Do you prefer Beethoven or Mozart? How do you rate them on a scale of one to ten

Question:

Do you prefer Beethoven or Mozart? How do you rate them on a scale of one to ten?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Well, they're both great in their own respects. Mozart was such a genius that he could visualize not only the structure of a piece, but also the actuall notes, all before writing it down. Beethoven, on the other hand, was the man who ushered in the Romantic period. His music is much more expressive and passionate. Take, for example, the moonlight and appassionata piano sonatas (No. 14 and 23). Many people mistake them for Chopin pieces because of their lyricism and depth of feeling. Mozart was a court composer who was always looking for a paycheck, while Beethoven was trying to escape the restraints that were imposed on a musician then. It was truly bold to write something like the ninth symphony; music at his time was refined and elegant, perhaps meant more as a achievement of structuring than of expressing something. This is why much of Mozart's music is 'boring'. The Ninth symphony, however, was such a great leap out of the norm that Beethoven was sure that the audience would be stunned into offended silence after it's performance. Music then was not boisterous and passionate untill Beethoven came.
So, as far as structure and symmetry, mozart kicks everyone's butt. However, Beethoven remains my favorite because he wasn't afraid to pour himself into his music. I've heard performers say that Mozart and Rachmaninoff would be coldly polite to each other, while Beethoven and Rachmaninoff could easily become friends (even though Rachmaninoff had no friends because he was a seven-foot frown on feet). On the other-other hand, Mozart did have his moments, such as when he supposedly thought that the angel of death was after him, he cut the court crap and wrote the Requiem Mass, which is one of the greatest works ever, espically the Dies Irae.