1779 – The Music part 1 - Specie d'un sinfonie

Hob I:	Key	NC	HRL	Name	Instruments
70	D	71	72		Flute, 2 Oboes, Bassoon, 2 Horns in D, 2 Trumpets in D, Timpani in D & A & Strings
75	D	73	73		Flute, 2 Oboes, Bassoon, 2 Horns in D & G, 2 Trumpets in D , Timpani & Strings
63 vers. 1	C	74	71	La Roxelane	Flute, 2 Oboes, 2 Bassoons, 2 Horns in C (alto & basso), 2 Trumpets, Timpani & Strings
63 vers. 2	C	74	71	La Roxelane	Flute, 2 Oboes, Bassoon, 2 Horns in C (alto & basso), & Strings

We close out the '770's with a symphonic year which shows the range Haydn has reached in recent years. Despite, or because of, the apparent disdain which some past musicologists have leveled at works like #63, I get a certain bemused enjoyment from simply liking to listen to them! But when there is a real reason to write a high quality, celebratory work, like beginning construction on the replacement opera house, Haydn proves yet again to be more than capable of rising to the occasion.

Symphony #63 in C (La Roxelane)

I	Allegro	C	3/4
II	(La Roxelane): Allegretto o più tosto allegro	Eb	2/4
III	Menuet: Allegretto – Trio	C	3/4
IV	Finale: Prestissimo	C	2/4

'Roxelana'
by Tiziano Vecellio [Titian] - 1550

If we recall 1777, we saw the Carl Wahr troupe performing their final dramatic play, Soliman II (Suleiman II), which was a German language adaptation of a comedy, The Three Sultans, by Charles Favart. As we have seen before, incidental music for plays was as transient as the next stop on tour. But in this case, it seems as though Haydn must have hung on to a bit of it, since the exotic-sounding second movement Allegretto of this symphony is reputed to be the entr'acte music associated with the erstwhile harem girl, now Sultana, Roxelane. There is no doubt this movement has a Turkish flavor to it, and if, in fact, it is not what it is reputed to be, then it surely came from another dramatic score which also had Middle Eastern roots. Currently under discussion is the idea that the entire movement was constructed from several entr'actes from the play, since it is a set of rather lengthy variations, each of which is suitable on its own to act as connecting movements for dramatic action. Yet another (unlikely, it seems to me) candidate is this being simply a character piece about Roxelane, although it seems as though there would have to be more than a mere fascination with a character to cause creation of a symphonic movement! Clearly there is a lot to be sorted out in the years to come.

But this isn't the only bit of recycled music appearing here! Right from the opening we've been saying to ourselves "hey, I know that piece…". Aha! Yes, it's the overture to Il mondo della Luna. Or at least an adaptation thereof with different orchestration. The final two movements are not without an air of mystery all their own, and indeed, their provenance is at the center of important questions, not least for deciding what instruments to use.

Landon feels there are two distinct versions, one of which uses a newly composed minuet and an old finale (maybe even from the late 1760's!!) to comprise the first version, and the second version with both a new minuet AND a new finale. Gerlach, whose lead we have chosen to follow in these pages, feels like the first version was merely assembled for a special occasion, a performance of something different perhaps, and when Haydn decided it had potential, he composed a new finale altogether. But the net result of accepting this thesis is that the Version I instrumentation goes away. And this instrumentation includes a second bassoon, trumpets and timpani. Webster pretty much calls everything before "Version 2" a preliminary draft. Truly this is one of those decisions requiring the proverbial Wisdom of Suleiman! One hates to lose such interesting instruments as trumpets, timpani or a bassoon!

However, this is one of those unusual symphonies where you can actually hear period instrument performances of both versions. Derek Solomons and L'Estro Armonico perform Version 1 with the trumpets and timpani as well as the second bassoon. The Academy of Ancient Music under Christopher Hogwood perform Version 2. The most obvious difference, of course, is the timpani, while closer listening reveals the textural gaps left by the trumpets and bassoon. Sometimes we give away too much in the name of authenticity, as much as I love the concept. I can't say I listen to the second version nearly as often as to the first one!

