tone poem
Orchestral story piece
A tone poem is an orchestral composition that evokes a narrative, scene, or mood rather than following traditional musical forms like the symphony or sonata.
The music aims to suggest images, stories, or emotions—a stormy sea, a hero's journey, a landscape at dawn.
Strauss's *Don Quixote* and Debussy's *La Mer* are celebrated examples.
Also called symphonic poem.
For a symphony ensemble
- timpaniTunable orchestral percussion
- woodwindBlown orchestral instrument type
- string sectionBowed instrument ensemble
- harpPlucked orchestral strings
celesta · percussion · tutti · tremolo · crescendo · instrumentation · dynamic contrast · leitmotif
Gaseous layer around planets
- impressionisticConveying general mood, not specifics
- painterlyShowing visible brushwork
- soundscapeAcoustic environment's character
- coloristicRelating to hue qualities
pastoral · ethereal · vivid · textural · haunting · imagery · picturesque · suggestive
Recounting events aloud
- programmaticExecuted via software logic
- legendUnverified traditional tale
- mythTraditional explanatory tale
- taleSpoken or written narrative
literary · scenic · episodic · heroic · dramatic arc · character portrayal · folkloric · epic
Executed via software logic
- leitmotifRecurring thematic phrase
- through-composedEntirely new throughout
Hungarian Romantic-era pianist-composer
- DebussyFrench impressionist composer
- DvorakAlternative keyboard arrangement
- GriegNorwegian Romantic-era composer
- GershwinComposing brothers' surname
Sibelius · Ravel · Rimsky-Korsakov · Tchaikovsky · Elgar · Rachmaninoff · Copland
Legendary womanizer archetype
- Don QuixoteDelusional self-proclaimed knight-errant
- FinlandiaPatriotic orchestral tone poem
- La MerFrench for "the sea"
- The Sorcerer's ApprenticeEnchanted servant overwhelmed story
orchestral
For a symphony ensemble
- timpaniTunable orchestral percussion
- woodwindBlown orchestral instrument type
- string sectionBowed instrument ensemble
harp · celesta · percussion · tutti · tremolo · crescendo · instrumentation · dynamic contrast · leitmotif
atmosphere
Gaseous layer around planets
- impressionisticConveying general mood, not specifics
- painterlyShowing visible brushwork
- soundscapeAcoustic environment's character
coloristic · pastoral · ethereal · vivid · textural · haunting · imagery · picturesque · suggestive · dreamlike
storytelling
Recounting events aloud
- programmaticExecuted via software logic
- legendUnverified traditional tale
- mythTraditional explanatory tale
tale · literary · scenic · episodic · heroic · dramatic arc · character portrayal · folkloric · epic
programmatic
Executed via software logic
- leitmotifRecurring thematic phrase
- through-composedEntirely new throughout
Liszt
Hungarian Romantic-era pianist-composer
- DebussyFrench impressionist composer
- DvorakAlternative keyboard arrangement
- GriegNorwegian Romantic-era composer
Sibelius · Ravel · Rimsky-Korsakov · Tchaikovsky · Elgar · Rachmaninoff · Gershwin · Copland
Don Juan
Legendary womanizer archetype
- Don QuixoteDelusional self-proclaimed knight-errant
- FinlandiaPatriotic orchestral tone poem
- La MerFrench for "the sea"
- art formspainting, drawing, sculpture, photography, music
- classical musicBach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms
- compositionssymphony, concerto, sonata, suite, overture
- classical music termspiano concerto, violin concerto, concerto, sonata, suite
- Orchestral Musicsymphony, orchestral, overture, strings, brass
- Romantic MusicBeethoven, Chopin, Brahms, Liszt, Tchaikovsky