Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) invented the string quartet and turned the symphony into an unequalled art form. These great deeds keep him in our memory, for good reason. His concertos didn’t leave such a lasting impression. Perhaps because Haydn wasn’t a virtuoso – he didn’t excel as a soloist in his own concertos like Mozart did, who has played a much more important role in the evolution of the concerto.

However, Haydn wrote concertos his entire life; often in commission, when it was needed at the court of the Eszterházy, or if a befriended artist asked for one. His concertos can be divided into two periods. In his early period, he is still heavily influenced by the baroque concerto (the form of concertos wasn’t a novel idea, which may have limited Haydn’s creative energy). During his later period, he copies the form Mozart uses for his concertos and writes according to the Viennese model.

Today, we’ll listen to two concerts from this later period. First, the Cello Concerto no. 2 in D major, which he wrote for the Bohemian cellist Anton Kraft in 1783. Anton Kraft was Haydn’s colleague at the court of the Eszterházy. This work is an all-time favourite with cellists and the audience, so you’re likely to have heard it before.

The second piece is Haydn’s Sinfonia concertante in B-flat major. Its name can be misleading, as a sinfonia concertante actually isn’t a symphony with concerto elements. It is simply a concerto but with more than one solo instrument. As musical ideas and customs changed so dramatically during the Classical Period, the audience and composers got confused sometimes about how to name compositions. Haydn wrote this sinfonia concertante in 1792. The solo instruments are violin, cello, oboe and bassoon. Though the occasion for writing it isn’t entirely clear, it probably refers to the work of his pupil Ignaz Pleyel. Pleyel, an enthusiastic composer of sinfonie concertanti, had been hired by a large Viennese musical company as their in-house composer. Another company felt like it was a competition and wanted to show off with the works from the master.

The third piece today truly is a symphony– to be precise, Haydn’s Symphony no. 1 in D major. This is an early work and quite different in its style compared to the other two concertos.

Playlist

1. Cello concerto no. 2 in D major
2. Sinfonia concertante in B-flat major
3. Symphony no. 1 in D major

Performing

Quirine Viersen (cello), Combattimento Consort Amsterdam conducted by Jan Willem de Vriend (1)

Ilja Gringolts (violin), Nicolas Altstädt (cello), Alfredo Bernardini (oboe), Peter Whelan (cello). Ensemble Arcangelo conducted by Jonathan Cohen (2)

Philharmonia Hungarica conducted by Antal Dorati (3)