Symphony #70 in D

I	Vivace con brio	D	3/4
II	Specie d'un canone in contrapunto doppio: Andante	d & D	2/4
III	Menuet: Allegretto – Trio	D	3/4
IV	Finale: Allegro con brio	D	₵ (2/2)

When fire brought down the house in November, it wasn't even an issue of rebuilding, it was more a question of when it could be done. In the event, it took nearly a month before the cornerstone could be laid. As soon as that was taken care of, they all retired across the road for a drink and a new symphony by Haydn. The good life!

And quite a symphony it is, too. It is scored for one of the largest orchestras to date. And as Landon points out, it wouldn't be a truly celebratory work without counterpoint. No cheating on this one; Haydn names it 'an example of the rule of double counterpoint'.

It is an alternating set of Major/minor variations, of which Haydn was quickly becoming the preeminent practitioner. One of the amusements for this listener is the way the major mode sections manage to sound rather bright and sunny with no hint of counterpoint while the minor mode ones are quite serious and of course, inverted in their repetition of the original strain. As a contrast to the 'popular ' style of works he had been writing lately, it must have seemed as though he was being allowed to turn loose his inventive prowess for a change, and for a patron who could appreciate the quality of a tune he couldn't necessarily whistle. One can listen to this work and be hearing what Haydn would have been doing if the Prince hadn't gone off on a love affair with Italian opera and French and German drama. Among the symphonies of the last half of the decade, this is easily the best in terms of showing skill in the true art of composition!

Symphony 75 in D

I	Grave – Presto	D	3/4 - C
II	Poco adagio	G	3/4
III	Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio	D	3/4
IV	Finale Rondo: Vivace	D	2/2 ₵

The slow introduction is marked Grave (the only Haydn instrumental work for which this is so; usually he writes Adagio, occasionally Largo). It is, in fact, quite serious in character, more like his London symphony introductions. Overall, this is like a prototype of the symphonies of the '80's & '90's. With the slow introduction, the introspective slow movement of variations based on a hymn-like theme, a jaunty minuet and spirited rondo finale.

The second movement is the center of attention, in a way which is becoming standard in this period. The strings are muted (con sordino), and play a simple hymn-like theme which becomes the basis for the four variations to follow. The variations differ significantly: number two alternates very simple development with fanfares, number three uses solo strings with pizzicato accompaniment, creating an effect not unlike a serenade. Number four creates an effect of pastoral sadness. There is a short coda at the end which matches in style of the final variation.

An interesting event related to this movement is noted in the 1792 London Notebook, where Haydn tells us:

    On 26^th March [1792], at Mr. Bartholemon's Concert, an English clergyman was present who fell into the most profound melancholy on hearing the Andante: [here is given the incipit of this movement] because he had dreamt the previous night that this piece was a premonition of his death. –He left the company at once and took to his bed. Today, the 25^th of April, I heard from Herr Bartholemon that this Protestant clergyman had died.

I am pleased, but not inapprehensive, to have heard this particular 'Andante' (Poco adagio, really) many times now and emerged unscathed!

The minuet actually sounds danceable, unlike many of Haydn's minuets. The Trio features a nice alternation of the lead between the flute and the violin. The finale is a rondo, with occasional bouts of quite dramatic ensemble work alternating with just strings to make a marked contrast in tone color. Clearly though, the opening movements of this work are where the focus is. Stylistically, you will see them again!

I am philosophically disinclined to buy in to the seemingly commonly held idea that Haydn was somehow disturbed to be writing what is, in essence, popular music at this stage in his career. It flies in the face of what we read about his character generally. He relishes entertaining people, he gets enjoyment from providing enjoyment. He views composition as an art, and rightfully so, but it goes hand-in-hand with the art of entertainment, not in the sense of the 19^th century 'art for art's sake' concept. As we saw with the incidental music for Il distratto, he puts as much art and science into his music for dramas as he does into his operas. And this year, for all the range of intention of these three symphonies, there is yet no place where one can point to a different level of craftsmanship being applied to the one end or to the other.

Next time, some keyboard works which include the craftiest keyboard concerto before Mozart!

Thanks for reading!