Symphonie fantastique (Fantastic Symphony) Opus 14, is a symphony written by French composer Hector Berlioz in 1830. It is widely regarded as one of the most important and representative pieces of the early Romantic period, and is still very popular with symphonic audiences worldwide. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Portrait of Berlioz by Signol, 1832 Louis Hector Berlioz (December 11, 1803 – March 8, 1869) was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie Fantastique (first performed in 1830) and Grande Messe des Morts (Requiem). ... The era of Romantic music is defined as the period of European classical music that runs roughly from the early 1800s to the first decade of the 20th century, as well as music written according to the norms and styles of that period. ...

Outline

The symphony is a piece of program music which tells the story of "an artist gifted with a lively imagination" who has "poisoned himself with opium" in the "depths of despair" because of "hopeless love." There are five movements, instead of the four movements which were conventional for symphonies at the time: Program music is music intended to evoke extra-musical ideas, images in the mind of the listener by musically representing a scene, image or mood [1]. By contrast, absolute music stands for itself and is intended to be appreciated without any particular reference to the outside world. ...

1. Rêveries - Passions (Dreams - Passions)
2. Un bal (A Ball)
3. Scène aux champs (Scene at the Country)
4. Marche au supplice (March to the Scaffold)
5. Songe d'une nuit de sabbat (Dream of a Witches' Sabbath)

First movement: "Rêveries - Passions"

The movement is radical in its harmonic outline, building a vast arch back to the home key, which, while similar to the Sonata Form of classical composition, was taken as a departure by Parisian critics. It is here that the listener is introduced to the theme of the artist's beloved, or the idée fixe. Throughout the movement, there is a simplicity of presentation of the melody and themes, which Schumann compared to "Beethoven's epigrams", ideas which could be extended, had the composer chosen to. In part, it is because Berlioz rejected writing the very symmetrical melodies then in academic fashion, and instead looked for melodies which were, "so intense in every note, as to defy normal harmonization", as Schumann put it. This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Schumann is the name of several notable people: Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856), German composer (husband of composer Clara Schumann) Clara Wieck Schumann (1819 - 1896), German pianist and composer, (wife of composer Robert Schumann) Georg Schumann (1886 - 1945), German Communist and resistance fighter against the Nazis Georg Schumann (1866 - 1952), German... Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized December 17, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer of Classical music, the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. ...

The theme itself was taken from Berlioz's scène lyrique "Herminie", composed in 1828.

Second movement: "Un bal"

The second movement takes a rather plain waltz theme, again, derived from the idée fixe at first, and then transforming it. It is filled with running ascending and descending figures. While one critic called it "vulgar"^{[citation needed]}, the intent was to portray a single lonely soul amidst gaiety, as Berlioz wrote while composing it.

Third movement: "Scène aux champs"

The third movement opens with the English horn and offstage oboe tossing back and forth a characteristic melody meant to evoke the horns in the mountains. The English horn represents the artist and the oboe his beloved. The melodies of these instruments represent the artist and his beloved calling back-and-forth. This intent, to evoke a spirit of the country side inhabited by, not mere rustics, but people who were one with their place is part of Romanticism and can be traced back to the ideas of such writers as Goethe. The idée fixe comes back. The movement swells to a peak, as if the artist is pushing away the idea of his beloved, the dramatic sounds fall away. The sound of distant thunder comes, in an innovative passage for four timpani players on two sets of timpani: it ends without resolution. Wanderer above the sea of fog by Caspar David Friedrich Romanticism is an artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in 18th century Western Europe, during the Industrial Revolution. ... “Goethe” redirects here. ... A timpanist in the United States Air Forces in Europe Band. ... A timpanist in the United States Air Forces in Europe Band. ...

Fourth movement: "Marche au supplice"

