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No. V is primarily noteworthy for the poetic fancy that impelled Strauss to embody no less than twenty-four motives from his preceding symphonic poems, as well as from "Guntram" and from "Traum durch die Dämmerung." These themes are, of course, not presented in a row, but are joined together or subtly interwoven or contrapuntally super-imposed one over the other, and one might again suggest that they must be listened to horizontally and not vertically. Incidentally it might be added that this Division V of "Ein Heldenleben" draws into requisition every single example given above from [No. 1] to [No. 21] inclusive, with the exception Nos. [16] and [19]. Wagner pointed the way for such a procedure by introducing the opening bars from "Tristan und Isolde" into the "Meistersinger." Strauss, however, went much further, and in the course of Des Helden Friedenswerke he has drawn freely upon "Macbeth," "Don Juan," "Tod und Verklärung," "Till Eulenspiegel," "Zarathustra," and "Don Quixote." He further elaborates upon two practically new themes (Nos. [30] and [31]), although an anticipation of the second of these themes is already to be found in Division III.
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No. VI brings this noble creation to a fitting end. With the exception of an episodic anti-climax, the movement is dominated by calm and majestic peace, as exemplified by themes [No. 32] (evolved from [No. 31]) and [No. 33].