Scores for Orchestra

A young Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868) composed Variazzioni di clarinetto (Variations for Clarinet and Small Orchestra in C major) around 1809. The work was edited by Amadeo Cerasa. Instrumentation: 1...

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) wrote this Tarantelle (Tarantella), Op. 6 for flute, clarinet, and piano in 1857, and the salon piece showcases the composer's mature style despite his young age, which...

Following the death of his mother in 1888, a depressed Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) decided to take a trip to his favorite destination, North Africa, travelling to Ceylon, then to Alexandria and Ca...

The Symphony No. 3 in C minor, popularly known as the "Organ Symphony", was completed in 1886 at what could be considered the artistic peak of Saint-Saëns' (1835-1921) career. The composer said of the...

In 1875, Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) created an innovative four-part structure for his CONCERTO FOR PIANO NO. 4 IN C MINOR, OP. 44. Dedicating the work to Anton Door, the composer gave the first p...

In A minor, and written in 1863, though not premiered until 1867 by violinist Pablo de Sarasate to whom it is dedicated and conducted by the composer, INTRODUCTION AND RONDO CAPRICCIOSO was originally...

Camille Saint-Saëns' (1835-1921) opera SAMSON ET DALILA, Op. 47 tells the biblical story of Delilah's betrayal of Samson. Originally conceived as an oratorio due to Saint-Saëns' admiration of such wor...

Written by Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908) in 1878, Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), Op. 20 is a favorite among violin virtuosos, having been recorded many times, including by Sarasate himself. Some of the...

In 1888, Erik Satie (1866-1925) completed his TROIS GYMNOPÉDIES, three lilting, dream-like exercises for solo piano. They were published separately, the second one appearing last in 1895. Working as a...

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) wrote his CELLO CONCERTO in A minor, Op. 129, in 1850, within the span of only two weeks. He tried offering the work to two publishers before Breitkopf and Hartel decided t...

The first significant success for Jean Sibelius (1865-1957), KARELIA MUSIC was commissioned for a lottery sponsored by the Viipuri Students' Association to foster education in Vyborg Province. Its fir...

Started in 1898, Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) completed and premiered his SYMPHONY No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39, the following year when only 33 years old. Dissatisfied with the original version, which has b...

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) composed his three-movement Symphony No. 3 in C Major, Op. 52 between 1906 and 1907, with the work receiving its premiere by the Helsinki Philharmonic Society under the compo...

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) first composed the tone poem En Saga, Op. 9 in 1892, with the work premiering on February 16th, 1893, with Sibelius conducting the Helsinki Philharmonic. While one might imag...

Má vlast (My Fatherland or My Country) is a collection of six symphonic poems composed by Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884) between 1874 and 1879. Conceived as individual works, though commonly presented as...

Louis Spohr (1784-1859), a German composer, conductor, and violinist, formed an acquaintance with Beethoven and, although greatly critical of his ninth symphony, promoted much of his work. His innovat...

An der Schönen Blauen Donau (On the Beautiful Blue Danube), Op. 314, written by Johann Strauss II (1825-1899) is one of the most popular works in classical music, and remains well-known in popular cul...

Johann Strauss, Jr. (1825-1899) wrote the KAISER-WALZER, Op. 437 (EMPEROR WALTZES) to celebrate the toast of friendship that Franz Joseph I extended when he visited Wilhelm II in 1889. Fritz Simrock,...

Johann Strauss II (1825-1899) wrote FURIOSO POLKA, OP. 260, in 1861, at a time when these quick dances thrived in Viennese ballrooms. In the subtitle "quasi Galopp", he indicated that the piece should...

JOHANN STRAUSS II (1825-1899) initially wrote FRÜHLINGSSTIMMEN, Op. 410 (VOICES OF SPRING) as a concert aria. He dedicated the piece, with a libretto by Richard Genée, to pianist-composer Alfred Grünf...

The fourth in a set of tone poems that Richard Strauss (1864-1949) wrote before his career as an opera composer, DEATH AND TRANSFIGURATION (TOD UND VERKLÄRUNG) portrays the death of an artist and the...

TILL EULENSPIEGELS LUSTIGE STREICHE (TILL EULENSPIEGEL'S MERRY PRANKS), is a tone poem written in 1894-95 by Richard Strauss (1864-1949). It chronicles the misadventures and pranks of the German peasa...

German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche's best-known work, "Also sprach Zarathustra!" ("Thus Spoke Zarathustra!") has been an inspiration for many composers' works, but the best known is this 1896 symp...

Written between 1886 and 1888, Richard Strauss' (1864-1949) MACBETH, Op. 23 was the then young composer's first tone poem, which he described as "a completely new path" in his composition. It premiere...

Richard Strauss (1864-1949) originally wrote this work for solo piano and orchestra under the title Scherzo in D minor in 1886 for conductor and pianist Hans von Bülow, a large influence on Strauss' c...