Concert : Le mythe de Faust dans l'oeuvre de Liszt

The XIXth century saw during its romantic period the rise of programme music, music no longer conceived solely for itself but guided by extra-musical inspirations, drawing from all arts.

; Credits: CMA6

At the heart of this era stands the Faust myth, which considerably nourished German poetry and literature, with repercussions on all the great artists of the time. Liszt, the romantic artist par excellence in his ability to blend diverse genres and inspirations, drew from this legend in many ways. There is of course the famous Mephisto Valse No 1, which refers directly to Nikolaus Lenau's Faust through one of its episodes, lending all its virtuosity to that ultimate antagonist, the figure of the Devil. And one cannot evoke the myth without mentioning Johann Wolfgang Goethe's Faust, a major work whose presence seems to hover over the entire construction of the Sonata in B minor, an emblematic monument of XIXth century pianistic literature. While the composer did not indicate any direct reference, many observers have subsequently noted echoes of Faust. The programme also allows us to explore another great aspect of Franz Liszt: that of transcriber. Naturally for Schubert's lieder with another manifestation of Faust through the character of Marguerite, but also for operas, notably those of Richard Wagner, where his Tannhäuser can be seen as a continuation of Faustian themes.