Era: Classical
Year: 1760
Form: Symphony
Score: 84
Thoughts: These were great early forms of symphony. 3 movements of overture style music, a forefront of what actually became symphony form which typically was in 4 movements. I actually really enjoyed them, and yes all were published in 1760, but apparently were written over a longer period of time. Plus he gets points for being English.
Quote:
William Boyce's eight Symphonys (his own spelling) aren't symphonies in the modern sense, but a collection, issued for concert use, of overtures he had composed over nearly 20 years for theatre pieces and court odes. They represent English 18th-century music at its unpretentious best, notably in their formal unorthodoxy. The performances are a delight – cleanly articulated, decisive in rhythm, just in tempo. The French overture-like movements that open Nos 6 and 7 are crisp and brilliant; the more Italianate first movements, like those of Nos 2 and 4, have a splendid swing. And the tone of gentle melancholy behind the fine, expansive D minor first movement of No 8 is particularly well caught. Three of the symphonies have middle movements marked Vivace, which often leads conductors into unsuitably quick tempos; but Pinnock obviously knows that, in 18th-century England, Vivace meant a speed not much above Andante, and for once these movements make proper sense: they're lively, to be sure, but not fast. This disc comfortably surpasses any rivals in both style and accomplishment. The sound of the modestsized band is brightly and truly reproduced.
Delightful music; melodious, lively, and marvelously balanced. It almost predicts the perfect blending and elevation of those qualities Mozart would achieve soon thereafter.
Era: Classical
Year: 1762
Form: Opera
Score: 86
Thoughts: Probably the first opera (not oratorio) that I've truly enjoyed with these new discoveries. Most opera up to this point just wasn't a genre I felt was well developed musically. Perhaps bits of it, but mostly it was the story after all I'm sure most cared about. This however was full of great music, even some of the recitatives sounded more musical that most. It doesn't hurt that one of the most beautiful ballet works ever is included in this work. I read a bit more about this and found the intent in this opera was indeed just that - stop being almost soap opera material and create something much more powerful.
From Wikipedia:
Quote:
Algarotti proposed a heavily simplified model of opera seria, with the drama pre-eminent, instead of the music or ballet or staging. The drama itself should "delight the eyes and ears, to rouse up and to affect the hearts of an audience, without the risk of sinning against reason or common sense". Algarotti's ideas influenced both Gluck and his librettist, Calzabigi.[5] Calzabigi was himself a prominent advocate of reform,[2] and he stated: "If Mr Gluck was the creator of dramatic music, he did not create it from nothing. I provided him with the material or the chaos, if you like. We therefore share the honour of that creation."
Era: Classical
Year: 1764 (22); 1782; (78 ); 1786 (82)
Form: Symphony
Score: 85
Thoughts: I half picked this recording because I hear Esa-Pekka is the man from friends and family who are more familiar with classical musicians than I. It's incredible how some performances can totally kill or bring to life a work. I'm glad I picked this recording as it was quite the enjoyable experience. While the works themselves are enjoyable, I have yet to find a Haydn symphony/work that really speaks to my heart beyond, oh this feels like Vienna on a summer day. I will, however, agree that he purposely plays with dynamics in fun ways, which I think others built off of in more meaningful ways. Another useless fact, at another time in life I lived a block away from a small church in Vienna that had a commemorative plaque stating it was the church Haydn was christened in (Mariahilf district).
Wikipedia conjecture on the nickname of "The Philosopher" on symphony 22
Quote:
The title is thought to derive from the melody and counterpoint of the first movement (between the horns and cor anglais), which musically allude to a question followed by an answer and paralleling the disputatio system of debate. The piece's use of a muted tick-tock effect also evokes the image of a philosopher deep in thought while time passes by.
Wikipedia conjecture on the nickname of Symphony 82, "The Bear"
Quote:
the name derives from a recurring feature from the last movement (including its famous opening), in which Haydn intimates the tonality of a bagpipes or Dudelsack: a low sustained drone, accentuated by a grace-note on the downbeat. This curious tonality prompted an 1829 piano arrangement of the symphony to be entitled "Danse de l'Ours," the earliest known printed appearance of the nickname.[3] This is a reference to the music used to accompany dancing bears — a popular form of street entertainment.
Now you're getting into the meat of my classical love. There is no day so dark or situation so dire that it cannot be made better by a Franz Joseph Haydn symphony or quartet.
