Symphony No. 6 (Beethoven)

Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, also called the Pastoral Symphony,Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 Pastorale (Schott), ed. Max Unger, pg. viii is a symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven. The composer started the symphony in 1802 and finished the work in 1808 in the village of Heiligenstadt northwest of Vienna. It was first played in Vienna, Austria on 22 December 1808 in the Theater an der Wien with the Symphony No. 5 in C minor, the Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, the "Choral" Fantasy, "Ah! perfido!" (a concert aria composed in 1796), and parts of the Mass in C major of 1807.Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 Pastorale (Schott), ed. Max Unger, pg. xi

The symphony is programmatic, which is not like most of Beethoven's other works.

Instrumentation
The symphony is written for:

Woodwinds
1 piccolo (fourth movement only)
2 flutes
2 oboes
2 clarinets in B
2 bassoons

Brass
2 horns in F and B
2 trumpets in C and E (third, fourth, and fifth movements only)
2 trombones (alto and tenor, fourth and fifth movements only)

Percussion
Timpani in F and C (fourth movement only)

Strings
Violins I, II
Violas
Cellos
Double basses

Form

There are five parts, also called movements. This is not normal for symphonies in Beethoven's time, which often had four movements. The movements are:

{| class="wikitable"
!
!German name
!English translation
!Tempo marking
!Duration
!Key
|-
|I.
|Erwachen heiterer Empfindungen bei der Ankunft auf dem Lande
|Awakening of cheerful feelings on arrival in the countryside
|Allegro ma non troppo
|7-13 minutes
|style="white-space: nowrap;" |F major
|-
|II.
|Szene am Bach
|Scene by the brook
|Andante molto mosso
|9-13 minutes
|style="white-space: nowrap;" |B major
|-
|III.
|Lustiges Zusammensein der Landleute
|Merry gathering of country folk
|Allegro
|2-6 minutes
|style="white-space: nowrap;" |F major
|-
|IV.
|Gewitter, Sturm
|Thunder, Storm
|Allegro
|2-3 minutes
|style="white-space: nowrap;" |F minor
|-
|V.
|Hirtengesang. Frohe und dankbare Gefühle nach dem Sturm
|Shepherd's song. Cheerful and thankful feelings after the storm
|Allegretto
|7-11 minutes
|style="white-space: nowrap;" |F major
|} The work takes about 35-46 minutes to play. This changes based on the  tempo and whether the repeats in the 1st and 3rd movements are done.

References

 Further reading 

 Frogley, Alain (1995). "Beethoven's Struggle for Simplicity in the Sketches for the Third Movement of the Pastoral." Beethoven Forum, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 99–134.




 Lorenz, Christoph L. (1985). "Beethovens Skizzen zur 'Pastoralen.'" Die Musikforschung, vol. 38, no. 2, pp. 95–108.
 Russell, Tilden (Spring 2003). "Unification in the Sixth Symphony: The Pastoral Mode." Beethoven Forum, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 1–17.
 Will, Richard (Fall 2002). "The Nature of the Pastoral Symphony." Beethoven Forum, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 205–215.


 External links 


 Beethoven's Symphony No. 6 ("Pastoral") – A Beginners' Guide – Overview, analysis and the best recordings – The Classic Review
 Interview with Christoph Eschenbach

Symphony 06
Category:Compositions in F major