And this wasn’t all idle background noise. Warner Brothers, who produced both Looney Tunes and its equally influential (and far less famous) sibling Merrie Melodies, actively relied on music to help pull off some of the funniest gags in cartoon history. There’s a bit late on in this choral masterpiece when 40 voices miraculously join together in breathtaking unison after swirling around each other – it’s the very definition of epic.Bugs Bunny: smart aleck, dynamite enthusiast … Chopin fan? Sit the kids down for a Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies marathon, and they’ll be humming classical refrains before you can say “Th-th-that’s all, folks!” The shorts incorporated everything from light opera to German symphonies. It’s a popular work, but that doesn’t diminish the sheer scale of Rachmaninov’s vision for this work. Got a spare few hours? And a penchant for full orchestra, chorus and brass band sharing the stage? You’ll be in need of Havergal Brian’s gargantuan ‘Gothic’ symphony.

Simple, effective, huge.Ī piece in which the early classical legend attempts to recreate the dawn of mankind with only an orchestra and a chorus at his disposal. It reportedly caused a riot on its premiere, and it totally sounds like one too.įor sheer noise and impression, Saint-Saëns so-called ‘Organ’ symphony does the business like no other.īecause nothing says ‘epic’ like a fictional superhero with his pants on outside his tights and a heroic theme played on French horn. No biggie, just a symphony that attempts to incorporate ALL THAT IS GOOD AND RIGHT IN MANKIND’S STRUGGLE AGAINST DARKNESS.

Verdi’s Aida is the grandest of grand operas, calling for gargantuan sets, huge orchestra forces and a chorus big enough to scale a pyramid.

Classical opera music