Orpheus, S.98

Liszt wrote this short orchestral piece as a prelude to a performance of Gluck's opera Orfeo, and it captures the mythological poet-musician not through drama but through a sustained, singing arc of melody. The piece opens with two harps (an unusually specific and evocative choice) imitating the sound of a lyre, and the orchestra then builds gradually around a single long-breathed theme. It never rushes: the whole work is essentially one unbroken melodic thought that expands, reaches a broad climax, and then settles back into stillness, closing quietly.

What to listen for

Notice how the main theme is passed from the harps to strings and then to the full brass at the central climax, where the texture thickens considerably before pulling back. After that peak, the music begins a slow withdrawal, with the harps returning near the end to frame the piece symmetrically. The tempo remains unhurried throughout, so the shifts in weight between sections are marked almost entirely by changes in dynamics and orchestral colour rather than rhythm.

Recommended rendition

Georg Solti's traversal of the complete Liszt symphonic poems with the London Philharmonic Orchestra (Decca) has been frequently cited for its clarity of texture and long-line phrasing in Orpheus.

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