The Symphony No. 49 in F minor (Hoboken I/49) was written in 1768 by Joseph Haydn during his Sturm und Drang period. It is popularly known as La passione (The Passion). The scoring of the symphony is typical of Haydn in this period: two oboes, bassoon, two horns, and strings.
As with all the other titles that have become attached to Haydn's symphonies, this did not originate with the composer himself. It was long believed that the nickname "La passione" or The Passion derived from the nature of the music itself: the slow opening movement of the sinfonia da chiesa, its minor key modality and its association with the Sturm und Drang period of Haydn's symphonic output. Drawing from this traditional reading, H.C. Robbins Landon has described it as "dark-hued, sombre – even tragic." [1]
However, the nickname can be traced back to a single source from a performance given during Holy Week in the Northern German city of Schwerin in 1790, where performance of secular music was banned between 1756 and 1785. This suggests that the name was derived circumstantially and not thematically and that reading the symphony as having a Passion-related motif is post-facto interpretation. As Elaine Sisman has discovered: [2]
The traditional view of this symphony is, however, strikingly at odds with the title transmitted in a Viennese source, now at the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde : "Il Quakuo [recte quacquero] di bel'humore" – that is, the good-humoured, good-natured or waggish Quaker. The complete inscription reads: "nel suo antusiasmo [sic] il Quakuo di bel'humore / questa Sinfonia serve di Compagna a quella / del Philosopho Inglese dell' istesso autore."
This suggests that, far from being a passion-related work, the symphony has, in part at least, a theatrical provenance – a fairly common origin for Haydn's symphonic works (See, e.g. Symphonies No. 59 and 60). There was, in fact, a popular play to which this inscription likely refers. Die Quäker was the title under which Chamfort's 1764 comedy La jeune indienne was published in German. It was a popular stage piece in Vienna during the late 1760s and early 1770s. It is possible, therefore, that the "dark-hued" reading of the symphony was, in fact, an insouciant characterisation of the earnest Quaker figure from Chamfort. [3]
The four movements follow what was by then an archaic Sonata da chiesa pattern: slow, fast, slow (minuet), fast. It was the last time Haydn was to follow this scheme in a symphony.
The symphony is homotonal as all the movements are in F minor, although the trio is in F major, providing a glimpse of brightness in the generally pessimistic scene. The two quick movements are notable for their forward drive and relentless energy.
Symphony No. 44 in E minor, Hoboken I/44, was completed in 1772 by Joseph Haydn. It is popularly known as Trauer. An apocryphal story relates that Haydn asked for the slow movement of this symphony to be played at his funeral.
Symphony No. 39 is a symphony in G minor by Franz Joseph Haydn in 1765, at the age of 33 under the beneficence of Prince Nikolaus Esterházy. It is the earliest of Haydn's minor key symphonies associated with his Sturm und Drang period works.
The Symphony No. 59 in A major is a relatively early work by Joseph Haydn that is known popularly as the Fire Symphony. Composed under the auspices of Nikolaus Esterházy, it was written in the middle or late 1760s.
The Symphony No. 26 in D minor, Hoboken 1/26, is one of the early Sturm und Drang Symphonies written by Joseph Haydn. It is popularly known as the Lamentatione. It was written under the auspices of Prince Nikolaus Esterházy, and is from the late 1760s, when Haydn began to experiment with minor key symphonic writing. It is also one of his first minor key symphonies.
Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 46 in B major, Hoboken I/46, was composed in 1772, during his Sturm und Drang period.
Symphony No. 83 in G minor, Hoboken I/83, is the second of the six Paris Symphonies written by Joseph Haydn in 1785. It was published by Artaria in Vienna in December 1787. It is popularly known as The Hen.
The Symphony No. 80 in D minor, Hoboken 1/80, is a symphony composed by Joseph Haydn in 1784 as part of a trio of symphonies that also included symphonies 79 and 81. This symphony, along with the one that follows it, and the one that precedes it, were not written for Prince Nikolaus, but for a Lenten concert performed in Vienna in March 1785. It is one of the relatively few later symphonies by Haydn to begin in the minor mode. Symphony No. 80 is highly structured with both outer movements in sonata form. There is a common modulation pattern seen in all four movements.
The Symphony No. 78 in C minor, Hoboken 1/78, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn completed in 1782.
The Symphony No. 60 in C major, Hoboken I/60, was written by Joseph Haydn. It is sometimes given the nickname Il Distratto or, in German, Der Zerstreute.
Symphony No. 65 in A major, Hoboken I/65, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn which was composed by 1778.
The Symphony No. 64 in A major is a symphony by Joseph Haydn dated between 1773 and 1775. The likely date of composition puts it at the tail end of the Sturm und Drang period that produced masterpieces such as symphonies 44 to 48. It is often known by the nickname Tempora mutantur.
The Symphony No. 52 in C minor is one of the last Sturm und Drang symphonies composed by the Austrian composer Joseph Haydn while the composer was in residence at Esterházy in 1771 or 1772.
The Symphony No. 56 in C major, Hoboken I/56, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn, composed by 1774. It is scored for 2 oboes, bassoon, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani and strings. This is the only symphony by Joseph Haydn where he calls for the usage of both C alto horns and trumpets. It is in four movements:
The Symphony No. 48 in C major, Hoboken I/48, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn written in 1768 or 1769. The work has the nickname Maria Theresa as it was long thought to have been composed for a visit by the Holy Roman Empress, Maria Theresa of Austria in 1773. An earlier copy dated 1769 was later found, but the nickname has stuck. The symphony composed for the empress's visit was most likely No. 50.
The Symphony No. 34 in D minor was written by Joseph Haydn. According to traditional chronology it was written in 1765, shortly before Haydn's Sturm und Drang period began in 1766, during his social withdrawal at Esterháza. However, more recent chronologies place it two years earlier, in 1763, which if correct would suggest that it is the first minor-key symphony Haydn ever wrote, though there is some uncertainty around chronology, with Symphony No. 26 being the traditional candidate, and Symphony No. 39 another candidate.
Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 47 in G major Hob. I:47 was probably written in 1772. It was nicknamed "The Palindrome".
Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 29 in E major, Hoboken I/29, was written in 1765, just after his 28th, and to be performed in Eisenstadt, under the benign auspices of Prince Nikolaus Esterházy.
Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 2 in C major, Hoboken I/2, is believed to have been written between 1757 and 1761.
The Symphony No. 18 in G major, Hoboken I/18, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn. The composition date is conspicuously uncertain. The Breitkopf catalogue entry assures that it was composed no later than March 1766, the date of the Esterhazy orchestra moving to Esterhaza, but most scholars believe it was composed at least a few years before then. Dates between 1757 and 1764 have been also suggested but not proven.
The Symphony No. 42 in D major, Hoboken I/42, is a symphony by Joseph Haydn. The symphony was composed by 1771. It is scored for two oboes, two bassoons, two horns and strings.
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