Clicking on any
Song Title hyperlink will take you to
that song's individual web page where
you can learn more about the song (songs
without links do not have individual
web pages and are not for sale individually).
In the 1830's and 40s, Hungarian composer Franz Liszt rocked the music scene of his day, thrilling and shocking the restless, spectacle-craving bourgeoisie. Audiences flocked to stage halls across Europe, eager to witness one of the revolutionary performances that had become the talk of the town.
As a performer, Liszt had a commanding stage presence, tall in stature with long, powerful fingers that blazed across the keyboard. His style was full of gusto and unrestrained passion, with explosive chords and intricate passages teeming from his grand compositions.
With the fortuitous combination of virtuosic talent, dazzling showmanship and marketing savvy, Liszt transformed himself into the popular music icon of his era. Liszt was well aware of his magnetism on stage, and he backed up his virtuosic musical command with gimmicks and drama to ensure his audience's return. Dramatic works such as Mephisto Waltz, No. 1 were composed by Liszt to fuel to showcase his flamboyant technique. Perhaps his progressive, ostentatious style led some to perceive Liszt as a maniacal maestro, even teetering on the edge of diabolical possession. Few could fathom how this seemingly superhuman keyboard commando could be the refined, sentimental, and pious gentleman he was known to be in actuality.
The private Liszt, intellectual and virtuous, preferred a monastic life. He was drawn to serene, distant places, and his personal reflections on hi travels and nature are captured in some of his most impressive compositions. In the three volume set, Annees de Pelerinage (Years of Pilgrimage), Liszt presents a collection of impressions drawn upon the journeys of his live. From the first suite, Premiere Annee: Suisse, Au Lac de Wallenstadt (at the Lake of Wallenstadt) and Au bord d'une source (Beside a Spring) are beautiful souvenirs of his idyllic travels in Switzerland. In Deuxieme Annee: Italie, we find Liszt's musical memoirs of his exploration of Italy with the Countess Marie d'Augoult. Venezia e Napoli supplementary set of three pieces, was added years later. In Gondoliera and Canzone, we find Liszt's elaborate arrangements of two songs, one by Peruchini ("La biondina in gondoletta"), and the second, the gondolier's song ("Nessum maggior dolore") from Rossini's opera "Otello." The third piece, Tarantella, a lively whirling folk dance of Southern Italy, is composed in Liszt's romantic, sophisticated style and includes a gorgeous ballade in the middle.
Music without words means leaving behind the mind. And leaving behind the mind is meditation.
Meditation returns you to the source. And the source of all is sound. — Kabir
The Healing Music Organization
P.O. Box 3731, Santa Cruz, CA 95063 - 831.588.7498
Any questions, problems or suggestions about this site can be sent to webmaster@healingmusic.org
Healingmusic.org and A Really Good HMO are trademarks of The Healing Music Organization.
All other products or services mentioned are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective organizations.
Copyright 2000-2008, Amrita Cottrell and The Healing Music Organization. All rights reserved.
Go to feedback form
