The Planets

THE COMPOSER — In the years prior to the Great War, Gustav Holst was already settled into a comfortable academic life. His post at the St. Paul’s Girls’ School in Hammersmith was but one among the many he held, but it was there that he would stay until his death in 1934. It was a perfect atmosphere for a composer of Holst’s carefully measured ambition, and the seclusion it offered made room for much creativity. In fact, when a new music wing was opened at St. Paul’s in 1913, it included a soundproof studio for Holst. In that hushed, private space he would compose many works, from the humble St. Paul Suite to the grand galactic travel guide that made him famous.

THE HISTORY — Given its proximity to the start of WWI and the martial theme of the first movement, it is logical to assume The Planets was Holst’s “war piece.” That still seems a sensible assumption over 100 years later, but the truth is that he began work on the music before hostilities commenced, and it seems unlikely, then or later, that it was intended as a political statement. The Planets was unique among Holst’s compositions to that point, and it represented a synthesis of his interests in astrology and Theosophy. For those who might not know, Theosophy was a late-19th-century philosophy that drew from ancient religious and mythological traditions to teach access to the divine through mysticism. Astrology, well, everyone knows what that is, and Holst enjoyed casting horoscopes for his close friends. In addition to mixing celestial concepts high and low, The Planets also displayed Holst’s ability to personalize the prevailing musical trends of his day. Both Schoenberg and Stravinsky toured England prior the creation of The Planets, and their concerts clearly had a powerful effect on Holst. Each of the seven (excluding Earth and the then-undiscovered Pluto) tone portraits that make up the suite are brilliant, colorful portrayals of the Roman gods for whom each planet is named. It is fascinating to hear Holst’s typically economical voice “turned loose” on such a luxuriously large orchestral palette. Epic-scale composition was not something that came easily to him, according to his daughter Imogen. Perhaps that is why Holst never did anything quite like it again. Or maybe he never tried to repeat the feat, because the immediate popularity of The Planets after the 1920 “full” premiere (parts had been performed in 1919 after a private concert the year before) led to an annoying public expectation that he did everything after would be derivative of it. Composers often accept their legacies grudgingly and, for Holst, the notion that all his work would be judged against The Planets was a frustration that lasted the rest of his days.

THE WORLD — Elsewhere in 1920, the American Civil Liberties Union was created, explorer Robert Peary died, the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire began, the very first “Ponzi” scheme was launched, and Joan of Arc was canonized.

THE CONNECTION — The last time the Sarasota Orchestra performed The Planets on the Masterworks Series was in 2018. Music Director Anu Tali conducted.