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1. Ludwig van Beethoven

German 1770–1827

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most influential composers of all time and was central to the transition between theclassical and romantic eras of music.

While hearing loss cut short his career as a pianist, he composed some of his most celebrated works while almost completely deaf.

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2. Johann Sebastian Bach

German 1685–1750

Johann Sebastian Bach is considered one of the greatest composers in the history of Western music.

In his day Bach was revered as a virtuoso organist, however his legacy lies in the hundreds of hugely innovative, musically complex works he left behind. His use ofcounterpoint, religious and numerological symbols opened new dimensions of composition and musical quality which continue to amaze musicians and audiencestoday.

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3. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Austrian 1756–1791

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the ultimate child prodigy — he began doing concert tours of Europe aged six.

After spending his early years employed in the Salzburg court he moved to Vienna, where he composed many of his best-known works. Mozart's mastery of allforms of music and his idiomatic, uncomplicated style are a defining feature of the Classical era.

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4. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Russian 1840–1893

The music of Russian composer Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky is immediately recognisable for its emotional depth and lush melodies.

Tchaikovsky enrolled in the Saint Petersburg Conservatory shortly after it opened, where he studied music and his reputation as an accomplished composer steadilygrew. During his life he experienced many personal difficulties which led him to periods of considerable depression, and he died shortly after finishing his sixth andarguably most well-known symphony.

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5. George Frideric Handel

British 1685–1759

George Frideric Handel (also Georg Friedrich Händel) was a Baroque composer known his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos.

Handel was born in what is now Germany, but most of his career was spent in London. His major works are still used in British ceremonies such as coronations, andannual events in Britain including Christmas celebrations.

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6. Antonio Vivaldi

Italian 1678–1741

Antonio Vivaldi was one of the pioneer composers of the Italian Baroque.

Born in Venice, he trained as both a violinist and priest. When he was 25, Vivaldi was appointed the ""master of violin"" at an orphanage called the Pio Ospedaledella Pietà. He served in various roles at the orphanage over many years and wrote some of his most loved works whilst he was there. Despite Vivaldi's success, hismusic declined in popularity over his final years and he died in poverty at the age of 63.

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7. Frédéric Chopin

Polish 1810–1849

Frédéric Chopin was an influential Polish composer, teacher and pianist of the Romantic era.

His performances were renowned for their nuance of expression, and his experimentations with improvisation and style revolutionised piano technique.

All of Chopin's works involve the piano and his contribution to the instrument's repertoire has had a significant and lasting influence.

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8. Franz Schubert

Austrian 1797–1828

Franz Schubert was a prolific composer whose music was an important bridge between the Classical and Romantic eras.

Born into a musical family, he was a gifted pianist, organist, violinist and boy soprano. His foray into composition began with lessons from Antonio Salieri, withwhom he went on to study for 13 years. In his relatively short lifetime, Schubert had a huge musical output across orchestral music, piano and chamber music, andmost notably German lied.

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9. Sergei Rachmaninov

Russian 1873–1943

Considered to be the last great composer of the Romantic tradition in Russia, Sergei Rachmaninov was also a brilliant pianist and an accomplished conductor.

Following his studies at the Moscow Conservatory, Rachmaninov quickly rose to fame to become one of the finest pianists of his day. His technical proficiency inperformance was reflected in the idiomatic style and complexity of his writing. Rachmaninov's works are now among the most popular in the Romantic repertoire,known for their lush harmonies, lyrical inspiration and vivid range of colours.

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10. Edward Elgar

British 1857–1934

Sir Edward Elgar was an English composer, known for bringing about a renaissance in English music.

Elgar's active years spanned both the Romantic period and the start of the 20th century. His work is often anthemic or evocative of the British countryside, and holdsmuch national appeal, even to this day.

