Symphony No. 99 (Haydn)
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The Symphony No. 99 in E-flat major (Hoboken 1/99) is the seventh of the so-called twelve London Symphonies (numbers 93-104) written by Joseph Haydn.
[edit] Date of composition and scoring
It was completed in 1793.
The work is in standard four movement form and scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani and strings.
It is the first of Haydn's symphonies to be scored for clarinets.
Although not as well known as the more famous of the London Symphonies, which include the "Surprise," the Military, the "Clock," and the "Drumroll," No. 99 remains nevertheless one of his most original creations.
The introduction to the first movement prepares two successive minor-mode keys (E minor and C minor) before deftly switching back to the correct key at the last possible moment, adding a touch of averted melodrama that is revisited with typically comic effect at various points in the symphony.
A hallmark of the symphony is Haydn's imaginative use of the wind choir, used to particularly poignant effect in the slow movement, in which some have found an elegy to mark the passing of his dear friend Marianne von Genzinger.[citation needed] If this was indeed Haydn's intention, his unusual use of trumpets in a slow movement must seem all the more surprising.
[edit] Movements
- I. Adagio - Vivace assai
- II. Adagio
- III. Menuetto e Trio. Allegretto
- IV. Finale: Vivace
[edit] External links
- Symphony No. 99 is available in PDF format from MuseData.org
- Symphony No. 99 was available at the International Music Score Library Project.
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