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▬▬▬(ஜ۩۞۩ஜ)▬ BEETHOVEN ▬(ஜ۩۞۩ஜ)▬▬▬

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 8, Full version
Conducted by Bruno Weil (Tafelmusik Orchestra)

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The 8th Symphony is a fine blend of classical simplicity and Beethoven's innate progressive power. Beethoven always made sure that one Symphony was different from the other. In other words, each of his Symphonies has a different taste and a different meaning. Also, each movement within one Symphony always has its own unique pattern, yet all the movements within a given work are progressively united. Symphony No. 8 in F Major (Opus 93) was started in the summer of 1812, immediately after the completion of the Seventh Symphony. The work took Beethoven only four months to complete. The audience received the 8th with a festive mood as it is playfully exuberant, yet innovative and sensational.


Movement I - 'Allegro vivace e con brio'

The first movement is the extreme of pace and vitality. From the outset we realize that the sharpness of the work is the result of Beethoven's conceptualization of definite themes that fundamentally unite the whole composition. The first movement is a crystalline example of sonata form including a fairly substantial coda. It is almost as if Beethoven had challenged himself to return to the pure sonata form with its key relationships and structural balance. This movement is in the home key of F major and is in fast 3/4 time. The concluding bars of the development form a huge crescendo, and the return of the opening bars is marked fff (fortississimo), which rarely appears in Beethoven's works, but has precedents in the 6th and 7th Symphonies.


Movement II - 'Allegro Scherzando'

The second movement gives us a bright and sunny feeling. There is a widespread belief that this movement is an affectionate parody of the metronome, which had only been recently invented at that time. It is said that Beethoven wrote this movement as a tribute to his friend Johann Maelzel who invented the metronome and other mechanical gadgets. An element of gentle and affectionate expression is present in this movement. Beethoven effectively discarded any development which would add too much weight to this light and airy movement. For instance, the trumpets and timpani were left out, thereby preventing the music from taking on any degree of pretension or grandiosity. This implies a similarly easy-going and unpretentious approach from the composer. The movement progressed as innocently as it began, with a return to the motif of rapid 64th notes (hemidemisemiquavers).


Movement III - 'Tempo di Menuetto'

The third movement flows with a magnetizing beauty. It bears a consciously retrospective air with its explicit title 'Tempo di Menuetto'. It is serene in nature, inducing a feeling of calm breeze where one melts away with the fluid of joy. A two note 'hunting call' plays an important role in the 'minuet', while the trio is more relaxed, with a beautifully flowing melody in the upper strings contrasted with the 'hunting' French horn and a more vigorous bass figure. This minuet is written in ternary form, with a contrasting trio section containing prized solos for horns and clarinet. Here, the general outline of minuet-trio-minuet form is followed. Beethoven used a modernized and refined pastoral approach to transform this into a style that is distinctively his own.


Movement IV - 'Allegro Vivace'

The delicate opening of the finale belies what is in fact a rather flashy piece of extreme pace which matches that of the opening movement. It is written in a version of sonata and rondo qualities. Beethoven provides interesting color effects by having the timpani tuned to octave F's, an effect he was to repeat in the scherzo of the 9th Symphony. The coda is one of the most elaborate and substantial in all of Beethoven's works.

There are multiple ways to label the structuring of this movement. However, in this analysis, a sonata form with two recapitulations and two developments seems to work the most effectively. Even though the form is surprising, Beethoven puts every effort to make sure the listener does not get lost and can enjoy the surprises along the way. The length of the entire finale overshadows the other movements and is exemplary of the shift of weight that was occurring in Beethoven's Symphonies.

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Conclusion

The essence of this Symphony is energy in a simple form. For the most part, this energy wears a cheery and jovial face. Beethoven just wanted to deviate from the usual heaviness that characterizes his previous Symphonies by presenting the 8th Symphony in a plainer, light-hearted way.

The 8th is the shortest of all Beethoven's Symphonies, hence Beethoven called it "My Little Symphony in F Major," distinguishing it from his Sixth Symphony, a longer work also in F Major.