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11. Ralph Vaughan Williams

British 1872-1958

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12. Felix Mendelssohn

German 1809–1847

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13. Antonín Dvořák

Czech 1841–1904

14. Johannes Brahms

German 1833–1897

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15. John Williams

American 1932–

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16. Elena Kats-Chernin

Australian 1957–

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17. Jean Sibelius

Finnish 1865–1957

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18. Peter Sculthorpe

Australian 1929–2014

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19. Giacomo Puccini

Italian 1858–1924

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20. Gustav Mahler

Austro-Bohemian 1860–1911

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21. Giuseppe Verdi

Italian 1813–1901

22. Claude Debussy

French 1862–1918

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23. Camille Saint-Saëns

French 1835–1921

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24. Dmitri Shostakovich

Russian 1906–1975

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25. Joseph Haydn

Austrian 1732–1809

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26. Arvo Pärt

Estonian 1935–

27. George Gershwin

American 1898–1937

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28. Maurice Ravel

French 1875–1937

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29. Edvard Grieg

Norwegian 1843–1907

30. Ross Edwards

Australian 1943–

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31. Nigel Westlake

Australian 1958–

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32. Sergei Prokofiev

Russian 1891–1953

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33. Hildegard von Bingen

German 1098–1179

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34. Georges Bizet

French 1838–1875

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35. Richard Wagner

German 1813–1883

36. Philip Glass

American 1937–

37. Erik Satie

French 1866–1925

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38. Leonard Bernstein

American 1922–2004

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39. Gabriel Fauré

French 1845–1924

40. Ennio Morricone

Italian 1928–

41. Richard Strauss

Austrian 1864–1949

42. Gustav Holst

British 1874–1934

43. Aaron Copland

American 1900–1990

44. Claudio Monteverdi

Italian 1567–1643

45. Henry Purcell

British 1659–1695

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46. Igor Stravinsky

Russian 1882–1971

47. Robert Schumann

German 1810–1856

48. Georg Philipp Telemann

German 1681–1767

49. Max Bruch

German 1838–1920

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50. Benjamin Britten

British 1913–1976

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51. Alexander Borodin

Russian 1833–1887

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52. Thomas Tallis

British 1505–1585

53. Franz Liszt

Hungarian 1811–1886

54. Joaquín Rodrigo

Spanish 1901–1999

55. Gioachino Rossini

Italian 1792–1868

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56. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Russian 1844–1908

57. Hector Berlioz

French 1803–1869

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58. Percy Grainger

Australian 1882–1961

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59. Hans Zimmer

German 1957–

60. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

German 1714–1788

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61. Samuel Barber

American 1910–1981

62. Clara Schumann

German 1819–1896

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63. Aram Khachaturian

Armenian 1903–1978

64. Astor Piazzolla

Argentinian 1921–1992

65. Ludovico Einaudi

Italian 1955–

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66. Johann Strauss II

Austrian 1825–1899

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67. Karl Jenkins

British 1944–

68. John Rutter

British 1945–

69. Anton Bruckner

Austrian 1824–1896

70. Luigi Boccherini

Italian 1743–1805

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71. Bedřich Smetana

Czech 1824–1884

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72. Arthur Sullivan

British 1842–1900

73. Tomaso Albinoni

Italian 1671–1751

74. Modest Mussorgsky

Russian 1839–1881

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75. Johann Strauss I

Austrian 1804–1849

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76. William Byrd

British 1539–1623

77. Béla Bartók

Hungarian 1881–1945

78. Johann Pachelbel

German 1653–1706

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79. Arcangelo Corelli

Italian 1653–1713

80. Max Richter

German/British 1966–

81. Howard Shore

Canadian 1946–

82. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Italian 1525–1594

83. Fanny Mendelssohn

German 1805–1847

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84. Ottorino Respighi

Italian 1879–1936

85. John Barry

British 1933–2011

86. Gregorio Allegri

Italian 1582–1652

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87. William Barton

Australian 1981–

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88. Niccolò Paganini

Italian 1782–1840

89. Jules Massenet

French 1842–1912

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90. Peggy Glanville-Hicks

Australian 1912–1990

91. Michael Nyman

British 1944–

92. Erich Korngold

American 1897–1957

93. Graeme Koehne

Australian 1956–

94. Jean-Philippe Rameau

French 1683–1764

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95. Henryk Górecki

Polish 1933–2010

96. Sally Whitwell

Australian 1974–

97. Domenico Scarlatti

Italian 1685–1757

98. Carl Vine

Australian 1954–

99. Carl Orff

German 1895–1982

100. Francis Poulenc

French 1899–1963

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