The Impact and Use of Classical Music in Modern Music

Los Angeles businessman Marc David Broidy has served on the Board of Directors for two nonprofit organizations. Outside of his work and community service, Marc Broidy’s interests include classical music. Classical music has impacted and found use in modern music.

One major contribution of classical music to its modern counterpart is the chorus. A short refrain repeated throughout songs, the chorus is often the part of the tune most people remember when listening to music.

Another element of classical music found in modern music is chords discovered in the late 18th century that appear in pop music. A 2013 Guardian article mentioned Adele’s voice, style, and attitude and said that her style is reminiscent of composer Schubert who is credited with creating the first three-minute pop song.

Modern performers have also sampled works from classical musicians. Billy Joel, for example, used the second movement of Beethoven’s Pathetique Sonata in the chorus of “This Night.” Clean Bandit used Mozart’s String Quartet №21 in the chorus of “Mozart’s House.” Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor is incorporated into Muse’s “Plug in Baby,” and John Denver’s “Annie Song” incorporates a horn solo from Tchaikovsky’s Symphony №5. Finally, Walter Murphy made a Beethoven piece very popular in the late 1970s. His “A Fifth of Beethoven” was a disco-like rendition of Symphony №5.