Mr. Peabody Says:
First orchestral piece? I’ve read that several times and it is numbered as Op. 1. He composed while he was only 16 years old, and it was premiered in 1898. However, he presumably wrote four study symphonies, and two are now rather famous and recorded. So Romanian Poem is not the first thing he orchestrated.
Horia Andreescu/Radio Romania Orchestras and Choirs
Instruments:
- three flutes, piccolo, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons
- four horns, two trumpets, two cornets, three trombones, tuba
- timpani, two harps
- strings.
- chorus (tenors and basses)
Always political problems:
The ending of the work quotes the Romanian royal anthem “Trăiască Regele” (Long live the King), which led to a halt in performances on Romanian stages from 1948 to 1989 for political reasons.