Premiere of Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique

Background. Louis-Hector Berlioz, a French Romantic composer, wrote the Symphonie fantastique in 1830. He had won the Prix de Rome in 1830 after modifying his style to meet official approval. The symphony is a programmatic work in five sections, depicting episodes in the protagonist's life through a narrative of unrequited love and opium-induced visions.

Premiere. The first performance occurred at the Paris Conservatoire on 5 December 1830, conducted by François-Antoine Habeneck. Berlioz organized the concert. The work's programmatic nature, described in semi-autobiographical notes, alludes to the romantic sufferings of a gifted artist poisoned by opium due to unrequited love for the actress Harriet Smithson.

Reception. Harriet Smithson, the inspiration for the symphony's narrative, did not attend the premiere. The work is noted for its disciplined structure, being one of the most tautly disciplined works in early nineteenth-century music, rather than mere romantic rhapsodizing. The opening movement is broadly in sonata form but tells a specific story.