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Symphonia domestica, Op. 53 Richard Strauss he idea of the symphonic poem was cod- Symphonia domestica he expanded the idea of Tified in the 1840s and ’50s by Franz Liszt an autobiographical program to embrace the through a dozen single-movement orches- remainder of his household — his wife, Pau- tral pieces that drew inspiration from, or line, and his son, Franz, to whom the work is were in some way linked to, literary sources. jointly dedicated. Pauline de Ahna, an accom- The repertoire quickly grew thanks to no- plished and temperamental soprano, began table contributions by such composers as in 1887 as Strauss’s voice pupil and starred in Smetana, Dvořák, Musorgsky, Tchaikovsky, his first opera, Guntram, in 1894. They were Saint-Saëns, Franck, and — most impres- married that same year; he proposed — and sively of all — Richard Strauss. she accepted — while she was in mid-tantrum In 1886 Strauss produced what might be during a rehearsal of Tannhäuser that he was considered his first symphonic poem, Aus conducting. The composer often collaborated Italien (it is more precisely a descriptive with her in performance, either as pianist in symphony), and he continued through the recital or as conductor, until she effectively series of tone poems that many feel represent retired from the stage in 1906, by which time the genre at its height: Macbeth (1886–08), her voice had grown unreliable and her stage Don Juan and Tod und Verklärung (Death deportment had become downright bizarre. and Transfiguration)both 1888–89, Till Eu- They remained married for 55 years, and lenspiegels lustige Streiche (Till Eulenspie- she survived her husband by only eight gel’s Merry Pranks, 1894–95), Also sprach Zarathustra (Thus Spake Zarathustra, 1895–96), Don Quixote (1896–97), Ein Hel- In Short denleben (A Hero’s Life, 1897–98), and Sym- Born: June 11, 1864, in Munich, Bavaria phonia domestica (1902–03; sometimes the (Germany) title is given as Sinfonia domestica).
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