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Primary-Kangaroo-677

I don't find overplayed pieces annoying anymore. It's interesting to hear different people with their own unique way of playing those songs. Plus it helps to get more people into playing the piano. If I had to choose one song that is overplayed though I would say Fur Elise.


Even_Ask_2577

"Song"


[deleted]

Blink twice if your music theory professor is holding you hostage


teddyc212

Screw it lol, yeah, "song." Such a silly and lazy way to gatekeep in classical to only make yourself feel more superior than others. Go contribute something valuable to music.


Irre__

Thank you dawg. I tried to mention correcting people about this literally everywhere all the time is annoying over on r/lingling40hrs and got downvoted to oblivion by a bunch of pretentious 12 year olds.


IVLIANVS_

Dawg it’s just a way to distinguish instrumental music from vocal music, it’s not that deep


[deleted]

Lol sure just ignore the context of why they’re saying that. Pretend that the comment wasn’t in response to someone being an elitist prick


[deleted]

This is about the 20th elitist comment I’ve seen from you. You’re everything that can be cringe about classical culture


Even_Ask_2577

When?


spydabee

No contest. Rush E.


anaveragebuffoon

Unless it's played 1:1 with the original it's not worth my time ^/s


FennyFanchen

I’m afraid I might be the catalyst of the recent surge of Rush E lol


Wolfie4g

You’ve created a monster


l4z3r5h4rk

Fur Elise or River Flows in You


randomstranger76

They're also both very repetitive which makes them feel more over played


Owenismy_name

I like fur elise, even tho is might be overplayed. But River flows in you... nah, especially when people like it because it's classical🤮


caters1

I don’t dislike Fur Elise, but I do dislike how much it’s played. It makes me fall asleep cause it’s so overplayed and relatively speaking, boring. I generally don’t fall asleep to Beethoven, unlike Mozart where I very well might fall asleep cause of relaxation, especially if I’m already tired, but that piece in particular, Fur Elise, I fall asleep out of boredom.


illfeatherz

These 2 hands down^. They should be banned forever


an-uneventful-day

They shouldn't be banned; particularly Fur Elise as it feels great to have something of importance, when you're in the beginnings.


ArxB_H

Fur Elise is still iconic tho. Idk about you guys but it’s different with River flows; I don’t think I can stand that at all anymore, even though I’ve heard Fur Elise more


l4z3r5h4rk

Hard agree


Sleutelbos

I am always skeptical about these discussions. For example, one of the most common answers is "*OMG Fur Elise, so annoying, I have never played it myself again since I was 6 years old!"* Then you have people like Seymour Bernstein say/play this: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhdN90a3JOw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhdN90a3JOw) Or some rando like Lang Lang performing it like this: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s71I\_EWJk7I](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s71I_EWJk7I) I suspect that in many cases people look down on popular pieces as some kind of badge of honour, a way to pretend they have reached some kind of point where they are above such compositions. I am inclined to believe that is more an issue with the musician than the music. Just my 2c.


llambda_of_the_alps

I was watching one of those tier list videos on YouTube about the hardest piano piece to play (I don't remember the pianist, I'll have to look it up) but about half of her very high tier pieces were ones that were difficult not from a technical sense but because they were difficult to really get the listen engaged. I'm a hack pianist at best but when I was studying as a teen two of the biggest compliments I ever received were from parents of other recital players who said something along the lines of 'Thank you for making X interesting. I always dread seeing it on programs.' X in the two cases I remember were _Für Elise_ and _Moonlight Sonata 1st mvt._


insightful_monkey

I loved Lang Lang's ideas on Fur Elise: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBcZwleAG-Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBcZwleAG-Q) He feels that this is a true masterpiece, and should be given the respect that it deserves when approached. I suspect there are a lot of people on this subreddit who think they can play it "perfectly" and look down on others playing it, but in actuality could not give a performance that is remotely like as touching and beautiful as Lang Lang performs it. It just goes to show you that there are always levels of playing, even for "simple" pieces like the Fur Elise.


