Adam Robertson

MUSC 216

May 2, 2018

Texture as a Means of Representing Character in The Planets

Conceived in the early 20th century, The Planets, op. 32 by Gustav Holst is a

monumental work which remains a favourite in the standard orchestral repertoire to this

day. At the time of writing, no precedent existed for the creation of a multi-movement

work of such terrific scale. Each of the seven movements takes its name from astrology,

with the musical character of each loosely reflecting their namesake. These

movements, in the order they appear in the suite are: “Mars, the Bringer of War,”

“Venus, the Bringer of Peace,” “Mercury, the Winged Messenger,” “Jupiter, the Bringer

of Jollity,” “Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age,” “Uranus, the Magician,” and “Neptune, the

Mystic.” “Mars” is violent and powerful, while “Uranus” is boisterous. “Saturn” is slow

and weighs heavy upon the audience, as does time itself. Contrarily, “Mercury” is agile

and light spirited. Holst’s brilliant use of orchestration serves to stir potent mental

images within the mind of the listener, painting rich sonic colours upon his malleable

canvas: the minds of his audience. Colossal in both length and orchestration, The

Planets as a testament to Holst’s skill as a composer and orchestrator. Throughout the

work, Holst uses various techniques to masterfully shape the orchestral texture and

communicate metaphors of character in different movements of The Planets. Some of

these methods will be analysed through careful study of “Mercury, the Winged
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Messenger” and “Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age,” but not before acknowledging the

instrumentation chosen for The Planets.

The large scale and varied instrumentation of the orchestra scored for in The

Planets play a key role in Holst’s shaping of texture throughout the work. In earlier

compositions, Holst began to develop an instrumental pallet which could be considered

quite colourful, but never before had he scored for an orchestra as vast as that which is

used in The Planets. (For a complete list of instrumentation, see Table 1 on page 9.)

This massive instrumentation allows Holst countless options in regards to the creation

of orchestral texture.

Holst often applies complete doubling across sections to create a thick, complex

texture (Greene, 25). An example of this occurs in “Mars, the Bringer of War” where

gliding parallel chords in the brass are doubled by joining woodwinds as the texture

grows denser (Holst, 8-9). This scoring fully utilizing the entire scope of the orchestra.

The battle of parallel chords versus the ruthless ostinato during this section serves to

reinforce the “disturbing character” (Greene, 19) of the first movement. In the sixth

movement, “Uranus, the Magician” Holst uses the large sections at his disposal in a

completely different manner.

In addition to blending the brass and woodwinds together to create dense,

complex textures, he also passes themes from one section to another to create shifts in

timbre. In doing this Holst takes full advantage of his orchestra’s ability to reproduce the

complete texture of a passage in varying sets of “homogenous instrumentation”

(Greene, 25). One example of this technique occurs in the measures leading up to fig.

VI , where a choir of 6 horns states the first half of the theme before the soprano winds
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and english horn seamlessly take over to finish the second phrase (Holst, 149-151). The

result in this instance is a smooth transition from the pure colour of the horns to the

subtly more complex, yet brighter sound of the woodwind section.

In addition to supplying Holst the opportunity to establish complex textures

spanning multiple sections, the expanded orchestra of The Planets also allows him to

create unique colours through the use of unconventional instruments as soloists.

Throughout the work, the tenor tuba bass flute and bass oboe are all used as soloists.

The tenor tuba solos in “Mars” bring an anguished, urgent tone, while the bass flute and

bass oboe are used to paint an otherworldly texture in the slow movements. With such a

large orchestra at his disposal, Holst has no problem creating “orchestration which gives

the piece its immediate communicative power” (Greene, 18).

Holst’s orchestration in “Mercury, the Winged Messenger” relies heavily on the

use of klangfarbenmelodie to depict the astrological character of Mercury.

Klangfarbenmelodie (tone-colour melody) is a term originating with Schoenberg,

involving the use of changes in timbre as a structural element in composition (Rushton).

Holst applies the concept of a tone-colour melody to the opening theme of the

movement. Here the quick, bitonal runs are passed between instruments in the

woodwind section as they rocket upwards from bottom to top and back again. This

motion is doubled in the strings (Holst, 46). It should be noted that when this theme

reappears later the instrumentation is always slightly different, but the textural attribute

remain the same. This texture is further used to communicate a deeper sense of

character in “Mercury.”
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According to Alan Leo, whose books Holst takes much of his astrological

knowledge from, Mercury “represents the silver thread of memory, upon which are

strung the beads which represent the personalities of its earth lives” (qtd. in Head, 19).

