symphonic poem

American  

noun

Music.

1. a form of tone poem, scored for a symphony orchestra, in which a literary or pictorial “plot” is treated with considerable program detail: originated by Franz Liszt in the mid-19th century and developed especially by Richard Strauss.

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symphonic poem British  

noun

1. Also called: tone poem.  music an extended orchestral composition, originated by Liszt, based on nonmusical material, such as a work of literature or folk tale

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Etymology

Origin of symphonic poem

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

symphonic poem

The five-part, 25-minute symphonic poem for a large orchestra rife with percussion follows Humboldt’s account of his journey to Venezuela in 1799.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026

This collaboration led to “Gaia,” a spellbinding symphonic poem featuring Spalding’s vocals and libretto, premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 2013.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 2, 2021

This is where he developed the symphonic poem genre and composed some of his finest orchestral works.

From Washington Times ● Mar. 4, 2015

"The pictures are pretty, the music is pretty, the existential voice-overs are pretty: but after almost two hours of wistful, message-larded prettiness, Malick's latest visual symphonic poem has us squirming in our seats," Marshall wrote.

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2012

Though old-style, four-movement symphonies continued to be written, even until the mid-twentieth century, lots of composers leapt enthusiastically on Liszt’s symphonic poem alternative.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall