Composer Gallery

Here are quick and easy reference guides to the all-time great composers, a roster that we're always expanding. For each composer, you'll find vital statistics (birth, death, nationality), a short biographical sketch and a few fun facts, plus a basic guide to the music and a list of weblinks and resources, plus a few of the most famous tunes and one or two videos. Whether you're heading off to a concert, writing a research paper, looking for reliable, current information, or just want to explore some cool music and video, this is the first stop on your web search.

Composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich

Romantic

The first fully conservatory-trained, professional composer of consequence in Russia. His melodic gift made him an international superstar and he remains one of the most popular Romantic composers.

Composer Georg Philipp Telemann

Telemann, Georg Philipp

Baroque

One of the most celebrated and prolific composers of the German Baroque, his mastery of many styles and incredible ingenuity and inventiveness have brought him renewed popularity.

Composer Ralph Vaughan Williams

Vaughan Williams, Ralph

20th Century

The leading composer of the generation that "revived" British classical music in the early 20th Century. He was inspired by English folk song and Elizabethan and 17th-century English music.

Composer Giuseppe Verdi

Verdi, Giuseppe

Romantic

Creator of several of the world’s most popular operas, Verdi is generally considered the greatest Italian opera composer.

Composer Antonio Vivaldi

Vivaldi, Antonio

Baroque

Possibly the best-known Italian Baroque composer, Vivaldi wrote more than 400 concertos (such as his famous Four Seasons), thus cementing the basics of this now-standard musical form.

Composer Richard Wagner

Wagner, Richard

Romantic

Wagner reinvented German opera and became one of the most influential composers of all time. His reforms affected opera composition, theatrical practice in general, and the development of the orchestra.

Composer John Williams

Williams, John

20th Century

Composer of the most instantly recognizable and popular film music in Hollywood history, and one of the most honored American classical composers.