In this opening section the changing texture of the woodwinds over the homogenous

sound of the strings could represent Leo’s beads of personality, with the string section

acting as the connecting thread. However, according to Raymond Head, Holst’s

application of pure, metallic timbres in the glockenspiel and celesta also represent the

silver thread in this movement (19). While it is clear to see that the orchestration of

“Mercury” is used to characterize this silver thread, the fast changing textures also

depict the inner workings of the mind. According to Richard Greene, the orchestration

throughout “Mercury” portrays “the nimbleness of the thought processes of a genius too

quick to follow” (53). Following the peace found during “Venus,” the mind is free to

“develop ideas, and dart hither and thither in space and time” (Head, 19). This

explanation by Head also explains why the suite’s first three movements do not appear

in the expected order of “Mercury,””Venus,” then ”Mars.” Holst further develops this

concept of the racing mind with the theme beginning at fig. III (Holst, 53).

Beginning with the first statement of the three-bar long motive in the solo violin,

Holst begins to pass the theme throughout various instruments for an astounding 70

measures. Here the application of the tone-colour melody technique is used to

represent the thinking process of the human mind. After its lengthy development

through many different textures, each one building upon the last, the theme reaches a

triumphant climax in the entire orchestra before disappearing. Head likens the treatment

of this melody to the development of an idea, remarking that it is “crystalized (sic) out of
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the air and then swiftly spirited away” (Head, 20). Greene also comments on this

section, remarking that it “create[s] a mesmerizing effect -- an altered state of

experience” (54). This use of orchestration not only shows off Mercury’s relation to the

mind, but also expresses attributes prescribed to Mercurians in astrology.

It is in this section that the movement’s “harmonic flexibility (a Mercurial

attribute)” (Greene, 53) is brought to the foreground. Holst manages to maintain the

sense of the tonic key throughout a series varied of different harmonic “implications”

(53). This sense of flexibility also extends outwards to the treatment of the tritone, which

was developed as a source of relentless negativity (54) in “Mars.” Throughout “Mercury”

Holst establishes a “juxtaposition of tritone-related keys” (Greene, 53), which, unlike the

use of the tritone in “Mars,” is handled in a way which suggests tonal function. The

treatment of the interval in “Mercury” removes the negative connotations found in the

first movement and gives “both the tritone and its sense of ambiguity a positive value”

(Greene, 54). By taking a closer look at the orchestration employed “Mercury, the

Winged Messenger,” one can begin to understand and appreciate the scope at which

Holst uses texture to express character throughout the entire work.

In the fifth movement of The Planets, “Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age,” Holst

contrasts different homogenous textures to portray a total transformation of character.

“Saturn” begins with oscillating chords in flutes and harps (Holst, 113). This quiet,

gently-swaying texture sets a scene of desolation and loneliness. Holst doubles down

on this desolate mood by passing the first theme, which first appears in the basses,

through various sectional and solo textures. The dynamic dovetailing between

instruments is especially effective in this opening section. Each of these textures feels
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more distant than the last, from the yearning of the high cellos to the drifting hollowness

of the bass oboe (115).

Eventually, Holst begins to transform and expand upon the movement’s first

theme. Much like the opening, Holst continues to use homogenous textures as the

theme develops. The second theme outlines a diminution of the first, and is first

presented in close voiced trombones (Holst, 115/116). When the eventual hand-off to

the trumpets occurs six measures later, the transition is smooth as Holst took maintains

the close-voiced chorale texture in the trumpets (Jackson, 84). The method in which

Holst applies to the orchestration to this theme allows him to maintain a full chordal

texture in a triad of pure, segregated colours. The use of homogenous textures persists

until just moments before Holst begins to build towards the climax of “Saturn.” The third

theme appears in a choir of flutes, with a chordal texture spread across three C flutes

and the bass flute. Six measure before fig. III, the rest of the woodwind section, along

with the harps, (Holst, 118) begin to thicken up the “cold and arid” (Greene, 58) texture

of the flutes. This sudden increase in the complexity of the texture sets the stage for the

climactic build as the trumpets take over the melody at fig. III (Holst, 119). From this

point onwards, Holst’s application of orchestration begins to bring narrative ties to the

first movement of the suite, “Mars, the Bringer of War,” into the foreground.

