Franz Liszt was the inventor of the symphonic poem (also known as the tone poem), a form in which a literary or other nonmusical source provides a narrative foundation for a single-movement orchestral work. Liszt's symphonic poems, however, were not exclusively dependent on their source material: the composer's goal was more to distill the essence of the poetic concept in music rather than to exactly recreate it. Hungaria (1854) is the ninth of the twelve symphonic poems Liszt wrote during his tenure as Grand Ducal Director of Music Extraordinary at Weimar. All twelve works are dedicated to Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein.

Hungaria is partly extracted from Liszt's earlier piano work Heroic March in the Hungarian Style (1840). Unlike many of Liszt's symphonic poems, it has no literary basis nor a specific program: the subject matter is Hungary itself, specifically in the happier times before the country's defeat in its war for independence. The theme from the piano work appears almost at once and, though interrupted by a cadenza for solo violin, dominates the first part of the work. The second theme rises majestically as the music becomes more tumultuous, eventually transforming into a funeral march. The powerful finale includes a revisitation of both themes.

© Margaret Godfrey, All Music Guide