I have lately realised that as much as I want to claim that I have a strong preference for contemporary classical music, I actually have a wider interest than that. It's just that I devote different types of attention to different musical periods.
Let me start with the Baroque Period (yes, I know that there are earlier periods than the Baroque Period yet this is going prehistoric and I really do not have enough knowledge for discussion). The Baroque Period for me can be beautiful. Really, sometimes it is a manifestation of sublime beauty, whether it is Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suites, or the arias in Handel's operas. I never thought I would find arias belted out by a countertenor so breath-taking and emotionally moving.
And then comes the Classical Period. I tend to think of music from this period as the ones that formed the "basics" of what I enjoy nowadays. I have taken the time to listen to all of Josef Haydn's string quartets, and I am currently going through all of his more than 100 symphonies. It provides a fantastic historical perspective regarding the historical ancestors of the music that I enjoy. However, this is also the type of music that I would not see myself paying for a concert. Instead, I use this as "background music" and play it while I am doing other things, like for example having breakfast.
And then we are with the Romantic Period. I am rather picky here. There are pieces that I just am fascinated with its intense virtuosity, and there are several examples coming from Franz Liszt for example. But at the same time there is this oozing Romantic "sprawl" which I am just rather so indifferent and borderline allergic, which is exemplified in the symphonies of Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler. I definitely do not enjoy these.
Back when I was still learning the piano, I had as a favourite the musical styles that came afterward: the Impressionist Period as well as the Russian Post-Romantics. I still enjoy pieces from this time. And at the same time, I am slowly venturing into its neighbouring time period, the Early 20th-Century Modernist pieces, which I have been discovering new pieces lately. Some tend to be neo-Classical, such as Paul Hindemith, and I am still making up my mind on that. But there are others which I just find fascinating, like the works of Henry Cowell, for example.
And then we ease into the territory that I like the most, which is Post-WWII Contemporary. Of course, I do not enjoy every piece coming from this period, but the probability is definitely high that I do. I have been deep-diving into several composers, such as Steve Reich, Geald Grisey, Matthias Pintscher, and many others. This is just such a dynamic period that I find myself positively surprised in every turn. And for these, I definitely would pay for a ticket to see a live performance.
So yes, I suppose I consume classical music, not just the contemporary type. I just have different uses for them.
