The Planets, Op. 32: I. Mars, the Bringer of War - Gustav Holst

When we think classical music, we always think 'old' and 'boring'. And I'm here to say: not true!

This piece is not old! It was written between 1914 and 1917! The time signature is a very exotic 5/4 (I'm a fan of exotic time signatures, I hate 4/4).

It starts of very foreboding. You know that war is blooming. It swells and swells and swells and finally erupts in a finale!

Also, today I'll give you a homework assignment. Classical music has a very unique way of being interpreted differently by different conductors/orchestra's and being recorded differently. It's fun to listen to different recordings of the same piece of music and discover new things about the same music you love. I urge you to do the same about this piece.

The first rendition is from the Berliner Philharmoniker, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. The recording I grew accustomed to, listened over a dozen times to and know by heart. If I'm looking for a good recording of a piece, and there's a recording by Karajan, that's a good place to start.

The second rendition I've only just discovered today, while researching today's blog post and looking for different recordings. And my mind was blown. I've never noticed the organ so clearly before, it takes a much more front and center stage in this recording than in Karajan's. This might be my new go-to recording for this piece.

Allow me to finish with the words of a famous content creator: what's your preferred rendition? Let me know in the comments below!