Richard Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra [Score]

George Solti, Conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

0:00 - I. Sunrise; Zarathustra emerges from his mountaintop cave after 10 years in order to rejoin humanity and share his wisdom
1:53 - II. Of Those in Backwaters; Zarathustra descends the mountain. He wants to explain the meaning of life to humanity
2:33 - Zarathustra meets a religious saint in the woods. The saint says that humanity's purpose is to follow god and religion
5:10 - III. Of the Great Longing; Humanities religious faith cannot dominate nature, but the saint cannot let go of his desire to be close to God
6:55 - IV. Of Joys and Passions; Zarathustra suggests an alternate path to humanity: to derive meaning from nature and to seek life's pleasures
8:14 - Zarathustra second-guesses himself as he isn't convinced that this is the correct path for humanity
8:50 - V. The Song of the Grave; Zarathustra trashes both of these ideas, as neither are the right answer
10:53 - VI. Of Science and Learning; Zarathustra suggests science can give humanity answers.
14:18 - VII. The Convalescent; (Fugue) Zarathustra finds that science cannot explain the meaning of life either
15:05 - Zarathustra has an existential breakdown. He retreats back to his cave as he cannot justify his existence
15:30 - He collapses
15:46 - Zarathustra slowly regains consciousness
16:51 - Zarathustra breaks out laughing. He gets up and starts to dance
19:01 - VIII. The Dance Song; Zarathustra dances to a rustic Bavarian waltz and becomes one with nature
26:30 - IX. Song of the Night Wanderer; Zarathustra transcends nature, emerging from his cave and fly's up into the cosmos. The 12 chimes signal the arrival of midnight
27:25 - Back on Earth, humanity reaches for the stars as they yearn to be as free as Zarathustra
29:51 - Humanity cannot reach Zarathustra as they can not transcend nature. They keep trying only to fail


Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 (Thus Spoke Zarathustra or Thus Spoke Zarathustra) is a tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed during 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophical treatise of the same name.
The piece is divided into nine sections played with only three definite pauses. Strauss named the sections after selected chapters of the Nietzsche's book:

"Sonnenaufgang" (Sunrise)
"Von den Hinterweltlern" (Of the Backworldsmen)
"Von der großen Sehnsucht" (Of the Great Longing)
"Von den Freuden und Leidenschaften" (Of Joys and Passions)
"Das Grablied" (The Song of the Grave)
"Von der Wissenschaft" (Of Science and Learning)
"Der Genesende" (The Convalescent)
"Das Tanzlied" (The Dance Song)
"Nachtwandlerlied" (Song of the Night Wanderer)