User:MaxHeyck/Symphonic poem

Symphonic Poems are thought to bridge the gap between different modes of expression. Much research has been done on the semiotic relationship between symphonic poems, and their extra-musical inspiration, such as art, literature and nature. Composers used many different musical gestures to evoke a non-musical concept. Some musical gestures appear to be literal representations of their non-musical counterparts. For example, Sergei Rachmaninoff uses an uneven ⅝ time signature throughout “The Isle of the Dead” in order to suggest the rocking of a boat. In Richard Strauss’s “Death and Transfiguration”, the composer uses the orchestra to mimic the sound of an irregular heartbeat and labored breathing. Other musical gestures capture the essence of the subject on a more abstract level. For example, In Franz Liszt’s Symphonic Poem No. 10 (“Hamlet”), Liszt portrays the complex relation between Hamlet and Ophelia by juxtaposing a somber motif that is harmonically inconclusive (Hamlet) against a tranquil and harmonically conclusive motif (Ophelia), and developing the music from these principles. In “Death and Transfiguration”, a sprightly melody in a major key evokes childhood.