Scoring. The Surprise symphony starts out soft and then has a big orchestral bang, to wake up sleepy concertgoers. The surprise here comes in the final movement. 29, and Haydn may have intended for a solo instrument to improvise a theme over the accompaniment. Haydn was put in charge of an orchestra of about 16 musicians, and for this ensemble he wrote his first symphony as well as numerous divertimenti for wind band or for wind instruments and strings. Purchase Nikolaus' successor, his son Anton, was not a great music fan and largely disbanded the family's musical establishment. Haydn's music contains many jokes, and the Surprise Symphony includes probably the most famous of all: a sudden fortissimo chord at the end of the otherwise piano opening theme in the variation-form second movement. Haydn wrote the symphony in 1791 in London for a concert series he gave during the first of his visits to England (1791–1792). Publication noted in the Bibliographie de la France 2e série, 63e année, Nº 28, 11 Juillet 1874, p.361, r.2053. It is usually called by its nickname, the Surprise Symphony. 94 in G major ‘Surprise’ Instrumentation Strings, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, bassoon, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani Movements I: Adagio cantabile – Allegro assai (G) II: Andante (C) III: Menuetto – Allegro molto (G) IV: Allegro di molto (G) Overview The second movement of this symphony is one of… The trio is "tuneless", similar to the Trio of the minuet in Symphony No. I can say papa Haydn did have a good sense of humor, and he employs it in other works, such as concerto #2 in … Many of Haydn’s symphonies contain more startling surprises than the one which has made his "Surprise" Symphony famous. The music then returns to its original quiet dynamic as if nothing has happened, and the ensuing variations do not repeat the joke. I didn't listen to this CD, because I sent it as a gift. Near the end of the movement, the "Turkish" instruments return coloring the tutti sections for the rest of the way. The Symphony No. The Symphony No. Franz Josef Haydn had served as Kapellmeister, or court composer, for Prince Nikolaus I Esterházy for 28 years by the time the Prince died in 1790. Rather, it was added by the composer as a “surprise” in the London premiere on March 23, 1792, later on it was part of the symphony in all perfromances. The glimpses of … 1791 Joseph Haydn Symphony No. Published here as Symphony No.3 in G. (And misfiled as Symphony Hob.I:3 in BDH's catalog.) Exploring the context of Franz Joseph Haydn’s “Surprise” Symphony and Jacques Offenbach’s Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld The use of surprise in the armory of the composer likely goes back as far as it has been part of the repertoire of the soldier. In the center of the movement is a development-like section which contains a surprise timpani strike followed by a traversal of many distant keys. 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