Berlioz wrote a sequel to the *Symphonie fantastique* that you may like called *Lélio*, which features a narrator, two vocalists, and a chorus. Funnily enough I've never heard the piece myself but it's a logical next step.
Perhaps Liszt's [Faust Symphony](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN_Ke-S-zAU&list=OLAK5uy_mpDvm4V_HmcBVGnotRc_xhvFMHAhxW3ZI) and Tchaikovsky's (albeit not a symphony) [Romeo and Juliet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFmUeC1QusM) fantasy overture?
It's pretty unique to be honest. Have you tried Harold in Italy? Maybe try Berlioz Romeo and Juliet, Requiem, or Faust? Those have singers unlike SF. Maybe try a tone poem by Strauss such as Don Quixote or Macbeth as they tell stories.
I couldn’t connect with R&J or the requiem (I’ll give them another go soon enough), but I haven’t heard the rest. I’ve heard Harold in Italy is great, I’ll be sure to check’em out
La damnation de Faust is the closest in “vibe” to Symphonie fantastique. The penultimate scene is Faust getting dragged to hell.
Try this recording:
https://youtu.be/Sel2mZO0bos?si=ANerkXT0UiuN7kzf
I would try Rachmaninoff (start with the Symphonic Dances, then perhaps Isle of the Dead, and then the Symphonies in the order 2, 3, 1) and then Tchaikovsky (Symphonies 6, 4, 5, 2, 1, 3 and Romeo & Juliet etc). Dvorak’s 9th might also work. Orderings are just suggestions based on the fact that you like Symphonie Fantastique. There’s a cool similarity/kinship between that and the Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances that you may appreciate.
Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 1 is laced with the Dies irae motif (which of course appears in the fifth movement of Symphonie fantastique). It is also by far the rawest-sounding orchestral work by him.
Nice. The Symphonic Dances were the last thing he composed, and they cover a lot of the same ground as the Symphonie Fantastique - the second and third movements are spooky, and you will hear the same theme (“Dies Irae”) as from the final movement of the Symphonie Fantastique. It’s worth learning about the significance of that theme, and what it meant to the composers, and their audiences.
Wow the same theme?? I’ve done a lot of reading about the Fantastique and all that’s going on with the Dies Irae… never knew this theme was repeated elsewhere. That makes me more interested than I already was
You’re going to enjoy Rachmaninoff then - he uses the Dies Irae all over his work. His most famous use of it is in his “Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini” but it’s also all over The Isle of the Dead and lots of his piano works.
I'm assuming you like the macabre vibes of the final movements? If so, you'll probably like Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony, Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony and Danse Macrabre, and Mussorgsky's Pictures At An Exhibition and Night On Bald Mountain.
A bit more obscure is Atterberg's Symphony #5 and Rangstrom's Symphony #4.
Oh absolutely, that’s spot on. The final half of the 3rd movement and 1st half of the 1st movement are also, to me, perfection.
This looks like a super interesting list. Adding these to the list! Never heard of Atterberg or Rangstrom
If you like programmatic music like Symphonie Fantastique is, you might like another Berlioz work, *Harold en Italie* . Notable for featuring the viola as the “voice” of Harold. It is not dark or gothic like Fantastique is, though.
I also like programmatic music :) . You might like the suites fromDaphnis et Chloe by Ravel, and his other dance-y works like La valse, introduction et allegro, nobles et sentimentales etc. They have a similar vibe to the Un Bal section of SF, and with a certain darkness (if not religious) in them like the dies irae part.
Not really program music but I think Tchaikovsky 4 and 5 have a similar vibe, too. Especially 4. Maybe capriccio Italian too. Rimsky Korsakov also did a number of program pieces that have a strapping kind of sound like Berlioz, tho very Russian flavored ofc.
If you like how romantic/colorful Berlioz is, you might like Mendelssohn’s 3rd symphony!
If you liked the witchy part best then go to rach Paganini rhapsody directly, lol.
Do you think it’s the unbridled romanticism that you like in Berlioz?
Ballet music is great for story music!
Thank you for the reply!! I do adore the dark, gothic, dreamland-esq feels from it. For me personally, these styles/“feelings” are much more powerful given that they are sort of sprinkled throughout the 1st and 2nd movements and, at least to me, where the latter half of the 3rd movement has a noticeably much darker tone that what it already was at first. I also love the consistency of the main theme throughout each movement being twisted and turned to eventually feel even depraved by the final movement.
