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In my opinion, there is nothing better than ending a great piece with an amazing coda. Here are some endings that I compiled. Take note that thery are in no particular ranking.

Prokofiev: first movement of String Quartet No. 2
Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2 in E minor
Brahms: String Quintet No. 2, Op. 111 (first movement too)
Tchaikovsky: Francesca da Rimini
Holst: first movement of Suite No. 1 for Military Band in E-flat major
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5
Dvorak: Symphony No. 8 in G major
Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major
Saint-Saens: Tarantelle for Clarinet, Flute, and Orchestra
Tchaikovsky: first movement of the Manfred Symphony
Brahms: first movement of Violin Sonata No. 2
Weber: Invitation to the Dance
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 3 (first movement too)

I don't have enough time to collaborate on my selections. Please add if you wish.

Shostakovich: Symphony No. 15

Rossini's William Tell and Barber of Seville Overtures.
Holst Suite for Military Band in Eb in General has 3 nice codas.
Haydn's "Joke Quartet" and Trumpet Concerto.
Mozart's Musikalischer Spass.
Beethoven 3,5, and 9.
Shosti 5 and 7.
Havegal Brian's Gothic Symphony.
Hans Rott's Symphony in E is a little drawn out but still very nice.
Bruckner 5,8, and 9 and Te Deum.
Mahler 2,3,4,6,8, and 9 and Das Klagende Lied and Todtenfeier.

ZacPB189 wrote:Beethoven 3,5, and 9.

And you can't forget the 7th!

wurlitzer153 wrote:

ZacPB189 wrote:Beethoven 3,5, and 9.

And you can't forget the 7th!

I can -- very easily.

For my money, the best ending of any piece of music is Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. The final resolution to the B-Major chord is almost transcendental, in a sense. Some of my other favorite endings (not necessarily the best) are:

Scriabin - Prometheus (The final F-sharp Major chord acts in a similiar way to that of the finale of Tristan. In both works, the music has been ambiguous throughout until it is resolved on their final chords.)
Puccini - Suor Angelica (I usually can't stand Puccini, but this opera I feel is far superior to his others and its ending is really amazing.)
Mozart - Symphony in C Major, K. 551 "Jupiter" (All of Mozart's music has great endings, but from the Coda to the final chords really is quite astonishing.)
Stravinsky - La Sacre (For obvious reasons) and The Rake's Progress (I like the moral, and I think the music is very creative.
Ives - Symphony No. 2 (If you haven't listened to this piece, I really think you should. It reminds me more of Brahms than Ives. Lots of quotations, though, so definitely Ives. Really wonderful piece with a great, surprising ending.

I could go on and on. These are just some of the ones I remember the most.

perlnerd666 wrote:Shostakovich: Symphony No. 15

Really?

I spent time and money to get that recording. Is this a joke?

allegroamabile wrote:Is this a joke?

Doesn't seem like a joke to me. DSCH 15 is a bawdy, tragic, esoteric masterpiece, and the ending is incredibly haunting.

A very mixed bag...

Giovanni Gabrieli, In ecclesiis - in the last section of the work, Gabrieli invents a massive "19th century" pedal point on the dominant, quite farsightedly for circa 1600 :)
Hector Berlioz, Le corsaire, and Judex crederis from Te Deum - both deserving of the superlative "astonishing"
Claude Debussy, coda of Dialogue du vent et de la mer from La Mer
Arnold Schönberg, Seht die Sonne! final chorus from the Gurre-lieder
Gustav Holst, coda of Neptune from The Planets - voices alone fading into the interstellar distance over an alto flute and double harp glissandi...
Olivier Messiaen, Turangalîla-Symphonie
Havergal Brian, Symphonies Nºs 3, 9 and 16
Carl Orff, Apparizione di Afrodite from Trionfo di Afrodite - "how many pieces of percussion would you like with your fortissimo, Mr Orff?"

allegroamabile wrote:

perlnerd666 wrote:Shostakovich: Symphony No. 15

Really?

I spent time and money to get that recording. Is this a joke?

I like percussion, open fifths, etc...so this worked nicely.
However, I realized that the Bach Canonic Variations on Von Himmel Hoch...is sooo much better.

The ending of Rimsky-Korsakov's opera-ballet Mlada is to die for. (Well, given what has happened by that point in the plot -- a flood that consumes everyone -- it's only appropriate that the music be worth it. ) The chorus recalls a haunting melody from Yaromir's dream in Act I, this time in full harmony with brilliant orchestra.

dwil9798 wrote:Ives - Symphony No. 2 (If you haven't listened to this piece, I really think you should. It reminds me more of Brahms than Ives. Lots of quotations, though, so definitely Ives. Really wonderful piece with a great, surprising ending.

WOW... That piece is fantastic! What an ending! and it was indeed susprising to say the least.
Thank you so much for suggesting this magnificent work.

Well, Ives always works out, unlike Boulez, who can't seem to end something. Carter, however can usually inject some nice humor, and Sciarrino is veery good at ending.
However, I was always disappointed by the ending of All the Way Around and Back.

What about best beginnings?

Beethoven- Symphony No. 5 (of course)
Beethoven- Symphony No. 8
Borodin- Polovtsian Dances
Borodin- Symphony No. 2
Glazunov- Symphony No. 1 in E major, Op. 5
Brahms- String Quintets Nos. 1 and 2
Handel- Music for the Royal Fireworks
Dvorak- Te Deum
Mendelssohn- Concert Piece No. 2 for Clarinet, Basset Horn, and Piano in D minor
Walter Piston- Violin Concerto No. 1
Johann Strauss II- Tales from the Vienna Woods (very serene opening)
Tchaikovsky- String Quartet No. 1
Wagner- Prelude to Die Miestersinger
Wagner- Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin
Weber- Overture to Euryanthe
Weber- Der Beherrscher der Geister (The Ruler of Spirits) Overture
Brahms- Symphony No. 3
Brahms- Symphony No. 1
Barber- Violin Concerto, Op. 11
Barber- Symphony No. 2
Barber- Overture to "The School for Scandal"
Bartok- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73
Prokofiev- Russian Overture
Borodin- String Quartet No. 2
Mozart- Requiem
Hindemith- Clarinet Sonata
Copland- Appalachian Spring (very transcendental)
Haydn- The Creation
Rimsky-Korsakov- Procession of the Nobles from Mlada
William Schuman- George Washington Bridge
Beethoven- String Quartet No. 7, "Rasumovsky"
William Grant Still- Festive Overture

I could go on forever, but I generally like beginnings that get going right at the first note. If anyone catches your eye, you should definitely take look at it.

Bach: Cantata No. 54 (Widerstehe Doch Der Sunde)...wooooow.
Bach (C.P.E.): Symphonies, Wq. 183 - all very surprising, except No. 4, which is just nice