History has shown people over time that great music can come from anywhere around the world and have different stories to tell. Hector Berlioz has proven his worth among the great composers of history with La damnation of Faust, a piece with romance, struggle, and adventure. Hector Berlioz was born in La Côte-Saint-André, Isère, December 11, 1803. His father sent him to Paris at a young age. He was one of the only most well-known composers that did not show any musical instrument talents or showed any at a young age. After his book on orchestration, Traite de l'Instrumentation - Treatise on Orchestration, he made great advances in the growth and development in the modern symphony orchestra (Sherrane).
The concerto is based off of Goethe's Faust. Berlioz read the French translation when he was a medical student in Paris at the age of 23. He started his first draft in 1845 by setting Faust to music consisted of eight pieces representing the eight scenes of the story. He was very displeased with how his first draft turned out so he burned every copy that he could find (Lee ) . He wanted a much larger and grandeur plan for this work, which he ended up getting the second time through and is now the current version of the 'opéra de concert'. The work consists of three main characters and one other singer, also known as the dramatis personal, are Faust (tenor), Méphistophélès (baritone or bass), Brander (bass) and Marguerite (mezzo-soprano), with a chorus and a children's chorus. When the work first opened, it did terrible in the box office. There was only half an audience, but the reviews were fantastic, also known as an "artistic success" (Holoman). .
The work is divided into four parts. The first movement sets Faust in Hungary in the nature. He hears the peasants dancing and the soldiers marching, but is unmoved. The second movement is where Faust meets Méphistophélès, a Satan figure who lures Faust into sleep where he dreams of Marguerite.