While I don't generally get into the Paris symphonies as much as the Londons that came after or the Sturm und Drang that came before, that is indeed a delightful presentation of the No. 82. Truly joyous music.
***Sorry for my break... wanted to get the most out of my Apple Music subscription, which allowed me to revisit my iTunes library - yes that logic sucks... ahaha... well and I guess I got to listen to some King Crimson when I wouldn't have normally. I made it to the S's (32 straight day's worth of music) in three months... I'll have to finish that just on me puter... anyway, back to this project now***
Era: Classical
Year: 1765
Form: Symphony (early form) and Piano Concertos
Score: 86.5
Thoughts: While the symphonies were solid (just as good as anything I've heard from Haydn), they sounded a bit lacking substance... AND NOT musically... it is musically fantastic. It just felt like music for music sake, and not as much from the heart. Having said that, the opposite is true of the piano concertos. I really fell in love with them, even if Spotify is showing the first track on this album as his most popular (Symphony, Op. 3, No. 1 in D Major) I really fell in love with the piano concertos. Clearly a talent for keys like his papa, but also clearly an early pioneer of the "classical" form - less polyphony, more "power chords" ( ) and the such. Anyway, this is totally solid and I don't know if it's because it is better than anything else so far in this era or I've just been listening to too much pop music lately.
Quote:
After seven years of work and study in Milan, the young J.C. Bach permanently moved to London, where he was ensconced as an expert on Italian opera. He was soon dividing his time between the stage and the concert hall; in 1764, he and composer Carl Friedrich Abel began promoting "symphony concerts," first in private residences and ultimately in the Hanover Square Rooms, in which Bach had a financial interest. Bach contributed about 90 symphonies to the series; some 60 survive. The six works published as his Op. 3 stand among his earliest efforts in the genre and reflect Bach's background in Italian opera; each is in the old three-movement, fast-slow-fast format of the Italian overture or sinfonia. They lack the storm-and-stress elements that would soon characterize the works of Haydn and C.P.E. Bach and avoid the special orchestral effects that would shortly be de rigeur in Mannheim and Paris. These sunny, well-balanced examples of the galant style strongly influenced the eight-year-old Mozart, who wrote his first symphonies during a trip to London when these works were first being played. Bach employed the same format for each little symphony. Happily turbulent outer movements embrace an Andante or Andantino of elegance and repose. The first movement is always a lively and compact sonata-allegro form, with a couple of themes (not highly contrasted, the more lyrical melody usually little more than a brief phrase) put through a short development before being restated. The other movements are usually in ABA form, or are rudimentary rondos -- again, contrasting material tends to make very short appearances. Third movements evoke the minuet or gigue, though they are not so marked. Eighteenth century publishers typically front-loaded a publication with the most arresting compositions, pushing the more routine music to the back. So it is with Bach's Op. 3, dedicated to the Prince of York, brother of King George III. Symphony No. 1 in D provides a festive beginning. The opening of Symphony No. 2 in C is more jittery, but the Andante is memorably serene with a suggestion of melancholy. The fast movements of No. 3 in E flat begin to show more restraint, although the Andantino is notable for its bucolic use of flutes. High spirits return to No. 4 in B flat. No. 5 in F and No. 6 in G are more formulaic, except for the expressive Andante of the Sixth, and the finale of the Fifth, where a few patches of elegance interrupt the lighthearted music.
-James Reel, AllMusic
***Sorry for my break... wanted to get the most out of my Apple Music subscription, which allowed me to revisit my iTunes library - yes that logic sucks... ahaha... well and I guess I got to listen to some King Crimson when I wouldn't have normally. I made it to the S's (32 straight day's worth of music) in three months... I'll have to finish that just on me puter... anyway, back to this project now***
Era: Classical
Year: 1765
Form: Symphony (early form) and Piano Concertos
Score: 86.5
Thoughts: While the symphonies were solid (just as good as anything I've heard from Haydn), they sounded a bit lacking substance... AND NOT musically... musically fantastic. It just felt like music for music sake, and not as much from the heart. Having said that, the opposite is true of the piano concertos. I really fell in love with them, even if Spotify is showing the first track on this album as his most popular (Symphony, Op. 3, No. 1 in D Major) I really fell in love with the piano concertos. Clearly a talent for keys like his papa, but also clearly an early pioneer of the "classical" form - less polyphony, more "power chords" ( ) and the such. Anyway, this is totally solid and I don't know if it's because it is better than anything else so far in this era or I've just been listening to too much pop music lately.
