The ''Faust Overture'' is a
concert overture by German composer
Richard Wagner. Wagner originally composed it between 1839 and 1840, intending it to be the first movement of a ''Faust Symphony'' based on the play ''
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540).
The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...
'' by German playwright
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as t ...
. Realizing that he would not finish the planned
symphony, Wagner revised the piece between 1843 and 1844, incorporating ideas from the other planned movements, and creating instead a single-movement concert overture. He made a final revision in 1855. The work is one of Wagner's few compositions intended for the concert hall, rather than the theatre.
See also
*''
Faust Symphony
''A Faust Symphony in three character pictures'' (german: Eine Faust-Symphonie in drei Charakterbildern), S.108, or simply the "''Faust Symphony''", is a choral symphony written by Hungarian composer Franz Liszt inspired by Johann Wolfgang von Go ...
'' by
Franz Liszt
References
*Westernhagen, Curt von. ''Wagner: A Biography''. Cambridge University Press: New York, NY 1978.
*Culshaw, John. ''Wagner: The Man and His Music''. Dutton: New York, NY 1978.
*''Oxford Concise Dictionary of Music'', 1996 ed. Chief editor
Michael Kennedy.
*Everett, Derrick. , 2004.
*Wagner, Irmgard. , American Goethe Society 2004.
External links
*
Compositions by Richard Wagner
Concert overtures
Music based on Goethe's Faust
1844 compositions
1855 compositions
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