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Joseph Haydn
His Life
Born in Rohrau in 1732, the son of a wheelwright, he was trained as a chorister at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, where he made his early living, before appointment to the small musical establishment of Count Morzin in 1759. In 1760 he entered the service of the Esterházy Princes, and succeeded to the position of Kapellmeister on the death of his predecessor and immediate superior Gregorius Werner in 1766. Much of Haydn's life now centred on the magnificent palace and estate at Esterháza, where his employer Prince Nikolaus Esterházy had moved his entourage for most of the year. The death of the Prince in 1790 released Haydn and allowed travel to London. There followed further service of the successors of Prince Nikolaus, now at the former residence at Eisenstadt, and concluding retirement in Vienna, where he died in 1809, as the soldiers of Napoleon again entered the city.
Read more of Haydn's life and times
The London Symphonies
Haydn planned two extended concert tours to London, the first tour lasting from New Year's Day, 1791, to June, '92, the second occurring three years later. Both visits were coordinated by Johann Peter Salomon, a German-born violinist and conductor now working as a concert promoter in London. Well aware of Haydn's popularity in the English capital, Salomon arranged for Haydn to conduct weekly concerts, the highlight of which would be a series of new symphonies and other works written especially for London. His expectations of success were high, and ultimately, those expectations were rewarded. The concerts were a critical and popular success. One critic observed, "It is no wonder that to souls capable of being touched by music, Haydn should be an object of homage, and even of idolatry; for like our own Shakespeare, he moves and governs the passions at his will." Haydn's victory was so complete that even Oxford University participated, awarding him an honorary Doctorate of Music. On that occasion, his Symphony no. 92 was performed, and though the work had been composed for Paris, it would no be known forever as the "Oxford" Symphony. For each of these two English tours, Haydn composed six symphonies, the final twelve symphonies he would ever write. At the very end of the series stands his Symphony no. 104. Its first performance, at the King's Theatre in the Haymarket on May 4, 1795, was an immense success. "I made 4000 Gulden on this evening," the composer observed to his diary. "Such a thing," he continued, "is possible only in England." But it was more than a fiscal success. Critics, too, were delighted. One review, from The Morning Chronicle, is worth quoting at length: "It is with pleasure we inform the public, that genius is not so totally neglected as some people are too apt to conform. The Benefit of Haydn, was at the Great Concert Room of the King's Theatre, on Monday night; and attended, not only by the best judges and dearest lovers of music, but by a distinguished and crowded Assembly. More than half the pieces performed were of Haydn's composition, and afforded indubitable marks of the extent and variety of his powers¼ He rewarded the good intentions of his friends by writing a new Overture [Symphony] for the occasion, which for fullness, richness, and majesty, in all its parts, is thought by some of the best judges to surpass all his other compositions. A Gentleman, eminent for his musical knowledge, taste, and sound criticism, declared this to be his opinion, that for fifth years to come Musical Composers would be little better than imitators of Haydn." Haydn's second London visit came to an end August 15, 1795, as he returned to Vienna to resume his duties at the Esterházy court.
Haydn's London Symphonies - Part I
Symphony No. 93 in D major
Symphony No. 94 in C major "Surprise"
Symphony No. 95 in C minor
Symphony No. 96 in D major "The Miracle"
Symphony No. 97 in C major
Symphony No. 98 in B flat major
A Deutsche Grammophon production of Eugen Jochum conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra
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