Fountains of Rome

Fountains of Rome (Italian: Fontane di Roma) is a symphonic poem written by the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi in 1916 and first published in 1918. It was his first great success as a composer and is his best known work. He wrote as sequels two other works: Pines of Rome (1924) and Roman Festivals (1928).

Each of the four movements depicts one of Rome’s fountains at a different time of the day.

Its premiere was held on March 11, 1917 at the Teatro Augusteo in Rome, under the direction of Antonio Guarnieri.

The work has four movements:

Fountains of Rome calls for the following large orchestra, including piano, celesta, harps, chimes, and organ ad lib.:

It was also transcribed for piano four hands (duet) by the composer.

Arturo Toscanini originally planned to conduct the work in 1916, but the Italian composer refused to appear for the performance after a disagreement over his having included some of Wagner's music on a program played during World War I. Consequently, it did not premiere until March 11, 1917, at the Teatro Augusteo in Rome, with Antonio Guarnieri as conductor. Although the premiere was unsuccessful, Toscanini finally conducted the work in Milan in 1918 with tremendous success. It "was acclaimed [as] one of the loveliest of symphonic writings".

The piece was first performed in the United States on February 13, 1919. Toscanini recorded the music with the NBC Symphony Orchestra in Carnegie Hall in 1951; the high fidelity monaural recording was issued on LP and then digitally remastered for release on CD by RCA Victor. The work has since become one of the most eminent examples of the symphonic poem.

The Second Movement appears on the Hong Kong Film Studios Feng Hua as intro.