100th Anniversary of "The Planets" composed by Gustav Holst:
To mark the anniversary, we've enlisted two experts to guide us on an interplanetary trek through Holst's enduring classic.
First, someone who knows the music: Sakari Oramo, chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra,
opened this summer's Proms Festival, London's biggest classical music event, with
The Planets. "The work has always exhilarated me," Oramo says. "Each of the planets has a different style of orchestration and that's why it stays interesting all the time for the ear."
Next, someone who knows the
real planets. Heidi Hammel is a planetary astronomer who specializes in the outer planets, and the executive vice president of AURA, the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy.
Holst, however, was no astronomer. He was more of an
astrologer; his inspiration came from the personalities of the planets. He gave each of them nicknames (not related to their Roman counterparts) like "Mars: The Bringer of War" where we begin our planetary trek. Oramo says Holst un-holsters the big guns in his explosive first movement.
Mars
"Mars is a war machine," Oramo says. "You could refer to Mars as the forefather of music for films describing interstellar warfare."
Since we're talking movies, what about the "
Imperial March," perhaps the most recognizable music John Williams wrote for
Star Wars? I played a clip of it for Oramo as we discussed Holst's music.
"Yes,
Star Wars. Oh, I love it!" Oramo says. But isn't it a rip-off of "Mars?"
"I wouldn't call it a rip-off," Oramo answers. "It's based on the principals Holst created for 'Mars.' And all composers steal from each other."
(And some get caught. Oscar-winner Hans Zimmer was sued by the Holst Foundation for writing music
an awful lot like "Mars" in his score for
Gladiator.)
Venus
Holst's second movement brings us to "Venus: The Bringer of Peace." The planet is named after the goddess of love.
"Venus is not a loving place at all," our astronomer Hammel notes. "It's a hellish landscape which is so hot lead would melt on its surface."
Hellish maybe, but Oramo says its music couldn't be more opposite from "Mars."
"Venus is beautiful but enigmatic," Oramo says. "It has achingly beautiful music for the winds and horn. I find 'Venus' one of the most rewarding movements to conduct because it has this kind of fragility and sensitivity about it."
Mercury
Heading closer to the sun, we arrive at Mercury, which Holst subtitled "The Winged Messenger."
"Mercury is a very active, bouncy figure," Oramo notes. "It's definitely a creature with wings."
"Something crazy about 'Mercury,'" Hammel adds, "is that even though it's so close to the sun, and it's just being baked in the sun's heat, it does have craters. And some of those craters are deep enough that they have shadows that are cold and have
ice in them."
