NEW CLASSICAL SURVEY CONFIRMS MOZART AS NATION`S MOST POPULAR COMPOSER, BUT THE PICTURE VARIES AROUND THE COUNTRY AS UK REGIONS HAVE THEIR OWN FAVOURITES
Released on: July 2, 2008, 7:09 am
Press Release Author: Gennaro Castaldo
Industry: Entertainment
Press Release Summary: A new confirms that Mozart is the nation's most popular composer, but the pictures varies around the country as UK regions have their own favorites
Press Release Body: London, 24th May 2008 - In a definitive new survey, music and entertainment retailer HMV has analysed its sales of classical music (by composer/repertoire) during the past five years at its 240 stores across England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and also in the Republic of Ireland.
While the single most purchased recording of this period is Gustav Holst's 'The Planets', just ahead of Antonio Vivaldi's 'The Four Seasons' and the rapidly-gaining 'The Lark Ascending' by Ralph Vaughan Williams, the most popular overall composer by far is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose many works account for nearly one in ten (9.1%) of all classical CDs sold by HMV in its stores and, more recently, online at hmv.com.
The research was carried out by HMV to help shape the content of a brand new range of classical music, 'The Classic FM Full Works', which is being officially released on 2nd June 2008 by the UK's leading classical label, Universal Classics and Jazz, in association with national classical radio station Classic FM, and which will be exclusively stocked in all HMV stores. (See Editorial Notes for more information).
Mozart heads a 'Holy Trinity' made up of Ludwig Van Beethoven, who accounts for 7.5% of all sales, and Johann Sebastian Bach, whose CDs take up just over 5% of total sales. The top 5 is made up by the outstanding Russian composers - Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky and Sergey Rachmaninov, while the rest of the top 10 features such 'heavyweights' as the leading British composer - Sir Edward Elgar, Antonio Vivaldi, George Frideric Handel, Gustav Holst and, another Brit, Ralph Vaughan Williams. One of the best-selling composers of the past twelve months, but who narrowly misses out on the top 10 when sales are judged over five years, is Russian Sergey Prokofiev, whose dramatic 'Romeo & Juliet' has been recently popularised by Alan Sugar's
'The Apprentice', currently being broadcast on BBC 1, which uses the piece as its introductory theme music. The work is also popular among some football fans, with a number of clubs playing it as their players run onto the pitch at home games. Country / Regional Variations (see detailed 'top 10s' and comments further below) Whilst the overall national trend confirms the huge popularity of 'superstar' composers, such as Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, in the classical firmament, the survey also throws up interesting and, perhaps, unexpected variations between different parts of the UK and among its regions. In Scotland, for example, while Mozart is the most popular composer, there also appears to be a strong tradition for Russian music that goes back a while - Tchaikovsky is particularly appreciated, no doubt deepened in recent years by the residence of Russian/Soviet conductors including Neeme Jarvi and Alexandre Lazarev at the Scottish National Orchestra and Scottish BBC Symphony Orchestra respectively.
In the North-East the Russian trend continues, but this time in the form of Prokofiev, sales of whose 'Romeo & Juliet' CD are, no doubt, boosted by its use at Sunderland FC when the players come out for home games. Newcastle FC, on the other hand, appear to have a passion for Carl Orff's 'Carmina Burana', which is often played during home games. The popularity of composers can vary significantly around different parts of the UK.
In the North-West, for example, Sir Edward Elgar's association with Manchester's Hallé Orchestra, ensures him a high profile in the region, and, of course, he is also hugely popular in the Marches area of Central England, where he was born. However, the British conductor/composer, who gave us, among other works, the 'Pomp & Circumstance Marches', famously featuring 'Land Of Hope And Glory' is, rather unsurprisingly, far less celebrated in Scotland, Wales or Ireland. Some variations may also be due to historical/cultural factors or may even reflect on population change resulting from migration. In Yorkshire and the East Midlands, for example, the music of Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo sells better than in any other part of the country. This may in part be due to the popularity of his concerto for guitar - 'Concierto De Aranjuez' among colliery brass bands, who like to adapt it for their own performances; thus, perhaps reflecting on a rich coalmining tradition in both regions. Similarly, Polish composer Frédéric Chopin is only the 14th most popular composer across the UK, but in parts of East Anglia, including Lincolnshire, where there is a notable Polish community, he is among the top five composers, suggesting a possible link.
University towns, with their large academic and student populations, can also diverge from the national pattern. In Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol and Bath the more 'cerebral' music of Bach is generally preferred to that of Mozart and Beethoven, and Opera is also much in demand. Along the South Coast, they appear to like their Gilbert and Sullivan, while in Brighton, Rachmaninov and his Piano Concerto No.2 - famously used as the soundtrack to Noel Coward's classic romantic drama, 'Brief Encounter', is especially popular. If you leave the mainland, and head to the Isle Of Wight or, much further North, to the Isle Of Man, the choice of music is quite traditional and 'pastoral', with the likes of Beethoven and Vaughan Williams appreciated. However, while these composers go down well in the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey, it's no surprise to learn that French composers such as Debussy and Saint Saens are also very popular.
It may be touching on a cliché, but, with its rich vocal tradition, symbolised by the talent of Bryn Terfel, Wales really is the 'land of song'. Opera sells particularly well here, especially in Cardiff - home of the Welsh National Opera in the Millennium Centre, and operas by Mozart, Verdi, Puccini and even Wagner are among the regular best-sellers.
Northern Ireland, where you might expect some variations, is actually in line with overall sales trends - Mozart, Beethoven and Bach are firm favourites here among growing classical sales. In the Republic of Ireland, however, the story is a little different. Mozart remains very popular, but only just ahead of Handel, who has a strong association with Dublin having been commissioned to write his iconic 'Messiah' for its Sick. The Irish composer, who was the first to write a 'nocturne', John Field, naturally sells well, while, unlike the UK, there is also more discernible demand for American composers George Gershwin and Samuel Barber. Tony Shaw, HMV Classical Manager, comments: "Our love affair with the music of Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, clearly, carries on, but it's fascinating to see how different composers and recordings are appreciated in different parts of the country, and how so many factors can have a bearing on this "The aim of 'Classic FM The Full Works' is to create and develop an outstanding collection of classical repertoire, performed by our greatest artists, which is definitive but also highly accessible. "It was, therefore, important that we should research past sales to really understand our classical customers, and to find out exactly what they have been buying and are likely to demand in future. We also wanted to see how different composers and recordings sell around the country so that we can promote the 'Full Works' CDs in the most appropriate way consistent with regional demand." Top 50 Composers Based on 5 Yrs. sales at HMV stores (2003 - 2008) 1. Mozart (9.1%) 26. Wagner (1.4%) 2. Beethoven (7.5%) 27. Pachelbel (1.4%) 3. Bach, JS (5.3%) 28. Schubert (1.3%) 4. Tchaikovsky (4.5%) 29. Dvorak (1.3%) 5. Rachmaninov (4.2%) 30. Grieg (1.3%) 6. Elgar (4.1%) 31. Bruch (1.2%) 7. Vivaldi (3.6%) 32. Debussy (1.2%) 8. Handel (3.5%) 33. Strauss, Johann (1.1%) 9. Holst (3.0%) 34. Copland (1.0%) 10. Vaughan-Williams (2.9%) 35. Tavener (1.0%) 11. Puccini (2.8%) 36. Satie (1.0%) 12. Prokofiev (2.4%) 37. Rimsky-Korsakov (0.9%)
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