Franz Schreker (March 23, 1878 - March 21, 1934) was an Austrian composer, conductor, and teacher. Schreker grew up travelling across Europe, and after his father died, the family moved to Vienna in 1888. A few short years later, Schreker entered the Vienna Conservatory on violin,  but then also started taking up composition. He would go on to teach at Vienna's Imperial Academy of Music, and later on be an administrator at the Hochschule fur Musik in Berlin. A vast portion on his compositional output is opera, though he wrote many orchestral work, including a one movement work entitled Chamber Symphony.

Chamber Symphony was written for twenty three instruments--eleven strings, seven winds, harp, piano, celesta, harmonium, and percussion, making for an interesting and slightly out of the ordinary sonic experience. Within the one movement work there is an Allegro, Adagio, Scherzo, and then recap of the Allegro. Schreker's work has snippets of dissonance here and there, and the texture of this work is rich and opulent at times. The work is mercurial, with tempos, rhythms, and moods changing with a whim, moving on to the next idea ever so naturally. Between the instrumentation, ever shifting moods and ideas, and varying tonalities, this one movement work is enchanting, with an other-worldly character about it.

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

Camerata Academia Salzburg
Gateway Chamber Orchestra
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra