Gustav Holst's The Planets is among the most popular orchestral works of the twentieth century, and "Mars" alone has influenced everyone from Black Sabbath to John Williams' Imperial March. Yet Holst himself occupies a fascinating middle ground among his contemporaries. Neither as conservative as Rachmaninoff nor as revolutionary as Stravinsky and Bartók, Holst forged a musical voice uniquely his own.  This course begins with a survey of his wider output, spanning various styles – traditional and experimental, English nationalism and exoticism – before diving into The Planets movement by movement.