Haydn is seen to be one of the most important composers of the �Classical Period.
Haydn was born in Austria and learned violin and harpsichord.
He worked as a composer in courts like this one and�was paid by rich families to write music for their events�and parties.
He wrote 104 symphonies
He wrote over 80 string quartets
FRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN (1732-1809)
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Symphony pattern
In the 1700s there were no CDs, iTunes or Spotify!
If you wanted to listen to music, you went to a concert and often you would hear a Symphony. This is basically like an album - but it always had only 4 ‘songs’ or pieces. These pieces were called movements.
Each of the 4 movements were generally long (often around 10 minutes) and there were some ‘rules’ or conventions.
The four movements….
1. The first movement was often fast, or allegro and in sonata form.
2. This movement was often slower, maybe andante or lento.
3. A minuet and trio
4. The final movement was fast again….allegro!
So - the movement we are studying (movement 2) is the slower one.
The Classical Orchestra
The orchestra has developing gradually and, during this period, settled largely into what is still known as the ‘classical orchestra.’ Its characteristics include a string section and the woodwind, brass and percussion instruments being present in pairs. Thus, a ‘typical’ classical orchestra includes:
2 flute 2 oboes 2 clarinets 2 bassoons 2 trumpets 2 horns 2 timpani (tuned to tonic and dominant) 1st violins 2nd violins Violas Cellos Double bass
Section one (bars 1 to 11)
The overall form of the movement revolves around the two main musical sections, starting in bars 1 and 11 respectively. In particular, the opening melody, first heard in bars 2-10 returns on several occasions and, on each occasion, it is varied.
It opens with bassoons playing staccato and 2nd violins, cellos and double basses playing pizzicato to create the characteristic ticking effect which gave rise to this symphony’s nickname. It is worth bearing in mind that the nicknames we know today will not have been applied to the works by Haydn. They will come from a chance remark, possibly in a review, or will have been given to the work (by the publisher, for example Salomon), to help set is apart and encourage concert-goers to come to hear it.
This ticking effect is summarised below, the ‘tick-tock’ sound being easy to hear with this combination of timbres.
This ticking effect is created by combining the crisp sound of the pizzicato in the strings with staccato in the bassoons and the alternation of the pitches, B and D as well as G and B.
The main melody enters after just one bar and its opening note is double-dotted. It is very graceful and has a distinctive dotted rhythm, reflecting the characteristic detached nature of the accompaniment.
Overall tempo is andante. Main pulse is a crotchet and the melody uses shorter note values, beginning with a double dotted quaver, the beat complete by a demisemiquaver.
https://musescore.com/user/95368/scores/1157371
The melody also features the use of staccato and, on three occasions, an acciaccatura, where the extra note is played in as short time as possible.
Hint - think about melody words for distance and direction
The sonata form
The sonata form has three main sections:
1.Exposition: here the main themes are presented. There are usually two: one in the main key or tonic and one in either the dominant (from a major key). The two themes also contrast in character and, invariably, in instrumentation. They are linked by a bridge passage or transition where the modulation takes place.
2.Development: here the themes, or ideas from within the themes, are developed, passing through a range of keys before returning towards the tonic for the recapitulation
3.Recapitulation: the main themes return, though the second subject (or theme) will invariably return in the tonic key (from a major key start) or the tonic major (from a minor key start)
The melody falls into two phrases, the first modulating to the dominant D major before continuing with a balancing with phrase which starts with the same two bars as the first phrase and then leads to a perfect cadence in G major. Notice that the two phrases are not equal in length. The first is four bars but the second is five: the extra bar is inserted after the restatement of the opening two bars. It gives an impression of a sequential extension of the second bar.