I once took a philosophy course in university. We met in a round room for three hours a session and talked endlessly in circles. True story. Up until that class I had always considered myself to be somewhat of a deep thinker. I was not afraid to be alone with my thoughts in the dark. I thought that the conclusions I drew regarding the state of the world’s affairs were always spot on. If only everybody would see things as I did the world would be in such better shape. Then I took this philosophy class in the round room and my way of thinking changed. After having experienced immersive philosophy, I knew that there was another much deeper level of thinking that was going on in some parts of the world. This round room I found myself in was, for me, more of a carousel upon which I was merely a child bobbing up and down wondering when the ride was going to be over. It reminded me of the Dennis Miller joke that goes: “I was making love to my wife and she started moaning, “Deeper! Deeper!”, so I started whispering Nietzsche quotes in her ear and she yelled, “Whoa, Dennis! Enough! I’m trying to get off over here.” Which brings us nicely to the topic of today’s post, Richard Strauss’ masterful tone poem “Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30”.
“Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30” is a tone poem created by German composer Richard Strauss in 1896. This composition was inspired by the novel by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Friedrich Nietzsche considered Thus Spoke Zarathustra to be his magnum opus. It is a book that chronicles the journey of a prophet named Zarathustra who, in turn, was based on a real life Iranian prophet named Zoroaster. In the book, Zarathustra spends much time contemplating life while alone on a mountaintop. He alternates those wisdom accruing sessions with actual interactions down in the towns and villages located in the valley below. Each chapter of the book explores one aspect of Man’s evolutionary progress, with the end goal being the process we must undergo to become an Ubermensch, or a “Superior man who justifies the existence of the human race”. As part of his journey, Zarathustra discovers the restrictive nature of faith in God and states that humans can never achieve greatness as long as we subjugate ourselves to a deity such as the Christian God. Therefore, Nietzsche famously declared God as being “dead”, along with organized religion and all that this entailed. Nietzsche also had thoughts on Man vs. Nature, the education process, the nature of power and authority and so on. Thus Spoke Zarathustra is considered one of the great literary works of all time. It is certainly one of the most influential books on philosophy that exists. It also inspired the creative mind of fellow German Richard Strauss, who recognized, within the structure of the language Nietzsche used, a cadence that he felt could be transformed into a musical structure. The end result of this transformation was the tone poem “Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30”.
Strauss believed in the philosophical premise posed by Nietzsche that self-actualization was possible but only through complete and total dedication to the process. His tone poem focuses on ten of Neitzsche’s 80 chapters. Each of these ten chapters is dedicated to one aspect of Man’s evolution as a species. While his tone poem has ten sections, it is played as one consolidated piece of music. A tone poem is different from a symphony, for example, because the format it follows is meant to inspire imaginative reactions from the audience, to set a mood where reflection and deeper understanding may happen. On the other hand, a symphony has a structure that consists of four standard parts. Because of the nature of how a symphony is structured, the audience is attuned more to what is happening in each section of the symphony, rather than drawing deeper conclusions based on the entirety of the work. Because Richard Strauss understood the nature of Nietzsche’s arguments, he incorporated several clever techniques within the body of the tone poem which helped give it greater depth. For instance, “Also Sprach Zarathustra” is most widely known for the opening fanfare, which lasts approximately two minutes and is centered on a chapter of Neitzsche’s book concerned with the Dawn of Man. One of the clever things that Strauss did was to compose the fanfare in the key of C, which is known as the universal music key. Using a universal tone structure to create a backdrop to the Dawn of Mankind segment helped reinforce the commonality we all share from birth to death. One further thing to note is with the fanfare in particular, the note structure is in groups of three linked notes ascending the scale. It is easy to feel the magnitude of the subject matter…the Dawn of Man…as the scales ascend. This fanfare was most famously used by movie director Stanley Kubrick in the opening scene of his classic movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. That film, as you may know, is also a look at the place of Humankind in the grand spectrum of all creatures and things in the universe. It is a weighty movie that contrasts us, as humans, with the vastness of outer space, as well as the intelligence of the computer known as HAL.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, there was a time when I considered myself to be a deep thinker. But now I look at people like Friedrich Nietzsche, Richard Strauss and Stanley Kubrick and realize what an intellectual lightweight I probably am compared to them. Imagine how awkward it would feel for me if the four of us were placed in a round room and left to discuss whatever was on our minds. While I do dwell on the state of our world and worry about what the future holds for us as a species, I also worry about getting up carefully from the couch so as not to pull a muscle. For some of us, toilet humour and a good pie-in-the-face comedy sketch on TV or YouTube is more than enough deep thinking. For others, it takes a round room and the eternal recurrence of debates about things that just don’t seem to matter that much to make one realize that some deep thoughts are better left for the minds of others. To those special people for whom thinking deep thoughts is your jam, good for you. But I have to wonder if the knowledge that comes from knowing the answers to life’s greatest and most important questions is worth the journey it took to get there. I don’t have the answer to that because, after all, I am becoming more and more like Dennis Miller’s wife…”Whoa! Enough! I’m trying to get off here!” Now comes the hard part…putting my laptop down and getting safely up off of the couch. Be careful out there, my friends.
