Hector Berliozs Symphonie Fantastique Essay - 1026 Words

Hector Berliozs Symphonie Fantastique Hector Berlioz wrote the Symphonie fantastique at the age of 27. He based the program on his own impassioned life and transferred his memoirs into his best- known program symphony. The story is about a love sick, depressed young artist, while in his despair poisons himself with opium. His beloved is represented throughout the symphony by the symbolic idee fixe. There are five movements throughout symphony. The program begins with the 1st movement: Reveries, Passions symbolizing the artists life prior to meeting his beloved. This is represented as a mundaness and indefinable searching or yearning, until suddenly, he meets her and his longing abruptly ceases and is replaced by volcanic love. The†¦show more content†¦The frightful sounds of groans, shrieks, and shrill laughter echo in his ears. Then, suddenly again the Idee fixe appears. It is his beloved. But the familiar Idee fixe is no longer the reserved and noble melody of the prior movements. The Idee fixe has now taken o n new form and has become vulgar and grotesque. She has come to this diabolical orgy. The witches greet her with howling joy and she joins them in the demonic dance; Bells toll for the Dead. Listening Guide 25 is the 4th movement, March To the Scaffold: The diabolical march is in minor and the Idee fixe is heard in the last part of this movement. The clarinet is the instrument that represents the Idee fixe and at the very end it is cut off by a grievous fortissimo chord and then ends in a hadean quintessence. Structure The medium is a large orchestra, (flute, piccolo, 2 clarinets, 4 french horns, 4 bassoons, 2 trumpets, 2 cornets, 3 trombones, 2 ophideiodes, 2 timpani, bass drum, bells, strings). The form is loose tenary (A-B-A). The movement is in 6 sections. It begins with the introduction of ominous drumbeats and muted brass. The introduction ends with an exploding crescendo of a base drum which immediately introduces the 2nd section of theme A of low strings in a slow cautious t empo, and is picked up by violins. Theme B brass and woodwinds enter and picks up the tempo of diabolical march tune. The opening section is then repeated. The 3rd or mid section is the development section. The tenaryShow MoreRelatedThe Concert Is Berliozs Symphonie Fantastique1521 Words   |  7 Pages The concert is Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, performed by The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stà ©phane Denà ¨ve, recorded in high definition at Orchestra Hall in December 2013. 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