From Schoenberg to Rachmaninoff – here’re 10 of the best composers of the 20th century!
10. B. Britten
B. Britten (rai.it)
Benjamin Britten was often called the “Fourth Great B” after Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. His mother gave him this title, believing in his musical genius from a young age.
Britten was deeply influenced by Baroque and classical music, which became the foundation of his works. By the age of 16, he “knew every note of Beethoven’s scores,” admired Brahms’s piano works, and was inspired by Bach’s choral and religious music.
Raised in Suffolk, Britten often described the sea as his “lifelong inspiration,” and its impact on the young composer is evident in his music. However, he saw music as intellectual entertainment rather than just an expression of the composer’s emotions. Unlike many 20th-century composers, Britten was more conservative in his musical views, inspired by Bach and the late classical period. This did not make him outdated or old-fashioned but instead brought originality to his works.
His choral and religious pieces combine complex ideas with simple human expression. As Ian Bostridge said, Britten was “a composer for people, not pedestals.” His goal was to make sophisticated musical concepts accessible to all, which makes him one of the greatest composers of the 20th century.
Recommended Works: Peter Grimes, Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Ceremony of Carols
9. I. Stravinsky
I. Stravinsky (Wikimedia Commons)
One of the most controversial composers on this list, Igor Stravinsky was as polarizing as he was groundbreaking. Often criticized for his radically innovative approach and, at times, harsh, even violent music, Stravinsky loved breaking the rules.
A Russian-born composer who spent much of his career in the United States, he was one of the first to bring contemporary classical music to the ‘New World’, shaping its cultural identity and introducing his innovative ideas.
Some of his now-revered masterpieces, like The Rite of Spring, were initially met with shock and, well… not much appreciation. At its 1913 Paris premiere, musical critics just erupted, as audiences were disturbed by its pounding rhythms and uncanny harmonies. Stravinsky later responded, “I didn’t ask for success, I asked for wonder.”
Stravinsky’s was controversial not only from musical point of view. He dismissed Beethoven as “too academic” and “overrated” and waved off Gershwin and many of his colleagues. Such opinions, no matter how contentious, only increased his popularity. As music critic Alex Ross once wrote, “Stravinsky remade music for the 20th century, with a voice so singular it still startles us today.”
Recommended pieces: Rite of Spring, The Firebird, Symphony in C
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8. D. Shostakovich
D. Shostakovich (Seattle Chamber Music)
7. G. Gershwin
G. Gershwin (Masterworks Broadway)
You’re probably familiar with the fancy clarinet solo at the opening of Rhapsody in Blue (1924). A smooth, jazz-inflected glissando that became the symbol of a new dawn in American music.
When Gershwin premiered the piece, he didn’t just combined jazz and classical ideas; he smashed through the barriers separating them, creating, as one critic described, “a kind of cultural Esperanto.”
No wonder, Gershwin’s knack for crossing boundaries earned him both admirers and haters. Igor Stravinsky reportedly said, “Why not make a career as a first-class Gershwin instead of a second-class Ravel?”.
Interestingly, Ravel himself was a big admirer of Gershwin and even went to United states to learn from him. His music inspired Ravel and jazz techniques he later used in his Piano concerto in G major.
Still, Gershwin stayed unruffled by his haters, following his belief the he wrote “music for the ear and heart, not the brain.” And the world, it seems, has been all the better for it.
Recommended works: Rhapsody in Blue, Piano Concerto in F, An American in Paris
6. A. Schoenberg
A. Schoenberg (the New Yorker)
Arnold Schoenberg was an avant-garde Austrian composer who transformed classical music with his groundbreaking ideas. He created the twelve-tone technique, a method that organizes all twelve notes of the chromatic scale into a set sequence instead of the common seven. This system completely changed the way “new music” could be composed and sound.
Schoenberg’s early works, like Verklärte Nacht, were influenced by Romanticism and were primarily quite traditional, but they were later rewritten as atonal. His revolutionary compositions, such as Pierrot Lunaire, broke away from key-based music and opened a new, unexplored path in music. Schoenberg himself declared, “Art is not born out of happiness but suffering,” explaining his extraordinary ideas and beliefs.
Despite criticism, Schoenberg defended his methods. He influenced composers like Alban Berg and Anton Webern, spreading his ideas further. Today, Schoenberg’s approach is an example of human creativity and the infinite exploration of beauty and art.
