Strauss - Metamorphosen (Official Score Video)

Listen and follow along with our B&H Study Score Video featuring the official publisher's score of Richard Strauss's "Metamorphosen” for 23 solo strings.
Strauss completed this elegiac work in the spring of 1945 as World War II was coming to its end. We present this score video on the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, September 2, 1945.
Scores & Sheet Music for Metamorphosen available from The Shop at Boosey.com
Masterworks Library Study Score: bit.ly/StraussStudyScore
Hawkes Pocket Score: bit.ly/MetamorphosenHawkesPoc...
String Septet Set of Parts: bit.ly/MetamorphosenStringSep...
Piano Solo: bit.ly/MetamorphosenPianoSolo
Watch our other Study Score videos: • Score Videos
Recording:
Metamorphosen
Composed by Richard Strauss
Performed by Herbert Blomstedt and Staatskapelle Dresden
Courtesy of Savoy Records / Concord
Album available here: www.amazon.com/Strauss-Till-E...
#BHStudyScores

[@charlietian4023]

Still the best strings piece of all time IMO

[@MrMichaelvier]

sooooo true !!!!!

[@neilsaunders9282]

Certainly at the very top.

[@zalba5710]

Despite the very questionable decision to cut the Legato in 18:21

[@deansky-lucas7880]

Thank you so much for this score. It was such a delight to read along to this beautiful performance of this weighty comment by Strauss.

[@TheStockwell]

It it true that Strauss' music - as opposed to recent copyright-protected recordings - is in the public domain as of January 2020? Years ago, I obtained permission for use of one of his works from Boosey & Hawkes when it wasn't. It was amazing to discover that music composed in the 1890s was under copyright due to Strauss having lived such a long life.

[@mruberduck]

Poor viola at 14:26!!! Fantastic music. I appreciate it is difficult to strike the balance for timing page turns since I am sure we would all like it slightly different, but for me personally, some of these turns happened just a little too soon, particularly towards the big climax at around 17-19 minutes. It's not a problem, though, and maybe I just read very slowly!

[@BooseyHawkes]

Thank you for this insightful comment! We've had many discussions about this very topic and made the decision to turn pages just slightly earlier, as many musicians tend to read ahead a bit. Great to hear different opinions on this, and always appreciate the feedback.

[@timmyc9915]

I hear a bit of the Disney logo intro from there aswell

[@profmolo1901]

Listening to this, I get to discover the great versatility of Richard Strauss, this is one of the greatest and best pieces of uniquely strings ever composed. This comes also handy as ALSO SPRACH ZARATHOUSTRA also composed by him highlights the winds. His compositions bring life and focus to a particular instrument or groups of instruments. This is simply outstanding. I would love to watch a live performance some day

[@LJBSasha]

So far, this has to be the best interpretation AND recording I've heard of this piece (which I first came to know only about 3 weeks ago) out of around 10 string-orchestra recordings plus 3 chamber-ensemble (septet) documentations. Worthy rivals include Furtwängler, Karajan (1983), Kempe, Nagano, Prévin, Salonen (Esa-Pekka), Sinopoli, Tønnesen and Wit - and still more yet to be heard include Bychkov, (von) Dohnanyi, Krauss, Szell, and several others. [Wow, this piece has become much more popular than what one might have thought to be the case given what I had read about him (notably the opinion of Ígorj Fjódorovich Stravínskiy {Igor Stravinsky}!!!). It really seems that the last decade of Richard Strauß's life, perhaps stimulated by the twin tragedies of Nazism and World War II, witnessed a real renaissance of his genius.] It's also such a bonus that Boosey & Hawkes coupled this with a follow-along full-score: it really helps to see the rich counterpoint and orchestration Strauß brought to this achingly-beautiful piece where for once substance is featured over effect. This is a considerably more mature and sincere piece compared to his earlier tone-poems and operas. [Only *ONE* question I'd like to ask of Boosey & Hawkes, given how the composer more often used German instead of Italian for his tempi and other agogic directions: are the Italian directions original to him? Many thanks in advance.]

[@somebody9033]

most of the time, if it's Boosey and Hawkes, it's bullshit. No offence.

[@timmyc9915]

Would love to hear a full orchestral arrangement to this!

[@rljmachen]

Why?

[@timmyc9915]

@@rljmachen becuase i can already feel the brass, winds, and percussion topping this recording

[@-dimitris]

That would be horrible. Strauss was not an idiot! He knew what he wanted. And he wanted just 23 strings.

[@charlietian4023]

3rd cello a bit flat at 1:17's run though

[@somebody9033]

true. thought I was the only one who noticed.