I keep forgetting to say stuff… Liszts transcription of this is basically, the first real jazz song in history … Though it also has classical elements !
It opens with the strike of midnight, then the dead coming out of their graves make most the song… At the end , is a roosters crow as the sun rises, and then the dead return to their graves… Thus the end if the song …
Saint sans, was actually considered the best music prodigy of all time, but his general output was un impressive … This is a liszt transcription of a saint sans orchestral …
So beethoven was actually paid by a prince to transcribe this song for piano! It’s a symphony (duh)
Anyways … His notes still survive, and they suck !!
It took the best transcriber in history to pull this feat off… Liszt!
There are two versions that liszt wrote when he tackled all 9 beethoven symphonies… The regular, and the Ossai versions… The Ossai versions assume a 12 stretch and are generally harder to play as well, the regular versions are made for women who had smaller hands… Liszt was very methodical about bringing beethovens symphonies to everyone !
I wanted to be clearer on this song… People say that ska, jazz and scat come from the blacks … This song was made before most blacks even knew what a piano was… And liszt certainly wasn’t influenced by them!
This is a HUGE song in music history… Not many people know that!!
People like to make fun of the beegees but they are probably the best harmonizers (better than the beach boys) in music history, and some of the best song writers… Here’s a little groove from the 70’s…
The beegees have the distinction of being on the billboard charts longer than anyone, solo or band — 45 years!! Try to pull that shit off!!