Today we will tell you about the peculiarities of the symphonic metal style. Groups that create music in this direction will be listed below. This music style combines symphonic orchestral music and metal. When composing songs in this genre, a chorus and female vocals are often used. Symphonic instruments or imitation of their sound, created with the help of a synthesizer, are also used. Often during the recording, bands are attracted by a full-fledged orchestra. For this genre there are choruses, duets of several vocalists and concept albums.
History
Symphonic metal takes its roots in the works of such groups as Theater of Tragedy and The Gathering. They used female vocal and keyboard instruments in their performances. Experiments in combining heavy modern and symphonic music were conducted by Symphony X, Rage and Savatage. Symphony Metal as a separate genre, according to experts, was formed after the release of Theli's Theli album. There was this event in 1996. Therion in previous works combined symphonic arrangements and metal, but it was on the plate Theli that the genre finally took shape. He became a new phenomenon on the stage of heavy music. 1997 is one of the most important periods in the development of the described direction. At this time there were debut albums of three groups, which later had a huge impact on this genre. Rhapsody and Nightwish created symphonic arrangements, based on power metal. In turn, by the nature of the band's debut album Within Temptation. He is close to gothic metal. The popularity of the young genre grew rapidly. Groups Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth, differing in their special melodies, began to advance keyboard instruments. Practically at the same time formed the collectives of Summoning and Bal-Sagoth. They used the orchestra and keyboard instruments as actively as guitars. In the late 1990 and early 2000 there were a number of groups that took up the development of the direction of "opera metal." Among them should be noted After Forever, as well as the released from their composition Epica. Also mentioned is the project Leaves' Eyes, created by Liv Christine. By the middle of 2000, the genre had become one of the most common in northern and central Europe.
Themes
Symphonic Metal does not have a central theme in the texts. The mythological, mystical and historical motifs prevail in the genre. Lyrical texts that describe personal experiences are also often found. Sometimes the themes of nature and religion are raised. Groups often create conceptual albums that are stylized for operas or epic poems. For example, the record Therion Secret of the Runes is dedicated to nine worlds from the Scandinavian epic. This work, like all other creative work of the team, is based on mysticism and mythology.
Russia
Russian symphonic metal is represented by several groups. First of all it's Cathársis. Also in this direction is a collective from St. Petersburg called Dominia. Symphonic metal was also chosen by ESSE, a collective from Rostov-on-Don. This group was established in 2006. It is also impossible to pass by the staff of Luna Aeterna, which was organized in Moscow in 2001. The genre that we are interested in has also been selected by Rossomahaar. It comes from the city of Moscow. The collective was founded in 1995.