Symphony No. 30 (Haydn)

Description#

The Alleluia chant of the first movement has been confused with the principal melodic line in the finale of Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 in C major. Mozart did use this Alleluia chant melody for his Alleluia Canon, K. 553, written shortly after he completed his C major symphony. The work is scored for flute, two oboes, bassoon, two horns, trumpets, timpani, and strings with continuo. The use of timpani in this symphony remains an unresolved matter. In his cycle, for example, Antal Doráti omits them. Several more recent performances, however, have included timpani. The work is in three movements: The Alleluia motif dominates the first movement. It is the first theme; the second theme is also derived from it and it is also included in the closing material of the exposition. In the development, after the first theme is restated, the first three notes of the motif (do-re-mi) are repeated seven times at different pitch levels against sixteenth-note accompaniment. The second movement contains numerous solo concertante passages for the flute. The rare choice of the dominant key for a second movement (subdominant was more common in Haydn) was likely because G major was a favorable key for the flute.

See also#

*List of symphonies by name

External links#

• Dominy Clements, Review of ‘Haydn: The Complete Symphonies’ (Nimbus). Music Web International website, 9 March 2009