Joseph Joachim Raff (May 27, 1822 - June 24 or 25, 1882) was a German-Swiss composer, pianist, and teacher who was largely self taught. As a child he showed much talent on the piano and violin, and taught himself the rudiments of music. Raff was a schoolteacher in several towns in Switzerland when he decided to send off some piano compositions to Felix Mendelssohn, who recommended them for publication. His music was reviewed favorably, and he then made the move to Zürich, and began composing full time. In 1845, Raff walked to Basel (in the rain!) to hear Franz Liszt play, and eventually worked as his assistant from 1850 to 1853, helping to orchestrate Liszt's music. In 1856 Raff moved to Weisbaden where he devoted himself to composing, producing a large amount of work. Later on he would become the first Director of the Hoch Conservatory at Frankfurt, where he also taught. He employed Clara Schumann and other well known composers as teachers, and had Edward MacDowell and Alexander Ritter as students. During his time, Raff's music was praised and played often; his output was significant (almost too significant, according to some critics of the time) but eventually his music faded from the limelight. His name pops up in music history, but his works aren't played very much anymore.

Raff's Orchestral Prelude to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is the third of four Shakespeare prelude he wrote. Starting dramatically, the work generally tries to follow the story of the main characters in Shakespeare's famous play, including a love theme in the middle. It is dramatic, much like the story, and has a little love theme in the middle. This work demonstrates Raff's knack for orchestrating and his strong sense of melodic line. His orchestral music was incredibly popular in his time, as you'll no doubt be able to hear why in this dramatic, and exciting work!

Here are some recordings for you to enjoy of this lovely work!

Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra
Philharmonia Orchestra