Quote:
After seven years of work and study in Milan, the young J.C. Bach permanently moved to London, where he was ensconced as an expert on Italian opera. He was soon dividing his time between the stage and the concert hall; in 1764, he and composer Carl Friedrich Abel began promoting "symphony concerts," first in private residences and ultimately in the Hanover Square Rooms, in which Bach had a financial interest. Bach contributed about 90 symphonies to the series; some 60 survive. The six works published as his Op. 3 stand among his earliest efforts in the genre and reflect Bach's background in Italian opera; each is in the old three-movement, fast-slow-fast format of the Italian overture or sinfonia. They lack the storm-and-stress elements that would soon characterize the works of Haydn and C.P.E. Bach and avoid the special orchestral effects that would shortly be de rigeur in Mannheim and Paris. These sunny, well-balanced examples of the galant style strongly influenced the eight-year-old Mozart, who wrote his first symphonies during a trip to London when these works were first being played. Bach employed the same format for each little symphony. Happily turbulent outer movements embrace an Andante or Andantino of elegance and repose. The first movement is always a lively and compact sonata-allegro form, with a couple of themes (not highly contrasted, the more lyrical melody usually little more than a brief phrase) put through a short development before being restated. The other movements are usually in ABA form, or are rudimentary rondos -- again, contrasting material tends to make very short appearances. Third movements evoke the minuet or gigue, though they are not so marked. Eighteenth century publishers typically front-loaded a publication with the most arresting compositions, pushing the more routine music to the back. So it is with Bach's Op. 3, dedicated to the Prince of York, brother of King George III. Symphony No. 1 in D provides a festive beginning. The opening of Symphony No. 2 in C is more jittery, but the Andante is memorably serene with a suggestion of melancholy. The fast movements of No. 3 in E flat begin to show more restraint, although the Andantino is notable for its bucolic use of flutes. High spirits return to No. 4 in B flat. No. 5 in F and No. 6 in G are more formulaic, except for the expressive Andante of the Sixth, and the finale of the Fifth, where a few patches of elegance interrupt the lighthearted music.
-James Reel, AllMusic
oh I was saying it was musically fantastic (edited for the words "it is"), just missing some passion on the symphony side of things. Poorly written indeed.
Era: Classical
Year: 1760s
Form: Symphony (early form) and Piano Concertos
Score: 84
Thoughts: Beautiful piercing violin - double stops. Pleasant indeed.
Violin Concerto in C major, H. 7a/1
Quote:
The delightful C major Violin Concerto, like various other Haydn's concerti only relatively recently rediscovered, was composed for the well-known Italian violinist Luigi Tommasini. The exact date of composition is unknown -- it has been ascribed to the year 1769, but only because it appears in a publisher's catalog for that year. No matter when it was composed, it is certainly one of the most attractive concerti (of Haydn's or otherwise) from the middle of the eighteenth century.
The opening movement is energetic and regal, as one would expect from its C major tonality, with virtuoso writing more in the Italian tradition than the northern one -- the solo part has wide melodic leaps, long strings of harmonic sequences, and frequent arpeggiation. The slow movement has become somewhat famous on its own, and rightly so. It is cast in three sections, and the opening and closing sections are built on a simple rising idea in the violin part, supported by a repetitive accompaniment which crescendos to a climax along with the soloist. The central section is sweetly lyrical, with the strings providing gentle support for the violinist's musings. There is an opportunity for the soloist to insert a brief cadenza shortly before the close of the movement. The finale, a lively romp in 3/8 time, is technically quite difficult (and would have been exceedingly troublesome for violinists of the day).
- Blair Johnston, AllMusic
Violin Concerto in A major ("Melker Konzert"), H. 7a/3
Quote:
On May 1, 1761, Haydn got the appointment that made his career when Prince Nicholas Esterházy hired him as his vice-Kapellmeister. The Prince had another promising young musician, Alois Luigi Tomasini (1741 - 1808), hired at the age of 16 as a valet du chamber, but also such a fine violinist that Nicholas sent him to Venice to receive the best violin training. Haydn shrewdly wrote as many as four concertos for Tomasini to show their boss that his trust in both of them was well-founded. (Both served the Esterházy family for life with Tomasini the trusted concertmaster of Haydn's orchestra.)
In 1949 Haydn scholar H.C. Robbins Landon discovered the manuscript of this concerto in the Abbey of Melk. It was written no later than 1771, and in most commentators' estimation is the equal of the D Major Cello Concerto -- in other words, the first great violin concerto of the classical age. In 1961, another copy of this concerto surfaced in the Marcello Library of Venice. It posed an editorial problem: while the Venice copy was obviously meant for the use of a string orchestra, the Melk manuscript had an incomplete horn part and mentions an oboe part (though none was found). Fortunately, the manner in which those instruments were used at the time was rather standardized, and so Anton Heiler and Robbins Landon were able to reconstruct them.
In this concerto Haydn already shows some of the innovations he was bringing to the symphony form at the same time. Although it can be said that there is one predominant theme in the first movement (Moderato), Haydn varies it to produce a version that serves as a contrasting second theme group. Haydn observes a standard format of exposition without a solo part, then another with the solo, but he also adds new material for the soloist during this section. The violin leads off a creative development section.
The second movement, Adagio, also begins with a tutti section, fully stating an arioso theme. This has a tender, operatic quality, particularly when the violin takes it. This is a tender, serenade-like movement.
The finale, Allegro, also observes the convention that the orchestra without soloist states the main theme first, followed by the violin. The music is not so fast to make the violin lose its essential lyrical characteristic, but it has energy and a virile quality that allows some athletic display.
-Joseph Stevenson, AllMusic
Violin Concerto in G major, H. 7a/4
Quote:
Haydn is credited with four violin concertos, the second of which has been completely lost. This, ostensibly the last of the series, may not be by Haydn; musicologists point out that the idiom is more old-fashioned than that of the other two survivors, which were also written in the 1760s. This could mean, of course, merely that Haydn wrote it before the others. It begins, Allegro moderato, with a flowing theme that pours out of a sharp opening chord. This winds its way smoothly through a number of closely related episodes that never completely break off into full-fledged secondary subjects. This material is introduced concisely by the orchestra, then taken up by the soloist, who gives it an even more ornate treatment. The development covers all this ground again, but now the violinist gives it a more plaintive character. The soloist leads the way through what seems to be the recapitulation, but turns out to be an extension of the development; after a pause for the cadenza, the orchestra takes charge (mostly) for the true, brief recapitulation. The Adagio movement is a moderately embellished violin aria, with an ever-so-slightly troubled middle section that flirts with minor keys and gives the soloist a much more ornate line. A small cadenza opportunity provides the bridge to a repeat of the first section, in which the orchestra now has a more prominent role. The final Allegro mimics the trilling, galloping style of C.P.E. Bach, complete with a couple of sudden orchestral shouts. The demanding solo part requires the violinist to be fleet and nimble through the course of this monothematic sonata-rondo, a typically Haydnesque finale despite the doubts of musicologists.
James Reel, AllMusic
Era: Classical
Year: 1760s
Form: Symphony (early form) and Piano Concertos
Score: 84
Thoughts: Beautiful piercing violin - double stops. Pleasant indeed.
Violin Concerto in C major, H. 7a/1
Quote:
The delightful C major Violin Concerto, like various other Haydn's concerti only relatively recently rediscovered, was composed for the well-known Italian violinist Luigi Tommasini. The exact date of composition is unknown -- it has been ascribed to the year 1769, but only because it appears in a publisher's catalog for that year. No matter when it was composed, it is certainly one of the most attractive concerti (of Haydn's or otherwise) from the middle of the eighteenth century.
The opening movement is energetic and regal, as one would expect from its C major tonality, with virtuoso writing more in the Italian tradition than the northern one -- the solo part has wide melodic leaps, long strings of harmonic sequences, and frequent arpeggiation. The slow movement has become somewhat famous on its own, and rightly so. It is cast in three sections, and the opening and closing sections are built on a simple rising idea in the violin part, supported by a repetitive accompaniment which crescendos to a climax along with the soloist. The central section is sweetly lyrical, with the strings providing gentle support for the violinist's musings. There is an opportunity for the soloist to insert a brief cadenza shortly before the close of the movement. The finale, a lively romp in 3/8 time, is technically quite difficult (and would have been exceedingly troublesome for violinists of the day).
- Blair Johnston, AllMusic
Violin Concerto in A major ("Melker Konzert"), H. 7a/3
Quote:
On May 1, 1761, Haydn got the appointment that made his career when Prince Nicholas Esterházy hired him as his vice-Kapellmeister. The Prince had another promising young musician, Alois Luigi Tomasini (1741 - 1808), hired at the age of 16 as a valet du chamber, but also such a fine violinist that Nicholas sent him to Venice to receive the best violin training. Haydn shrewdly wrote as many as four concertos for Tomasini to show their boss that his trust in both of them was well-founded. (Both served the Esterházy family for life with Tomasini the trusted concertmaster of Haydn's orchestra.)
