That's a one-movement work in which the composer tries to tell a story or play out an historic event or, in the case of the Strauss, to give us the beginning of the contents of a philosophical novel through music.

交响诗是类单乐章作品,作曲家试图从中讲述一个故事,或是再现一个历史事件,而施特劳斯,通过音乐,为我们讲述了一部哲学小说开头的内容

耶鲁公开课 - 聆听音乐课程节选