A one movement
composition for
orchestra popularized in the late eighteenth century.
Symphonic poems are by definition inspired and based on non-musical ideas like
poetry,
paintings,
plays,
photographs, or scenes from
nature.
Portrayal of the subject matter may be literal (an
anvil strike to signify a
blacksmith) or
metaphorical (an orchestration technique of
clarinet pitch bends used to represent wind.)