Fantasy and Fugue on the Name of BACH

From Wind Repertory Project
Franz Liszt

Franz Liszt (arr. Fumio Tamura)


General Info

Year: 1870 / 2006 / 2019
Duration: c. 15:30
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Organ
Publisher: Bravo Music
Cost: Score and Parts - Rental


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo (doubling Flute III)
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet I-II
E-flat Contra-alto Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III (I, II doubling Flugelhorn)
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Harp (opt.)
Timpani
Percussion (5 players), including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Chimes
  • Crash Cymbal
  • Glockenspiel
  • Hi-hat
  • Marimba
  • Snare Drum
  • Suspended Cymbal
  • Tambourine
  • Tam-tam
  • Tom-tom (2)
  • Triangle
  • Vibraphone
  • Xylophone


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

This work was written in 1855 during Liszt's period in Weimar and is contemporary of many of the symphonic poems. Originally written for organ, Liszt reworked it for solo piano in 1871. This fantastic piece epitomizes the strengths and the weaknesses of full-blown romanticism: It is brilliant, unstable, full of sudden climaxes and equally sudden calms, violently extroverted moments turning to deeply pensive withdrawals. The opening Fantasy launches into the theme without preamble and works itself to a frenzy in the first ten seconds. It reaches three climaxes in the first two minutes before coming to a complete stop.

After an alternation of pensive meditations and sweeping scales, the fugue opens quietly using as its theme the B-A-C-H motive, which is a perfect justification for extreme chromaticism and shifting tonality. The piano version is amazingly powerful.

- Program Note by Hector Bellman, for Allmusic


In this arrangement from a piano work to large symphonic band, various elements of the music, such as melody, dynamics, etc., are expanded and distorted. This is the extreme reflection of the acoustics of piano in the original work. In other words, while following Liszt's philosophy regarding instruments and acoustics, I converted them to symphonic band acoustics.

It can be said that an opinion is expressed in this arrangement: to use an analogy, if Liszt had had access to large symphonic band, he, "radical party" of his time, would probably have ended up with a work like this (although it is almost like a composition, not an arrangement...). In some places, rewriting can seem to be completely different music. However, it can be accepted as the result of arranging the work for symphonic band in the same way that Liszt composed it for piano, or as a presentation of the elements of the original piece in a different direction.

Since its first performance in 2005, commissioned by the Wind Orchestra of the Hokkaido University of Education, Hakodate, this arrangement has been performed by many bands. In that process, I've made various partial rewritings. In 2018, after 13 years of rewriting the work, I decided to renew it as a revised version.

- Program Note by arranger, translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator


Media


State Ratings

None discovered thus far.


Performances

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Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources

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