Liebestod (tr Bainum)

From Wind Repertory Project
Richard Wagner

Richard Wagner (trans. Glenn Bainum)


Subtitle: From Tristan und Isolde


General Info

Year: 1856 / 1964
Duration: c. 6:15
Difficulty: V (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: Neil A. Kjos Music Company
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $50.00   |   Score Only (print) - $10.00

For additional availability information, see Discussion tab, above.


Instrumentation

Condensed Score
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III-IV
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Contra-Alto Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III
B-flat Trumpet
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
Timpani
Percussion (3 players), including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Snare Drum


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

In December 1856, when Wagner was at work on the first act of Siegfried, he became obsessed with a melodic idea he associated with the legend of Tristan and Isolde. He subsequently broke away from his work on the Ring Cycle until his opera based on Tristan and Isolde was completed. The Prelude and Liebestod (or Love-Death) constitutes the very beginning and end of the opera, in an orchestral combination that was sanctioned by the composer as a separate entity for performance in its own right. The Prelude depicts the unvoiced longing of Tristan and Isolde for one another, and with the Liebestod comes the fulfillment of that longing in their death together, their immortal love being voiced by Isolde as she stands over Tristan’s corpse, contemplates his transfigured soul, and joins it by taking her own life. The work is widely considered among the most powerful and emotionally gripping music ever written.

- Program Note by the Saitama Sakae Wind Orchestra


Media

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State Ratings

  • Alabama: Class A
  • Florida: V
  • Georgia: V
  • Kansas: V
  • Louisiana: IV
  • Maryland: V
  • Michigan: Senior High AA
  • North Carolina: V
  • Tennessee: V


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources

  • Girsberger, Russ. Percussion Assignments for Band & Wind Ensemble: Volume 2 L-Z. Galesville, MD: Meredith Music Publications, 2004, 326. Print.
  • Liebestod, Wikipedia Accessed 20 May 2019
  • Wagner, R.; Bainum, C. (1964). Liebestod : From Tristan and Isolde [score]. N.A. Kjos Music Co.; Park Ridge, Ill.