I think you are right on with unbridled romanticism. I’ll be sure to check out Mendelssohn’s 3rd, I really enjoy some of his piano works! I’ll check out the Paganini rhapsody as well. I do enjoy the “witchy” parts a lot but it does depend on the mood haha. With Fantastique I feel like it’s the perfect mixture of beauty and hope that is eventually succumbed to darkness.
If you like the Mendelssohn 3, you should give some love to his criminally underrated 5th, or Reformation, symphony, which has a medieval echoes not unlike the Fantastique, though it uses the Dresden Amen instead of the Dies Irae.
And now that I think of it Schumann's 3rd, the Rhenish, is also medieval, and romantic, and program music, so how can it miss?
I adore schumann’s piano repertoire so I trust that his symphonies are probably just as great, that sounds very intriguing! I haven’t heard of the Dresden amen either so I’ll enjoy some new exposure
Something that hasn’t been suggested yet: Franck’s symphonic poem Le Chasseur maudit. It is about a nobleman who goes on a hunt on the Sabbath, and is consequently cursed to ride on for eternity.
It’s also probably the closest piece to Berlioz aesthetics-wise. Franck was, after all, a professor at the Paris Conservatoire (although he taught the organ).
Yes, yes! There’s a compilation album with Franck’s piece in addition to some other greats that I play every Halloween. Includes The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and Danse Macabre. [The Sorcerer’s Apprentice: French Symphonic Poems](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-sorcerers-apprentice-french-symphonic-poems/692130384)
Wow the “story” sure intrigues me and sounds like something that would coincide with Berlioz. I’ll certainly add this one and am excited to listen to it
If the reason you like Symphonie Fantastique is because it tells a story, maybe look into symphonic poems? A lot of them are narratives with well-established musical themes compressed into one short work. Some of my favourites are:
Pretty much anything by Dvořák, but especially [Vodník](https://youtu.be/kPezhIAMp-4?si=sjVLERVI8DhW2VJj) (a traditional folk take about a child lured into a pond by a water goblin), Rimsky-Korsakov's [Skazka](https://youtu.be/guSTZX_R8m8?si=YVks8rmBL9tmv_8b) (although RK never specifies *which* "Fairy Tale" is being told), and Liadov's [Kikimora](https://youtu.be/m0L9fYMq7Gg?si=Q7aUTOu0QzFwneay).
If you want longer works, I definitely second another commenter's mention of Dvořák 9. A similar work is (perhaps a bit too obviously) Holst's [Planets](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhFfuLqoiUI), but a work I've come to love recently is Litvinovsky's [Tales of the Magic Tree](https://youtu.be/IvO__uNG3ew?si=Qfw-PxL82HCtyN3J).
Adding on to these great suggestions, Josef Suk’s “Pohadka” (Fairytale) and “Pohadka Leta” (A Sunmer’s Tale”. Pohadka Leta is especially similar to SF, I’d say
I’d suggest Mahler’s Second Symphony. Both composers used novel orchestration and effects. Much is made of Mahler’s supposed connections to Wagner, but I think he’s closer in spirit to Berlioz…as different as they are otherwise.
This is one of few here I do know… or trying to “get to know. There’s parts of all the Mahler I’ve listened too that I can say I really like and others where I lose interest a bit. Generally though, the more I listen the more I like them! I don’t find Mahler quite as “listenable” as others like Beethoven or Bach but I so desperately want to get to know his symphonies the way I see them being praised a lot.
Like Berlioz, he pushes boundaries. It takes time. But both like weird effects, and quoting the Dies Irae. And they aren’t afraid to get loud. Good
Luck in your quest for new territories.
Other programme music that tells a story are Strauss' tone poems
Ein Heldenleben - story of a hero fighting his enemies, supported by his wife
Alpine symphony - Ascending an alpine peak, then forced to descent it due to a thunderstorm
Second recommendation for Mendelssohn I’ve seen- I’ll give that particular symphony a listen. I’ve never heard of Amy Beach either, I’ll add it to the list!
