Liszt's Faust Symphony:a Critical Study

Liszt is one of the most important Programme Music composers in the Romantic Period.He adopted poetry frequently as a source of inspiration for music composition,and emphasized the poetic of music to achieved the reformation of symphony.The Faust Symphony is very significant and special in Liszt's numerous Programme Music works.This work was composed in the"Weimar Period",showing his exploration and practice achievement of programme symphonic music language.Meanwhile,the "Faust spirit" is a important image in Liszt's music life,as a symbol echoed with the holistic cultural context of Romantic Period.This thesis takes the Faust Symphony as the research object,with the research method of music historiography and analysis as the basic,and explores the music language characteristic and the programme implication of this work,then reveals the special meaning of the "Faust spirit" in Liszt's composition career and even in the western music culture.This thesis includes four chapters.The first chapter puts the Faust symphony in the complicated background of Romantic music,interpreting Liszt's Programme Music ideas with"Poetic Music" as the core.Meanwhile,the author highlights the significance and particularity of the Faust symphony by expounding "Faust" music phenomenon in the Romantic Period.The second chapter concentrates on the Faust's transform from literature to music works.Firstly,this thesis combs the literary evolution of Faust legend in the west,and takes Goethe's work as a standard.Then through two ways of "dramatic" and "instrumental",the author explores composers different dispose method,and contrasts Liszt's work with Berlioz and Wagner.The third chapter is the key section,which focus on the music analysis and the interpretation of programme implication.The analysis is divided into three aspects:the composition of music theme,the application of the thematic transformation,and the entirety structure design.Among them,portraying characters is the typical view of Liszt's Programme Music composition,and the thematic transformation is a develop measure to accomplish the music logic and bring the programme implication.The multilevel structure reflects Liszt's breakthrough of traditional form and it is also a common feature of Programme Music.The fourth chapter elucidates the artistic characteristics and humanistic connotation of the Faust symphony,and summarizes the most distinctive Programme Music language of Liszt.Finally,this thesis interprets that the "Faust spirit" is not only a self-ideal projection of Liszt,but also a microcosm of the Romantic culture.