The opening section of “Saturn” abandons the heroic perfect intervals of the

previous three movements in favour of “anguished” (Head, 20) tritones. From the

opening chords, the fifth movement of The Planets serves as a return to “the realm of

pain” (20). The slower tempo and insistent oscillating chords present a “plodding

character” (Greene, 58). This is supported by the long-tone opening melody, the slow
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quarter-note bass line under the second theme, and the use of steady off-beat

accompaniment in the third theme (58). Chromatic relations between chords creates a

“wrenching effect” (Greene, 60) which brings forth memories of past tension, relating the

theme to the conflict in “Mars.” Holst forces this issue by setting the recapitulation of the

opening theme (of “Saturn”) “in such a way as to bring back an equally pressurized

moment in [“Mars”]” (59). However, whereas the passage referenced originally leads to

a cadence fraught with brutality in “Mars,” in “Saturn” the tension is finally resolved into

E major. Following this cadence, the remainder of “Saturn” is a serene soundscape, free

of the tension which was prominent throughout the movement.

Holst completes his narrative, with the “recognition that the closing serenity is

reached only through the ordeal of [“Mars”]” (60). By the end of the movement, “the

strings make [the listener] aware that a new understanding has been reached” (Head,

20): even the oscillating major seconds which once represented desolation take on a

rich and warming character. (Greene, 60/61). After finally overcoming the unresolved

tensions of “Mars,” the character of “Saturn” is transformed, finally allowed to “move into

a new liberated atmosphere” (Head, 20). It is possible this new found freedom reflects

an increase in Holst’s own self-consciousness, as the notes which make up the opening

statement in “Uranus, the Magician,” which immediately follows the serene ending of

“Saturn,” spell out the musical letters of Holst's name in German (GuStAv H.): G, Eb, A,

B (20). With the inclusion of this inner narrative, “Saturn” displays Holst’s ability to

combine advanced composition and orchestration techniques to create a powerful story

through sound alone.

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All things considered, Holst’s manipulation of orchestral texture in The Planets is utilized

as the core method for communicating metaphors of character in each movement. With

an immense orchestra at his disposal, Holst applies a wide range of orchestration

techniques, including klangfarbenmelodie, to his melodic material in a way which

conjures vivid imagery in his listeners’ minds. Through the intensive study of just two of

the seven movements of The Planets these findings come to light, leaving much to be

explored in the other five movements. Further analysis of the serenity found in “Venus,”

or the otherworldliness of “Neptune” would most definitely prove to be beneficial for any

orchestrator: amateur or otherwise.

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Table 1: Holst’s Orchestra in The Planets

Woodwinds Unpitched Percussion

4 Flutes Triangle
(2 doubling Piccolo; 1 doubling Bass Flute) Snare Drum
3 Oboes (1 doubling Bass Oboe) Tambourine
1 English Horn Cymbals
3 Clarinets in Bb and A Bass Drum
1 Bass Clarinet Gong
3 Bassoons Pitched Percussion
1 Contrabassoon Bells
Glockenspiel
Xylophone
2 sets of Timpani
Brass Keyboard Instruments
6 Horns in F Celesta
4 Trumpets in C Organ
2 Trombones
1 Bass Trombone 2 Harps
1 Tenor Tuba in Bb (Euphonium) Strings
1 Bass Tuba 6-part Female Chorus (Mvmt. 7 only)

(Formatting based on similar table from page 25 of “Holst, The Planets” by Richard Greene)
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Bibliography

Greene, Richard. “Holst: The Planets.” Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.

Head, Raymond. "Holst - Astrology and Modernism in 'The Planets'." Tempo, no. 187 (1993): 15-22.

Holst, Gustav. “The Planets, Op. 32.” London: Goodwin & Tabb, 1921.

Jackson, Howard Keith. “The low brass orchestration of Gustav Holst.” PhD diss., Arizona State

University, 1996.

Matthews, Colin. "Holst, Gustav(us Theodore von)." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online.

Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.

Rushton, Julian. "Klangfarbenmelodie." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford:

Oxford University Press, 2001.