I'm glad! He's my favourite - the fourth movement of the Reformation Symphony is a masterpiece. Fun fact: The Reformation Symphony was written in the same year as SF! Unfortunately it wasn't performed until two years after (basically antisemitism and anti-programmatic-symphonyism)
If you happen to like the Amy Beach one, the tunes in the first or fourth movement (I can't remember) are based on the song Dark Is The Night! that Beach wrote earlier, similar to how Berlioz used an earlier song of his in SF (Estelle theme).
If you haven't heard the Grande Symphony Funebre et Triomphale from your comments about liking the macabre feeling of SF, I highly recommend it!
I guess I embody the mixed opinions; I have yet to 'get' this piece despite listening to a lot of different versions of it.
I'll keep trying, inspired by your devotion to it.
seeing your comment makes me happy, I’m glad it inspired you :). Obviously you don’t have to like it, but keep trying! Im not sure why it “clicked” with me but it did within the first few listens. I keep going back to it and I can’t wait to see it live in a few months. The first half of the first movement is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful sections of music ever.
I’m in the same boat with Mahler. For some reason I’m having a really hard time getting to that same point but I’m trying because I recognize the impeccable impact it could have on me the more I listen to it
Cheers. Interestingly Mahler is one of my favourite composers, I fell in love with his music from my first listen to the First Symphony; which is one of my favourite pieces of music.
I haven’t heard the 1st one talked about quite as much as the others. I’ll give that one a very intentional and focused listen… it’ll be nice to start from the very beginning for his symphonies. Bc it sounds like there’s a huge amount of music to love from them. Cheers to you!
Berlioz wrote a sequel to the *Symphonie fantastique* that you may like called *Lélio*, which features a narrator, two vocalists, and a chorus. Funnily enough I've never heard the piece myself but it's a logical next step.
Didn’t know this…I will check it out!
Perhaps Liszt's [Faust Symphony](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN_Ke-S-zAU&list=OLAK5uy_mpDvm4V_HmcBVGnotRc_xhvFMHAhxW3ZI) and Tchaikovsky's (albeit not a symphony) [Romeo and Juliet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFmUeC1QusM) fantasy overture?
Adding these to the list:)
It's pretty unique to be honest. Have you tried Harold in Italy? Maybe try Berlioz Romeo and Juliet, Requiem, or Faust? Those have singers unlike SF. Maybe try a tone poem by Strauss such as Don Quixote or Macbeth as they tell stories.
I couldn’t connect with R&J or the requiem (I’ll give them another go soon enough), but I haven’t heard the rest. I’ve heard Harold in Italy is great, I’ll be sure to check’em out
All you need from the requiem is the tuba mirum with the 4 brass bands
I’ll go back and listen to this part again
La damnation de Faust is the closest in “vibe” to Symphonie fantastique. The penultimate scene is Faust getting dragged to hell. Try this recording: https://youtu.be/Sel2mZO0bos?si=ANerkXT0UiuN7kzf
Thank you for the specific recording, I’m a sucker for finding the “perfect” interpretation/recording for my tastes so this is a great place to start.
I would try Rachmaninoff (start with the Symphonic Dances, then perhaps Isle of the Dead, and then the Symphonies in the order 2, 3, 1) and then Tchaikovsky (Symphonies 6, 4, 5, 2, 1, 3 and Romeo & Juliet etc). Dvorak’s 9th might also work. Orderings are just suggestions based on the fact that you like Symphonie Fantastique. There’s a cool similarity/kinship between that and the Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances that you may appreciate.
Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 1 is laced with the Dies irae motif (which of course appears in the fifth movement of Symphonie fantastique). It is also by far the rawest-sounding orchestral work by him.
Second Rachmaninov 2
Never heard those, thank you for the reply! I’ve hardly heard any of your suggestions so I’m excited. I have a lot of listening to do
Nice. The Symphonic Dances were the last thing he composed, and they cover a lot of the same ground as the Symphonie Fantastique - the second and third movements are spooky, and you will hear the same theme (“Dies Irae”) as from the final movement of the Symphonie Fantastique. It’s worth learning about the significance of that theme, and what it meant to the composers, and their audiences.
