Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Opus 67 First performed 22nd December 1808 1. Allegro con brio 2. Andante con moto 3. Allegro - attacca - 4. Allegro The most famous symphony of them all. Without doubt the most recorded and performed of all symphonies, with two recorded performances dating from betöre World War One - and so over a Century of recordings charting its onward march through our collective consciousness. Those opening tour notes, da-da-da-dum, instantly recognizable and known in nations and cultures across the globe. And yet how offen do we sit and listen to a complete performance of this 30-minute symphony? Concision is the key to the opening Allegro con brio, at less than seven minutes it is the shortest opening movement of all nine symphonies, even with its exposition repeat. The significance of those four opening notes has been much discussed. His pupil Czerny reported that Beethoven told him that the famous opening was inspired by the persistent call of the yellowhammer which he heard on his daily walks in Vienna. Later his factotum Anton Schindler quoted Beethoven remarking, ‘thus Fate knocks at the door’, in relation to these same four notes. Although Schindler has been shown to be an unreliable witness on many occasions, his reported description fits in with our conception of the Symphony as a whole and will forever be associated with the start of its great journey. Indeed, the Symphony is sometimes referred to as ‘Fate’ in a subtitle. But otherwise the Fifth is one of those few symphonies known by its number alone, like Mozarts Fortieth. The key of C minor had a special significance for Beethoven and he does seem to have associated it with the expression and resolution of his feelings of anger, most famously the Fifth Symphony and the Pathetique Piano Sonata. Gathering together his various compositions in this key gives us the opportunity to hear the different ways in which he resolved the conflicts, sometimes achieving a resolution through struggle, sometimes a simpler acceptance of his Situation and occasionally no simple resolution at all. Earlier works to consider are the Pathetique Piano Sonata, String Quartet, Opus 18 no. 4 and the Third Piano Concerto. Contemporary with work on the Fifth Symphony include his Coriolan Overture and 32 variations on a theme in C minor for solo piano. Two of the works that were also premiered at the mammoth concert that launched the Fifth Symphony on 22nd December 1808 also share the same journey from C minor to C major: the Agnus Dei from his Mass in C and the Choral Fantasy, Opus 80. His final Piano Sonata, Opus 111 suggests serene acceptance as we move from the stormy opening movement to the variations in C major, ending in heavenly silence. And so, journeying through Beethoven’s varied works in C minor perhaps provides us with Beethoven’s personal guide to anger management. The Orchestration of the Fifth is restrained, the extra instruments (piccolo, contrabassoon and three trombones) only appearing at the start of the Finale. So it is truly remarkable the power that he achieves in the opening movement with the same resources of the classical Orchestra inherited from Haydn and Mozart. The tension of the first movement is only interrupted by the brief cadenza for solo oboe just after the start of the recapitulation, the relentless rhythm then hurtling to its angry conclusion. The second movement provides contrast and respite, although some may be inclined to agree with Helen in E M Forster’s Howard’s End about its disconnection from the rest of the Symphony: ‘For the Andante had begun - very beautiful, but bearing a family likeness to all the other beautiful Andantes that Beethoven had written, and, to Helen’s mind, rather disconnecting the heroes and shipwrecks of the first movement from the heroes and goblins of the third.’ (Chapter 5)
