Fantasy and Fugue on "Ad nos, ad salutarem undam", S. 259

Liszt's Fantasy and Fugue on "Ad nos, ad salutarem undam" (1850) is the greatest organ work of the 19th century and one of the most technically and musically demanding pieces in the entire organ repertoire, transforming a melody from Meyerbeer's opera Le prophète into a three-movement architectural marvel lasting up to thirty-five minutes. The first two sections — Fantasy and Adagio — explore the theme with ever-increasing harmonic complexity and emotional intensity, while the concluding Fugue is a Bachian counterpoint engine of ferocious energy culminating in a blazing affirmation. The work is also playable on piano, but it was conceived for organ and achieves its fullest power in that medium.