The Symphony No. 99 in

E major E major (or the key of E) is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, ...

(

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,69 ...

I/99) is the seventh of the twelve

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, ...

(Hoboken numbers 93–104) written by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

. The symphony was written in 1793 in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in anticipation for his second trip to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The work was premiered on 10 February 1794 at the

Hanover Square Rooms The Hanover Square Rooms or the Queen's Concert Rooms were assembly rooms established, principally for musical performances, on the corner of Hanover Square, London, by Sir John Gallini in partnership with Johann Christian Bach and Carl Friedric ...

in London, with Haydn directing the orchestra seated at a fortepiano. This concert series featuring Haydn's compositions was organized by his colleague and friend

Johann Peter Salomon Johann Peter Salomon (20 February 1745 aptized– 28 November 1815) was a German violinist, composer, conductor and musical impresario. Although he was an accomplished violinist, he is best known for bringing Joseph Haydn to London and for c ...

Instrumentation

The work is scored for two

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

s, 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. A ...

s, two

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

s, two

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

s, 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 ...

, two

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...

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 ...

. It is the first of Haydn's symphonies to be scored for clarinets, which suggests the influence of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

. Steinberg, Michael (1995) ''The Symphony: A Listeners Guide''. Oxford University Press (), pp. 229-232.

Movements

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 ...

, — Vivace assai, #

, #

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 accompa ...

e 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: Vivace, Haydn-I99-I-first-theme

The introduction to the first movement contains much tonal complexity in its fourteen measures. After the typical tonic-to-dominant opening, he prepares two successive minor-mode keys (E minor and C minor) before the introduction comes to a halt with a

fermata A fermata (; "from ''fermare'', to stay, or stop"; also known as a hold, pause, colloquially a birdseye or cyclops eye, or as a grand pause when placed on a note or a rest) is a symbol of musical notation indicating that the note should be pr ...

on a G major chord (the dominant of C minor). The winds then play a single soft chord (

dominant seventh In music theory, a dominant seventh chord, or major minor seventh chord, is a seventh chord, usually built on the fifth degree of the major scale, and composed of a root, major third, perfect fifth, and minor seventh. Thus it is a major triad tog ...

) of E which resolves immediately to the opening theme of the ''Vivace assai''.Heartz, Daniel, ''Mozart, Haydn and early Beethoven, 1781-1802'', p, 496, Norton (2009), The movement proceeds in sonata form with considerable breadth. After exploring the opening theme, there is an extended transitional section. When the dominant key of B major is reached we hear not a new theme but the opening theme again transposed implying this may be a monothematic exposition. A true second theme played by the violins and a solo clarinet finally does appear twenty-three measures later before the exposition rapidly comes to close.Brown, A. Peter, ''The Symphonic Repertoire'' (Volume 2). Indiana University Press (), pp. 270–275 (2002). The

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development hell, when a project is stuck in development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting *Development (music), the process thematic material is reshaped * Photograph ...

starts with two false starts of the opening theme in G major before the second theme is developed in a variety of keys. The recapitulation is greatly condensed with much of the transitional movement music removed and second theme appearing much sooner. The movement coda features the first theme over a tonic pedal played by first bassoon and second horn. The Adagio is similar to the slow movement of the 98th symphony in that features a hymn-like theme in triple meter. It is a

sonata-form Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...

movement in G major featuring rich orchestration. The opening theme features the winds echoing the strings. The transitional music that follows is written for winds only. The second theme in D major features doubled sonority. The development features two large climaxes where the trumpets and timpani enter. In the recapitulation, the transitional music previously heard in the winds is re-orchestrated for only strings. The second theme is restated twice and a smaller climax brings the movement to a close. The Minuet is in the key of E major with a trio in the distant key of C major. The finale is an example of the

Sonata rondo form Sonata rondo form is a musical form often used during the Classical music era. As the name implies, it is a blend of sonata and rondo forms. Structure Sonata and rondo forms Rondo form involves the repeated use of a theme (sometimes called ...

that Haydn frequently used in his later symphonic works.

Notes

External links

* {{Authority control Symphony 099 1793 compositions Compositions in E-flat major