' (The Battle of the Huns),
S.105, is a
symphonic poem by
Franz Liszt, written in 1857 after a painting of the same name by
Wilhelm von Kaulbach. Liszt conducted the premiere himself in Weimar on 29 December 1857.
The painting depicts the battle of the
Catalaunian Fields around 20 June 451 AD, where the
Hun armies led by
Attila fought a savage battle against a
Roman coalition led by Roman General
Flavius Aëtius
Aetius (also spelled Aëtius; ; 390 – 454) was a Roman general and statesman of the closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was a military commander and the most influential man in the Empire for two decades (433454). He managed pol ...
and the Visigothic king
Theodoric
Theodoric is a Germanic given name. First attested as a Gothic name in the 5th century, it became widespread in the Germanic-speaking world, not least due to its most famous bearer, Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths.
Overview
The name ...
. According to legend, the battle was so ferocious that the souls of the dead warriors continued their fighting in the sky as they rose to Heaven.
Structure
The first section of the piece, marked ' carries Liszt's instruction: "Conductors: the entire colour should be kept very dark, and all instruments must sound like ghosts." Liszt achieves much of this effect by scoring the entire string section to play with mutes, even in ''fortissimo'' passages. This section depicts an atmosphere of foreboding and suppressed rage before the battle breaks out.
The second section, ', begins with a ''""'' (battle cry) in the horns, which is then taken up by the strings. The main battle theme is then stated, a fully formed version of material from the very opening. This entire section makes use of the so-called
gypsy scale, which Liszt frequently used in his Hungarian-themed compositions. In this section Liszt introduces an unusual effect: against the current of the raucous battle music in the rest of the orchestra, the trombones play the ancient
plainchant
Plainsong or plainchant (calque from the French ''plain-chant''; la, cantus planus) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text ...
melody "". Liszt's own description of this section was of "two opposing streams of light in which the Huns and the Cross are moving."
[La Mara (ed.), "Franz Liszt's Briefe", vol. 1, Leipzig, 1893–1905]
The "" theme is later taken up by the strings in a quiet, peaceful contrasting section. The music grows in intensity, eventually including an organ and offstage brass section, and it ends triumphantly.
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Symphonic poems by Franz Liszt
1857 compositions
Music for orchestra and organ
Music based on art