Metamorphosen

E441190

Metamorphosen is a late orchestral work by Richard Strauss for 23 solo strings, often interpreted as an elegiac reflection on the destruction of German culture during World War II.

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Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf orchestral composition
work for string orchestra
basedOn earlier sketches for a string septet
catalogueNumber TrV 290
composer Richard Strauss NERFINISHED
composerAgeAtCompletion about 80
compositionEndDate 1945
compositionPeriod World War II NERFINISHED
compositionStartDate 1944
conductorAtPremiere Paul Sacher NERFINISHED
countryOfOrigin Germany
dedicatedTo Paul Sacher NERFINISHED
duration approximately 25 minutes
firstPerformanceDate 1946-01-25
firstPerformancePlace Zürich NERFINISHED
firstPerformer Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich NERFINISHED
form study for strings
genre late Romantic
hasInstrumentationType chamber-sized string ensemble
hasManuscriptLocation Bavarian State Library NERFINISHED
hasTheme mourning and loss
transformation through music
hasTitleLanguage German
inspiredBy destruction of German cities in World War II
interpretedAs elegy for destroyed German culture
musical lament
key C minor
languageOfWork none
movementStructure single continuous movement
notableFeature complex contrapuntal writing
quotation of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony funeral march theme
use of individual solo string parts
placeOfComposition Garmisch-Partenkirchen NERFINISHED
publisher Boosey & Hawkes NERFINISHED
relatedWork Metamorphosen (string septet version) NERFINISHED
scoredFor 10 violins
23 solo strings
3 double basses
5 cellos
5 violas
stylePeriod late style of Richard Strauss
subjectOf musicological analysis
recordings by major orchestras
titleTranslation Metamorphoses NERFINISHED
usesTechnique chromatic harmony
motivic transformation
polyphonic texture
workPeriodInComposerOeuvre late works of Richard Strauss

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Richard Strauss notableWork Metamorphosen