The fourth movement, which Berlioz claimed to have written in a single night (but which he actually took from an unfinished project, the opera Les Francs-juges), is filled with blaring horns and rushing passages, and scurrying figures which would later show up again in the last movement. The movement describes a dream, in which the artist is executed for killing the love of his life. It uses a grotesque version of the theme by Berlioz's extraordinary technique of orchestration, mixing string pizzicato, woodwind staccato, brass chords and a single loud stroke of percussion, forming a highly unusual series of tone colors. The scene ends with a single short fortissimo G-minor chord that represents the fatal blow: the dropping of the trap door, or perhaps the guillotine blade; the series of pizzicato notes following can be seen to represent the rolling of the severed head into the basket. Immediately prior to the musical depiction of the beheading, there is a brief, nostalgic recollection of the idée fixe in a solo clarinet, as though representing the last conscious thought of the executed man; after his death, the final nine bars of the movement contain a victorious series of tutti G major chords, seemingly intended to convey the cheering of the onlooking throng. Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for orchestra (or, more loosely, for any musical ensemble) or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium. ... Pizzicato is a method of playing a bowed string instrument by plucking the strings with the fingers, rather than using the bow. ... In musical notation, the Italian word staccato (literally detached, plural staccatos or staccati) indicates that notes are sounded in a detached and distinctly separate manner, with silence making up the latter part of the time allocated to each note. ... In music, dynamics normally refers to the softness or loudness of a sound or note, but also to every aspect of the execution of a given piece, either stylistic (staccato, legato etc. ...

Fifth movement: "Songe d'une nuit de sabbat"

The last movement, often played as a tone poem by itself, has a brooding opening, the sound of spirits marching through the graveyard. There follows, in turn, a familiar E-flat clarinet solo presenting the idée fixe as a vulgar dance tune; the call of church bells; a burlesque of a famous plainchant, the Dies Irae; and a fugue meant to represent, as Berlioz privately admitted, a giant orgy. There are a host of effects (including eerie col legno playing in the strings), from the bubbling of the witches' cauldron to the blasts of wind. The climactic finale of the symphony combines the somber Dies Irae melody with the wild fugue of the Ronde du Sabbat (Sabbath Round). A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music in one movement in which some extra-musical programme provides a narrative or illustrative element. ... Broadly speaking, plainsong is the name given to the body of traditional songs used in the liturgies of the Catholic Church. ... For other uses, see Dies Irae (disambiguation). ... Col legno (Italian for with the wood) is a method of playing bowed string instruments (particularly the violin, viola, cello, and double bass) whereby the strings are struck with the wood of the bow rather having the hair pulled across them. ...

Importance

Berlioz wrote in his essay "On Imitation in Music":

The aim of the second kind of imitation, as we have said before, is to reproduce the intonations of the passions and the emotions, and even to trace a musical image, or metaphor, of objects that can only be seen.

He later adds:

emotional (imitation) is designed to arouse in us by means of sound the notion of the several passions of the heart, and to awaken solely through the sense of hearing the impressions that human beings experience only through the other senses. Such is the goal of expression, depiction or musical metaphors.

As part of this he uses an example of cyclical structure in music, which was an idea drawn from Beethoven's use of similar rhythmic structures or shapes, and the idea of musical "cycles", such as a "song cycle". Berlioz did not know of Mendelssohn's Octet, which uses this device as well. Cyclic form is a technique of musical construction, involving multiple parts or movements, in which a theme, melody, or thematic material occurs in more than one movement as a unifying device. ... “Beethoven” redirects here. ... Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born and known generally as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847) was a German composer and conductor of the early Romantic period. ...

Leonard Bernstein called this symphony the first musical expedition into psychedelia because of its hallucinatory and dream-like nature, and because history suggests Berlioz composed at least a portion of it under the influence of opium. Leonard Bernstein in 1971 Leonard Bernstein (IPA pronunciation: )[1] (August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, and pianist. ... Psychedelia is a term describing a category of music, visual art, fashion, and culture that is associated originally with the high 1960s, hippies, and the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, California. ... This article does not adequately cite its references. ...

In 1831, Berlioz wrote a much less well known sequel to the work, Lelio, for narrator and orchestra. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

Instrumentation

The symphony is scored for an orchestra consisting of 2 flutes (2nd doubling piccolo), 2 oboes (2nd doubling English horn), 2 clarinets (1st doubling E-flat clarinet), 4 bassoons, 4 French horns, 2 trumpets, 2 cornets, 3 trombones, 2 ophicleides (usually replaced by tubas), 2 pairs of timpani, snare drum, cymbals, bass drum, bells in C and G, 2 harps, and strings. â™  This article is about the family of musical instruments. ... The piccolo is a small flute. ... The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. ... Cor anglais The cor anglais or English horn is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. ... Two soprano clarinets: a Bâ™­ clarinet (left, with capped mouthpiece) and an A clarinet (right, with no mouthpiece). ... Eâ™­ clarinet with Oehler system keywork. ... The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers and occasionally even higher. ... The horn is a brass instrument consisting of tubing wrapped into a coiled form. ... The trumpet is a musical instrument in the brass family. ... Bâ™­ cornet The cornet is a brass instrument that closely resembles the trumpet. ... The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. ... The ophicleide () is a family of conical bore, brass keyed bugles. ... For other uses, see Tuba (disambiguation). ... A timpanist in the United States Air Forces in Europe Band. ... The snare drum or side drum is a tubular drum made of wood or metal with skins, or heads, stretched over the top and bottom openings, and with a set of snares (cords) stretched across the bottom head. ... For the Japanese rock band, see Cymbals (band). ... A bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. ... A bell is a simple sound-making device. ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ... The string section of an orchestra is the section containing bowed string instruments. ...

