Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In this video, we dive into Gustav Holst’s “Mercury, the Winged Messenger,” moving beyond its reputation as a fast orchestral scherzo to uncover the specific techniques composers can use to depict the "busy-ness" of the human mind.
Drawing on Alan Leo’s astrological writings, which Holst studied deeply, we explore the movement’s "esoteric" narrative: “Mercury the Thinker”. We analyze how Holst translates the “restless” and “changing” nature of thought into a masterclass of bitonality, rhythmic ambiguity, and innovative orchestration
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00:00 Intro
00:57 Bitonality
05:49 Ambiguous Meter
11:55 Varying Orchestration with a Repeated Melody
18:21 Interactive Score Reader
In this video, we dive into Gustav Holst’s “Mercury, the Winged Messenger,” moving beyond its reputation as a fast orchestral scherzo to uncover the specific techniques composers can use to depict the "busy-ness" of the human mind.
Drawing on Alan Leo’s astrological writings, which Holst studied deeply, we explore the movement’s "esoteric" narrative: “Mercury the Thinker”. We analyze how Holst translates the “restless” and “changing” nature of thought into a masterclass of bitonality, rhythmic ambiguity, and innovative orchestration
Please join our community and access our long form videos and interactive score reader at scoringarts.com
00:00 Intro
00:57 Bitonality
05:49 Ambiguous Meter
11:55 Varying Orchestration with a Repeated Melody
18:21 Interactive Score Reader
