Music Fueled By Desire Hector Berlioz Symphony Fantastique

Play the annotated interactive score, find the idée fixeThe Score
See and hear the instruments as Berlioz used them.The Orchestration
Read the program Berlioz wrote to introduce the Symphonie fantastique.The Programme
Read Berlioz’s own words describing his thoughts and feelings.The Mémoires
Read the reaction from Berlioz’s contemporariesImpressions
Find out how this fantastic story ended.Epilogue

Mémoires

“The public, I am aware, is little concerned with what I may have done or felt or thought. But a few artists and music-lovers having expressed the desire to know, I would rather they were given a true version than left to believe a false one.”
 —Hector Berlioz, 1848

A true Romantic, Berlioz was not shy about expressing his feelings in writing, leaving us poignant letters and dramatic memoires that give us a glimpse into his inner thoughts.

Finally, Berlioz returned from his Prix de Rome stint in Italy only to discover that he had just missed Harriet.


What's Your Impression?

What do Berlioz's own words tell you about his true feelings?
Post Your Reaction