Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique



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Hector Berlioz wrote his revolutionary Symphonie Fantastique (1831) in reaction to the intense and unreciprocated passion he felt for Irish actress Harriet Smithson. The work was considered by Berlioz to be a musical drama that should be presented without written programs in the hopes that it would “of itself, and irrespective of any dramatic aim, offer interest in the musical sense alone.” As a result, each powerful movement in the work stands on its own in its ability to evoke a particular mood, character, and image.

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Berlioz, (Louis) Hector

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