A given perspective on Berlioz, By Ethan Encinas
Cited Source: Work By Berlioz will be Featured, ‘Symphonie Fantistique’ on program of the Philharmonic Orchestra, Published November 11th, 1954 by the Los Angeles Times.
Source of Article: https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy2.library.arizona.edu/docview/166690629/789D40567D544CB0PQ/1?accountid=8360
In further researching and finding interpretations and also more information of the composer Berlioz himself, I noticed and came along and found an article on a piece made and composed by him himself, the Symphonie Fantistique. The article itself is named, “ Work By Berlioz will be Featured”, ‘Symphonie Fantistique’ on program of the Philharmonic Orchestra, Published November 11th, 1954 by the Los Angeles Times. The title of the article was big and eccentric and did spark my interest. With that being said, the article is short but straight to the point. It provides much more information that contrasts and gives off more of an impression on who Hector Berlioz was, and how he represented himself as a composer. It even speaks upon how he interacts with his audiences, which is very, if hardly ever, pretty hard to know about and or even see and read about. I saw a huge relation to the composer Wallenstein and Berlioz himself, they share similar traits.
In the article above, it expresses as the “Symphonie Fantistique” as being “One the greatest masterworks of orchestral music”. As a reader, this raises a question for me; Did listeners and even critics have a close eye for Berlioz influential music, and if so, at the time was it a specified type of piece that many people enjoyed? Berlioz passed in 1869, but his music lives on through his compositions, specifically this one that was in the spotlight at the time.
In the article, it explains the admiration for Berlioz himself, and how he is in fact, “a master of orchestration”. I see how as a reader, someone as influential as Berlioz can have an incredible impact on listeners and also lead them with conviction and passion of music. As a master of orchestration, it is said in the article that Berlioz himself interacted with his audience vividly. It is showed, and I would assume, if this article somehow connects with the premiere of this symphony? Wouldn’t that be interesting!! “Berlioz prepared a programmatic outline for the work and had copies distributed through the audience.” When I had read this last part of the article, I was stunned with how much he cared for distributing the program of the work itself. Did he care for the approval of his listeners? Did he want them to learn more about the inner machinations of the symphony itself, and how it worked musically and critically? These questions were raised for me as a reader.
By Ethan Encinas