Harriet Smithson

Berlioz fell in love with an Irish actress, Harriet Smithson, after attending a performance of Shakespeare's Hamlet with her in the role of Ophelia, on 11 September 1827. He sent her numerous love letters, all of which went unanswered. When she left Paris they had still not met. He then wrote the symphony as a way to express his unrequited love. It premiered in Paris on December 5, 1830; Harriet was not present. She eventually heard the work in 1832 and realized that she was the genesis. The two finally met and were married on October 3, 1833. While the marriage was happy for several years, they were divorced nine years later, partially due to the language barrier between them.^[1] Henrietta Constance (Harriet) Smithson (1800 - March 3, 1854) was an Irish actress, the first wife of Hector Berlioz, and the inspiration for his Symphonie Fantastique. ... Hamlet and Horatio in the cemetery by Eugène Delacroix For other uses, see Hamlet (disambiguation). ... is the 254th day of the year (255th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1827 (MDCCCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... is the 339th day of the year (340th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1833 (MDCCCXXXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

References in popular culture

• The soundtrack of Stanley Kubrick's film The Shining features a synthesized interpretation of the Symphonie Fantastique version of the Dies Irae, as arranged by Wendy Carlos. It is easily recognizable as the music played during The Shining's opening credits.

• The band Stars references the third movement of this work in the song "Look Up" on their album Heart.

• This famous piece is also used in the Julia Roberts film, Sleeping with the Enemy, while the abusive husband makes love to the battered wife.

• The Dies Irae of "Songe d'une nuit de sabbat", the fifth movement of the symphony, is sampled in "The Second Coming" by Juelz Santana. This song premiered in the commercial for Nike's Air Force 25, also titled "The Second Coming".

• Theatre and puppetry artist Basil Twist developed an hour long performance set to the Symphonie Fantastique which premiered at the HERE Arts Center in April 1998. It received an OBIE Award[1], a UNIMA Citation of Excellence[2], and a Drama Desk Award nomination for Unique Theatrical Experience[3]. It has been performed at theatres around the United States (including the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts) and festivals around the world. Twist's Symphonie Fantastique is an underwater performance combining puppetry with music, dance and abstract art.

• The progressive rock band "Sky" included an arrangement of the symphony's fourth movement, "March to the Scaffold", in their album "Sky 4 – Forthcoming" [4].

“Kubrick” redirects here. ... The Shining is a 1980 British horror film by Stanley Kubrick based on Stephen Kings novel of the same name. ... Wendy Carlos (November 14, 1939 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island) is an American composer and electronic musician. ... For the British band, see Stars (UK band) Stars is a Canadian indie pop band. ... Heart is an album by the Canadian indie rock band Stars, released on Paper Bag Records in 2003. ... Sleeping With the Enemy is an episode from the sixteenth season of The Simpsons. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... LaRon Louis James (born on February 18, 1983) is an American rapper, small time actor and producer. ... Founded in 1993, HERE Arts Center is a New York City based off-off broadway presenting house with two stages specializing in hybrid performance, dance, theater, multi-media and puppetry. ... Created in 1955, the Drama Desk Award was created to recognize Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway shows in addition to Broadway shows. ... Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts is a 15 acre (61,000 m²) complex of buildings in New York City which serves as home for 12 arts companies. ... For the Swedish political music movement, see progg. ... Sky was an English based progressive rock band, formed in 1978 when classical guitarist John Williams decided to team up with Herbie Flowers, Francis Monkman, Tristan Fry and Kevin Peek. ...

References

1. ^ Hugh MacDonald, Grove

External links

• Symphonie Fantastique on The Hector Berlioz Website, with links to Scorch full score and program note written by the composer
• Synthesized recording
• MP3 Creative Commons Recording
• Symphonie Fantastique: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.