Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C-sharp minor, S.244/2, is the second in a set of 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies by composer Franz Liszt, and is by far the most famous of the set. In both the original piano solo form and in the orchestrated version this composition has enjoyed widespread use in animated cartoons. Its themes have also served as the basis of several popular songs. The Hungarian-born composer and pianist Franz Liszt was strongly influenced by the music heard in his youth, particularly Hungarian folk music, with its unique gypsy scale, rhythmic spontaneity and direct, seductive
Rhapsodies for Orchestra idea and others take it up." Gantz added that it "worked out better in theory than in practice, though I liked the section in which the viola crooned over the orchestra’s 12-note ostinato." Likewise, Lawrence A. Johnson of the "Chicago Classical Review" called it "not one of Stucky’s more essential pieces" and noted that "Stucky’s debt to Witold Lutosławski [was] at times glaringly evident." Music critic Carla Rees similarly opined: Rhapsodies for Orchestra Rhapsodies for Orchestra is a single-movement orchestral composition by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was jointly commissioned by the New York Philharmonic and the BBC