Les Preludes and Hamlet represent the pianist's symphonic poem. (Gmoser 72) Liszt also left his mark on operatic paraphrases for solo piano.

Compared to the other composers, who were writing flashy introductions, Liszt's paraphrases and fantasies on operas were a "bolt of lightening against the flicker of a candle. He threw themes together in a contrapuntal melange; he changed harmonies; he exploited to the utmost every technical resource of his pianistic genius" (Schonberg 204). It seemed that there was no aspect of music in which Liszt could conquer.

Liszt's influence in the musical community was far-reaching in that his style and techniques touched all types of people. Goulding believes that the pianist's "most significant involvement in the music of others was in the career of Wagner" (Goulding 244). However, his contributions cannot stop there. Liszt was responsible not only for involvement with music but the evolution of music. For instance,...
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