OK, just to get it out of the way, I am not making any Uranus jokes in this post.

Written nearly 20 years after "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" (made more famous by Mickey Mouse in Fantasia), I can't help but think that Holst, consciously or otherwise, borrowed from the Dukas symphonic poem somewhat.  I guess orchestral pieces about magicians are required to have this bouncy triplet feel to it.  I wonder if other composers have since written similar works by pulling things out of "Uranus."

Oh, come now.  Did you actually think I wasn't gonna make a Uranus joke?

Click here to watch a live performance of "Uranus, the Magician" on YouTube.

This is part of a week-long series on the orchestral suite The Planets.