Franz Liszt

Après une lecture du Dante, Fantasia quasi Sonata

Franz Liszt was barely 20 years old when he first read Dante s Divine Comedy, but it left a lasting impression on him throughout his entire life that only a truly impactful creation can have on the human soul. This is what inspired the Dante Sonata which Liszt premiered in Vienna in 1837. Stemming from this, he created a revised version entitled Apres une lecture du Dante, Fantasia quasi Sonata which appeared in 1856 within the second cycle of his Années de pelerinage (Years of Pilgrimage).

In the appendix of the present edition, the work s earlier version entitled Paralipomenes a la Divina Commedia, Fantaisie symphonique is also included. It has survived in the handwriting of Liszt s secretary, Gaetanio Belloni, and it contains autograph notes by Liszts. This revised (2016) edition contains not only musical scores of excellent quality, but also a detailed foreword in English and German as well as critical notes in English.