Franz Liszt: Symphonic Poems, Volume 5 BBC Philharmonic - Gianandrea Noseda

• 1I. Inferno: Lento - Un poco piu accelerando - Allegro frenetico: Quasi doppio movimento (alla breve) - Piu mosso - Presto molto - Lento -06:31
• 2I. Inferno: Quasi andante, ma sempre un poco mosso05:18
• 3I. Inferno: Andante amoroso: Tempo rubato - Piu ritenuto -03:42
• 4I. Inferno: Tempo primo: Allegro (alla breve) - Piu mosso - Piu mosso - Piu moderato (alla breve) - Adagio04:32
• 5II. Purgatorio: Andante con moto quasi allegretto: Tranquillo assai - Piu lento - Un poco meno mosso -06:22
• 6II. Purgatorio: Lamentoso -05:11
• 7II. Purgatorio: (L'istesso tempo) - Poco a poco piu di moto -03:42
• 8II. Purgatorio: Magnificat: L'istesso tempo - Poco a poco accelerando e crescendo sin al Piu mosso - Piu mosso ma non troppo - Un poco piu lento - L'istesso tempo, ma quieto assai06:40
• 9No. 1. St. Francois d'Assise: la predication aux oiseaux: Andante - Recitative - Adagio - Tempo I - Recitative - Ritenuto10:38
• 10No. 2. St. Francois de Paule marchant sur les flots: Andante maestoso - Poco a poco animando il tempo - Stringendo il tempo - Charitas! (Lento) - (Tempo I)08:26
• Total Runtime01:01:02

Info for Franz Liszt: Symphonic Poems, Volume 5

This monumental survey draws to a close with Dante’s Symphony, coupled with Two Legends.

Based on Dante’s Divine Comedy, Liszt’s Dante Symphony was completed in 1856 and dedicated to his friend and mentor, Richard Wagner. Liszt had conceived a work that was to combine music, poetry and the visual arts. He wrote to Wagner in 1855 ‘I have long been carrying a Dante Symphony in my heard – this year I intend to get it down on paper. There are to be three movements, Hell, Purgatory and Paradise – the first two for orchestra alone, the last with chorus. Liszt inscribed Wagner’s copy of the Dante Symphony, ‘As Virgil guided Dante, so you have guided me through the mysterious regions of the life-imbued worlds of tone. From the depths of his heart calls to you ‘Tu sei lo mio maestro, e il mio autore!’ and dedicates this work to you in unchangeably faithful love, your F.Liszt.’ Liszt quotes the words Dante spoke to Virgil, ‘You are my master, and my author’ from Inferno, canto 1, line 85.

Two Legends complements Dante Symphony. It is best known as a solo piano work, and is rarely recorded in its orchestral version. This makes for a useful addition to the catalogue.

“We're reminded that the Purgatorio pre-empts not just the harmonic irresolution of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde but the sickly sensuousness of Parsifal. The Deux Légendes, meanwhile, are orchestrations, undiscovered until 1975, of St Francis of Assisi: the Sermon to the Birds, and St Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves, neither of which is quite as good as its piano original. They're wonderfully done, but it's the Dante Symphony that makes the disc such essential listening.” (The Guardian)

Liszt: Dante Symphony, S. 109
Legendes (2) for orchestra, S. 354

BBC Philharmonic, Gianandrea Noseda


Franz Liszt: Eine Symphonie zu Dantes Divina Commedia, S109/R426, 'Dante Symphony'
I. Inferno: Lento - Un poco piu accelerando - Allegro frenetico: Quasi doppio movimento (alla breve) - Piu mosso - Presto molto - Lento -
I. Inferno: Quasi andante, ma sempre un poco mosso
I. Inferno: Andante amoroso: Tempo rubato - Piu ritenuto -
I. Inferno: Tempo primo: Allegro (alla breve) - Piu mosso - Piu mosso - Piu moderato (alla breve) - Adagio
II. Purgatorio: Andante con moto quasi allegretto: Tranquillo assai - Piu lento - Un poco meno mosso -
II. Purgatorio: Lamentoso -
II. Purgatorio: (L'istesso tempo) - Poco a poco piu di moto -
II. Purgatorio: Magnificat: L'istesso tempo - Poco a poco accelerando e crescendo sin al Piu mosso - Piu mosso ma non troppo - Un poco piu lento - L'istesso tempo, ma quieto assai
Franz Liszt: 2 Legendes, S354/R440
No. 1. St. Francois d'Assise: la predication aux oiseaux: Andante - Recitative - Adagio - Tempo I - Recitative - Ritenuto
No. 2. St. Francois de Paule marchant sur les flots: Andante maestoso - Poco a poco animando il tempo - Stringendo il tempo - Charitas! (Lento) - (Tempo I)

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Booklet for Franz Liszt: Symphonic Poems, Volume 5