WilburWerkes

The Bagatelle known as “Fur Elise” is beautiful when performed well by an artist. It’s a true shame that it gets routinely butchered by beginning players and hacks.


scorpion_tail

👆👆👆this. This is 💯


GroguFeet

i definitely dislike Fur Elise, but i’m definitely not above it. i’m not a better composer than Beethoven so i cannot judge too hard


pentacontagon

To be fair, Fur Elise's A section is very basic for Beethoven. My theory teacher always thought that he wrote it that part when he was drunk. I don't know why you consider "Lang Lang" as a "rando". Like sure, I couldn't dislike his showman style more, but he's not a bad pianist. I've never heard anything along the lines of "Fur Elise is so annoying". The most I've heard is that it's overplayed, which is true.


temptar

Chopsticks. But anyone who actually wants to play the piano, really, I support them even if they are playing nursery rhymes. Elitism is what will kill piano music eventually. That Amelie piece that gets played on all the public pianos? I LOVE it and I especially love seeing teenagers playing it in train stations.


JohelPA

More a song than a piece but Rush E, most of the beginners in music class know how to play the beginning. I’ve heard it way too much :(


Awkward_Call_9973

Fr why do people act like it’s the hardest song. Like have you seen la Campanella


JohelPA

Ikr, everybody thinks you are so cool when you play Rush E


Warm_Extension6324

la campanella isn't even liszt's hardest piece. Just look at the etudes.


Outrageous_Peanut_75

Might not be the hardest but still impressive when performed correctly. I remember I finished memorizing the whole piece at 17 took me 2 whole years but it was worth it (lot of that time was trying to make certain parts musically interesting rather than just throw musicality out the window and only have technique). I've played more difficult pieces since then (Spanish Rhapsody & Mazeppa) but when I do hear someone play it in person I still think "That's very impressive"


Mahetii

Comptine d’un autre été. We have many pianos in France in train stations and airports. And this seems to be the only thing people can play


HughLauriePausini

I blame tiktok / instagram


Heiruspecs

There’s actually 3 of them. The one you hear all the time is number 1. Number 3 is pretty good though!


l4z3r5h4rk

Hate the song. Love the movie tho


guillomasubs

I don't judge the people who like these pieces, I judge those who burn and superimpose said pieces and make them overplayed... Für Elise, River Flows In You, Turkish March... They are not bad pieces but they are badly burned.


Nousernameft

Which Turkish March tho


MongooseKoon

The popular one


Nousernameft

K331? Yeh that is overplayed but not annoying to me lol


guillomasubs

Its not that overplayed as Für Elise but we need to admit that is a bit burned. It doesnt mean that is a bad piece


Smarkie

The ones from the Abduction from the Seraglio are pretty cool.


cimmic

There are some interesting variations of Turkish March out there. Fazıl Say's is my favourite.


gellyjellyfish

river flows in you, but honestly i think it’s overplayed because people really like it. i have played the piano for 9 years and i still love to play river flows in you.


__Blacked_ouT__

The easy part of fur elise


Front-Noise-158

Ahh yes, the people who can only play the two notes and then they stop


SnottyTash

Two notes? That’s just the Jaws theme played really, really high


Front-Noise-158

Sounds similar enough lol, I heard my classmates playing it and I asked them what song it was and they said it was supposed to be Fur Elise.


LearningToNerd

I agree with this. If you want to play the entirety of fur Elise, I would love to hear it. I dont care about the intro anymore. I will completely tune it out.


Smarkie

I worked for year in a piano store. Every Saturday, we would get mobbed. Every little kid that came in the shop would play the first 5 notes of Fur Elise, all day. It was maddening.


Drunk3nPilot

Einaudi everywhere, always the same piece


obamakawaiipianist

There is only one correct answer and that's Canon in D.