In 1949 Haydn scholar H.C. Robbins Landon discovered the manuscript of this concerto in the Abbey of Melk. It was written no later than 1771, and in most commentators' estimation is the equal of the D Major Cello Concerto -- in other words, the first great violin concerto of the classical age. In 1961, another copy of this concerto surfaced in the Marcello Library of Venice. It posed an editorial problem: while the Venice copy was obviously meant for the use of a string orchestra, the Melk manuscript had an incomplete horn part and mentions an oboe part (though none was found). Fortunately, the manner in which those instruments were used at the time was rather standardized, and so Anton Heiler and Robbins Landon were able to reconstruct them.
In this concerto Haydn already shows some of the innovations he was bringing to the symphony form at the same time. Although it can be said that there is one predominant theme in the first movement (Moderato), Haydn varies it to produce a version that serves as a contrasting second theme group. Haydn observes a standard format of exposition without a solo part, then another with the solo, but he also adds new material for the soloist during this section. The violin leads off a creative development section.
The second movement, Adagio, also begins with a tutti section, fully stating an arioso theme. This has a tender, operatic quality, particularly when the violin takes it. This is a tender, serenade-like movement.
The finale, Allegro, also observes the convention that the orchestra without soloist states the main theme first, followed by the violin. The music is not so fast to make the violin lose its essential lyrical characteristic, but it has energy and a virile quality that allows some athletic display.
-Joseph Stevenson, AllMusic
Violin Concerto in G major, H. 7a/4
Quote:
Haydn is credited with four violin concertos, the second of which has been completely lost. This, ostensibly the last of the series, may not be by Haydn; musicologists point out that the idiom is more old-fashioned than that of the other two survivors, which were also written in the 1760s. This could mean, of course, merely that Haydn wrote it before the others. It begins, Allegro moderato, with a flowing theme that pours out of a sharp opening chord. This winds its way smoothly through a number of closely related episodes that never completely break off into full-fledged secondary subjects. This material is introduced concisely by the orchestra, then taken up by the soloist, who gives it an even more ornate treatment. The development covers all this ground again, but now the violinist gives it a more plaintive character. The soloist leads the way through what seems to be the recapitulation, but turns out to be an extension of the development; after a pause for the cadenza, the orchestra takes charge (mostly) for the true, brief recapitulation. The Adagio movement is a moderately embellished violin aria, with an ever-so-slightly troubled middle section that flirts with minor keys and gives the soloist a much more ornate line. A small cadenza opportunity provides the bridge to a repeat of the first section, in which the orchestra now has a more prominent role. The final Allegro mimics the trilling, galloping style of C.P.E. Bach, complete with a couple of sudden orchestral shouts. The demanding solo part requires the violinist to be fleet and nimble through the course of this monothematic sonata-rondo, a typically Haydnesque finale despite the doubts of musicologists.
James Reel, AllMusic
As much as I love Haydn, I have to admit I place his concertos well behind his symphonies and quartets. I rarely listen to them. Listening to your link was nice, but not anything for me to reinsert his violin concertos into my listening stream. Nevertheless, I did enjoy reading the liner notes you quoted as they do help my appreciation even if it doesn't rise all the way to the top.
Beautiful piercing violin - double stops. Pleasant indeed.
What is at the top for you with Haydn? I'm afraid while I appreciate Haydn for perpetuating the symphonic form, I've yet to find anything soul searching. I mean having said that, I don't know Haydn that well. He sounds a lot like the part of Mozart I also find uninspiring. I mean it's good, don't get me wrong - I'm just looking for the amazing and not finding it... YET.
Anyway back to C.P.E. Bach, but then back to Haydn because he naturally dominates the early Classical period.
Era: Classical
Year: 1765
Form: Concerto
Score: 84
Thoughts: The oboe is an interesting instrument. It cuts well in it's frequencies and tone. Great solo instrument. I can't help but think about birds. This was pleasant.
