This work is the most famous from Liszt's set of fourteen pieces called Harmonies poétiques et religieuses, (Poetic and Religious Harmonies). He wrote it as a lament for three patriots killed in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848-49 (Liszt considered himself a Hungarian, and the spirit of a funeral march pervades the work. It is full of striking fanfares and powerful clashing harmonies, evoking a dramatically somber mood. There are two enormous climaxes that remind some listeners of the central section of Chopin's A-flat Polonaise Op. 53, and likewise requiring powerful left-hand octaves. Beyond these there is little else of the virtuosic technique usually evident in Liszt's piano works.

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Liszt wrote and assembled the ten pieces that comprise the Harmonies poétiques et réligieuses (1845 - 52) at a time when he had largely abandoned the life of traveling virtuoso to devote more of his time to composition and to his responsibilities as music director in Weimar. The final versions of these pieces immediately predate the famous Sonata in B minor. While the works of Harmonies are accomplished on a scale less ambitious than that of the sonata, they stake out the broad outlines of the innovations that were soon to emerge in Liszt's music.

The composer produced only half of the pieces in the collection from scratch; three are transcriptions of his own choral music, one is a reworking from an earlier version of Harmonies (1834), and one is a transcription of a work by Palestrina—a decided novelty for the time. As in the earlier set, Liszt prefaced the score with a Lamartine poem (taken from a collection whose title the composer appropriated for his own work), a deeply Romantic reflection upon the solitary soul and its emotional and spiritual journey.

Harmonies commences with an elaborate "Invocation," followed by a transcription of Liszt's 1846 chorale Ave Maria. The next piece, "Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude" (Benediction of God in Solitude), is one of Liszt's most astonishing creations. Taking inspiration from the Lamartine lines, "O God, from where comes this overwhelming peace, from where this faith that causes my heart to overflow," the "Bénédiction" echoes the deeply philosophical, deceptively simple character which characterizes the late works of Beethoven.

The fourth work in the group, "Pensée des morts," is recast from the earlier version of the Harmonies, and incorporates material from an unfinished De profundis for piano and orchestra (1834). Numbers 5 and 6 in the collection, "Pater noster" and "Hymne de l'enfant a son reveil," are straightforward transcriptions of choral works. Though the music is not especially pianistic, the adaptation of such pointedly devotional source material demonstrates the degree to which Liszt felt the Harmonies to be a personal spiritual statement.

"Funérailles," as finely crafted and deeply expressive as the "Bénédiction," is dated October 1849. While the significance of the date has been a matter of speculation—it corresponds most notably with the death of Chopin—the powerful effect of this bleak, despairing work, with its simulated trumpet calls and tumultuous octave passages, is beyond question.

"Miserere," transcribed from a work by Palestrina, reflects Liszt's deep esteem for and spiritual kinship with the Renaissance master. In its purity of line and lack of adornment—features not always evident in Liszt's transcriptions—"Miserere" achieves on the piano an effect as close to the original, intricately contrapuntal a cappella texture as one could hope for.

Following a plangent "Andante lagrimoso," the collection closes with an effectively lyrical "Cantique d'amour."

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The printed editions of The Blessing of God in Solitude are prefaced by a poem by Lamartine which describes the atmosphere of mystical quietude found in Liszt's piece: "D'où me vient, ô mon Dieu, cette paix qui m'inonde? D'où me vient cette foi dont mon coeur surabonde" (From whence comes, O God, this peace which overwhelms me? From whence comes this faith with which my heart overflows?).

Like No. 4, Pensée des morts, and No. 7, Funerailles, of the Harmonies poétiques et religieuses, this piece is an outstanding example of Liszt's development of the one-movement form, with its contrasting sections, foreshadowing fragments, expansive modulations, and codas constructed from fragmentary recapitulations of various sections.

The piece opens with a beautiful baritone range melody in F sharp major accompanied by an arpeggio line and an undulating line of two repeated notes both played simultaneously by the right hand. The effect is pure and serene with a subdued timbre. The melody gradually moves into the upper ranges where it is played dolcissimo (very sweetly).

The accompaniment ceases as the melody continues in slower durations toward a series of Wagnerian key changes that harmonize fragments of the main theme. A crystalline descending passage cascades back to the original key. A variation on the theme inverts the parts with the undulating accompaniment now in the left hand and the melody in the right (played mostly with the thumb as the other fingers grab quick harp-like arpeggios). The melody and harmony are greatly expanded in this section which concludes with floating chords.

A completely contrasting theme emerges in D major over an A pedal point. This melody has a pastorale feeling, and descends toward a peaceful cadence, whereas the main theme constantly reaches upward toward transcendence while expressing a prayerful joy.

A new section, "quasi Preludio" (like a prelude), cast in an intimate B flat major, presents another variation on the main theme. The brief enharmonic changes and accented non-harmonic melodic tones create an earthy and romantic atmosphere.

The main theme is recapitulated in a faster, more ecstatic Allegro moderato tempo, underscored with richly flowing left-hand arpeggios. The grandness is restrained, however, in a dolce transparent texture, which after the first 27 measures can no longer be held back. The music sings out espressivo molto and reaches appassionato toward an enraptured outpouring. When the highest registers are scaled, the piano becomes a vehicle for concerto-like gestures articulated fortississimo.

Immediately, the atmosphere transforms into yet another setting for the main theme. Complex, far-ranging sixteenth-note arpeggios, ascending in leaps and bounds and then quickly descending, accompany the theme which is now reset in a slow triple meter. This section concludes with a spectacular run of arcing, parallel arpeggios in both hands, played pianissimo and evaporating in a misty pianississimo. Two of the previous middle sections are partially recapitulated for the coda and the work concludes peacefully.

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