Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 – Hector Berlioz

Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 by Hector Berlioz

French composer Hector Berlioz completed his Symphonie Fantastique in 1830, with the premiere performance being given in December 1830 at the Paris Conservatoire. This program music is based on a young musician struggling with illness and unrequited love. This fictional character (likely based on Berlioz himself) attempts to escape his reality through a dose of opium.

The musician then experiences a series of bizarre and hallucinatory scenes, beginning with the murder of the women who spurns his advances, then his execution, and finally a demonic orgy on the witches sabbath where the murdered woman laughs at the musician’s despair.

This symphony is comprised of five movements, with a clear narrative for each movement:
I. "Rêveries – Passions" (Daydreams – Passions)
II. “Un bal" (A Ball)
III. "Scène aux champs" (Scene in the Fields)
IV. "Marche au supplice" (March to the Scaffold)
V. "Songe d'une nuit du sabbat" (Dream of a Witches' Sabbath)