Les Préludes (Liszt)
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Les Préludes, S.97, is a symphonic poem by the Hungarian composer Franz Liszt. Liszt originally composed the work in 1848 as an introduction to the secular choral work "Les Quatre Élémens (Autran)" (S.80, 1845). There is academic controversy on the question of how much the Méditations Poétiques by Alphonse de Lamartine influenced the composition of Les Préludes, which Alexander Main and Andrew Bonner have each examined in detail.[1] [2] Liszt revised the piece in the 1850s, and it subsequently premiered in 1854 in Weimar. It is the most celebrated of Liszt's symphonic poems.[3]
The undercurrent of the work is defined by Liszt in a "preface" of his own, which reads:
"What is Life but a series of Preludes to that unknown hymn, the first and solemn note of which is intoned by Death? Love is the enchanted dawn of all existence; but what fate is there whose first delights of happiness are not interrupted by some storm, whose fine illusions are not dissipated by some mortal blast, consuming its altar as though by a stroke of lightning? And what cruelly wounded soul, issuing from one of these tempests, does not endeavour to solace its memories in the calm serenity of rural life? Nevertheless, man does not resign himself for long to the enjoyment of that beneficent warmth which he first enjoyed in Nature’s bosom, and when 'the trumpet sounds the alarm' he takes up his perilous post, no matter what struggle calls him to its ranks, that he may recover in combat the full consciousness of himself and the entire possession of his powers."
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[edit] Form
The composition is a continuous unit, divided into four Episodes, remotely analogous to the four Movements of the Traditional Symphony. These Episodes are called:
- (1) Dawn of Existence; Love
- (2) Storms of Life;
- (3) Refuge and Consolation in Rural Life;
- (4) Strife and Conquest.
[edit] Extant versions
A solo piano transcription was provided by Karl Klauser in 1863. He might have provided a rough draft before Liszt revised his arrangement and added some own additions. Liszt spoke very lightly of this arrangement. In a letter to Franz Brendel he speaks of it as "a pretty, tuneful arrangement" and how it "in the hands of a skillful player... will prove brilliantly effective".[4] In reference to the changes he made, he told Brendel that he touched up the closing movement and gave it new figuration. The structure of the transcription differs from the orchestral score in a few minor matters towards the end. He humorously called Karl Klauser's arrangement a "hackneyed piece". Karl Klauser being a respected musician in New York, Liszt didn't always appreciate his peers. Liszt sent the transcription to the publisher Julius Schuberth, who curiously didn't publish it. However, Breitkopf & Härtel published it in 1865-66.[5] The transcription is in the same style of his piano reworkings of Beethoven's symphonies, which he made around the same time.
In addition to the solo piano version (S.511a), the composer made arrangements for pianoforte duet (S.591) and two pianofortes (S.637). In addition to Liszt's arrangements, Carl Tausig, August Stradal and recently Matthew Cameron have prepared their own transcriptions for solo piano.
[edit] In popular culture
- Snippets of the piece have been used in a number of films. [1]
- At Interlochen Arts Camp, the ensembles traditionally play the piece to close out the season. [2]
- Les Préludes is used as the theme music for the original Flash Gordon movie serials of the 1930s and 1940s. Juzo Itami uses it extensively in the 1985 Japanese comic masterpiece Tampopo.
- Several sections of Les Préludes were used every week in the "Lone Ranger" television series of the 1950s as background music for various sections of the drama.
[edit] References
- ^ Alexander Main, "Liszt after Lamartine: Les Preludes" (April 1979). Music & Letters, 60 (2): pp. 133-148.
- ^ Andrew Bonner, "Liszt's Les Préludes and Les Quatre Élémens: A Reinvestigation" (Autumn 1986). 19th-Century Music, 10 (2): pp. 95-107.
- ^ Searle, Humphrey, The Music of Liszt, Dover, 1966, p. 71.
- ^ Letter No. 20 from Letters of Franz Liszt, Volume 2
- ^ Worldcat entry of Breitkopf & Härtel's 1865-66 publication
[edit] External links
- Les Préludes (Orchestral version, S.97), (Piano duet version, S.591), (Two piano version, S.637) and (Solo piano version, S.511a) were available at the International Music Score Library Project.
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