Sturm und Drang Symphonies, Vol. 7

Abstract

The opening movement features a nervously exciting main theme with interrupted by frequent pauses. Both the first and second theme groups begin with the same two bars of melodic material. In contrast to the Sturm und Drang of the opening movement, A. P. Brown describes the Andante as "one of Haydn most galant slow movements, with its small meter signature, sixteenth tripets, slides, weak resolutions, echoes, and generally thin texture". The minor mode returns for the Minuet which is contrasted by a bright major-mode Trio which features high notes for the first horn. The frenetic Sturm und Drang finale brings the symphony to an energetic conclusion. The first movement's theme "suddenly develops a towering contrapuntal anger in the development" and is primarily in minor keys. The winds are dismissed for the slow movement. The minuet features some colorful passages for the horn while the contrasting Trio is more subdued and scored for four-part strings. The finale plays games with three hammerstrokes (tonic-dominant-tonic) which begin the exposition and are worked extensively in the development. The three chords also serve as the movements final cadence, confusing listeners into thinking that more will follow. This ambiguity is enhanced if the second part of the movement is repeated. The Symphony No. 38 in C major, Hoboken I/38, is an early and festive symphony by Joseph Haydn. The symphony was composed some time between 1765 and 1769. Because of the virtosic oboe parts in the final two movements, its been suggested that the work's composition may have coincided with the employ of the oboist Vittorino Colombazzo in the fall of 1768. The symphony is popularly called the Echo Symphony, a nickname that, like all other named Haydn symphonies, did not originate with the composer. It is typically referred to as the "Echo" Symphony because of the use of mimicry motif (or echo) in the cadential phrasing of the second movement. The echo effect is created by scoring the leading line for unmuted first violins and the response from muted second violins. This innovation in scoring expands upon an earlier common baroque practice of cadential phrase-repetition.The "Echo" slow movement is scored for strings only. The trio of the minuet contains a virtuosic solo oboe part that spans the entire range of the instrument and contains leaps of almost two octaves. The finale is another showpiece for the solo oboe which includes virtuosic display, notes held fermata and a spot for a cadenza. Its not in typical concerto form, but is a mixture between concerto and sonata forms. Its been suggested that the first two movements were composed before Haydn knew of the engagement with the soloist Colombazzo as they have a completely different character than the two oboe-centric movements that round up the work. Despite its high number, the symphony is one of several in the Hoboken classification system (Symphony No. 72 is another good example as it was composed even earlier) that is egregiously out of place. It is, in fact, a quite early work, certainly composed before 1769, and possibly a fair bit earlier. By contrast, the Symphony No. 62 was written in 1780. The date of its first performance is unknown. The symphony has long been popularly known as the Feuer or Fire symphony. As with most other monikers attached to Haydn's symphonies, the name itself did not originate with the composer. For a long time, the attributed title was thought to refer to the fiery nature of the composition, particularly the rather unusually spirited first movement (marked Presto, a tempo indication more typical of final movements) and the brief but energetic last movement, which features prominent horn fanfares and corruscating runs on the strings. However, there is nothing particularly distinguishing about any of the movements that would make it more impassioned than other symphonic compositions by Haydn during this period. Instead, the nickname almost certainly derives from the use of several movements as accompanying music to a performance of the play Der Feuersbrunst by Gustav Friedrich Wilhelm Großmann, which was performed at Eszterháza in either (depending on the source) 1774 or 1778. An extant manuscript of the symphony dating from Haydn's lifetime bears the title Feueur Sinfonia. Earlier claims that the symphony originated first as theatrical music (like the Symphony No. 60 Il Distratto) are inaccurate. The opening movement starts off energetically on an upbeat followed by octave drop. Following the initial outburst, the music dramatically relaxes and comes to a full stop. This was a technique he used to an even greater effect in his 48th symphony from about the same time period. The relaxation also appears at the end of the movement giving the listener the quiet curtain raising music that often occurs at the end of an opera overture. In the slow movement, the winds are silent for most of the movement -- leaving the listener to expect that the movement is scored for strings alone. These expectations are quelled when full orchestration enters for the second theme in the recapitulation. Haydn rarely used the same meter for consecutive movements as he did with the inner two movements in this work. There are melodic links between these movements as well as both start with the same sequence of pitches. The second theme of the slow movement is also alluded to. The finale begins with a horn call followed by a response in the oboes and at the end of the exposition it is the strings and oboe that have a dialogue. Haydn uses a similar horn call is used to start the finale of his 103rd symphony over twenty-five years later. Following a brief development, the return of the horn call is only hinted at in the strings in the start of the recapitulation which then follows in a relatively straightforward manner. The horn call in its proper instrumentation is saved for the movement coda.