How has your taste in music changed over the years?

When I was younger, I only really loved Chopin music and that is all I wanted to learn.  My world expanded when I started hearing more Schubert and Rachmaninoff. I love all Schubert music but especially enjoy the Liszt transcriptions of Schubert’s lieder. I have to dig through Rachmaninoff’s music to find things that match my level (and hand size) but the process of even listening to all his works has been amazing!

I am perhaps an outlier who didn't really grow up on classical music. However, I do have a memory of my grandpa making reel-to-reel "mixtapes" of classical and Mahler was one of his favorites who I was exposed to, though at the time I couldn't get into it as a kid. I grew up more on pop & rock, as well as my parent's record collection (Led Zeppelin, Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and some jazz etc.). I took piano lessons on and off growing up but it was mostly focused on playing pop/rock stuff.

I wasn't until I reached my 30s when I started taking piano lessons more seriously, learned to read music, and developed a deep love and obsession for "classical," ranging from baroque to the romantics to contemporary. So perhaps I'm a bit late to the game! I think what helped me really get into it were Bach and Vivaldi on the baroque side, and then later composers like Debussy, Chopin, Ravel, Rachmoninoff, Stravinsky, Holst, and yes - returning to Mahler!

While I still do enjoy a lot of pop/rock/jazz stuff which I grew up on, I find myself listening to it less and less as time goes by.

When I was younger, I like the Beethoven, Schuberts, Chopin, Strauss in orchestra, chamber as well as piano/violin solo. That remain unchanged.

On the other hand,  as a kid, I didn't like much of the vocals - especially sopranos tended to hurt my ears (probably bad sound system). These days, extended from my love for Schubert piano music, I discover Schubert's lieder as well as other vocal works and now likes them a lot. The expressiveness of human voice makes is the perfect instruments! 

I didn't use to like to play Debussy/Poulenc as much, but lately I am quite drawn to it. I guess I finally overcome my fear of reading accidentals and ledger lines on scores.

On the opposite end, when I was a kid, I used to like to play Richard Clayderman. I just looked it up after decades, and I had to turn it off after 30 seconds. Somehow the timbre of electric keyboard is a huge turnoff. 

My taste has transitioned to Baroque music the past couple of years. I’ve really been getting deep into the High Baroque - early Classical Music era.
 

There’s something pure and beautiful about the melodies in that period. 

Warning for the long story:

When I was young, I was never too interested in classical music and just thought it's "quite nice". I was more into the usual pop music and maybe some romantic music. When I first heard Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto #1, there was a sudden gush of tear and I felt "triggered" by the music but thought nothing much about it after that. (that was in my teens). I had piano lessons but I was never too enthusiastic about it and always wanting to quit. I stop after 18 (after piano Grade 8) and I'm happy that I don't have to do music anymore. 

In my 20s, I start teaching piano to beginner as I need another source of income. I realise there was an unexplanable joy just "pressing" the piano key and hearing the sound produce by the piano. Having a full time job during the weekdays and having to do part time piano teaching over the weekend is supposedly tiring but I'm surprise I actually enjoyed it. Through teaching, I discover my love for music and piano and I find myself picking up music again. I never knew music is so important to me and my love for it grew as I explore more. I continue upgrading myself, going for courses, continue with my diploma in performance and teaching and all these never stop since then. I wouldn't say my taste for music "change", but at different age and at different stage in life, I discover different type of more and fall in love with the different style as I learnt more about it. I would say Romantic music start getting me interested, Classical music educate me about sound and structures and I'm finding meaning in Baroque music these days (harmony). 20th Century music is still a challenge to me as I am not able to fully appreciate all the dissonants and so called "non-melodious" music. I'm still exploring and I expect my taste to expand further as my journey continues. Music is my life and I'll not let it leave again.

I'm now very close to 60. My taste in music evolved in a natural way, when I was a kid/teenager I listened to everything mainstream across most genres of music including all the Latin charts. By the time I had reached 25 I was big into British progrock along with 70's European electronic music / pop synth and then big into anything with elaborate keyboard arrangements, then in the 90's eventually Yanni and many so called "New Age" artists from the big record labels. There is a period of fusion/jazz as in Chick Corea and many others. Radiohead, Muse, Oasis and company followed in the 2000s. I am now catching up to many modern day artists that simply appeal to my musical sensibilities. I have always loved the baroque, classical and romantic periods and signing up for Tonebase was the logical move as I return once again to the piano. 

In my younger days my ear disliked any dissonances.....now they intrigue me:)

It's moved backwards. When I first discovered so-called (but, in one important sense, wrongly called) 'classical' music, as a boy of thirteen, I made the common but massive mistake of thinking that the Western music tradition began with Bach. In time, of course, I discovered that it began centuries before that, with the development of Gregorian chant. My favourite period these days is the Renaissance, although my favourite composer is still now (and ever shall be) Bach. Similarly, when I was sixteen or so, I thought it deliciously clever to 'like' Webern & Co. Now I can rarely be bothered with anything later than Brahms. 

As a child and teenage piano student, I found myself gravitating more and more to the music of Debussy, Ravel and Chopin; and then Messiaen (for listening and playing). I was forced to learn some Bach and early Beethoven to complete an examination series, but felt that my heart was not in them - I couldn't find "color".

Much time has passed since then, including many years during which I did not have access to an instrument. My listening expanded in so many directions; not just what we place under the umbrella of 'classical / Western art music' but a great deal from the jazz and progrock worlds. Now that I have the best piano I've ever owned, my admiration of and work on the music of Debussy and Ravel continues unabated, but I'm finding joy, structure, balance and yes - "color" - in the Well-Tempered Clavier and the early-period sonatas of Beethoven. I'm not learning these works for any benefit other than sheer enjoyment. It's been fascinating to reflect on decades of how my musical appreciation has changed.

I started off at 4 years old with Classical music learning the piano. Always loved playing Chopin's waltzes,  though I played a lot of Mozart for piano exams. 

I had to stop my piano lessons when I was in middle school. Picked up playing by ear and playing contemporary music/pop songs on the keyboard.  I also picked up the guitar. Then it was Bon Jovi and Guns N Roses... then it was jazz... 

Only in the last 4-5 years, after 30 years, I returned to playing classical. I still love playing Chopin but learnt to love and play Schubert, Brahms and Beethoven. Recently, I've been quite fascinated with Mozart's music, especially accompanying my children's violin teacher playing the violin concerto in G. 

So much good music, so many wonderful composers... so much to discover and learn. 

This is a question I do think about a lot. My first album was Dylan’s Freewheelin’ and my most recent was Tapestry by VOCES8 - a vocal group. Thousands of records/tapes/cds in between. 
 

For piano I’ve had so many enthusiasms: Horowitz, Rubinstein, Richter, Gould, Brendel, Kempff, Fisher, Ax,  Denk, Levitt, Olaffson … I could go on. 
 

I am grateful now at 73 for all these artists and the gift of their music. 

Hi everybody. With the years, In fact it's true my taste has change.I was a great fan of Beethoven then Mozart, and as time goes by I got fascinated by Chopin more then anything. But now I like all of them and Rachmaninoff and Chopin are much more captivating to me. But I respect and like all the composers.

I still like the European and Russian classical composers. Still don't like much 20th C piano music.

As a devoted amateur pianist, organist and choral singer, I focus more on preparation for  coming performances. I enjoy choral singing in many languages. I listen to many classical performances by 20th C piano greats. Today astounding Don Juan duet with Martha Argerich and Michel Beroff. I really enjoying researching my themed piano recitals. Classical Piano Around the World found me playing music composed in Tanzania, India, Iran, S. America and Africa, in addition to American and European composers. Who knew?! Shall We Dance was another great theme. Currently preparing Music of the Night recital. I enjoy some, but not all contemporary choral works. Jazz in not my preference. I cannot get used to praise bands in churches.  I bring ear plugs just in case. While it is fun to attend symphony concerts where a movie is shown while the orchestra plays the score, I think that is part of dumbing down symphonic classical music. We play an excellent classical FM station 24/7 in our home. My husband and I play name that tune with each other often. Thank you for allowing me to post.

I was born in Poland and classical music was very much present on the radio so I was was exposed to classical music from a very early age. As a matter of fact, music was the centre of focus for many radio station and in the 60s I spent hours listening to Beatles and all the rock from 60s and 70s. I think that Leonard Cohen was more pore admired in Poland (and Europe in general) than in Canada (and definitely USA) where I live.

Music was always in my live as something very important. I had very eclectic interests: the were periods of time that I listened mostly to electronic music (Klaus Schultze was my favourite musician), jazz (I have a big CD and LP collection with a lot of Keith Jarrett albums), classical music and popular music from 60s, 70s and 80s.

I few years ago I started to learn to play guitar (mostly rock) and then I got digital piano and started learning to play. What really brought me to it is Beatles "Let is be" and "Hey Jude". I very soon moved to classical music and although I tried to learn jazz (I would say that it ended up in failure) I am now mostly committed to learning classical music. I currently focus on technique and I realized that I like structure and the sense of completeness many classical music pieces give me. I still listen to jazz though.

Michael

It is a very interesting question. I look forward to reading what everyone has to say!