Choir choral works, though not as numerous as his works for other media, stand out as some of his greatest (such as the "Great" Mass in C minor and Requiem in D minor, the latter of which is often considered the greatest Requiem Mass of all time). Haydn became more interested in choral music near the end of his life following his visits to England in the 1790s, when he heard various Handel oratorios performed by large forces; he wrote a series of masses beginning in 1797 and his two great oratorios "The Creation" and "The Seasons". Beethoven wrote only two
The Seasons (Tchaikovsky) famous in the interpretation of Sergei Rachmaninoff, which has been adopted by Russian pianists as the "standard" model interpretation. Less known are October and December. The elegiac "Song of the Autumn" and the elegant characteristic salon waltz "Christmas" could be music right out of Tchaikovsky's operas or ballets respectively. Once upon a time "The Seasons" enjoyed enormous popularity. Only recently have they been rediscovered by pianists. In recent years, Yakov Kasman has made a notable recording of the suite. The Seasons (Tchaikovsky) The Seasons, Op. 37a (also seen as Op. 37b; ; published with the French title Les Saisons), is