On November 27, 1896, Also sprach Zarathustra — a tone poem by the great composer Richard Strauss — was first performed. It is a program work referencing a book by Friedrich W. Nietzsche of the same title. It begins with a fanfare that became the musical signature to Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film classic 2001: A Space Odyssey.
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Thus Spake Z
One reply on “Thus Spake Z”
That famous fanfare symbolized a sunrise. My own feeling is that it is the best part of the entire tone poem, but it is usually played too quickly.