The musical composition that I chose to share is Symphony No. 104 “London” written by Franz Joseph Haydn. This piece was written in London in 1795 and was performed at the King’s Theatre where many people were able to hear the beauty of his composition. To get started, lets give a little background on Haydn. As was presented in the course material, Haydn was a musical servant to the Prince of Hungary, Esterhazy. Not until after the Prince’s death was Haydn able to work freelance traveling and composing music in his own manner and under his own will. However, according to essentialsofmusic.com Hayden did not feel that his creative spirit was stifled under the demand for composition from the Prince. He instead insisted that he was able to explore his creativity while working daily with the musicians that would play his pieces. And as wikipedia quotes he was “forced to become original”. Essentialsofmusic.com also described that Haydn grew in popularity even in his solitude. As the overall popularity and availability of music began to spread in the Classical Era, Haydn was right there. His works were being published over the European countries and Haydn was being pursued to compose music for various performances in various cities. The 104th Symphony was his final symphony, he had been living in London and composing music for the masses to hear. This piece is very stimulating, in places the sound is heightened, but the drops to a soft, drawn out note only to heighten again. It never grows dull, and gives enough variation of sound, speed, and intensity to keep the audience captivated without overpowering the senses. I enjoy the strings through out the piece, but especially like the flutes that join in and become noticable around the 5 minute 30 second mark of the attached video.
Classical Piece
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Symphony No. 104 “London”is noticibly catching to the senses. What a beautiful performance that never leaves you in a dull moment. This reminds me of how I would to take my family to see a symphony performance when they perform at UAF.
You noted your sources well and provided great detail and supporting information in your analysis, well done! Hayden had such an advantage to travel and gain the feeling of what the masses desired to hear. Although, he was urged to be original this great hands-on opportunity was an enormous asset to his music success accross the landshe traveled and amoungst the masses to the musical performers he prepared compositions for. Where you able to find out any more information on his music’s popularity with the middle class rising? From the sounds of it, it seems like after the departure of him and the Prince, his pieces were performed for the growing masses in Europe and London, etc. Great selection! I also enjoyed the flute sections that appeared in minutes 4, 5 and 7. The strings were very sweet, too.