Week 12 : Symphony

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Schubert's Symphonies

•  Similarities to that of Beethoven, Haydn and Mozart.

•  Earlier symphonies influenced more by Haydn, Mozart and a lesser degree influenced by Beethoven.

•  1818-1822 He struggles with syphilis, Schubert strove to evolve a more individual, subjective conception of the four movement sonata ideal. All symphonies from this period remain unfinished.

•  Symphony in D D615 c. 1818

•  Symphony in D D708a c. sketches using tritone A flat major for the second group in the first movement.

•  Symphony in E D.729 c. minor mode introduction to the first movement, avoids exposition repeat. Three key exposition, unified thematic structure, includes trombones and four horns.

 

Symphony 1 D Major D.82 1813

•  Adopts Haydn's formal outline

•  Slow intro à sonata allegro form (Haydn's 2 nd set of London symphonies)

•  Slow (Mozart's Prague symphony)

•  Symphonic minuet in the tonic key

•  Light fast finale

•  Unusual call for the trombone

•  The first movement uses Beethoven's Eroica “Prometheus” theme.

 

Symphony 2 B flat major D.125 1815

I. Allegro à syncopated melody

II. Theme and Variation

III. C minor minuet

IV. 3 distinct key centers in the exposition.

 

Symphony 3 D major D.200 1815

Like Symphony 1 in its tonality and Mozart like surface.

I. Jaunty themes and IV buffo style finale à like that of Rossini.

 

Symphony 4 c minor D.471 “Tragic” 1816

I. Allegro

•  Mood: pathos and agitation rather than tragedy.

•  Same key as Beethoven's 5 th symphony.

•  Mozart like chromaticism with the slow introduction similar to Mozart's “dissonance quartet.”

•  The second group of the main theme in the Allegro goes to the submediant movement and ends in the major key.

II. Andante A flat major with two sections in minor.

III. Minuet E flat major à chromatic

IV. finale goes to the submediant for the second group and recasts the recapitulation in the major key à more coloristic than a true resolution.

 

Symphony 5 B flat major D.485 1816

•  Amiable themes

•  Transparent chamber like musical textures (no clarinets, trumpets or drums). Classical balance of thematic and structural elements.

•  Rather than repetition there is a general resolution. Sixteen new bars prepare for the finale cadence.

•  II Mozart invoked:: almost quotes the theme from minuet finale of the violin sonata in F major K377 which is indebted to K550 in G minor.

•  II, III, IV have an air of Haydn.

 

Symphony no. 8 in b minor “Unfinished Symphony.” 1822

•  Dedicated to the Musikverein of Graz à Schubert was an honorary member

•  New direction taken from his first six symphonies

•  Experimenter of standard tonal plans which characterize much of his large scale instrumental composition.

•  Like his D minor quartet (Death and the Maiden) he falls self consciously into Beethovenian mannerisms causing restrained rhetoric unlike Beethoven.

•  B minor key is unprecedented. Neither Haydn, Mozart nor Beethoven ever wrote symphonies in this key since it is difficult for the valvless brass. Schubert wrote for trumpets in E:: 3 key; cello theme, repcapitulation of the main theme withheld until the coda.

•  Brahms was instrumental in the performance of this symphony.

I. Allegro Moderato B minor

•  Begins eight measures in octaves by cellos and basses which is later used in the development. Modal sound due to the A natural (lowered seventh degree of b minor).

•  Quickly modulates to G :: short transition

•  Two melodies. The main theme and the famous dance-like music in G major à Related by distinct motivic connection, disjunct melodic motion with prominent leaps of a fourth or fifth as well as a rising three note stepwise motion

•  Development section à he confines himself to working out of the first of these melodies are Beethoven like à tense climaxes, insistent, repetitious melodic cell, syncopation. However it ends up not sounding like Beethoven. His materials don't lend themselves very well to Beethovian treatment.

•  All three melodies have a closed lyrical character. He uses finished products versus raw material suitable for development.

•  Climaxes led by the melody with rhythmic regularity.

•  Strong Features: Grace of parts, melodies, instrumental coloring, surprising harmonic turns.

II. Andante con Moto

•  E major ABABA form

•  Opening theme shared between horns, strings, woodwinds

•  Clarinet and oboe melody over syncopated accompaniment alludes to the first movement.

•  Volcanic tutti explosions

Symphony no. 9 C Major D. 944 1825 “Great”

•  Called “Great” to differentiate it from his other C major symphony no. 6, “ the little C major.”

•  Influenced by Beethoven's third symphony movement I. Movement II resembles Beethoven's seventh symphony movement II with the sense of wandering and pilgrimage. Schumann helped arrange the first performance of this symphony in 1839.

•  Here he finds his symphonic voice à lyrical, expansive, coulouristic. His most innovative. Thematic development in the style of Beethoven is still present but Schubert emphasizes melody more. This new style prompted Schumann to pursue his symphonic ambitions.

