Re
The Planets:
Let's look at some source material.
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I should have included aspects of a mythological influence (although Holst later denied this) in my description. But there's little, if anything, astronomical.
About the only astronomical connotations for us now are due to the use of
The Planets as background music for various early astronomy video productions. I remember the soundtrack of one, which IIRC was on Channel 13 in New Jersey, that used the quiet motif (G, E Flat, A, B) from "Uranus" as its theme. Such juxtapositionings may have caused astronomical associations in those watching, and which were retained much later. Then of course there are the astronomical images used as album covers for astrological music.
Here are some MIDIs which represent the music and provide astrological commentaries on its content.
Due to these astronomical influences, and the atmospheric aspect of the music, it was hard not play "Venus" through my mind when seeing the Morning Star rising while on a late night journey to upstate Vermont. And when first spying Neptune, to replay those ethereal 5/4 measures for
ppp orchestra and finally, a wordless women's chorus, in my head.
But given the thematic, harmonic, and instrumental (there's always that Holst wind band in there somewhere) components, it's fun music.
It always struck me as somewhat appropriate and ironic that the war movement "Mars" would be in the same time as "Neptune the Mystic": 5/4.