My Favorite Classical Music for Summer – 5 Pieces You’ll Love
After spending so many summers playing chamber music at camps with friends, I’ve come to associate lots of classical music with warm, summer nights. Here are a few of my favorite recommendations to listen to, preferably on a summer evening with a cool drink and pretty lights.
Kodály – Nyári Este (Summer Evening)
Literally called “Summer Evening, Nyári Este is such an underrated piece of music! I got to learn and perform this in college, and it’s just gorgeous music. I have many memories of going on evening walks across campus and relaxing while listening to this.
The viola part felt awkward to play, but it sounds so cool and strong!
When I listen to this, I picture a pond in the evening, with lightning bugs and sunset colors in the sky.
Shostakovich – String Quartet No. 1
This is a piece of chamber music I learned at a summer camp, and it always reminds me of a nice summer evening. The cello part sounds like a frog, and I just imagine a calm, lazy evening in a garden, with a frog nearby. 🙂
Also, listen to how tonal this piece is for Shostakovich! No surprise dissonance in this one.
Tchaikovsky – Souvenir de Florence
This is just one of my favorite pieces of classical music ever. Tchaikovsky was a huge fan of Mozart, and I feel like his influence really shines through in this work. Oh man, it’s just so good.
I learned the first movement at a music festival, and being in the center of the music was just extraordinary. I could probably perform this piece every weekend and never get tired of it.
Mozart – String Quartet in B flat Major (The Hunt)
The Hunt (K. 458) is probably my favorite Mozart string quartet, and it’s another that I learned at a summer camp! I picture men of the 18th century going on horseback through a field to their fox hunt. Can I get an episode of Bridgerton with that premise and this string quartet going in the background?
Mendelssohn – Midsummer Night’s Dream
Us classical musicians may have a fair bit of trauma associated with the Scherzo from Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream (it’s a big orchestral excerpt, asked for at most auditions), but it’s truly a good piece of music!
I love how light but mischievous the music is, until it builds, and falls again. I know it’s cliche with the title, but I really think this is nice classical music for summer.
In writing this post, I realized that a lot of classical music I enjoy in the summer is light, and a lot of the music I listen to in the colder months is heavier. It makes sense, like how a lot of us eat lighter, cooler foods in the hot months, and bigger, warmer comfort foods in the winter. Cool!
What music do you like to listen to in the summer? I’d love some more recommendations!
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