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Music from Myth, Fairy Tales, and Fantasy
Dec. 19th, 2024 02:24 pmEpisode 1: Introduction
Music is deeply linked to our storytelling, though each can exist without the other. There are three primary ways in which their junction is expressed: Music co-created with the story, music inspired by the story, and story inspired by the music. An example of each of the three:
a) Music inspired by the story gave us Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite or Scriabin’s Prometheus;
b) Music co-created with the story gave us Anderson’s Olias of Sunhillow or Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf;
c) Story inspired by the music gave us Napoleon Symphony by Burgess..
It seems likely that there are more of the first of these than the other two. In this series, we’ll explore each of these three branches on the theme, through each of the three lenses of our title.
Of necessity, along the way we will look at the thin lines that separate myth from fairy tale and fairy tale from fantasy, but the very thinness of those lines may at times make them seem non-existent or at least arbitrary. At a minimum, what distinctions there are may blur or disappear over time or depending on the applications used.
Fairy tale and folk tales have their own thin line, but we’ll draw them as we may. For example, the legend of William Tell, which gave rise to Rossini’s William Tell Overture, doesn’t fit fairy tale or fantasy, let alone mythology. The Firebird is described varyingly as Slavic mythology or folklore. Scriabin’s Prometheus is decidedly mythological in origin.
The plan is to discuss one story per week. This will usually mean one piece of music, but there are a few tales that have inspired multiple works.
These are stories and their music on my list to explore, so far: The Firebird Suite (Stravinsky), Peter and the Wolf (Prokofiev), Eroica (Beethoven), The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (Dukas), Lovéren (Arkenstone and Brooks), Journey to the Center of the Earth (Wakeman), Olias of Sunhillow (Anderson), Prometheus (Scriabin), The Point (Nilsson), Jesus Christ, Superstar (Weber and Rice) and Godspell (Schwartz), The Last Unicorn (Webb), Star Wars (Williams), Field of Dreams (Horner), The Wizard of Oz (various), The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (various), The Water Goblin (Dvořák), The King of Elfland’s Daughter (Johnson and Kniight), Cinderella, and The Lion King.
Additional pieces may be added or substituted.
Music is deeply linked to our storytelling, though each can exist without the other. There are three primary ways in which their junction is expressed: Music co-created with the story, music inspired by the story, and story inspired by the music. An example of each of the three:
a) Music inspired by the story gave us Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite or Scriabin’s Prometheus;
b) Music co-created with the story gave us Anderson’s Olias of Sunhillow or Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf;
c) Story inspired by the music gave us Napoleon Symphony by Burgess..
It seems likely that there are more of the first of these than the other two. In this series, we’ll explore each of these three branches on the theme, through each of the three lenses of our title.
Of necessity, along the way we will look at the thin lines that separate myth from fairy tale and fairy tale from fantasy, but the very thinness of those lines may at times make them seem non-existent or at least arbitrary. At a minimum, what distinctions there are may blur or disappear over time or depending on the applications used.
Fairy tale and folk tales have their own thin line, but we’ll draw them as we may. For example, the legend of William Tell, which gave rise to Rossini’s William Tell Overture, doesn’t fit fairy tale or fantasy, let alone mythology. The Firebird is described varyingly as Slavic mythology or folklore. Scriabin’s Prometheus is decidedly mythological in origin.
The plan is to discuss one story per week. This will usually mean one piece of music, but there are a few tales that have inspired multiple works.
These are stories and their music on my list to explore, so far: The Firebird Suite (Stravinsky), Peter and the Wolf (Prokofiev), Eroica (Beethoven), The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (Dukas), Lovéren (Arkenstone and Brooks), Journey to the Center of the Earth (Wakeman), Olias of Sunhillow (Anderson), Prometheus (Scriabin), The Point (Nilsson), Jesus Christ, Superstar (Weber and Rice) and Godspell (Schwartz), The Last Unicorn (Webb), Star Wars (Williams), Field of Dreams (Horner), The Wizard of Oz (various), The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (various), The Water Goblin (Dvořák), The King of Elfland’s Daughter (Johnson and Kniight), Cinderella, and The Lion King.
Additional pieces may be added or substituted.