Wow the same theme?? I’ve done a lot of reading about the Fantastique and all that’s going on with the Dies Irae… never knew this theme was repeated elsewhere. That makes me more interested than I already was
You’re going to enjoy Rachmaninoff then - he uses the Dies Irae all over his work. His most famous use of it is in his “Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini” but it’s also all over The Isle of the Dead and lots of his piano works.
I'm assuming you like the macabre vibes of the final movements? If so, you'll probably like Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony, Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony and Danse Macrabre, and Mussorgsky's Pictures At An Exhibition and Night On Bald Mountain. A bit more obscure is Atterberg's Symphony #5 and Rangstrom's Symphony #4.
Oh absolutely, that’s spot on. The final half of the 3rd movement and 1st half of the 1st movement are also, to me, perfection. This looks like a super interesting list. Adding these to the list! Never heard of Atterberg or Rangstrom
If you like programmatic music like Symphonie Fantastique is, you might like another Berlioz work, *Harold en Italie* . Notable for featuring the viola as the “voice” of Harold. It is not dark or gothic like Fantastique is, though. I also like programmatic music :) . You might like the suites fromDaphnis et Chloe by Ravel, and his other dance-y works like La valse, introduction et allegro, nobles et sentimentales etc. They have a similar vibe to the Un Bal section of SF, and with a certain darkness (if not religious) in them like the dies irae part. Not really program music but I think Tchaikovsky 4 and 5 have a similar vibe, too. Especially 4. Maybe capriccio Italian too. Rimsky Korsakov also did a number of program pieces that have a strapping kind of sound like Berlioz, tho very Russian flavored ofc. If you like how romantic/colorful Berlioz is, you might like Mendelssohn’s 3rd symphony! If you liked the witchy part best then go to rach Paganini rhapsody directly, lol. Do you think it’s the unbridled romanticism that you like in Berlioz? Ballet music is great for story music!
Thank you for the reply!! I do adore the dark, gothic, dreamland-esq feels from it. For me personally, these styles/“feelings” are much more powerful given that they are sort of sprinkled throughout the 1st and 2nd movements and, at least to me, where the latter half of the 3rd movement has a noticeably much darker tone that what it already was at first. I also love the consistency of the main theme throughout each movement being twisted and turned to eventually feel even depraved by the final movement. I think you are right on with unbridled romanticism. I’ll be sure to check out Mendelssohn’s 3rd, I really enjoy some of his piano works! I’ll check out the Paganini rhapsody as well. I do enjoy the “witchy” parts a lot but it does depend on the mood haha. With Fantastique I feel like it’s the perfect mixture of beauty and hope that is eventually succumbed to darkness.
If you like the Mendelssohn 3, you should give some love to his criminally underrated 5th, or Reformation, symphony, which has a medieval echoes not unlike the Fantastique, though it uses the Dresden Amen instead of the Dies Irae. And now that I think of it Schumann's 3rd, the Rhenish, is also medieval, and romantic, and program music, so how can it miss?
I adore schumann’s piano repertoire so I trust that his symphonies are probably just as great, that sounds very intriguing! I haven’t heard of the Dresden amen either so I’ll enjoy some new exposure
Something that hasn’t been suggested yet: Franck’s symphonic poem Le Chasseur maudit. It is about a nobleman who goes on a hunt on the Sabbath, and is consequently cursed to ride on for eternity. It’s also probably the closest piece to Berlioz aesthetics-wise. Franck was, after all, a professor at the Paris Conservatoire (although he taught the organ).
Amazing piece
Can’t remember the last time I saw it programmed in concert. The Symphony in D minor, too, is very rarely programmed nowadays (at least in the UK).
Yes, yes! There’s a compilation album with Franck’s piece in addition to some other greats that I play every Halloween. Includes The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and Danse Macabre. [The Sorcerer’s Apprentice: French Symphonic Poems](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-sorcerers-apprentice-french-symphonic-poems/692130384)
Wow the “story” sure intrigues me and sounds like something that would coincide with Berlioz. I’ll certainly add this one and am excited to listen to it
What’s your favorite movement of symphonie fantastique?
