The ''Fantasia on Hungarian Folk Melodies'' (German: ''Fantasie über ungarische Volksmelodien'', Hungarian: ''Fantázia magyar népi dallamokkal''), commonly known in short form simply as the ''Hungarian Fantasy'', is Franz Liszt's arrangement for

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

and

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

of his Hungarian Rhapsody No. 14, originally for solo piano. The Fantasia was written in 1852 and premiered in Pest on June 1, 1853, with

Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...

as soloist and

Ferenc Erkel Ferenc Erkel ( hu, Erkel Ferenc , german: link=no, Franz Erkel; November 7, 1810June 15, 1893) was a Hungarian composer, conductor and pianist. He was the father of Hungarian grand opera, written mainly on historical themes, which are still o ...

conducting the orchestra.

Overview

During Liszt's lifetime, his

Hungarian Rhapsodies The Hungarian Rhapsodies, S.244, R.106 (french: Rhapsodies hongroises, german: Ungarische Rhapsodien, hu, Magyar rapszódiák), is a set of 19 piano pieces based on Hungarian folk themes, composed by Franz Liszt during 1846–1853, and late ...

were among his most popular works. Because of this popularity, he may have been under pressure to produce versions of them for piano and orchestra. The present work is the only such work that Liszt is known to have produced.Collet, 257. However he may, at the end of his life, have helped his student

Sophie Menter Sophie Menter (29 July 1846 – 23 February 1918) was a German pianist and composer who became the favorite female student of Franz Liszt.Schonberg, 262. She was called ''l'incarnation de Liszt'' in Paris because of her robust, electrifying playing ...

with her '' Concerto in the Hungarian Style'' (1885), a work which was clearly influenced by the Hungarian Fantasy. A slow introduction by the orchestra is followed by a solo cadenza before proceeding to the main body of the work. The bold, marchlike main theme of the work, as in the version for solo piano, is the Hungarian folk song "Mohac's Field",Collet, 257. with a long-short-short-long

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...

. While much of the piece's thematic material is derived from this song, there is also a section in A minor marked "in

gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

style" (''alla zingarese''). While the Fantasia is in the same style and tradition as the Hungarian Rhapsodies, it differs structurally from them. The Rhapsodies generally present a clear succession of two traditional scales — lassan, and

friska Friska (from hu, friss, fresh, pronounced ''frish'') is the fast section of the csárdás, a Hungarian folk dance, or of most of (all except for 3, 5 and 17) Liszt's ''Hungarian Rhapsodies The Hungarian Rhapsodies, S.244, R.106 (french: Rh ...

. These dances are evident in the Fantasia, particularly in the long and brilliant friska section. However, Liszt is freer and wider-ranging in his combination and juxtaposition of material than he usually is in this type of work.

allmusic.com AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

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Bibliography

* ed. Ewen, David, ''The Complete Book on Classical Music'' (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1965).

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

Card Catalog Number 65-11033 * Headington, Christopher, Notes to

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

5262148, ''Liszt: Orchestral Works'';

Shura Cherkassky Shura Cherkassky (russian: Александр (Шура) Исаакович Черкасский; 7 October 190927 December 1995) was a Ukrainian-American concert pianist known for his performances of the romantic repertoire. His playing was c ...

, piano;

Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. History The Berlin Philharmonic was f ...

conducted by

Herbert von Karajan Herbert von Karajan (; born Heribert Ritter von Karajan; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, wit ...

. * ed Walker, Alan, ''Franz Liszt: The Man and His Music'', (New York, Taplinger Publishing Company, 1970). ** Collet, Robert, "Works for Piano and Orchestra" * Walker, Alan, ''Franz Liszt, Volume 2: The Weimar Years, 1848-1861'' (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1989).

References

External links

* Compositions by Franz Liszt 1852 compositions Compositions for piano and orchestra

Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

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