Lovely classics

A masterpiece by Richard Strauss. Popular classical music.

Representative, Elysion Philharmonic Orchestrasai-kisaragi
Heisei College of Music, Composition Course. Studied composition and conducting under Keizo Ideta, piano under Chinami Kira, and arts management under Takuma Konishi. With a focus on community and music, I work to revitalize my hometown of Saga Prefecture. While performing as a double bassist with wind ensembles and orchestras across Kyushu, I participated on double bass in the “Orchestra Without Borders” orchestra camp of the professional game and anime music ensemble Eminence Orchestra, held in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture in September 2012. During CAPCOM’s Kyushu Tour in 2016, I not only performed as an orchestra member but also served on the production staff. I currently serve as the managing representative for the game and anime performance groups Elysion Philharmonic Orchestra (Saga Prefecture) and Fukuoka Game Music Wind Orchestra (Fukuoka Prefecture), and handle conducting, arranging, and public relations.

Richard Strauss is a composer who represents the German late Romantic period.

Strauss’s representative work, the symphonic poem Thus Spoke Zarathustra, is known as the theme music for the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

His symphonic poems Macbeth and Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks are also frequently performed by wind ensembles, making him a familiar composer to many wind band musicians.

In his early period, under the influence of his father, Strauss wrote many works that adhered to classical styles like those of Mozart and Schumann.

After meeting Alexander Ritter—who married one of Wagner’s nieces—he began composing more innovative works.

Here, I will introduce pieces that let you enjoy both Strauss’s classical side and his transformation into a master of the symphonic poem.

Listening in chronological order makes it easier to appreciate the changes in his style, so I hope you’ll keep the period of composition in mind as you listen.

Masterpieces by Richard Strauss: Popular classical music (21–30)

Symphony No. 2Tanaka Ken shiki, ISP

Richard Strauss Symphony No. 2, Op. 12

Symphony No. 2Tanaka Ken shiki, ISP

Strauss often gave programmatic titles even to his symphonies, but his Symphony No.

2 has no such title and was written as pure absolute music.

Although it is called Symphony No.

2, because No.

1 remained unpublished, this piece is sometimes referred to without a number.

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Symphonic Fantasy after ‘Die Frau ohne Schatten’Tīreman shiki Uīn Firu

R. Strauss: Symphonic Fantasy from Die Frau ohne Schatten, TrV 234a / Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Christian Thielemann, September 2002

Symphonic Fantasy after 'Die Frau ohne Schatten'Tīreman shiki Uīn Firu

This, too, was originally music for an opera that was later rearranged for concert performance.

The playing time is about 25 minutes, and it is a work filled with the unique, decadent, and aesthetic charm of late Strauss.

The libretto is by Hofmannsthal, the same as in Der Rosenkavalier.

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In conclusion

Richard Strauss grew up under the rigorous yet conservative musical education imposed by his father.

Works from 1882 such as the Violin Concerto in D minor and the Serenade for 13 Winds clearly show him composing in a classical vein reminiscent of Mozart and Schumann.

However, his encounter with Alexander Ritter—who had married one of Wagner’s nieces—changed everything.

Strauss began to write more innovative, programmatic music, evolving into the master of the symphonic poem we know today.

If you listen along chronologically, you can enjoy tracing the transformation of Strauss’s music and savor not only the works themselves but also the sweep of his grand life and musical outlook.

We hope this article helps you find a favorite piece and immerse yourself in Strauss’s world.

Thank you for reading.