 With the exception of "Les préludes", none of the symphonic poems have entered the standard repertoire, though critics suggest that the best of them—"Prometheus", "Hamlet" and "Orpheus"—are worth further listening.Musicologist Hugh MacDonald writes, "Unequal in scope and achievement though they are, they looked forward at times to more modern developments and sowed the seeds of a rich crop of music in the two succeeding generations.