I find it rather more easy to digest the symphonies (and other works too) when they are served up in chunks which are smaller than the entire oeuvre. So, here in Part 1, then, are the pre-Esterházy symphonies or the Morzin symphonies as they are usually called.
The column which I have called 'New Chronology' is taken from the 'www.Haydn107.com' website. That site doesn't present any documentation for their decision-making process, but I have recently discovered that the data through 1774 is the result of intensive research by Sonja Gerlach. Her book, Joseph Haydn's Sinfonien bis 1774: Studien zur Chronologie (Joseph Haydn's Symphonies up to 1774: Studies of the Chronology) is the current Last Word on the subject.
The second column, headed 'HRL' is the order presented by H.C. Robbins-Landon, taken from his monumental 1955 book The Symphonies of Joseph Haydn, the book that truly launched the modern era of Haydn research. As you can see already, and with even more to come, much of the 'new chronology' matched Landon fairly closely. So the 50+ years of research completed since then haven't made him out to be too wrong.
The final column, the 'Hoboken Number', is, as explained previously, the number given by Eusebius Mandyczewski in his 1907 monograph completed for the Vienna Society for the Friends of Music. While the chronology may be (very) faulty in places, the major contribution here is that all the symphonies were identified correctly. Two have been added and zero have been taken away, a notable accomplishment in a series of such depth. So here, then, are the first fifteen symphonies, ranging in date from 1757 to 1760. As always, questions and/or comments are welcome. At the end, I added in two more symphonies which seem to fall on the cusp of being either Morzin or early Esterházy (Hob 15 & 3). I am betting that if the issue is ever resolved, it will fall in favor of the earlier dating rather than the later one. For now, I am listing them in both categories.
|
Year |
New Chronology |
Key |
HRL |
Hob I # |
Name |
Instruments |
|
1757 |
1 |
D |
1 |
1 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1757/8 |
2 |
C |
2 |
37 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings (opt. 2 Trumpets, Timpani) |
|
|
1757/9 |
3 |
G |
3 |
18 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1757/9 |
4 |
C |
5 |
2 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1757/60 |
5 |
D |
10 |
4 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1757/60 |
6 |
G |
16 |
27 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1758/60 |
7 |
D |
11 |
10 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1758/60 |
8 |
C |
19 |
20 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns, 2 Trumpets, Timpani & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
9 |
F |
8 |
17 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
10 |
D |
4 |
19 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
11 |
Bb |
17 |
107 |
Symphony A |
2 Oboes, 2 Bassoons & Strings |
|
1760/1 |
12 |
C |
24 |
25 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
13 |
Eb |
14 |
11 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
14 |
A |
13 |
5 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1760/1 |
15 |
C |
12 |
32 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns, 2 Trumpets, Timpani & Strings |
|
|
1761 |
16 |
D |
9 |
15 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |
|
|
1761 |
17 |
G |
18 |
3 |
2 Oboes, 2 Horns & Strings |