•  Performed by Mendelssohn and celebrated in the Neue Zeitschrift

•  Schumann claimed it was the greatest instrumental work since Beethoven while others criticized it (too long, week climaxes, boring as the melody is passed around)

•  Though Beethoven is credited as the first to use the trombone in a symphony (No. 5,6,9), Schubert was the first to fully integrate the trombone in the symphony. Beethoven used it as an effect, or as in the 9th, he used it to double the alto, tenor, and bass parts of the chorus which is common in sacred music and opera at the time. In Schubert's 9th, and the unfinished symphony, the trombones have more substantial roles. He gave solo roles to winds where Beethoven treated them as a group.

•  Enharmonic modulations.

•  Counterpoint is not focused on. (Mendelssohn and Beethoven studied counterpoint thoroughly.

•  Opening horn call which returns as a climax in the coda. ABACA Rondo structure which is atypical for Schubert to start this way.. Slow intro. The B theme based on A and opening theme based on the slow introduction.

•  Andante con moto in A minor- march like à compare with Beethoven's Sym 7 II. The accompaniment is similar to his Winterreise. He often borrowed melodies from his songs and used them in instrumental works.Scherzo à sonata form, alfresco dance

•  Finale à large. Triplet figures pushing momentum forward.

 

Symphony No. 10 D936a

•  Occupied him on his deathbed

•  3 movement sketched

•  Last movement combined the scherzo and the finale

•  Like the unfinished symphony first movement the second group lyrical main theme forms the emotional and structural center so much that the development opens with a slowed version of it.

•  II. Slow movement B minor foretaste of Mahler

•  III. Scherzo is a contrapuntal rondo-like with fugato, canon, double counterpoint, and augmentation. Schubert had renewed his studies in counterpoint the last weeks of his life.

 


Schumann's Symphonies

3 key exposition

2 themes

Shortened Recapitulation

Terminal development à which develops motto theme and introduces a new theme.

Development à repeated new theme ends with a slow introduction as a unifying device.

Second movements often his most attractive

Gustave Mahler made adjustments in his instrumentation.

 

Symphony 1 E flat major op. 38 “spring” 1841

•  1841 his symphonic year. He was urged by Clara to write in larger forms.

•  1840's he learned the style of Mendelssohn at the Leipzig conservatory.

•  Inspired by Beethoven and Schubert's 9th symphonies.

•  Used cyclical elements, motives returned in all the movements and he derived material from earlier motives.

•  Linked movements like Beethoven's Fifth symphony, III linked with IV.

•  Experimented with the sonata by eliminating or combining the development and recapitulation.

•  Programmatic without spelling out the program. He initially entitled each movement but later removed the names (influence from Beethoven Pastoral symphony). He was interested in the feeling of the program.

•  A lot of doubling to create a massive sound. Many instruments used as filler for the inner parts. Strings take on the accompaniment role.

•  He was not concerned with idiomatic colors of instruments

•  Piano figures used on instruments.

•  Has much more variety than the successors à light textured passages and flashesof woodwind color relieves the full orchestra sound.

 

I. Andante un poco maestoso-Allegro molto vivace

•  Sonata form close to Schubert's ninth.

•  Slow introduction, motto forming the basis of the first theme.

•  Dotted rhythm with accompaniment figures. Horn call à like Schubert's Great C symphony.

•  Acceleration and crescendo into the sonata form proper à Schubert influence.

•  The first theme has developmental treatment followed by a short transition on the dominant.

•  The second theme is in d minor then progresses to F major.

•  Elaboration, third relation, rhythmic figures all modeled on Beethoven.

•  Development section à has a new theme and repeats the development section but in a different key. At the end of the development is a return of the slow introduction

•  Uses a triangle

•  Recapitulation is greatly shortened, no fugal passages, with an extended closing terminal development.

II. Larghetto

•  Sectional ABA typical of character pieces

•  Melodious

•  Non chord tones for expressivity

•  Cantabile, central section in unison.

•  Solo oboe and solo horn

III. Scherzo

•  Molto vivace : trio 1

•  Molto piu vivace : trio 2

•  Hemiola usage idiosyncratic to Schumann.

•  Scherzo/trio/scherzo/trio/scherzo form

•  Contrasting color

IV Allegro animato e grazioso

•  Straight forward sonata form

•  Suffers predictability

•  Running scherzando eighth notes falling into even metrical patterns.

 

Symphony 2 C major op. 61 1846

•  Marked as his second but his third symphony was completed.

•  Sostenuto Assai - Allegro ma non troppo : slow brass chorale introduction similar to Bach. The Allegro has double dotted rhythms / sharp rhythms. Transformation of the introductory material.

•  Scherzo, Allegro vivace : C major with two trios à emphasizing the diminished chord.

•  Adagio espressivo, c minor, sonata, elegy like. Middle section is contrapuntal in texture.

