Gustav Holst: The Man behind The Planets
Andrew Faltin Sokolowski
South Piedmont Community College: MUS 110
May 8, 2015

Gustav Holst: The Man behind The Planets
Gustav Holst is considered to be one of the greatest composers of his time. As most musicians did, Holst started playing music at a very young age and grew into a marvelous musician, writer, and composer. He wrote and composed over 200 pieces of music including ballets, choral music, operas, and orchestral pieces. With this in mind, there is one suite that Holst created that has long been recognized by its 1st movement, Mars, The Bringer of War. This suite, of course, is known as The Planets. It was the most famous suite written in its time and is still used today …show more content…
In 1895, Holst was introduced to Hindu philosophy and Sanskrit literature and writings. He became obsessed with the Hindu hymns and scriptures. He tried to make new hymns from these scriptures by finding English translations of the Hindu works, but he had no luck. Instead, Holst decided to teach himself Sanskrit so that he could fully use all the words to his satisfaction. His curiosity didn’t stop there, by any means. After his father’s death in 1905, a man named Clifford Bax encouraged Holst to look into astrology. Holst was so intrigued by astrology that he would even cast horoscopes for his friends and family. Ian Lace says this about Holst’s thoughts on horoscopes: “‘My pet vice!’ as he often would call it” (Lace, 2007). While studying astrology, Holst grew more fascinated with stars, heavenly bodies, and the planets in our solar system. He was inspired by the beauty of the solar system so much so that he created his famous suite, The Planets. It consisted of seven total movements, each featuring its own planet: Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Shortly after he composed The Planets in 1916, Holst created yet another magnificent piece called The Hymn of Jesus in 1917. When The Hymn of Jesus was performed live for the first time in 1920, it was a huge success. Of course, The Planets was still his most popular piece. Holst gained quite some attention from these two pieces. By 1922, life was much easier for …show more content…
This was not one of Holst’s favorite movements because he saw himself in the creation of this movement. In the first 26 measures of the music, the flute and harp play syncopated notes and chords with each other. It is almost painful to listen to. Holst wanted to relate this to the neuritis that he developed in his hands. Played at an adagio tempo (meaning to be played slowly), this movement was meant to convey images of pain, despair, and inevitable death. After the intro, the trombones and trumpets play a fanfare of chords that give off a grand feeling. In the background are tolling bells that symbolize death, confusion, and pain. This was by far the most original piece of music ever written in that