César Franck wasn’t born on Halloween, but his most dramatically frightening programmatic work was. Completed on October 31, 1882, The Accursed Hunter is a tone poem which tells the story of a nobleman who breaks one of the ten commandments by going hunting on the Sabbath.

The piece begins with obvious hunting calls, and church bells attempting to call the hero to Sunday worship. Ignoring the bells, he enters the deep woods where a demonic voice curses him: he is condemned to be pursued by demons for all eternity!

Something to think about, next time you feel like skipping church.