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Austria\u2019s importance to the history of Western classical music has been widely, if sometimes grudgingly, acknowledged. Arguably much of this is rooted in the joint work of Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91), who together developed and promoted the symphony<\/a> <\/strong>and the string quartet<\/a>.<\/strong> Here is an introduction to 11 of the best Austrian composers – beginning, of course, with that all-important duo.<\/p> Born in the rural village of Rohrau in lower Austria, the son of a wheelwright, Joseph Haydn <\/strong><\/a> was a country boy at heart. This can be heard even in the last and grandest of his symphonies, the \u2018London\u2019, the finale of which starts on a rustic drone and a simple scrap of a melody<\/a><\/strong> which might have been played in a lively barn dance. Yet Haydn became one of the greatest pioneers and innovators of classical music.<\/p>
Best Austrian composers: the Classical era<\/h2>
Joseph Haydn <\/strong>(1732-1809)<\/h3>