"Classical" advice needed...

I'd check out Messiaen, Schnittke, Gubaidulina, Berg, early Schoenberg, Bartok, Debussy, Faure...

If you like Penderecki, you'll love Lutoslawski (I hope)

Satie has a fairly unique sound IMHO. But if it's the piano music you like, then you may go for Debussy's piano stuff too (e.g. Préludes Book 1, Children's Corner).

Very good suggestions from Melissa. I'd add Takemitsu, Morton Feldman, George Crumb, possibly Ligeti. Early Cage too, especially the Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano, which are great.

Jeff: you're the second person to bring up Lutoslawski in relation to Penderecki, yet I've never heard anything from the former which seems to even be in the same ballpark as 'Anaklasis', 'Emanationen' and 'Threnody'. Any recommendations?

Any mentioned Varese yet?

Dunno about ballparks, my statement about L was meant literally. But, since you ask, I think there are more similarities than just the 'ski's in their names (sic)

e.g. 60s - Threnody has no barlines, as such. The conductor is aided by being given lengths of time that each specific section lasts. Each section is divided by a dotted line. L's first aleotoric compositions of just a few years later (Jeux Venitiens, Livre, Symphony No.2) contain a mixture of conducted and roughly-timed 'blocks' of music. Some of the writing for strings is clearly influenced by Penderecki too, albeit modified into a less extreme form.

70s-80s: both returned to more 'classical' structures, notably the Concerto and the Symphony, P via Bach, L via the idea of the (melodic) "line".

Is that enough?

I'd have to hear L but I'm not sure it is. A lot of modern music doesn't use barlines.

Try Ligeti's Violin Concerto. Try Iancu Dumitrescu too - "Galaxy" is great. There's a compilation that includes that piece as well as a string quartet and an orchestral piece and some other stuff that is quite good.

If it's the massive textural stuff that interests you about Penderecki, and also given your postpunk/indie tastes, you might like Branca's electric guitar symphonies. Try the 3rd, 5th, and maybe the 6th.

George Crumb's Makrokosmos is also a really great piece, featuring creepy prepared piano and demented screeching.

In a Satie vein, William Walton's "Bagatelle for Guitar" played by Julian Bream is very nice.

Jeff: "Is that enough?"

More than enough, thanks. I think I've only heard the later material, which, if I can discern any connection with Penderecki's later work, it's only in the sense that I don't care for it very much. I'll make the effort to search for that 60s stuff (though I do have a example of his aleatorical writing in 'Paroles Tissees', which suffers mainly because it's got a bloke singing on it. The classical voice remains my blind-spot in these matters).

Szymanowski and Bartok are the chaps I associate with Lutoslawski.

The Dumitrescu comp is s/t and includes "Galaxy," "Movemur et Sumus (III)" (for 3 double basses and percussion), "Reliefs (II)" (for 2 orchestras and piano), "Memorial/Alternances" (for string quartet), and "Basoreliefs Symphoniques" (for orchestra).

The Walton piece is "Bagatelle No. 2" from Five Bagatelles.

Speaking of Satie, what are some good compositions (and good recordings of them), beyond the Gymnopedies and Gnosienne (sp?)?

the aldo ciccolini 2 cd "piano works" is quite good. i'd go for that.

i should clarify that ciccolini is the performer playing satie, and not some other composer.

ciccolini's 2 cd compilation on EMI seconded. the humor is just as important as the pretty.

if you like satie, ravel's piano works are nice too. I can strongly recommend this album, currently in print on Arbiter.

i personally prefer the pascal rogé version. he does a fine job with debussy as well.