures of his hometown that triggered his passion. Combining analog sounds and frequency modulation synthesis or in layman’s terms, “computerized/electronic sound” he has proven that German music artists can be as good as the Americans and the Brits who are presumed to be the better techno artists.

Sven Vath

He is somewhat old-fashioned, playing only music that has been released on vinyl discs in his sets. This fact about him may make his fellow techno artists frown, but such a gesture wouldn’t last very long if they could get to know his achievements. He initially made his mark by being one of Germany’s “pop stars” in the 90s. He is largely recognized for cultivating the underground electronic music scene not just in Germany but in other parts of the world as well.

Carl Cox

During the ’90s when his craft was still of little renown, he became known as one of the best “celebrity DJs” in the world. He continued to create music, eventually embracing the underground sounds of techno that would soon become very popular. Though he is more known as a promoter of techno than one who makes definitive music for it, the name Carl Cox is regarded as an icon in a musical avenue that is one of the newest, yet most promising kind yet.

Richie Hawtin

He is known for DJ-ing with only standard digital mixing equipment. Not really a complex setup by techno standard, but superbly effective for him nonetheless which made him a three-time DJ Awards winner and received 17 nominations overall. Because the institution that handed it is the only international ceremony for DJs, the award is one of the most important accolades an artist can win or be honored by. This makes the name Richie Hawtin one of the greatest techno-musicians in the world.