The link to the official website for Friedrich Nietzsche can be found here.
The link to the official website for Richard Strauss can be found here.
The link to the official website for Stanley Kubrick can be found here.
The link to the video for the composition “Also Sprach Zarathustra” by Richard Strauss can be found here. ***Note: This is just the fanfare, not the entire composition.
The link to the video for the composition “Also Sprach Zarathustra” as used in the opening of the film 2001: A Space Odyssey can be found here.
The link to the video of the Dennis MIller comedy special with the joke about the use of Neitzsche quotes with his wife can be found here.
***As always, all original content contained within this post remains the sole property of the author. No portion of the post shall be reblogged, copied or shared in any manner without the express written permission of the author. ©2023 http://www.tommacinneswriter.com
While being aware that there was a relationship between the compositions I enjoyed getting a more complete picture. Minus the Dennis Miller imagery! I feel like a bit of a dolt not having read Nietzsche!
Nietzsche isn’t for the faint of heart so no apologies necessary. As for Miller, I have always liked his name-dropping, cultural-referenced style of humour. That joke fit into the narrative that Also Sprach Zarathustra was based on some deep philosophical thoughts. Anyway, thanks for reading the post and for your insightful and supportive comments, as usual. Have a great day, Randy. 🙂
I know nothing about musical notes, keys, or symphony. I only know what I like. And, to my ears, Also Sprach Zarathustra is one of the best pieces of music ever written. But I did not know it was a tone poem. I don’t fully understand what a tone poem is. But now I want to hear the whole poem. And if I can, I want to read Thus Spoke Zarathustra. I’ve read a couple of Neitzsche books, one for Intro to Philosophy, and one for my own edification, but I never came across this title before, or at least I have forgotten it if I did. I get the feeling it might be as important to my spirituslity as was The Source, by James A. MICHENER, though I am one of the few people I know who take it to be a great philosophy work. (As is Black Consciousness in South Africa, attributed to Stephen Biko, whose assassination 46 years ago took unofficial place on Sept. 12th, 1977.)
Having said that, you know how you jog my memory all the time. This post is no different. Halfway through my Intro to Philosophy class, my professor took me aside and asked me, “Do you really think you are so much better than every other student in that class?” Thecquestion shocked me, but sfter I thought about it for a minute, I gave this answer to him, or something like this, “I am not better, I am just able to think deeper than any of them.” He smiled, and offered me the position of assistant, and marker, which I immediately accepted. When he first asked me to lead the class when he could not be there one day I just sbout crapped my shorts! Then he gave me his notes, and said “Just run with it.” I was too nervous to try thst, so instead I initiated a discussion about the day’s lesson title, and let the students do the work for me. No one complained, and things worked out well. He asked me to lead three more classes that semester, and more the following semester when no one knew I was just a student myself. If I hadn’t gotten desthly ill and been hospitalized for 3 months, who knows what my future might have been. But I dropped out of university for medical reasons, and by the time i went back over 30 years later I had switched majors to Social Work.
But we did not have a round room, though we often put our desks in a circle. It was a much more interesting way to study philosophy, I must say.
Ironically enough, as a teacher I liked having the kid’s desks in a circle, too. Of course that only worked when the class size was small enough. But I do like the way the concept of the circle adapts so readily in a classroom setting…and not just for furniture placement, either. I am happy that this piece of music spoke to you.
PS: I am reposting this comment because it doesn’t appear that my first one went through.
Hey Tom, I enjoyed reading this article. It felt refreshing and deeply insightful. I started dabbling with Nietzsche several years back, like a youngster frack’n around with the ouija board. Just enough to get the bug. Now my expeditions consist of walking around his purple mountain from afar. Collecting samples along the way, chewing on the cud and waiting for the inspiration to climb.
So you’re from the Maritimes eh. Being born and bred a Newfoundlander, one of my mock traditional songs goes like this:
“What shall we do with a drunken sailor… (x2).
What shall we do with a drunken sailor early in the morning?
Oh, put him in a slow boat to Cape Breton…”
All in good fun. I’ve taken the ferry to your island several times in the past. Just passing through, on my way to Toronto usually. However, I never stuck around to soak up the sights. One of these days maybe. What parts of the Cape would you say are most beautiful?
Cheers,
Jason
Thanks for your comment. The original comment did arrive yesterday when you sent it but I was away from home for most of the day and was not on WordPress until this evening. That ferry you speak of is the one that we Cape Bretoners call The Newfoundland Ferry. Do you folks call it the Cape Breton Ferry on your end? Being near the ocean, as you say you are, makes any scenery so much better. For that reason, the Cabot Trail is one of the most scenic drives you can ever have. Truly lovely. It is especially so if you have the time to stop for a while and hike, eat and drink in all that you can see. I have lived in Ontario since 1982 but I always say that Cape Breton Island is home. Thanks again for taking the time to comment…..twice! Your efforts are appreciated. 👍
Good to hear back from ya. I believe most people in NL call it the Port aux Basques ferry, which distinguishes it from the other ferry terminals around the Island. Will definitely keep the Cabot Trail in mind and check out the local lager as well. Best regards, Jason