Description

When Liszt became director of the Court Opera in Weimar, he devoted considerable time to exploring Goethe's works, particularly the subject matter of Faust. He used Nikolaus Lenau's comprehensive 24-scene poem "Faust" as the model for his two-part orchestral work "Episodes from Lenau's Faust." The second part, "Dance in the Village Inn," was originally written for solo piano.

Liszt titled this wildly climactic piece the "Mephisto Waltz." The piano composition soon gained worldwide popularity and is still regarded as a quintessential virtuosic showpiece. For the first time, an abridged and simplified version of the piece arranged by Liszt can be found in the appendix.