Interestingly, Schoenberg was a very superstitious person and had a fear of the number 13. Ironically, he died on Friday, July 13, 1951, leaving the world as one of the most fearless and exceptional innovators who redefined music and art in general.
Recommended Works: Verklärte Nacht, Pierrot Lunaire, Klavierstücke
5. S. Prokofiev
S. Prokofiev (Wikipedia)
4. R. Williams
R. V. Williams (Wikipedia)
Ralph Vaughan Williams was an English composer and conductor. Born into a quite wealthy family with strong moral views and beliefs. This influenced his early love of classical music, which helped him later study at the Royal College of Music under composers like Hubert Parry and Charles Villiers Stanford.
As with many new generation composers, he was obsessed with ideas of pushing musical boundaries set back in the 19th century. He was particularly fond of English folk songs and Tudor Renaissance music. This passion led him to discover hundreds of English folk tunes, many of which became part of his own works.
He composed symphonies, operas, and choral pieces, including The Lark Ascending and Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, distinguished by its lyrical and pastoral style. After his service in World War I, he was strongly affected by the horror of war and began to compose more religious and sacred works.
Similarly to Britten and other European composers, he viewed music not only as a way of self-expression. Instead, he tried to include deeper meaning in his works, that in some way made him more conservative and, maybe, less extraordinary than other composers. Anyway, his musical heritage now is one of the most influential and beloved of the 20th century.
Recommended Works: Dark Pastoral, Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, English Folk Song Suite
3. S. Rachmaninoff
S. Rachmaninoff (Wikimedia Commons)
Often seen as one of the greatest pianists and “the last great Romantic”, Sergei Rachmaninoff remains a key figure of late 19th and early 20th-century music. His works are beloved for their deep emotional meaning and expressiveness. Rachmaninoff’s compositions include piano concertos, symphonies, and solo piano pieces.
His Second Piano Concerto is one of his most popular works. It was written after the disastrous performance of his First Symphony, which led to a 4-year-long depression. This concerto is a symbol of enduring pain and struggle and still being able to create wonderful music. Rachmaninoff fans and performers adore its balance of technical skill and emotional depth.
Rachmaninoff’s music was sometimes criticized for being old-fashioned during his time. However, this only made his music unique and special. “Music is enough for a lifetime,” he famously replied to critics, “but a lifetime is not enough for music.” His works remain an important part of 20th century and classical music in general.
Recommended Works: Piano concertos 2-3, Etùdes-Tableaux, Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini
2. B. Bartok
B. Bartòk (IMDB)
Béla Bartók was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. Like many composers, he was born into a musical family, as his mother was a skilled pianist, so his talent for music emerged early. He along with F. Liszt are now considered the greatest Hungarian composers.
Like many of his contemporaries, he sought inspiration in folk tunes. He traveled across Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria, collecting thousands of folk songs, which he later used as the basis of his compositions. “My mother tongue is Hungarian folk music” – he once said, explaining what’s so special about his compositions.
Bartók spent much of his life and career in Hungary but also worked abroad, including the United States. He moved to America during World War II, where he continued composing and bringing his musical vision to new audiences.
Bartók’s music is an intense combination of 20th century modernism, Hungarian traditional music and his artistic freedom. His music is heard in much of pop culture, like his Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta that became an eerie soundtrack to The Shining by S. Kubrick along with Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique.
Recommended Works – Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, Concerto for Orchestra, Piano Concerto
1. M. Ravel
M. Ravel (World History Encyclopedia)
Maurice Ravel – a composer whose music feels like the sweetest dream. He was one of the pioneering Impressionists in music, famous for painting atmosphere and vibrant imagery through sound. Ravel was a follower of the idea that music should express pure emotion rather than ideas.
Ravel’s works are known for their ability to transport listeners to fantastical and dream-like scenes. In this sense, Ravel for music is like a high fantasy writer, like J.R.R. Tolkien for literature. His works, such as Daphnis et Chloé and Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose), are considered some of the greatest in French classical music and of the impressionism period.
He was a master of orchestration, expressing the most enchanting and mesmerizing imagery through sound. Like in his Boléro, which builds hypnotically with repetitive melodies, creating a sense of timeless motion.
Though often associated with other impressionists, Ravel’s style was unique, combining precision with imagination. “Music, I feel, must be emotional first and intellectual second.” Ravel’s music represents the most abstract state of human imagination and feelings, that can only be expressed through wonderful music like his…
Recommended Works: Gaspard de la nuit, Le tombeau de Couperin, Piano Concerto in G major
