# Are Symphonic Poems Ever Given The Formal Title "Symphony"?



## Hiawatha (Mar 13, 2013)

I ask generally but also with Ricard Lamote de Grignon in mind. 

I have been listening to his, quote, "Catalana Symphony" (37 minutes) and I like it a lot but I have seen it described in Wikipedia as a symphonic poem or at least in a list of symphonic poems and similar by him. 

For anyone familiar with it, do you regard the "Catalana Symphony" as a symphony or a symphonic poem and if it is the latter can anyone think of other examples of a symphonic poem being titled a "symphony"?


----------



## SuperTonic (Jun 3, 2010)

Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony (Eine Alpensinfonie in the original German) comes to mind immediately. I've always considered it a symphonic poem and not a true symphony but I'm sure others disagree.


----------



## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Berlioz' Symphony Fantastique was the rule breaker - the first movement was in sonata-allegro form, but after that he did whatever he wanted, rules be damned. Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony is really a very long, four-movement symphonic poem. Gliere's Symphony no. 3 "Ilya Murometz" is another. Keep in mind that the definition of "symphony" is somewhat flexible.


----------



## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Perhaps Scriabin is a composer somewhat confused by what is a symphony and what a symphonic poem.


----------



## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

SuperTonic said:


> Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony (Eine Alpensinfonie in the original German) comes to mind immediately. I've always considered it a symphonic poem and not a true symphony but I'm sure others disagree.


The same with his Sinfonia Domestica.


----------



## CnC Bartok (Jun 5, 2017)

SONNET CLV said:


> Perhaps Scriabin is a composer somewhat confused by what is a symphony and what a symphonic poem.


Very true. But I wonder when we started referring to the Poem Of Ecstasy and Prometheus as "Symphonies 4 & 5". They certainly never were called thus when I started listening to his music. I believe Scriabin himself was happy to refer to the former as his "Fourth", never officially.....


----------



## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

Myaskovsky's Tenth Symphony is a single movement illustrating Pushkin's narrative poem "The Bronze Horseman."


----------



## MusicSybarite (Aug 17, 2017)

Liszt _Ce quon entend sur la montagne_ is sometimes referred as _Berg-Symphonie_ (Mountain Symphony).


----------



## maestro267 (Jul 25, 2009)

CnC Bartok said:


> Very true. But I wonder when we started referring to the Poem Of Ecstasy and Prometheus as "Symphonies 4 & 5". They certainly never were called thus when I started listening to his music. I believe Scriabin himself was happy to refer to the former as his "Fourth", never officially.....


Well the composer should be the final arbiter on the issue, so if he was happy to call Poem of Ecstasy his Fourth Symphony, it should be so.


----------

