But I equally love and admire the music of an essentially operatic composer like Wagner or a composer like Richard Strauss-who wrote two, essentally programmatic symphonies, but whose Four Last Songs for me represent the pinnacle of his genius.
Wagner wrote two absolute symphonies in his youth (in C, and E, one incomplete), but they don't reflect his particular brand of genius.
Strauss also wrote two absolute symphonies (in f minor and d minor), which are both quite enjoyable, and of course the rest are essentially symphonic poems (albeit long ones).
