Symphonie fantastique Op.14 (Full Score, paperback)

Berlioz Symphonie fantastique Op.14 (Full Score, paperback)

The concert given by Berlioz in the Salle du Conservatoire, Paris, on 5 December 1830 was a momentous occasion, although to judge from the number of reports of it in the press, few people at the time were aware of it.  For one thing Parisians were still preoccupied with political matters so soon after the ‘July Days’ during which one monarchy had been overthrown and another put in its place.  For another, there was little reason to expect momentous things from a composer who was still only 26 and whose name was known to only a few.  It was the third concert of his own compositions that he had given in this hall, and although the first two had attracted a certain attention for their boldness and assurance, these terms were self-evidently inadequate for the big new work that was the climax of this third concert, the Symphonie fantastique, also called Episode de la vie d’un artiste.

While most Parisian concert-goers were still adjusting to the very new experience of Beethoven’s symphonies, here was a young composer, the recent winner of the Institute’s coveted Prix de Rome, offering a powerful dramatic symphony of his own.  The essential framework was clearly drawn from Beethoven, but the strong and unmistakable element of autobiography took the concept of the symphony into quite new territory.

- Urtext of the New Berlioz Edition

- Full score and parts (BA5781) and study score format 22.5 x 16.5cm (TP331) available for sale