Hector Berlioz Research Paper

Hector Berlioz, son of Louis Berlioz and Marie Antoinette, born in France at the La Cote- Saint- Andre in December 1803, lived a great life to be a well-known French Romantic Composer. Hector did not start studying music till age 12 and with the lack of support of his parents never learned to play the piano. His lack of knowledge of ability to play the piano was both beneficial and detrimental to his works later in life as a composer. As he grew older, his parents pushed him towards studies in the medical field but in 1824 Berlioz decided to formally leave his studies and further pursue his passion for the arts. Hector was a romantic, but love did not come easily for him; He became obsessed with Harriet Smithson, the famous Shakespearean actress, and spent days filling her hotel room with love letters, which led him no where. Eventually he was engaged but his first fiancé, Camille Moke, who left him to marry a rich pianist. Hector, while able to compose beautiful Cantatas and Operas, did not have his way to a woman’s heart. Eventually Hector is introduced to Harriet and although he could not understand English and she did not
Berlioz was known for his use of large orchestras, often made up of more than 1000 performers. The use of giant orchestras is a development of the romantic period. Leonard Bernstein describes the symphony as “”the first musical expedition into psychedelic because of its hallucinatory and dream-like nature”; this is very unique to a piece composed of this period. Berlioz composed music that represented his lively imagination. Freedom of form and design was also a key aspect of the romantic period and Berlioz’s symphony portrays this well. Lastly, during his five movements there is a large range of dramatic contrasts of dynamics and pitch, especially during his first movement. A dramatic contrast is also a characteristic well known during this