Favorite classical (Baroque) - J. S. Bach (Art of the Fugue and Toccata and Fugue)

Favorite classical (classical) - Mozart (Symphony No. 25 in G minor) Verdi's Requiem

Favorite classical (Romance) - A lot. Modest Mussorgsky and Gustav Holst in particular. Holst was one of the few classical composers who knew how to use low brass. Everybody else either relegated them to long tones, percussion, or ignored them (Beethoven's 5th has a 500+ bar rest in the first movement).

Favorite classical (modern) - Copland

Favorite big band - Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey.

Favorite jazz/blues instrumental - B.B. King, Muddy Water, Howlin Wolf, noir jazz / cool jazz (Miles Davis)

Favorite Jazz Vocal - Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee

Favorite rock - Toto, Bon Jovi, Tina Turner, GnR, anything with a beat that gets your blood racing

Favorite metal - Nightwish, AC/DC, Metallica

Favorite other - Two Steps from Hell, Hans Zimmer (I consider him our generations Sergei Prokofiev), Steve Jablonsky, Basil Poledouris.

World music: Taiko Drummers (Japan)

In case you haven't noticed it, my music is either big and bombastic, or sports a definite personality

I almost forgot: Traditional African music makes heavy use of polyrhythms. The overly simplistic beats on rap has no musical connection. Rap, from where I stand, originated as an attempt to make beat poetry macho.