Conducted by Christian Thielemann, the Wiener Philharmoniker (Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra) performs Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op 67. Written in 1804-1808, Beethoven’s fifth is one of the best-known compositions in classical music. It was first performed in Vienna’s Theater an der Wien (see notes 1) in 1808. Then, it became one of the most frequently played symphonies.
Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67, is one of the most iconic and influential works in classical music history. Composed between 1804 and 1808, it premiered in Vienna in 1808 during a four-hour-long concert that also featured other works by Beethoven. The symphony is renowned for its distinctive four-note motif, often described as “fate knocking at the door”, which opens the piece and recurs throughout, creating a sense of unity and drama.
The symphony is celebrated for its powerful expression of triumph over adversity, reflecting Beethoven’s personal struggles, particularly his encroaching deafness. This emotional intensity is conveyed through dramatic contrasts in dynamics, rhythm, and orchestration, making the work a prime example of the transition from the Classical to the Romantic era in music.
The orchestration of Symphony No. 5 includes strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion, and it was among the first symphonies to feature the piccolo, contrabassoon, and trombones, adding a richer, more varied sound to the orchestra. Beethoven’s innovative use of these instruments, alongside his skillful development of the opening motif, showcases his mastery of creating a narrative without words.
Symphony No. 5 has had a profound impact on both composers and audiences, symbolizing resilience and determination. Its influence extends beyond the concert hall, having been used in various cultural contexts, from wartime broadcasts to film scores, cementing its place as a cornerstone of Western music.
The symphony, and its four-note opening motif in particular (short-short-short-long), are well known worldwide, with the motif appearing frequently in popular culture, from disco to rock and roll, to appearances in film and television.
Movements
1. Allegro con brio
The first movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 opens with the four-note motif discussed above, one of the most famous motifs in Western music. It is in the traditional sonata form that Beethoven inherited from his classical predecessors, Haydn and Mozart (in which the main ideas that are introduced in the first few pages undergo elaborate development through many keys, with a dramatic return to the opening section (the recapitulation) about three-quarters of the way through).
It starts out with two dramatic fortissimo phrases, the famous motif, commanding the listener’s attention. Following the first four bars, Beethoven uses imitations and sequences to expand the theme, these pithy imitations tumbling over each other with such rhythmic regularity that they appear to form a single, flowing melody. Shortly after, a very short fortissimo bridge, played by the horns, takes place before a second theme is introduced.
This second theme is in E♭ major, the relative major, and it is more lyrical, written piano, and features the four-note motif in the string accompaniment. The codetta is again based on the four-note motif. The development section follows, including the bridge. During the recapitulation, there is a brief solo passage for the oboe in a quasi-improvisatory style, and the movement ends with a massive coda.
2. Andante con moto
The second movement, in A♭ major, the subdominant key of C minor’s relative key (E♭ major), is a lyrical work in double variation form, which means that two themes are presented and varied in alternation. Following the variations, there is a long coda. The movement opens with an announcement of its theme, a melody in unison by violas and cellos, with accompaniment by the double basses.
A second theme soon follows, with a harmony provided by clarinets, bassoons, and violins, with a triplet arpeggio in the violas and bass. A variation of the first theme reasserts itself. This is followed up by a third theme, thirty-second notes in the violas and cellos with a counterphrase running in the flute, oboe, and bassoon. Following an interlude, the whole orchestra participates in a fortissimo, leading to a series of crescendos and a coda to close the movement.
3. Scherzo. Allegro
The third movement is in ternary form, consisting of a scherzo and trio. It follows the traditional mold of Classical-era symphonic third movements, containing in sequence the main scherzo, a contrasting trio section, a return of the scherzo, and a coda. However, while the usual Classical symphonies employed a minuet and trio as their third movement, Beethoven chose to use the newer scherzo and trio form. The third movement is also notable for its transition to the fourth movement, widely considered one of the greatest musical transitions of all time.
4. Allegro
The finale of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 begins without pause from the transition. The music resounds in C major, an unusual choice by the composer as a symphony that begins in C minor is expected to finish in that key. In Beethoven’s words: “Many assert that every minor piece must end in the minor. Nego! .. .Joy follows sorrow, sunshine – rain.” The triumphant and exhilarating finale is written in an unusual variant of sonata form: at the end of the development section, the music halts on a dominant cadence, played fortissimo, and the music continues after a pause with a quiet reprise of the “horn theme” of the scherzo movement.
The recapitulation is then introduced by a crescendo coming out of the last bars of the interpolated scherzo section, just as the same music was introduced at the opening of the movement. The interruption of the finale with material from the third “dance” movement was pioneered by Haydn, who had done the same in his Symphony No. 46 in B, from 1772. It is unknown whether Beethoven was familiar with this work or not. The Fifth Symphony finale includes a very long coda, in which the main themes of the movement are played in temporally compressed form.
Towards the end, the tempo is increased to presto. The symphony ends with 29 bars of C major chords, played fortissimo. In The Classical Style, Charles Rosen suggests that this ending reflects Beethoven’s sense of Classical proportions: the “unbelievably long” pure C major cadence is needed “to ground the extreme tension of [this] immense work.” It has been shown that this long chord sequence was a pattern that Beethoven borrowed from the Italian composer Luigi Cherubini, whom Beethoven “esteemed the most” among his contemporary musicians.
Spending much of his life in France, Cherubini employed this pattern consistently to close his overtures, which Beethoven knew well. The ending of his famous symphony repeats almost note by note and pause by pause the conclusion of Cherubini’s overture to his opera Eliza, composed in 1794 and presented in Vienna in 1803.
Notes
- The Theater an der Wien is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served primarily as an opera house, hosting its own company.
Sources
- Symphony No. 5 (Beethoven) on Wikipedia
- Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67 on the Encyclopedia Britannica website
- “Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5: A Deep Dive into Its Significance” on the L. V. Beethoven website
- “Analyzing Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5: The Famous Four Notes” on the L. V. Beethoven website
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