Concerto for oboe, strings & continuo in B flat major, H. 466, Wq. 164
Quote:
C.P.E. Bach wrote both his oboe concertos (which also exist as keyboard concertos) in 1765, but this, presumably the earlier of the two, is far more conventional than the other. The opening Allegretto is in the standard, pleasant galant style of the time, the successive elements of the orchestral tutti developing from each other very smoothly. The solo passages initially offer no contrast, the oboe first simply taking possession of the themes, and on its second appearance repeating the material in more fragmentary but also more ornamented form. The oboe lines become increasingly elaborate, but avoid the sharp contrasts that characterize much of this composer's music (including his other oboe concerto). The Largo e mesto falls into the minor mode and evokes the austere character of the slow movements of Baroque church sonatas from much earlier in the eighteenth century. After a concise introduction, the oboe takes charge of the meditative melody, patiently elaborating on it and often quietly between brief reminders of its original form from the full string orchestra. The Allegro moderato finale begins with pretty civility, but every few measures bolts forward with Bach's typical impulsiveness. The standard pattern pertains: after the tutti, the oboe repeats the material, offering increasingly imaginative commentary on the theme between returns of the orchestral tutti, but at the end settling into a more literal repetition of the melody, with the orchestra having the last word.
- James Reel, AllMusic
Concerto for oboe, strings & continuo in E flat major, H. 468, Wq. 165
Quote:
This is the rowdier companion to C.P.E. Bach's other oboe concerto of 1765, the well-mannered and conventional Concerto in B flat (Wq 164, H 466). Here, the composer's fingerprints are all over the opening tutti: above a nervous ostinato rhythm, a two-note motif worries itself into a more elaborate gesture that soon stretches out, develops some harmonic tension, and then halts just long enough to pull itself back together. All of this forms the basis of the oboe's solo sections, and reappears in fragmentary form in the ritornellos that punctuate the solos. Given the oboe's near-literal repeat of the thematic material followed by an increasingly moody working out of bits of motifs, and, after an extended oboe cadenza, a restatement of the melody in something close to its original guise, it's not difficult to find here a nascent version of the sonata form that would soon be mastered by Mozart and Haydn. But it's also highly typical of the unpredictable, passionate Sturm und Drang style typical of C.P.E. Bach's work, as well as Haydn's at about this same time. The Adagio ma non troppo is a set of oboe variations, separated by tutti passages, on the dark, heavy opening theme. In its first solo, the oboe introduces an element of serenity, but the general mood of the movement is melancholy. Quite a change arrives with the Allegro ma non troppo, a happy, gently swinging pastoral piece, its playful nature emphasized through liberal grace notes and ornaments. There's no storm and stress here, although the music does sometimes shift into mildly unsettling harmonies and the orchestra does bite into the attacks in one of the central ritornello sections. As always, the oboe elaborates on the thematic motifs, rhapsodizing most freely in the middle of the movement and remaining truest to the original in its first and last appearances.
Era: Classical
Year: 1765
Form: Shitload of Symphony (I think is the technical term) (35, 38, 39, 41, 58, 59, 65)
Score: 84
Thoughts: Wow - dude did write 104 symphonies. Just like Mozart, the majority I find a bit formulaic, but much of this was a first listen for me and maybe some day something will have a deeper meaning. Having said that, I did like the theme, although repetitive, of Symphony No. 39. It felt like it came alive somehow- told a story of sorts.
Quote:
This symphony was written a little earlier than its conventional numbering would suggest, probably in 1766 or 1767. This was close to the time when Haydn was promoted to the position of full Kapellmeister in the service of Prince Nicolaus Esterházy's service; the orchestra at Haydn's disposal included four horn players. Thus, this symphony is scored for two oboes, four horns, strings, and continuo (harpsichord and bassoon).
The key of G minor suggests that this symphony is one of those that could take the slightly later "Sturm und Drang" (storm and stress) label. Haydn has the four horns crooked in B flat alto and in G, meaning that he can score complete chords for the horns, and also that he still has two horns available when he uses the relative major key of B flat. This allows for richer and more dramatic scoring.
The harmonic language of the outer movements is unusually harsh. Haydn achieves tension through the device of keeping the first subject quiet, as if repressed, and also by including moments of silence. The first subject includes the only important melodic material of the movement; while there is a secondary idea, it is used mostly for transitions. The second movement, Andante, is for strings only, and it seems a bit dated after the harmonic adventures of the first movement. The minuet re-enters the grim world of the opening movement, but this seriousness is undermined by the jovial aspect of the contrasting Trio section. The finale, however, regains the great inventiveness and dark tone of the opening movement, and adds an energetic drive and nervousness.
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) and the such. Anyway, this is totally solid and I don't know if it's because it is better than anything else so far in this era or I've just been listening to too much pop music lately.
