Franz Joseph Haydn:
Symphony No. 53 in D major, Hob. I/53 "L'Impériale" (with Score)
Composed: 1777 ca.
Orchestra: Royal Northern Sinfonia
Conductor: Rebecca Miller
00:00 1. Largo maestoso - Vivace (D major)
06:55 2. Andante (A major)
13:36 3. Minuet - Trio (D major)
4. Finale
-17:45 Version A: Capriccio. Moderato (D major)
-22:18 Version B: Presto (D major)
After his highly creative and dramatic symphonies composed between 1771 and 1774, the following period (through about 1784) for Franz Josef Haydn is marked by many conservative and, indeed, less creative compositions. Symphony No. 53 is, in fact, a pastiche of separately composed pieces of earlier periods and exists in at least three different forms. To further complicate the history, it is very unclear when the work was composed (the early date of 1774 has been all but refuted by modern scholars). Most agree that a good "soft" date for the work as it exists in symphonic form is about 1780.
Instead of the conspicuous drama of the Sturm und Drang style, the opening movement is decidedly insipid. It is unclear when the slow introduction was added, though it is reasonable to assume that it was added after the completion of the remainder of the movement. Though the opening of the movement proper is relatively uninspired in terms of form or orchestration, it contains enormous thematic density; the opening motive and its a variation on its inversion provide the melodic underpinning for the entire movement (even the second theme is a thinly veiled variation of this motive). Unable to hold himself back throughout the entire movement, Haydn subtly modulates to a distant key in the recapitulation and provides lush orchestration, perhaps to make amends for the dry opening.
The second movement is based on an old French chanson (a technique he used in other "pastiche" symphonies). Though well-constructed in terms of form, it lacks development.
The third movement is linked somewhat to the first; although relatively unobtrusive yet well composed, Haydn again cannot stifle his creative voice. In the minuet section, Haydn does a daring chromatic slide over a dominant pedal point. In so doing, he slithers into and out of harmonic regions surprisingly rapidly, which is in direct contrast with the relatively stable remainder of the movement.
The original finale, a capriccio, was crudely constructed and its attribution to Haydn is spurious, as it is markedly unlike any other movement composed by him, combined with a relatively weak melodic and harmonic character. The more common finale may have been originally the opening movement, and was almost certainly used as an independent overture to an opera in 1777. Additionally, it exists in no fewer than three distinct forms, two of which are found in separate manuscripts for this symphony. As the strongest movement of this motley symphony, this section is sprightly in nature and was used in a slightly different version in Symphony No. 62 • Haydn: Symphony No. 62... . In Haydn's lifetime it seems that another finale was published which is truly without merit and is certainly not by Haydn. However, some recordings after World War II utilize it despite its vapid melodic, harmonic, and formal contents.
All Music Guide
(www.allmusic.com/composition/...)
Wikipedia article
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphon...)
Haydn107
(www.joseph-haydn.art/en/sinfo...)
International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)
(imslp.org/wiki/Symphony_No.53...)
5 июл 2024
