Yo Cosmic Planet Tour of Holst's The Planets
VII. Neptune, the Mystic
The Planets, Op. 32
Ayo, it's Holst, fam, and I'm about to walk ya through VII. Neptune, the Mystic, so pull up a seat, straight up! You're gonna hear wordless women's choruses floatin' in from a screened-off room, then the door creeps shut till the voices melt into silence, and that spooky goodbye is worth every second, no cap, sheesh! Me and my fellow composers also drill ya on this site to recognize our pieces the moment they drift on, so test yourself in the Trainer , c'mon, deadass!
---
Lights Off, Ears On, Don't Even Blink
Yo yo, listen up, homie, VII. Neptune, the Mystic is the seventh and last track of The Planets, so go in with your ears wide open and your phone stashed away, lowkey! Here's the trick: the whole thing stays quiet from the first note to the last one, so crank the volume, kill the chatter and let those hushed brass chords wash over ya like a bubble bath, bet! Then keep an ear out for two women's choruses, three parts each, singin' with no words at all from a screened-off room next door, 'cause they sound like ghosts crashin' the party, legit! Don't hunt for a catchy tune to hum in the shower, because this baby's all about swayin' and floatin', and that's the whole point, yo!Why Neptune Got a Name Tag Like That
Okay, quick pop quiz, homie: where'd I grab 'the Mystic' from? Straight outta the astrology books of Alan Leo, wild, right?! See, my starting point for the whole suite was astrology, not astronomy and not classical mythology, so every title is about the vibe a planet gives off, ya dig? And Neptune's vibe? Mystery, mist and a giant foggy ocean of 'what in the world was that', hella fitting for a track that melts away at the end! That's also why it sits last, 'cause the seven movements are lined up by what works best musically and not by where the planets hang out from the Sun, mad logical, huh?!Forget Sonatas, We're Floatin' Now
Choosin' a form for this one was a full-on side quest, homie, 'cause a sonata or a rondo would've been way too tidy for a misty dreamworld, fr! So nope, no sonata and no rondo, just a string of hazy scenes driftin' into each other like clouds hookin' up, kinda ridiculous! There's not even a tempo marking on it, which means I basically handed ya a map with zero street names and said 'good luck, champ'! I'm gonna hit four sections, one by one, in the next few paragraphs, so buckle up, buttercup, 'cause this ride's gonna get trippy!Section 1: Rockin' in a Hammock on a Wobbly Boat
We start hushed, super hushed, with a swayin' feel in an irregular metre, so the beat keeps wobblin' like a jellyfish tryin' to cha-cha! Don't bother tappin' your foot, bro, 'cause the pulse keeps slippin' out from under ya like a banana peel! Nothin' shouts here, not even for a second, since the whole movement stays quiet, and that's what makes it so dang eerie, ya feel me? Think of it as the warm-up fog before the real weirdness rolls in, trust me!Section 2: Two Chords Walk Into a Bar and Won't Leave
Now the brass gets sneaky and sounds E minor and G-sharp minor chords together, at the exact same time, clashin' like two cats sharin' one cardboard box! Normally that'd be a hot mess, but at this whisper volume it's glowy and strange, straight-up otherworldly, sick! The key can't make up its mind, so ya feel like ya lost your GPS somewhere past the moon, lol! Grab that feelin', homie, 'cause it's the secret sauce of the whole piece, no joke!Section 3: Ghosts With Perfect Pitch Crash the Gig
Here come the two three-part women's choruses, singin' without any words from the adjoinin' room, screened off so nobody in the audience can spot 'em! Picture a choir hidin' behind a curtain like surprise-party guests, except the surprise is pure chills and zero cake, wild! Their voices float in with the orchestra like mist rollin' over a harbor, and ya can't tell where the music ends and the ocean starts, dang! This is the moment, y'all, when the whole planet feels like it's whisperin' secrets right into your ear, ayo!Section 4: The Great Disappearing Act
Then comes the finale, and it's pianissimo all the way, with the door to the singers' room gettin' closed little by little, nice and slow! As that door shuts, the voices fade into silence, so the music doesn't stop so much as evaporate, like the last slice of pizza at a party, poof! And the ending's tonally uncertain, which is fancy talk for 'I ain't tellin' ya where we landed', hella mysterious! So hold your breath for those last seconds, homie, 'cause the silence is part of the show, period!Hit Play and Float Away, Champ
Alright, homie, now it's your turn to dive into VII. Neptune, the Mystic, so smash that play button and let the music soak ya like a sponge in the sea! Keep the swayin' metre, the clashin' brass chords and the hidden choruses in the back of your head while it rolls, and ya might catch stuff nobody ever pointed out! Don't bail early, either, 'cause the closin' door and that fade into silence are the best part, bar none! I hope ya get as stoked listenin' to it as I was cookin' it up, 'cause makin' this thing was a trippy trip, peace out!---
Yo yo yo, fam, hold up, the door's shut and the room's gone dead quiet, so lemme grab ya by the shoulder for one last second! Did ya enjoy learning about the listen guide for The Planets's VII. Neptune, the Mystic, bruh? Was it a trip, or was it a total vibe, or both at once, for real? Cuz I ended the whole suite on a ghostly fade, with voices meltin' away and the harmony still wonderin' where it's even headed, and that's the wildest mic drop in the galaxy, no cap! Think about it, homies: a whole giant orchestra, and I let it finish with a whisper, sheesh! Ayo, there's way more of The Planets out there waitin' on ya, and I mean a whole cosmos of it, deadass! Mars is stompin' around, Venus is snoozin' in a cloud of calm, and Mercury's zippin' by like a squirrel on espresso, so don't stop here, fam! Jupiter's throwin' a party, Saturn's tickin' like a cranky clock, and Uranus is a magician whose trick goes totally haywire, no joke! So c'mon, smash those links on the page and go dig deeper into The Planets, straight up! Every click's another doorway, bruh, and trust me, I'd never slam one in your face! Go on, get out there and let the mystery ring in your ears, ya hear me, word!
Best MomentsBackstoryListen Guide 1: I. Mars, the Bringer of WarListen Guide 2: II. Venus, the Bringer of PeaceListen Guide 3: III. Mercury, the Winged MessengerListen Guide 4: IV. Jupiter, the Bringer of JollityListen Guide 5: V. Saturn, the Bringer of Old AgeListen Guide 6: VI. Uranus, the MagicianMore about HolstLearn to know it the second you hear it