Context
Internet Symphony Eroica
Tan Dun (b.1957) is an award-winning Chinese-American composer. He composed the ‘Internet Symphony’ for the YouTube Symphony Orchestra project, commissioned by Google and YouTube. The project featured musicians from around the world performing virtually via the internet and culminated in a performance at Carnegie Hall.
Dun also wrote the music for ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon‘ also featured on our Inspiration Page.
The Internet Symphony incorporates a theme from Beethoven’s Symphony no.3, the ‘Eroica’ (see video below).
Symphony no.3 ‘Eroica’ by Beethoven
Internet Symphony Eroica by Tan Dun
Listen For
Watch the ‘Internet Symphony’ video first.
- Imitation of a short motif between strings and percussion at the start.
- At 03:15 a lyrical trumpet solo begins.
- At 02:08 a new section with a faster tempo begins
- Listen out for the ‘Eroica’ theme in the woodwind section at 02:34 (in the Beethoven video it is heard on clarinet at 00:18)
- From 3:38 what happens to the tempo?
As you continue watching and listening think about the instrumentation and how the composer has combined a traditional symphony orchestra with some unusual percussion instruments.
How has the composer created a sense of excitement in the music?
The title of the piece is ‘Internet Symphony’. Is it truly a symphony? Why or why not?
Things To Consider
- Find a well-known piece of music. Can you ‘borrow’ a small part of it (e.g. a melodic phrase) and develop it into your own composition like Tan Dun has done here?
- How can you build a sense of anticipation and excitement in a piece of music? Can you explore instrumentation, tempo and texture in your next composition?