Symphony No. 76 in E major (Hoboken 1/76) is a symphony by Joseph Haydn completed in

1782 Events January–March * January 7 – The first American commercial bank (Bank of North America) opens. * January 15 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris goes before the United States Congress to recommend establish ...

Early set of symphonies for London

, almost a decade before Haydn composed the first of his famous

London symphonies The London symphonies, sometimes called the Salomon symphonies after Johann Peter Salomon who introduced London to Joseph Haydn, were composed by Joseph Haydn between 1791 and 1795. They can be categorized into two groups: Symphonies Nos. 93–98, ...

, he composed a trio of symphonies – 76, 77 and 78 – for a trip to London which fell through.HC Robbins Landon, Haydn: Chronicle and Works, 5 vols, (Bloomington and London: Indiana University Press, 1976-) v. 2, Haydn at Eszterhaza, 1766-1790 Haydn wrote the following to his Paris music publisher Boyer on 15 July 1783:Brown, A. Peter, ''The Symphonic Repertoire'' (Volume 2). Indiana University Press (), pp. 194-195 (2002).

Last year I composed 3 beautiful, magnificent and by no means over-lengthy Symphonies, scored for 2 violins, viola, basso, 2 horns, 2 oboes, 1 flute and 1 bassoon – but they are all very easy, and without too much ''concertante'' – for the English gentlemen, and I intended to bring them over myself and produce them there: but a certain circumstance hindered that plan, and so I am willing to hand over these 3 Symphonies.

It is not known how much Haydn knew of the tastes of English audiences, but the three symphonies do possess a polish and style typical of London composers such as Johann Christian Bach and

Carl Friedrich Abel Carl Friedrich Abel (22 December 1723 – 20 June 1787) was a German composer of the Classical era. He was a renowned player of the viola da gamba, and produced significant compositions for that instrument. Life Abel was born in Köthen, ...

. As noted in the letter, the winds have very few measures where they do not support the strings, they are used primarily to add color.

Movements

The symphony is scored for flute, two

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

s, two bassoons, two

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

and

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

. There are four movements: #

Allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton * ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...

, #

Adagio Adagio (Italian for 'slowly', ) may refer to: Music * Adagio, a tempo marking, indicating that music is to be played slowly, or a composition intended to be played in this manner * Adagio (band), a French progressive metal band Albums * ''Adagi ...

, ma non troppo #

Menuetto A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accomp ...

& Trio:

Allegretto In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

, #Finale:

ma non troppo, The slow movement is a

rondo The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period. Etymology The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round". Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...

with two episodes. The first two instances of the refrain are scored for strings only while the episodes and the final refrain are scored for the full orchestra. The first episode is in the minor and features the winds softly playing over the low strings while the second episode is much more agitated and features the full tutti. Each recurrence of the refrain is enhanced with improvisatory variation, so that when the final refrain settles on a cadential chord and breaks into a cadenza, the listener is not surprised.Brown, A. Peter, ''The Symphonic Repertoire'' (Volume 2). Indiana University Press (), pp. 195-197 (2002).

Use in Robert Simpson's Fourth Symphony

English composer Robert Simpson, a great admirer of Haydn's music, used a theme from the second group of the first movement of this symphony in his Symphony No.4 of 1972. Here the theme is used in the Scherzo second movement to signify imperturbability; the main scherzo theme batters against it in vain, and after it disappears from the music the scherzo theme is even more enraged than it was before.

Notes

References

*Robbins Landon, H. C. (1963) ''Joseph Haydn: Critical Edition of the Complete Symphonies'', Universal Edition, Vienna {{Authority control Symphony 076 1782 compositions Compositions in E-flat major