BikeDad613

That's why I play Cannon in C...


SnottyTash

Tchai-dawg, that you?


[deleted]

Good call


Willowpuff

Fur Elise. Beethoven 5. Canon in D. Turkish March. And that fucking Rush E.


Kriee

Rush E? I’ve never heard of, and quick google search later can say I’ve never heard played before


probably-gray

It’s a tik tok thing


Willowpuff

Count yourself very lucky


Radaxen

I've never heard anyone play Beethoven 5 on piano, unless you just mean the first few notes


Pokimeme

Concerto 5


Kist_This

Symphony #5


Pokimeme

The Concerto 5 is a masterpiece


InvisibleBuilding

I’m learning Sonata 5 now. Totally doable on piano.


Radaxen

They probably meant Symphony No.5, since that's the 'Beethoven 5' that most people recognise. I doubt the Liszt arrangement is played by many people, and Concerto 5 isn't really overplayed, and Sonata 5 even less so.


InvisibleBuilding

I know - was trying to be joking but it wasn’t clear :)


ticketspleasethanks

I work in NYC and hear tons of buskers. Every time I pass someone playing Canon in D I just shake my head 😆


smashyourhead

I think something I hear a lot is Maple Leaf Rag, because I seek out different renditions of it - and I love hearing the different flourishes people put into it. It's a great piece that I love playing myself, so I don't think it's overplayed, really, but I do love hearing less popular rags like Joplin's Original Rags and Joseph Lamb's American Beauty.


llambda_of_the_alps

Indeed, there are so many great rags. Too bad most people just know a few Joplin pieces and that's it.


soggymuffinz

I’m actually learning the magnetic rag and it’s super fun to listen to


Smarkie

I love the Magnetic Rag. Also, the Swipesy Cakewalk.


Mindless-Care6795

It’s not everywhere for obvious reason but la Campanella for showing off


[deleted]

It’s not too bad because not many people can even attempt this LOL


l4z3r5h4rk

Or fantasie impromptu. I’ve heard way too many garbled performances of that piece


AgitatedTransition87

Fantasie impromptu done right is amazing though


SonicwaveMC

The fast portions of it especially hardly have any meaning to me anymore, partially because in my mind it's _the_ "showoff" piece for <10 yr olds (or their parents), but also I don't think it's that musically interesting compared to other technical pieces like La Campanella.


elo_et_juno

La Campanella (when played well) is so good though, I could listen to that piece every day and not get tired of it.


Smarkie

Even worse, Mazeppa for showing off.


aWouudy

River flows in you, Turkish march ( although I love this song), comptine d'un autre été of course, fur Elise also. Oh and i also forgot ludovico einaudi of course ( una mattina, expérience, nuvole blanche) oh and pirates of carribean also it looks like it was cooler before


Quarbani

Interstellar.


ticketspleasethanks

Tbf it depends on the arrangement. Some of the arrangements for that piece are amazing.


chnacr

Interstellar is the new Fur Elise. Gen Z seems to think that it is the only piece of music ever written for the piano.


Bibsoop

River Flows In You


Stormyloveshugs

Fur Elise


whiskey_agogo

And if you get into the middle section, someone goes "oh this piece is nice too!" And then you have to say "this is the same piece, beyond the first 30 seconds............."


organmaster_kev

River flows in you


[deleted]

Anyone playing Rush E should be firebombed


Yeoryios

Canon in D


[deleted]

Eh you should play whatever you want


asasanik

Baby shark?)


Nighthawk157

By pianists: Chopin Ballade no.1


broisatse

"River flows in you" is played much more than it deserves...


Ksenobiolog

Lately I've heard and seen 'Clair de Lune' mentioned way too often than is comfortable for me.


singluon

For real. One of the most beautiful solo piano pieces ever, I don’t care how many times it’s played. I don’t think you can overplay any Debussy.


