Development
Liszt was not the first composer to use thematic transformation. Ludwig van Beethoven had already used thematic transformation in his Fifth Symphony, and Ninth Symphony, where the "Ode to Joy" theme is transformed at one point into a Turkish march, complete with cymbals and drums. Franz Schubert used metamorphosis to bind together the four movements of his Wanderer Fantasy, a work which influenced Liszt greatly. However, Liszt perfected the technique by creating entire structures from metamorphosis alone. He may have already had experience in metamorphosing themes into various shapes in his early operatic fantasies and improvisations and been also led to this practice by the monothematicism Liszt employed in many of his original works, including most of the Transcendental Etudes.
Read more about this topic: Thematic Transformation
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—Gail Sheehy (20th century)
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