Announcing the launch of the
Kickass Classical YouTube Channel!
Since more and more of you crazy whippersnappers are discovering music - and Classical Music - through YouTube these days, we've made it easy for you to experience the Kickass Classical Top 100!
Press play for the
Kickass Classical Top 100 Playlist - we count 'em down from #100 to #1. It's a great way to see which pieces catch your ear - without all the clicking!
Let's rock! "Canon Rock" is an electric guitar cover version of Johann Pachelbel's "Canon In D" by Taiwanese musician and composer Jerry Chang (JerryC). The original piece was written around 1680, proving that classical music still rocks over 300 years later!
Pachelbel at Kickass Classical
Get Pachelbel's "Canon In D" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
A Super Bowl ad with both
violins and... violence? Sounds like the epitome of Kickass Classical! This 2008 Doritos ad from Super Bowl XLII uses the saucy violins from Georges Bizet's "Habanera" (from his 1875 opera "Carmen") to underscore the interplay between cat and... mouse.
Bizet at Kickass Classical
Get Bizet's "Habanera" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
Witness the speed and precision of Croatian pianist Maksim Mrvica (pronounced "Maravitsa") at the world premiere performance of his album "The Piano Player" in May 2003. To fully showcase his talents, he rocks Rimsky-Korsakov's manic masterpiece "
The Flight Of The Bumblebee."
Rimsky-Korsakov at Kickass Classical
Get Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Flight Of The Bumblebee" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
What's better than cats being funny? OMG nothing LOL! These mischievous feline shenanigans are underscored by the whimsical "
La Gazza Ladra (The Thieving Magpie)," by Italian composer Gioacchino Antonio Rossini. The 1817 piece makes the high jinks even more enjoyable!
Rossini at Kickass Classical
Get Rossini's "La Gazza Ladra (The Thieving Magpie)" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
"Ding Fries Are Done" is an internet classic. But the tune is 91 years old - older than your mom! "
Carol Of The Bells" was written by Ukrainian composer Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych in 1916. The tune lives on today as one of the most enduring Christmas melodies of all time.
Get "Carol Of The Bells" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
This piece is also the basis for a popular modern Christmas tune - Trans-Siberian Orchestra's 1996 instrumental "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
What happens when you give a
flamingo a yo-yo? This month's Kickassical Clip comes from Disney's animated film "Fantasia 2000," and explores just that question. The piece uses the grand finale of the "Carnival Of The Animals" suite by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns.
Saint-Saëns at Kickass Classical
Get Saint-Saëns' "Carnival Of The Animals Finale" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
Ah, sweet sleep! October's Kickassical Clip features a hilarious montage of people sleeping in funny positions! The piece underscores these beautiful dreamers with Léo Delibes' "
Flower Duet" from his 1883 opera "Lakmé," also heard in ads for British Airways and Ghirardelli Chocolate.
Delibes at Kickass Classical
Get Delibes' "Flower Duet" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
There's nothing better than a
Simpsons parody! This month's Kickassical Clip comes from the February 8, 2004 episode of The Simpsons titled "Margical History Tour," starring Bart as the one, the only, Mozart!
Archive Update: D'oh! This video has been removed.
Mozart at Kickass Classical
Get Mozart's "Piano Sonata No. 11 In A, Rondo Alla Turca" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
Time for a mashup! High culture and pop culture collide in this 2006 fusion of
hip hop and classical by the DJ duo "A+D." The piece skillfully combines Kanye West's 2005 hit "Gold Digger" with Walter Murphy's 1977 disco hit, "A 5th Of Beethoven" which samples the opening strains of, you guessed it, Beethoven's "5th Symphony," written almost 200 years ago in 1808.
Beethoven at Kickass Classical
Get Beethoven's "5th Symphony" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
We're celebrating July with some fireworks! This month's Kickassical Clip comes from the final moments of the 2005 film "
V for Vendetta" when the Houses Of Parliament go buh-bye. The movie climaxes with Tchaikovsky's explosive "1812 Overture."
[ Warning: Spoiler ]
Tchaikovsky at Kickass Classical
Get Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
Rock me Amadeus! This month's Kickassical Clip is a comparison between a famous scene in the 1984 film "Amadeus" and a
Family Guy parody from the May 13, 2007 episode. Stewie plays Haydn, Handel and... Peter Griffin? The scene concludes with Mozart's "Dies Irae" from his Requiem.
Mozart at Kickass Classical
Get Mozart's "Dies Irae" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
This month's Kickassical Clip comes to us from the GAP. While the ad only ran in a few select cities, it earned director Spike Jonze a Director's Guild of America nomination for "Outstanding Achievement in Commercials in 2005." The fun and devastation is scored with Edvard Grieg's intense 1876 masterpiece "
In The Hall Of The Mountain King" from his "Peer Gynt Suite" (below).
Grieg at Kickass Classical
Get Edvard Grieg's "In The Hall Of The Mountain King" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
This month's Kickassical Clip comes to us from Sony. Late last year they unleashed this stunning new ad to demonstrate the vivid color of the Bravia TV line. Sony used 70,000 liters of paint and the
colorful music of Rossini's "La Gazza Ladra (The Thieving Magpie)" to illustrate their point.
Rossini at Kickass Classical
Get Rossini's "La Gazza Ladra (The Thieving Magpie)" at
iTunes
Amazon mp3
Kickass Classical features Classical Music's Top 100 Greatest Hits based on their exposure in today's pop culture. Because Classical Music should be accessible to everyone.
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