If you have an unexplained fear of tackling contemporary music, and, to go further than that, contemporary symphonies or ballet, let’s start from far, far away.
Sergej Prokofiev‘s “Romeo and Juliet” is a perfect option, especially if you listen to it in its integral version, that is, not only the well-known Dance of the Knights, but from the very beginning to the very end.
Powerful music, which is no longer strictly anchored in the Romantic idiom of the 19th century, but still keeps some commonly recognized features and can easily become a bridge between the classical diet of up-to-Mahler-and-no-later concerts and the contemporary experiment.
English title: Sergej Prokofiev “Romeo and Juliet”
Original title (Russian): Сергей Прокофьев “Ромео и Джульетта”
First published in the Levinarium Telegram Channel (now closed and deleted)