I think “symphonic variations on an African Air” by Samuel Coleridge Taylor has a pretty similar but unique vibe
I’ll check it out, thank you
If the reason you like Symphonie Fantastique is because it tells a story, maybe look into symphonic poems? A lot of them are narratives with well-established musical themes compressed into one short work. Some of my favourites are: Pretty much anything by Dvořák, but especially [Vodník](https://youtu.be/kPezhIAMp-4?si=sjVLERVI8DhW2VJj) (a traditional folk take about a child lured into a pond by a water goblin), Rimsky-Korsakov's [Skazka](https://youtu.be/guSTZX_R8m8?si=YVks8rmBL9tmv_8b) (although RK never specifies *which* "Fairy Tale" is being told), and Liadov's [Kikimora](https://youtu.be/m0L9fYMq7Gg?si=Q7aUTOu0QzFwneay). If you want longer works, I definitely second another commenter's mention of Dvořák 9. A similar work is (perhaps a bit too obviously) Holst's [Planets](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhFfuLqoiUI), but a work I've come to love recently is Litvinovsky's [Tales of the Magic Tree](https://youtu.be/IvO__uNG3ew?si=Qfw-PxL82HCtyN3J).
Adding on to these great suggestions, Josef Suk’s “Pohadka” (Fairytale) and “Pohadka Leta” (A Sunmer’s Tale”. Pohadka Leta is especially similar to SF, I’d say
Oh, excellent addition! I can't believe I forgot Suk, he's one of my favourites as well!
I’d suggest Mahler’s Second Symphony. Both composers used novel orchestration and effects. Much is made of Mahler’s supposed connections to Wagner, but I think he’s closer in spirit to Berlioz…as different as they are otherwise.
This is one of few here I do know… or trying to “get to know. There’s parts of all the Mahler I’ve listened too that I can say I really like and others where I lose interest a bit. Generally though, the more I listen the more I like them! I don’t find Mahler quite as “listenable” as others like Beethoven or Bach but I so desperately want to get to know his symphonies the way I see them being praised a lot.
Like Berlioz, he pushes boundaries. It takes time. But both like weird effects, and quoting the Dies Irae. And they aren’t afraid to get loud. Good Luck in your quest for new territories.
Thank you. It’s a journey for sure. I appreciate this:)
Other programme music that tells a story are Strauss' tone poems Ein Heldenleben - story of a hero fighting his enemies, supported by his wife Alpine symphony - Ascending an alpine peak, then forced to descent it due to a thunderstorm
Amy Beach’s Gallic Symphony and Mendelssohn’s Reformation Symphony (and the Scottish if you like) are my favourite to use in essays to compare to SF
Second recommendation for Mendelssohn I’ve seen- I’ll give that particular symphony a listen. I’ve never heard of Amy Beach either, I’ll add it to the list!
I'm glad! He's my favourite - the fourth movement of the Reformation Symphony is a masterpiece. Fun fact: The Reformation Symphony was written in the same year as SF! Unfortunately it wasn't performed until two years after (basically antisemitism and anti-programmatic-symphonyism) If you happen to like the Amy Beach one, the tunes in the first or fourth movement (I can't remember) are based on the song Dark Is The Night! that Beach wrote earlier, similar to how Berlioz used an earlier song of his in SF (Estelle theme). If you haven't heard the Grande Symphony Funebre et Triomphale from your comments about liking the macabre feeling of SF, I highly recommend it!
I guess I embody the mixed opinions; I have yet to 'get' this piece despite listening to a lot of different versions of it. I'll keep trying, inspired by your devotion to it.
seeing your comment makes me happy, I’m glad it inspired you :). Obviously you don’t have to like it, but keep trying! Im not sure why it “clicked” with me but it did within the first few listens. I keep going back to it and I can’t wait to see it live in a few months. The first half of the first movement is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful sections of music ever. I’m in the same boat with Mahler. For some reason I’m having a really hard time getting to that same point but I’m trying because I recognize the impeccable impact it could have on me the more I listen to it
Cheers. Interestingly Mahler is one of my favourite composers, I fell in love with his music from my first listen to the First Symphony; which is one of my favourite pieces of music.
I haven’t heard the 1st one talked about quite as much as the others. I’ll give that one a very intentional and focused listen… it’ll be nice to start from the very beginning for his symphonies. Bc it sounds like there’s a huge amount of music to love from them. Cheers to you!
Over a century of musical technique between them, but a lot of Schnittke's music has the same melodramatic recklessness.