•  Allegro molto vivace : free sonata form, The second theme is related to the opening theme of the Adagio. A new theme appears à inspired by Beethoven's An die Ferne Geliebte and Ode to Joy. The coda recalls material from the introduction.


Symphony 3 E flat major op. 97 “The Rhenish” 1850

•  Models the cyclic and triumphant aspects of Beethoven's fifth symphony

•  Heavily orchestrated, not enough melody with too much accompaniment

•  Woodwinds double the strings, almost never solo.

•  Horns and trumpets play in their middle register causing loss of textural clarity

•  Unsupported first violins

•  Second violins play harmonic arpeggiation

•  Last finished symphony

•  Five movements instead of four

•  Vif à triumphant theme in the strings, then the horns follow.

•  Scherzo: Tres modere à C major, slow, melody in the cellos, then strings and woodwinds play a faster motif. Woodwinds and horns play the theme in a minor.

•  Pas rapide

•  Solennel

•  Vif

 

Symphony 4 d minor op. 120 1841 revised 1851

1841 version used Italian rather than German tempo markings and had four movements. It had a lighter more transparent texture than the revision. Clara preferred the heavier, more stately version.

Five movements without pause

•  Ziemlich langsam-lebhaft

•  Romanza, ziemlich langsam

•  Scherzo-lebhaft

•  Etwas zurückhaltend-langsam

•  Lebhaft


 

Brahms' Symphonies

Wrote four symphonies

Was reluctant to write symphonies as he feared they would be compared to Beethoven.

Symphony 1 c major 1876

•  Most significant since Schumann

•  Modeled after Beethoven's 5 th (c minor à c major, linked movements).

•  Thematic and motivic connections:

•  Descending fourths

•  chromatic rising thirds

•  keys of successive movements depart and return to C by major thirds C-E-A flat-C.

•  Beethoven's 9th symphony : Brahms gave both outer movements a slow introduction. The introduction of the finale echoes the turbulent mood of the first movement and then brings forth two new elements. 1. the horn call 2. chorale like passage followed by resolution (C major melody is the first theme reminiscent of Beethoven's Ode to Joy).

•  Special Qualities à Contrapuntal density, fluid phrase structure, lyricism. Main theme of the first movement actually three different motifs presented simultaneously then immediately developed.

•  Phrases are of irregular, dynamic length. These phrases lead to even broader melodies.

 

Symphony 2 D major op. 73 1877

I. Allegro non troppo

•  More tuneful and warm with a melancholic side.

•  Influenced by Beethoven's fifth symphony in its idyllic nature.

•  The opening theme of the first movement is lyrical and leads into a more serious passage for timpani and trombones.

•  Recurring melody played by the violins

•  Large coda

II. Adagio non troppo

•  B major and in a modified sonata form

•  Numerous motives

•  Metrically ambiguous main theme which is tuneful and combines developing variation.

III. Allegretto grazioso

•  Original Special Quality à Revamps the traditional scherzo-trio alternation into a rondo like structure

IV Allegro con spirito

•  D major jubilant finale

•  Recalls earlier moods such as the chains of descending fourths (also heard in Mahler's symphony 1).

 

Symphony 3 op. 90 F major 1883

•  He achieved a new level of coherence

•  Shortest duration, each movement is about equal length.

•  The opening motive and theme return transfigured at the end of the finale

•  Compact, balanced à the most direct thematic recall in any of his symphonies

•  Juxtaposition of F major and f minor

•  Unique tonal scheme à outer movement centered on F major and inner movement on C major creating a plateau of harmonic tension in the dominant which suggests a large scale sonata form over the entire symphony.

•  The Andante is marked “semplice” and evokes an almost pastoral scene. He brings more complexity and expressive depth to this movement.

•  Quiet coda which seems much slower than it really is, managing to end the finale like a fast and a slow movement at the same time. This also coincides with the Romantic technique of cyclic recurrence, wit the rethinking of the first movement's coda within the finale's.

 

Symphony 4 e minor op. 98 1884-85

•  “Harmonic Congruence,” à Edward T. Cone

•  Vertically and horizontally the musical dimension is created from the same basic material à descending melodic thirds shape the main theme à Prefigures Schoenberg's idea of “unity of Musical space” where there is “no down, right, left, forward or backward.”

•  On a large and small scale, the tonal relationship E and C extend over the entire work

I. E minor : beginning of the recapitulation C major triad in a broad arpeggio.

II. E major : Phrygian inflections of the theme which recurrently evokes C major (as flattened sixth).

III. C major

IV. E minor : ostinato theme suggests a single harmonic framework. Variation (26-8) played in C major.

 

The Tragic Overture

•  Been compared to his first piano concerto.

•  More imposing structurally than thematically.

•  Resistant to explicit programmatic association.

•  James Webster,” The inevitability of tragic fate has rarely been so effectively suggested through purely musical means.”

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