[Orchestra] Introducing famous and popular pieces

Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14Hector Berlioz

Myung-Whun Chung conducting Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique

This piece is Berlioz’s first symphony, composed in 1830.

The hallmark of Symphonie fantastique is the “idée fixe.” While commonplace today, it was a novel concept at the time.

The work bears the subtitle “Episode in the Life of an Artist,” and it is said to have been inspired by his own experience of unrequited love.

Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 97 “Rhenish”Robert Schumann

Schumann: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 97 “Rhenish” — Konwitschny

Composed in 1850.

Although it is numbered No.

3, the “Rhenish” was the last of the four symphonies to be written.

Schumann was 40 years old and had moved to Düsseldorf.

It is said that the work was inspired by life along the Rhine River there.

The lively melody of the first movement lifts the listener’s spirits.

Air on the G StringJ.S.Bach

Blossom Phil 3.11 Charity Concert (Air on the G String)

The commonly used name for an arrangement by August Wilhelmj of a work by Johann Sebastian Bach—known as the father of music—for solo violin with piano accompaniment.

The piece gets its name from the fact that it can be performed using only the violin’s G string, and in Japan it’s often heard at graduation ceremonies and similar occasions.

It also reached a wider audience when it was sampled in 1997 by the German music group Sweetbox in their song “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright.” A staple of classical music, its beautifully expansive melody—hard to believe it’s played solely on the violin’s G string—soothes the soul.

expand_lessRaise the rankingexpand_morelower

Hoshino Takashi

Report a problem

The Carnival of the Animals, No. 14: FinaleCamille Saint-Saëns

Saint-Saëns: The Carnival of the Animals, Suite: Finale [Naxos Classical Curation #Comical]

A dazzling, exhilarating piece that feels like the grand finale of a festival—that’s the closing movement of Camille Saint-Saëns’s suite The Carnival of the Animals.

Composed in 1886 for a private performance and first made public only after the composer’s death in 1922, the work builds from the piano’s brilliant opening trills as various instruments join in, with motifs of animals from earlier movements appearing one after another—truly the climax of the celebration.

The humorous tone pervades the whole piece, and the ending, capped with playful animal imitations, adds to its delightful charm.

It is also known for its use in Disney’s 1999 film Fantasia 2000, and it’s the kind of music that can sweep away the summer heat and leave you feeling refreshed.

Even those who don’t often listen to classical music are sure to discover its joy.

E.T.John Williams

E.T. : RTÉ Concert Orchestra

A masterpiece by film music maestro John Williams.

It brilliantly captures the heart of a moving story about the friendship between a lonely boy and a gentle extraterrestrial.

It won the Academy Award, the Golden Globe, the Grammy, and the BAFTA.

Williams is the only person to have received all of these awards multiple times with the same score.

This piece symbolizes universal themes of friendship, adventure, and cross-cultural exchange, expressing the film’s magical world through music.

Born from Williams’s long-standing collaboration with director Steven Spielberg, it is a gem that conveys the profound bond between cinema and music.

The Carnival of the Animals, No. 13: The SwanCamille Saint-Saëns

Dai Miyata / Saint-Saëns: The Swan (Le Cygne)

A celebrated work by Camille Saint-Saëns, based on a melody from the suite Le Carnaval des animaux.

Originally conceived as one of the pieces in a suite intended as entertainment for Carnival in early 1886, it was the only movement the composer allowed to be published during his lifetime.

The flowing melody played by the cello evokes the elegant figure of a swan gliding over the water and conjures the dreamlike imagery of the legendary “swan song.” The ballet The Dying Swan, created by Anna Pavlova in 1905 to this music, is renowned worldwide, and figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu’s exhibition performance to the piece also moved many audiences.

This is a piece for those who want to immerse themselves in the beautiful tone of the cello—a sound that seems to make you forget the summer heat and refresh the spirit.

Symphonic Poem “La Mer”: Three Symphonic Sketches — III. Dialogue of the Wind and the SeaClaude Debussy

Debussy: La mer – Three Symphonic Sketches: From Dawn to Noon on the Sea [Naxos Classical Curation #Chic]

This is the climactic movement from Claude Debussy’s orchestral masterpiece La Mer, a work that brilliantly renders the ocean’s grandeur and mystery in sound.

In this piece, a powerful yet beautiful natural drama unfolds as if the wind and sea are conversing.

The surging strings, the piercing timbres of the woodwinds, and the brass and percussion in unison create a vividly compelling sonic tableau.

Premiered in October 1905, the work carries a refreshing coolness that seems to make one forget the summer heat.

It is recommended for those who wish to immerse themselves in the orchestra’s rich palette of colors, as well as for listeners who want to experience the grandeur of classical music through wind band arrangements and other adaptations.