74th Symphony (Haydn)

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The Symphony in E flat major Hoboken directory I: 74 wrote Joseph Haydn probably in the 1780th

General

Joseph Haydn (painting by Ludwig Guttenbrunn, around 1770)

Haydn probably composed Symphony No. 74 in 1780 while he was employed as Kapellmeister by Prince Nikolaus I Esterházy .

The voices of the symphony were published by various publishers in the early 1780s. a. together with the parts of the symphonies No. 62 , No. 63 , No. 70 and No. 75 by the Berlin publisher Hummel in 1781 as "Oeuvre XVIII". It is possible that Haydn composed at least some of these symphonies at Hummel's insistence or out of his own marketing interests in order to achieve the usual number of six symphonies for such a series.

In the summer of 1781, violin maker William Forster asked Haydn to sell him some works for his newly founded music publisher. Symphony No. 74 is the first work Forster received from Haydn. The business relationship with Forster became meaningful for both sides in the following years, as Forster published more than 120 works by Haydn, including the Paris symphonies .

"In this work the common style aspects that were characteristic of this period are mixed with chromaticism , superior craftsmanship and expressive vehemence."

To the music

Instrumentation: flute , two oboes , two bassoons , two horns , two violins , viola , cello , double bass . On the participation of a harpsichord - continuos are competing views in Haydn's symphonies.

Performance time: approx. 20 to 25 minutes (depending on compliance with the prescribed repetitions).

With regard to the sonata form used here, it should be noted that this scheme was drafted in the first half of the 19th century (see there) and can therefore only be transferred to Symphony No. 74 with restrictions. - The description and structure of the sentences given here is to be understood as a suggestion. Depending on the point of view, other delimitations and interpretations are also possible.

First movement: Vivace assai

E flat major, 4/4 time, 190 bars

Beginning of Vivace assai

The first theme is designed as a contrasting theme: First, the whole orchestra plays three ascending chord strokes of the E flat major triad (bars 1 to 2, motif 1) interrupted by pauses in the forte. The strings answer as a calm piano phrase in a descending line in the rhythm of two half notes and three eighth notes interspersed with pauses. This two-measure motif (motif 2) is expanded one step higher to a four-measure phrase (measures 3 to 6) through repetition. After the transition bar 7 with its two chords, the theme is repeated as an enriched variant from bar 8: Motif 1 is expanded to a total of five chord beats by repeating the last chord strike. In Motif 2, the flute and bassoon also lead the part, and the three eighth notes with pauses are now completely replaced by quarter beats. The first violin initially plays ornaments from suggestions as a counterpart and then introduces a motif consisting of three-eighth turning phrase and ascending triad figure in bar 11 (motif 3). This motif is of important importance for the further structure of the sentence, "an extreme case of the technique, which from now on was taken up again and again and refined, just turning a very small motif, inconspicuous in the original context, into the material of major developments." is then combined with motif 3, which moves downwards through bassoon and strings, and a final turn reminiscent of bar 7 to form a multi-bar phrase. The repetition of this phrase is followed by a fortissimo block of the entire orchestra ( tutti ), which is initially characterized by bar-wise changes from a trill-like figure with a downward run (motif 4) and in E flat major chord beats (reminiscent of motif 1) between the violins . From bar 26, Haydn changes with the rhythmic motif 5, which both violins now play in parallel, to the dominant B flat major, which is reached in bar 33 with chords.

The second theme (from bar 34, B flat major) consists of a motif with two ascending half notes and a subsequent eighth phrase with a triple tone repetition (motif 6). The figure with the half notes is reminiscent of the head of motif 2. In the second half of the theme, the tone repetition figure becomes independent, of which in the double dominant F major only double knocking fifths remain in the violins. The second forte block of the entire orchestra also contains several motifs. After the initial chord strikes (reminiscent of motif 1), a phrase follows consisting of a falling figure with strong leaps in intervals, C minor - run upwards and cadence with trills. The phrase is repeated with an extended cadence figure, the exposition then closes with the revival of the trill figure from motif 4.

The development takes up the passage from the repetition of the first theme according to bar 10 (with motifs 2 and 3) as a variant with double-stroke decorations in the 1st violin. With the change to forte, motif 3 with the falling line of motif 2 is processed from D flat major, before the strings intone the second theme in F minor from bar 74. The “knocking fifths” following the topic are led through various harmonies as a “passage of unexpected urgency” under an accompaniment reminiscent of the head of motif 2. Howard Chandler Robbins Landon praises this calm, melancholy, chromatic passage as one of the best within the Haydn symphonies. After the fade to G major, the section from the beginning of the development (or according to measure 10 of the exposition) is then taken up again from C major and similarly continued with motif 3 supported by chords in the forte. With this figure, Haydn leads back to the recapitulation and thus to the tonic in E flat major.

The recapitulation from bar 126 is largely structured like the exposition. The instrumentation on the first theme is somewhat varied, and the “knocking passage” after the second theme is more extensive. The exposition, development and recapitulation are repeated.

Peter Brown emphasizes Vivace assai as an intellectual tour de force, in which inconspicuous material develops into a highly developed and logical structure with which no other contemporary composer can compete.

Second movement: Adagio cantabile

B flat major, 2/4 time, 113 bars

The structure of the movement is interpreted differently as a variation movement or rondo .

  • Part A: Presentation of the main theme in the piano from the 1st violin (both violins play in a set with mutes) and the cello accompanying the Alberti bass in staccato. The instrumentation gives the theme with its characteristic ascending triad at the beginning a chamber music-serenade-like character. Depending on the point of view, a similarity to the Adagio cantabile of Symphony No. 68 can be seen in the staccato accompanying figure of the cello, which also characterizes large parts of the rest of the movement . The theme is structured in three parts (aba), with the eight-bar a-part in the tonic in B major, the four-bar middle part in the dominant F major.
  • Transitional passage (bars 21 to 24): With the head from the main theme in the forte of the whole orchestra, Haydn changes to the dominant F major.
  • The B part (bars 25 to 41) in F major is characterized by its "expressive chromatic harmony" and the precisely prescribed, detailed crescendos and decrescendos.
  • From bar 42, the A part is repeated as a variant (B flat major): The whole orchestra is predominantly involved, with the flute and 1st oboe leading the voice alongside the violins. When repeating the a section, there is a short imitation voice offset.
  • From bar 62, the B part is repeated as a shortened variant in the subdominant E flat major.
  • In the second variant of the A section (B major, bars 70 to 89) the theme is mostly resolved in a thirty-second movement .
  • In the coda from bar 90, the flute and 1st oboe play with bassoon accompaniment, shifting the head from the main theme. Then the strings take up the theme in a shifted manner (2nd violin - 1st violin - bass - viola). A few bars before the end of the pianissimo, the head of the topic is highlighted again fortissimo.

Third movement: Menuetto. Allegretto

E flat major, 3/4 time, with trio 50 bars

The menuet in the "thoughtful, sensitive tone", which begins with three chord strikes, is characterized by the multiple use of the Lombard rhythm . A triplet prelude is added in the middle section.

The trio is also in E flat major. The melody, characterized by ascending and descending staccato movement, is played in parallel by the solo bassoon and 1st violin, which creates a special sound effect (similar to the trios of symphonies No. 54 and No. 62 ). Remarkably, the viola is missing in the string accompaniment.

Fourth movement: Finale. Allegro assai

E flat major, 6/8 time, 135 bars

The rapid movement with gigue character begins in the strings with its “calm, playful, melodically intricate theme”, which is reminiscent of the final movement from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's string quartet KV 589. The first theme phrase consists of a question-and-answer motif of the violins, into which the viola and bass make short interjections in countermovement. The second phrase for the violins contains a phrase with a downward step, the third phrase is characterized by its four-fold tapping tone repetition. After the repetition of the third phrase "with a strange melodic reverberation on the dominant" and a solo, chromatic passage of the 1st violin, the complex of themes comes to a standstill. The theme forte then suddenly starts in the bass, while the other instruments pick up the counterpart of the bass from the beginning of the sentence, the violins as a variant in a continuous, scurrying sixteenth note movement, “and we are in the middle of a race.” This rapid sixteenth note movement is also for the further forte block until reaching the double dominant F major.

The memorable second theme (dominant in B flat major, from bar 42) has a dance-like character and, like the first, is performed by the strings piano. The final group in the forte repeats the closing turn of the theme with its detached figure and ends the exposition with the scurrying sixteenth-note movement from the previous forte block.

