Grande symphonie funèbre et triomphale

"Grande symphonie funèbre et triomphale" (English: "Grand Funereal and Triumphal Symphony") op. 15 is the fourth and last symphony by the French composer Hector Berlioz, first performed on 28 July 1840 in Paris. The symphony was a commission by the French government which wanted to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the July Revolution which had brought King Louis-Philippe to power. Berlioz had little sympathy for the régime but he accepted the opportunity to write the work which brought him a payment of 10,000 francs. It allowed him to return to the style of the open-air music festivities of the French Revolution in the 1790s and thus, unlike his other symphonic works, shows little of the influence of Beethoven. In fact, it is believed that much of the work is based on material which had been composed long before, such as the unperformed "Fête musicale funèbre" of 1835.

The symphony was originally scored for a wind band of 200 players who were to accompany the procession which moved the coffins of those who had died fighting in the 1830 revolution for reburial beneath a memorial column which had been set up on the site of the Bastille. On the actual day of the parade, little of the music could be heard over the cheering crowds who lined the way. Nevertheless, the work had been such a success at the dress rehearsal that it was given two more performances in August which sealed its reputation as one of the composer's most popular works during his lifetime. Berlioz revised the score in 1842, adding strings and a final chorus to words by Antony Deschamps.

The symphony is in three movements (the last two are linked together):
#"Marche funèbre" (Funeral march) By general consent, the most successful movement. Berlioz's handling of wind instruments was particularly admired by Richard Wagner.
#"Oraison funèbre" (Funeral oration) Berlioz reused an aria from Act III of his abandoned opera "Les francs-juges", replacing the voice part with a trombone.
#"Apothéose" (Apotheosis) A triumphal march in B flat major.

Recordings

*"Grande symphonie funèbre et triomphale" Alldis Choir, London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Colin Davis (Philips)

ources

*David Cairns: "Berlioz: Servitude and Greatness" (the second volume of his biography of the composer) (Viking, 1999)
*Hugh Macdonald: "Berlioz" ("The Master Musicians", J.M.Dent, 1982)
*Berlioz: "Memoirs" (Dover, 1960)