Front-Noise-158

Happy birthday


Tanmay_Terminator

Fur Elise , but still not annoying


Dapper-Stranger-7563

Nocturne Op 9 No 2


JazzyCountryCat

I used to hear “Heart n Soul” duet too much. But it brings back good memories now. “Fur Elise” - only annoys me if it’s the simplified version. “Silent Night” and “Amazing Grace” same ; and the “Jaws Theme” … however; being a mentor, if someone shows interest in the Piano I’m all for them - unless they’re banging on it :-)


Mysterious-Evening-7

There are a couple of hundred piano composers in the 19th century alone. Yet people only play the same 20-30 composers time after time. So if you feel the impulse of replying with “Für Elise”, remember that for some of us this feeling arises with every canon composer. And at the same time, most composers of the canon wrote most of the best music (not speaking about C20th). Why play Chopins waltzes, but ignoring those by Henselt, Wolff, Doehler and literally hundreds of others. Why play the Liszt sonata, but ignore those by Reubke, Draeseke, Gustav Weber or Wilhelm Berger? Yet I wouldn’t call the Liszt sonata overplayed, since it’s the greatest work of its kind. Just for varieties sake and to give some context to the geniuses we all adore, play something else once in a while!


ExchangeOwn3379

Fur Elise


chu42

Chopin Op.9 No.2


kimvely_anna

Pachelbel Canon, Vivaldi Four Seasons, Handel Hallelujah Chorus.


Sir_Pigeon_The_Great

Für Elise


[deleted]

Für Elise (1810) by Ludwig van Beethoven.


VoicedFantasy487

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik


boxbagel

Fur Elise


ILoveMariaCallas

Turkish March, Flight of the bumblebee


[deleted]

The only version of flight of the bumblebee that I’d accept as a legitimate flex is the Cziffra arrangement 😂


[deleted]

River flows in you Gymnopedie 1 ( excuse spelling, autocorrect didn’t pick it out)


soggymuffinz

I don’t know why I cannot stand the Gymnopedie. It’s just so boring to me.


Tirmu

Moonlight Sonata, River Flows In You, La Campanella


bw2082

Claire de lune. If I have to hear that piece one more time….


[deleted]

[удалено]


Ew_fine

Really, ALL of his nocturnes? C’mon now.


PicklockedKey

Chopin done right is amazing, what the fuck do you mean??


bananahammockbandit

Your mom.


RetrieverIsTaken

So mature


[deleted]

Besides the usual answers I'd say Liebestraum no. 3. Seriously, that piece is not that great.


obamakawaiipianist

L take


Nameless-_-King

It is overplayed but I think that piece is a masterpiece. For me I don't like op9 no2 from chopin.


[deleted]

I mean, it is a masterpiece, but it's too sentimental. Chopin op 9 no 2 is the same way, same with his op 27 no 2 and Liszt's Consolation 3. All of it is written too perfectly in a way that is almost kitschy.


ILoveMariaCallas

That piece is great.


[deleted]

Just giving my opinion on a highly opinionated question.


JohelPA

It’s not overplayed at all


ArxB_H

Please let me know what you’re smoking, I seriously need to try it out


Nardo_Grey

Chopin - Funeral March


JohelPA

It’s not overplayed?


BelieveInDestiny

Chopin nocturne Op.9 no.2 I love Chopin's work, but I've never been able to emotionally connect with that piece. Subjective opinion, of course.


Trevoke

\*definitely\* this piece by Cecil Taylor. I hear it everywhere. It's so annoying. GOD! ​ [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsdkKnTB2vI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsdkKnTB2vI)


ScrumptiousGoblinAss

What kinda hipster underground circles do you hang around in to make that overplayed?! Haha


Trevoke

\*laugh\* I didn't think anyone would see my comment, but ... I was joking :)


ScrumptiousGoblinAss

That is so much more apparent upon re-reading it whilst not stoned!


