Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 86 in D Major
Franz Josef Haydn was at the peak of his fame in Europe when he wrote his ‘Paris’ symphonies (1785 to 86 ). The symphonies were not published with numbers corresponding to the order in which they were written; according to Haydn’s instructions to his publisher, it is likely they were written in the following order: 87, 85, and 83 (in 1785), followed by 84, 86, and 82 (in 1786). Six symphonies in two years was a fairly typical output for this prolific composer, among the last of the beneficiaries of “noble patronage” by which musicians composed their works at the whims of a grand, rich old family. Haydn was commissioned to write his Paris works by the Comte d’Ogny, one of the founders of the Concert de la Loge olympique, a Paris concert society. The Loge had its own orchestra, an uncommonly large one boasting forty violins and ten string basses. (The players also wore bright blue dress coats and swords during performances–a sight that was surely something to see!)
Haydn was no doubt excited to be able to write for such a large group, much bigger than the orchestra of his patron the Hungarian Prince Esterházy. Symphony No. 86 is the most richly scored of all of the Paris symphonies, and is generally considered to be the best of the lot. The work is also one of the most straightforward of Haydn’s later symphonies, without any “gimmicks” (such as the sudden sforzando of the “Surprise” symphony) and consequently without any nickname. All of the Paris symphonies were well-received by their audiences; a reviewer from the Mercure de France, described the 1787 Loge Olympique season as follows: “On all the concerts, symphonies by Monsieur Haydn were performed. Each day one understands better, and consequently admires more, the works of this great genius, who in each of his pieces wrests from a singular subject the most rich and varied developments.”
The first movement, Allegro spirituoso, opens slowly and simply, but with surprising outbursts from the full orchestra, which just as suddenly segues to brilliant motion. The movement develops to a series of contrapuntal dialogues and visits to unexpected harmonic terrain in Haydn’s endlessly inventive variations on its repeated-note motif.
That a movement labeled Capriccio is the slow one of the symphony (its tempo is marked Largo) seems counter-intuitive. But Haydn shows us how one can take a measured tempo and still be deliciously capricious in the use of sudden dynamic outbursts and harmonic surprises. The following Minuet and Trio evokes the feeling of a traditional Austrian Ländler in the stately dance, and features the bassoon in the rustic trio.
The finale, Allegro con spirito, lives up to its lively title. Beginning with brisk repeated eighth notes in the strings, the movement rushes off to further variations on this repeated-note theme, much as in the first movement. Everything stems from this theme, even the rondo that forms the development section. One can only echo the admiration of the Mercure de France critic at Haydn’s genius in creating “the most rich and varied developments” from his seemingly simple themes.