P.S. As the descriptions of the presented symphony’s individual movements tend to be rather long, all the information concerning the genesis of the work as a whole can be found in the notes of the first posting.
P.P.S. A complete score of the presented movement with a midi soundtrack can be found here:
http://www.hberlioz.com/Scores/79678376.htm
Music: IV. With the very first sound of the death march we leave the idyll of the fields in favor of a much more ghastly vision: the poison now overpowers the young man’s mind, and “the artist dreams that he has killed his beloved and is condemned to an execution”. Abandoning the subtlety of the preceding movements, the march, adapted from a march of the guards in Berlioz’s early opera “Les francs juges” (1824), is openly grotesque, moving without hesitation between the unsteady walk of the prisoner and the unbearably cheerful shouts of the crowd. The movement opens with a broad march melody alternatively played by the timpani and the horns (later accompanied by the bassoon/clarinet) with the cellos/bass providing the bass line. A fortissimo chord from practically the whole orchestra leads into the first statement of the main theme, played in unison by the cellos/bass (0:34), painting a vision of our hero, eyes to the earth, making his way to the square where his executioner awaits. The bassoon is brought in for running, even tripping triplet figures (0:48), as the ordinary folk assemble, hoping to see the spectacle that is about to occur. Midway the drums begin a steady beat, while the violins break into a strikingly jubilant motive, as though the crowd is delighted with the idea of yet another death (only heightened by the pointed “voices” from the wind section) (0:58). This motive is followed by a contrasting solo section for the bassoon, standing in for the hushed exchanges of the men over the busy chirping of the women heard in the pizzicatos of the entire string section which return us to the main march melody (1:25). A chromatic assent for all the involved instruments leads into another glowing restatement of the festive motive, this time played practically by the whole wind section with a particularly resonant trombone line (1:44). Just as in the case of the opening allegro, the first two sections are repeated in full without any extensive changes (2:08). Fortissimo horn lines herald the arrival of the imprisoned artist, greeted by the unusual exaltation of a crowd of rumbling cellos and excited higher strings (4:11), a striking brief string pizzicato passage notwithstanding, followed by a restatement of the jubilant secondary theme, this time with trilling violin figures and stern horn lines (4:29). A quiet recapitulation of the prelude to the march follows, passed slowly between the strings and the winds (4:59) and ultimately dripping away in staccato, suggesting the crowd awaiting the sign of the executioner. A fleet crescendo grows into a grand restatement of the main theme by the whole orchestra (5:22). The confused ramblings of the crowd, however, suddenly die away, as we return once again to the idee fixe on solo clarinet (6:27). The artist once more thinks of his beloved but the knife of the guillotine falls, cutting short this lyric outpouring and sending his head falling to the ground in a simple but stunningly effective sequence of the descending pizzicattos for the strings. A strong coda for the entire orchestra, a cry of joy from all assembled (“Viva! Viva!”), brings the march to a suitably loud closing.
Recording: The classic 1974 Philips recording under Colin Davis, leading the enchanting Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, is, probably, one of the most ardent and warm renditions of Berlioz’s masterpiece.
Hope you’ll enjoy =).