The best classical composers of all time ranked from best to worst. These classical composers are some of the best musicians in history, and are responsible for some of the greatest works of classical music the world has ever heard. Though these were men of a classical era of music, their concertos, sonatas, and movements are present in everything from rock concerts to blockbuster movies and are some of the most popular classical songs.
These top classical composers have written some of the most relaxing music, the most inspirational music, and the most beautiful music in the world. They are the greatest composers who ever have lived.
Who are the greatest classical composers? What are the characteristics of the best classical composers? Who wrote the best classical music? This list of the top classical composers aims to answer these questions and others that have to do with determining who the best composers of classical music were and are. If your favorite classical composer isn't on the list of the best
If classical music is your thing (and you're checking out a list of the best classical composers, so it probably is), check out the hottest men in classical music and the hottest women in classical music.1
6,7233,124Johann Sebastian Bach
Dec. at 65 (1685-1750)2
6,2432,896Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Dec. at 35 (1756-1791)- 36,6913,098
Ludwig van Beethoven
Dec. at 57 (1770-1827) - 43,1981,374
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Dec. at 70 (1873-1943) - 54,6572,154
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Dec. at 53 (1840-1893) - 62,1191,260
Giuseppe Verdi
Dec. at 88 (1813-1901) - 72,6951,687
Richard Wagner
Dec. at 70 (1813-1883) - 82,8581,985
Johannes Brahms
Dec. at 64 (1833-1897) - 92,7591,899
Franz Schubert
Dec. at 31 (1797-1828) - 101,9001,266
Igor Stravinsky
Dec. at 89 (1882-1971) - 111,324531
Alexander Scriabin
Dec. at 43 (1872-1915) - 123,8982,675
Frédéric Chopin
Dec. at 39 (1810-1849) - 131,446958
Giacomo Puccini
Dec. at 66 (1858-1924) - 141,5541,052
Richard Strauss
Dec. at 85 (1864-1949) - 151,439943
Béla Bartók
Dec. at 64 (1881-1945) - 162,5831,802
Claude Debussy
Dec. at 56 (1862-1918) - 172,2241,498
Gustav Mahler
Dec. at 51 (1860-1911) - 182,2091,589
Joseph Haydn
Dec. at 77 (1732-1809) - 191,5841,145
Maurice Ravel
Dec. at 62 (1875-1937) - 201,181796
Anton Bruckner
Dec. at 72 (1824-1896) - 211,4371,046
Robert Alexander Schumann
Dec. at 46 (1810-1856) - 222,0721,514
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dec. at 69 (1906-1975) - 231,6091,147
Sergei Prokofiev
Dec. at 62 (1891-1953) - 242,3031,726
Franz Liszt
Dec. at 75 (1811-1886) - 252,0531,524
Antonín Dvořák
Dec. at 63 (1841-1904)