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#132
Les Preludes
Franz Liszt
1854
Les preludes (d'apres Lamartine) is one of the earliest examples of an orchestral work entitled "symphonic poem", even though it's Liszt's third of thirteen. In fact, it may be the first orchestral work to have been described as such.
Unfortunately, the closing fanfare was used by the Nazis for their news bulletins as an introduction to the announcer to say "Das Oberkommando der Wehrmacht gibt bekannt..." ("The supreme command of the armed forces announces...") before relating the Nazi's latest victory.
Germans were so conditioned by the militaristic usage of Les preludes that there was a de facto ban on the piece after the war.
Here in the states, that same fanfare is far more well known as the heroic them for the 1940 film serials Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe starring Buster Crabbe.
The work is divided into five main sections:
Question (Introduction and Andante maestoso)
Love
Storm
Bucolic calm
Battle and victory
It starts off slowly and quietly, but soon overwhelms you, washes over you and pulls you into its wake.
Here's the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, a youth orchestra based in Seville, Spain, consisting of musicians from countries in the Middle East, of Egyptian, Iranian, Israeli, Jordanian, Lebanese, Palestinian, Syrian and Spanish background. Orchestra founder Daniel Barenboim conducts.
Les préludes (Liszt) / ~ Conductor: Daniel Barenboim ~ West Eastern Divan Orchestra
Les Preludes
Franz Liszt
1854
Les preludes (d'apres Lamartine) is one of the earliest examples of an orchestral work entitled "symphonic poem", even though it's Liszt's third of thirteen. In fact, it may be the first orchestral work to have been described as such.
Unfortunately, the closing fanfare was used by the Nazis for their news bulletins as an introduction to the announcer to say "Das Oberkommando der Wehrmacht gibt bekannt..." ("The supreme command of the armed forces announces...") before relating the Nazi's latest victory.
Germans were so conditioned by the militaristic usage of Les preludes that there was a de facto ban on the piece after the war.
Here in the states, that same fanfare is far more well known as the heroic them for the 1940 film serials Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe starring Buster Crabbe.
The work is divided into five main sections:
Question (Introduction and Andante maestoso)
Love
Storm
Bucolic calm
Battle and victory
It starts off slowly and quietly, but soon overwhelms you, washes over you and pulls you into its wake.
Here's the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, a youth orchestra based in Seville, Spain, consisting of musicians from countries in the Middle East, of Egyptian, Iranian, Israeli, Jordanian, Lebanese, Palestinian, Syrian and Spanish background. Orchestra founder Daniel Barenboim conducts.
Les préludes (Liszt) / ~ Conductor: Daniel Barenboim ~ West Eastern Divan Orchestra