The development begins with the first theme in the violins (2nd violin leading the part, 1st violin taking over the interjections) in B flat major. The second phrase of the topic, in which the bass also begins, is more extensive than at the beginning of the sentence. The tapping movement of the third phrase is continued from bar 73 forte by the whole orchestra and ends in a phrase that cadences in C minor and runs downwards and the stepped figure from the end of the second theme. The following second theme then changes from C minor to B flat major as the dominant to the upcoming recapitulation in E flat major.

In the recapitulation (from measure 88), the second violin initially presents the first theme alone with the interjections from the bass. Before she can complete the theme, however, the whole orchestra breaks in forte with the 1st violin leading the voice, while the 2nd violin picks up the scurrying sixteenth note movement from the exposition. After the topic head has been sequenced upwards, alternating between the 1st violin and the other strings with bassoon , the passage follows with the scurrying sixteenth notes in the violins. The second theme is now enriched by interjections from the solo winds. The final group is similar to that in the exposure. The exposition, development and recapitulation are repeated.

Individual references, comments

  1. ↑ Information page of the Haydn Festival Eisenstadt, see under web links.
  2. ^ A b Anthony van Hoboken: Joseph Haydn. Thematic-bibliographical catalog raisonné, Volume I. Schott-Verlag, Mainz 1957, pp. 103, 112
  3. ↑ a b c Michael Walter: Haydn's symphonies. A musical factory guide. CH Beck-Verlag, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-44813-3 , pp. 68, 71.
  4. ^ A b c d e f Walter Lessing: The symphonies of Joseph Haydn, in addition: all masses. A series of broadcasts on Südwestfunk Baden-Baden 1987-89, published by Südwestfunk Baden-Baden in 3 volumes. Volume 2, Baden-Baden 1989, pp. 204 to 205.
  5. ↑ a b c d e f James Webster: Hob.I: 74 Symphony in E flat major. Information text on Symphony No. 74 by Joseph Haydn of the Haydn Festival Eisenstadt, see under web links.
  6. ↑ Examples: a) James Webster: On the Absence of Keyboard Continuo in Haydn's Symphonies. In: Early Music Volume 18 No. 4, 1990, pp. 599-608); b) Hartmut Haenchen : Haydn, Joseph: Haydn's orchestra and the harpsichord question in the early symphonies. Booklet text for the recordings of the early Haydn symphonies. , online (accessed June 26, 2019), to: H. Haenchen: Early Haydn Symphonies , Berlin Classics, 1988–1990, cassette with 18 symphonies; c) Jamie James: He'd Rather Fight Than Use Keyboard In His Haydn Series . In: New York Times , October 2, 1994 (accessed June 25, 2019; showing various positions by Roy Goodman , Christopher Hogwood , HC Robbins Landon and James Webster). Most orchestras with modern instruments currently (as of 2019) do not use a harpsichord continuo. Recordings with harpsichord continuo exist. a. by: Trevor Pinnock ( Sturm und Drang symphonies , archive, 1989/90); Nikolaus Harnoncourt (No. 6-8, Das Alte Werk, 1990); Sigiswald Kuijken (including Paris and London symphonies ; Virgin, 1988-1995); Roy Goodman (e.g. Nos. 1-25, 70-78; Hyperion, 2002).
  7. ↑ a b Ludwig Finscher: Joseph Haydn and his time. Laaber-Verlag, Laaber 2000, ISBN 3-921518-94-6 , p. 305.
  8. ^ Howard Chandler Robbins Landon: The Symphonies of Joseph Haydn. Universal Edition & Rocklife, London 1955, p. 387.
  9. ↑ a b The repetitions of the parts of the sentence are not kept in some recordings.
  10. ^ A. Peter Brown ( The Symphonic Repertoire. Volume II. The First Golden Age of the Vienese Symphony: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert. Indiana University Press, Bloomington & Indianapolis 2002, ISBN 0-253-33487-X ; p 184): "This Vivace assai is another intellectual tour de force, as material of little distinction evolves out of itself into a cogent essay organized with a logic which no other European composer could rival approx. 1780."
  11. ^ Wolfgang Marggraf : The Symphonies of Joseph Haydn. The symphonies of the years 1773-1784. Accessed June 24, 2013.

Web links, notes

See also