A Symphony to Dante's Divine Comedy, S.109, or simply the "Dante Symphony", is a choral symphony composed by Franz Liszt. Written in the high romantic style, it is based on Dante Alighieri's journey through Hell and Purgatory, as depicted in The Divine Comedy. It was premiered in Dresden in November 1857, with Liszt conducting himself, and was unofficially dedicated to the composer's friend and future son-in-law Richard Wagner. The entire symphony takes approximately 50 minutes to perform. It premiered on 7 November 1857.
Some critics have argued that the Dante Symphony is not so much a symphony in the classical sense as it is two descriptive symphonic poems.[2] Regardless, Dante consists of two movements, both in a loosely structured ternary form with little use of thematic transformation.[3]
The "Tragic Overture" was composed by Johannes Brahms during the summer of 1880 and premiered on December 26, 1880, in Vienna under the baton of Hans Richter. It is a concert overture for orchestra, lasting approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Brahms wrote this piece as a counterpart to his more lighthearted Academic Festival Overture, reflecting a contrasting emotional landscape. He famously described the two overtures by saying, "one laughs, the other cries".