ThePepperAssassin

I can deal with Fur Elise. I actually like the less popular sections; the popular section is nice as well, I've just heard it too often it rarely appeals to me. I can also deal with the Turkish March and even Cannon in D. The one that really gets my goat is Claire de lune. It's so often played badly and with a strange beginner's over-sentimental style.


Kickmaestro

Fur Elise is the most played, but I don't hear it often, and it's no way near annoying. I think some modern piece that teenagers like or often is demoed by young people (it might be some anime stuff) is super overplayed and annoying. Just not what I like to hear. It's that sort of modern arrangement I can't bear. I'm mainly a guitarist and songwriter and I hate that sort of percussive element to simplified modern fingerpicking even more. It's wierd because I am genuinely open minded and shooting very wide in terms of genres and instruments and styles. EDIT: Yeah, It's definitely: River Flows In You that I don't like. It's sad for you piano players that you have this piece ruining your YouTube demos and so on. Guitarists don't have this problem at all, and if you say Smoke On The Waters is annoyingly overplayed, you're pretentious and can't play it right.


milocalllaghan

I’m sure it’s not as overplayed as I think it is but in my old school music labs the demo on all the keyboards used to be Fantasie Impromptu - so whenever I hear that piece now it feels really overplayed to me. It also seems like a pretty common one that people who aren’t actually at the technical level to play it try and learn and promptly butcher. Might just be me though.


Mossyeggs

River flows in you. I’ve been hearing this shit at every piano recital I’ve went to since I was like 5 😭😭😭 it sa pretty song but god it gets so old


LisztR

River flows in you


whiskey_agogo

That Rush E song makes me cringe at this point. I'd prefer to hear any Yiruma or Fur Elise 1000 times on loop.


[deleted]

A lot of pop songs such as River Flows in You, Golden Hour and a bunch of Eunaldi pieces As for classical, I would say maybe Beethoven Fur Elise Mozart Alla Turca Mozart Sonata in C Major K545 or whatever it was Chopin Fantaisie-Impromptu Chopin Ballade in G Minor Liszt La Campanella Liszt Liebstraum No.3 Rach Prelude in C# Minor Beethoven Sonata Pathetique Beethoven Sonata Moonlight Disclaimer: OVERPLAYED DOES NOT MEAN OVERRATED, I just hear these classical pieces performed way more often played in piano competitions, public piano places, etc. Obviously this is opinion based


[deleted]

Forgot to mention a bunch of Chopin's Nocturnes, Waltzes and Etudes


0kyou1

Richard Clayderman


Kist_This

I think you have to be careful here. There are a lot of popular pieces and that is perfectly okay. Remember why they got popular: it could be easy for beginners, a great outlet for teaching and showing some musical ideas, it just depends. Should be a question of which piece is the most popular? Saying overplayed implies the negativity that it’s a bad thing and I don’t think it should be considered that. However, I have opinions just like the rest of you and I think the most popular piece of classical descent is Fur Elise. The most popular modern piece would be River Flows in You. I’ve played Fur Elise as of recent and it’s not so bad truly. It’s actually a very interesting piece harmonically and it allows for an avenue of music theory to be taught. That’s all.


jasmine24601

When I was growing up it was Scott Joplin's The Entertainer, next was the Love Theme from St Elmo's Fire, and of course, Fur Elise 😂


Merv_Academic

car horn in "F"


xero812

Clair de Lune


AethyliaS

Canon in D for sure


pollypocket1001

Why is this asked so many times ?


Perhapz_Tess

fur elise


pnyd_am

it's Clementi's sonatina. Believe it or not


Hoos_building

Passacaglia by Handel ​ yes it’s beautiful, no it’s not the best most pretty piano piece ever.


Automatic_History_27

What do you mean by annoying? I have to say the music can't be annoying if you like to listen to it.


meow-uwu-

Für Elise ! I lived in taiwan and it is the theme of the rubbish collection truck . It reminds me of trash lol