Rued Langgaard (July 28, 1893 - July 10, 1952) was a Danish composer and organist, born to musical parents. He began piano lessons at five years old, with his parents as his first teachers, and was playing Chopin Mazurkas at age seven. He started composing not long after for the piano, and began taking organ and violin lessons.

At the age of twelve Langgaard started studying music theory, and at thirteen he was learning counterpoint from Carl Nielsen. He made his debut as a composer a month later and continued composing in his teen years, and went on to be an organist in a few towns in Denmark.

Langgaard, as a composer, was influenced by Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, and was highly skilled in counterpoint. His music is often dramatic and mercurial, and frequently wrote for large orchestras.

Music of the Spheres was written between 1916 - 1918, and is for orchestra, choir, organ, a "distant" orchestra, and soprano soloist. It's premiere was in 1921 was a success; the following year it was performed in Berlin with a less enthusiastic reception, and wasn't played again until 1968.

This piece was slightly radical in its time; for example, Langgaard wrote for string piano, meaning only the strings of the piano were to be played, and his use of tone clusters was highly influential on composer György Ligeti. The work starts out mysteriously, with tremolo in the strings, and a timpani crescendi, and has a distinct other-wordly air about it. Littered throughout the piece is the juxtaposition of high notes, often from the strings, and lower notes from the horns and other brass, and the effect is dramatic. The slow moving tone clusters throughout lend a continual feeling of mystery and other-worldiness, and clanging cymbals and timpani add chaos to this celestial piece. At the very end, the intriguing chaos is abandoned for a heavenly chorus and a piano string glissandos, before one last big orchestral crescendo.

Here's a recording of this for you to enjoy!

Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Chorus