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CHAPTER 13 1. What types of music were typically performed at an eighteenth-century concert? In what ways did an eighteenth-century concert differ from a modern one? The eighteenth-century concert was an eclectic affair, which could often draw upon symphonic works, sacred vocal works, concertos, and instrumental solos in a single evening. Compared to our modern understanding of a concert, in which a succession of instrumental works (sometimes even by a single composer) are the sum of the performance, the contrast is striking. 2. How did the symphony originate? Who were some of its earliest composers, and where were their symphonies performed? What was the role of the Mannheim orchestra? The symphony was initially modeled after the Italian opera overture: Eventually, it evolved into a kind of free-standing entertainment which could be appended to any function, operatic or not; and finally, it became the pretext for such social functions rather than one of the subsidiary diversions of one. The most important composers of early symphonic works were Giovanni Battista Sammartini, whose works were performed in both Paris and his native Milan, and Johan Wenzel Anton Stamitz, whose works were often performed by the ensemble which he led, the Mannheim orchestra. Beyond performing these important early works, the Mannheim orchestra’s great technical ability (it was composed primarily of virtuosi) helped to expand the techniques and colors available to the symphonic composer. 3. Describe some stylistic and formal features of an early symphony, such as Sammartini’s Sinfonia in G. Sammartini’s Sinfonia in G is representative of many early symphonies. It is in three movements, all of which share a binary form that hinges upon a move to dominant and return to tonic. Its musical texture much resembles its Italian origins: homophonic, with a clearly defined melodic voice, and a leisurely harmonic rhythm. This Sinfonia even includes double returns in its movements, paired recapitulations of both the original melodic idea and the home key area. This technique would eventually come to be one of the hallmarks of sonata form, a device expected (if not achieved) in almost every symphonic work to come. 4. Describe the various types of musical symbolism Haydn used in his Symphony No. 45 (“Farewell”) to express his musicians’ wish to go home. The most obvious such symbol is found in the manner in which the instrumental parts drop out of the work’s finale—Haydn had instructed the performers at the work’s debut to stand up and walk off stage when their part had reached its completion. Beyond this very overt dramatic symbol, there are subtle clues to the musicians’ discontent as well. The work is in a key then unique to symphonic works, F# minor, itself a kind of “red flag” which clues the listener to hidden meanings. Its formal convolutions, and most notably its dreamy, off-tonic finale, point to an urge to flee from the solitude of the Esterháza residence and take refuge in the more social environment of Vienna. 5. Describe the main sections of a typical Haydn work in symphonic binary form. How does Haydn’s use of this form differ from the form that was later defined as textbook “sonata form”? A typical Haydn work in symphonic binary form begins with an A section with themes in both the tonic and dominant (this section being called the “exposition”), a B section which moves through a variety of keys before settling upon the dominant again (the “development”), and a return of A which does not modulate in its second appearance (the “recapitulation”). Haydn’s most visible departure from textbook sonata form was his use of a single theme in the exposition, a device he employed in Symphony No. 104 and countless others. 6. Compare and contrast Haydn’s Symphony No. 104 with Sammartini’s Sinfonia in G. What stylistic and formal innovations stand out most clearly? On many of the larger points, the two works coincide: Both make heavy use of binary form, both have clear, limpid textures, and both employ the double return previously discussed. Haydn, however, displays several innovations that are difficult to miss. Symphony No. 104 is in four movements, for instance, to Sammartini’s three. Haydn’s conception of the binary form is also much different from Sammartini’s: He treats it almost as if it were a ternary, granting the final return of A a measure of autonomy and importance that Sammartini does not. 7. Discuss Haydn’s contributions to chamber music. Why did he describe his Op. 33 string quartets as being written in “a new and special manner”? Haydn contributed sixty-eight quartets of astonishing quality to the chamber repertoire, a bequest which did much to solidify and enhance the genre as a whole. The “new and special manner” which Haydn indicates may have been merely an attempt at creating interest in these new, commercially available works; but just as likely it refers to the textural differences evident in any comparison between Haydn’s symphonic and chamber works. The chamber works have a greater emphasis on counterpoint than their symphonic counterparts: They treat the individual voices as equal members of the ensemble, which lends the work a taut inner cohesion not found elsewhere in his catalogue. 8. What circumstances led Haydn to write the oratorio The Creation? How does Haydn represent chaos at the beginning of this work? Haydn initially conceived of The Creation while living in England and working under the patronage of George III. Impressed by the nationalistic endearment which the English heaped upon English-language works by Handel, Haydn decided to similarly compose in the vernacular for his native Austria. The result was The Creation, a work which, while originally written in English, was quickly translated into German to satisfy Haydn’s desires. Haydn depicts chaos in the introduction of The Creation through the use of deliberately obscure harmonic motion: Haydn avoids beginning the work with a clear statement of tonic, preferring instead a vacuous pair of Cs, divided by an octave, which continually bewilder the listener with their harmonic waywardness.