Beethoven : Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67

Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

This is undoubtedly the most famous symphony ever written. As early as 1913 it received a complete recording (the first symphony so honoured), and has formed the basis of a vast literature of musical analysis in which it has usually been cited as the “ideal” model of a classical symphony, as in Leonard Bernstein’s famous lecture presented on CBS television in the 1950s.

The symphony is actually far from being a “typical” symphony, in view of some unique structural and expressive elements. There are a number of striking innovations, including the arresting opening of the first movement, the first appearance in a symphony of piccolo and trombones (finale only), the oboe cadenza in the opening movement, the linking of third and fourth movements, and the startling expansion of the coda of the finale. Probably too much has been made of the celebrated four-note motive (or “motto” which launches the symphony---the famous “V for Victory” [V = …_ ] which a music-loving Morse Code telegrapher caused to become an ironic symbol of the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. It is true that Beethoven brought about a massive germination of that “motto” motive, as much rhythmically as melodically, growing into an elaborate musical structure extending across the breadth of the entire work. But more significant is the way in which the complete four-movement span of a symphony has been conceived on a vast interlocking, integrated basis.

The first movement forms the familiar textbook example of sonataform, with the famous “motto” hammered out twice in succession as briefest of introductions. The first subject witnesses a rapid chain-reaction expansion of the motto (and especially of its rhythm), expanding in power and density. Without hesitation we are plunged into the momentary lyrical contrast of the second subject---but even here the restless motto-rhythm is heard (under the surface) without let-up. The motto theme utterly swamps the development, pushing quickly back for a roaring recapitulation. It is there, seconds after the return of the first subject, that the still voice of the oboe momentarily brings the irresistible momentum of the music to a halt in a still, pleading cadenza. Then back to the business at hand, which rushes forward, extended in a tempestuous coda, almost as if Beethoven still has much on his mind before concluding.

The slow movement takes a leaf from the book of Beethoven’s old teacher, Josef Haydn: a “double” variations, in which a contrasting pair of themes are carried forward, varied in tandem. First the suave, meditative A-flat major melody in the 'celli, passed on to the winds, then upper strings. The second variation theme strides in quite unexpectedly, a clarion call in the trumpet in C Major, followed by a hushed, reflective rounding out of the section. This pairing of sharply contrasted themes is heard three times, each time with greater elaboration and embellishment. What seems to be a fourth cycle turns out to be an eerie shift into A-flat minor, the first theme taking on a quite different character, then returning to the home key in a full-throated richness. Before fading away a variant of the first theme is heard in the bassoon, the tempo quickens, and in a restless mood the movement shudders to a conclusion.

The scherzo opens quite deceptively with a hushed theme in lower strings in unison, soon answered by a bold, fanfare like theme heard in the horns, one quite distinctly reminiscent of the “motto” motive. The trio is a high-spirited contrapuntal whirl in C Major, beginning with the lower strings called upon to play with an unaccustomed dexterity and dash. The scherzo returns, now on tiptoe, utterly still. Then, in one of his most original strokes, Beethoven spins a link to the finale, in fifty bars of utter musical stasis: a moment of icy calm, with a sustained C over the timpani’s ghostly “telltale heartbeat.” Suddenly the music swells to the unforgettable moment when “like dazzling sunlight the splendid theme of the last movement bursts forth in the exulting chorus of the full orchestra,” and the writer E. T. A. Hoffmann wrote in 1810.

The finale strides in with confident music of rejoicing without parallel in the symphonic literature. Whatever be the “meaning” of the symphony, here we have arrived at a moment of utter triumph. The fanfare-like first subject is succeeded by an equally exuberant second subject (interwoven with rhythmic echoes of the first movement “motto”). The giddy energy of the movement drives onward, nearing what seems to be the point of recapitulation only to have the mood of shattered with a cold splash of “Lest we forget”: a ghostly recollection of the scherzo, a haunted visitor from the past, almost a musical admonition… But the tapping rhythm of the scherzo gradually subsides, and Beethoven redoubles his energies in sailing home to the recapitulation. Here the trombones, newcomers to the orchestra, add their stentorian touches, and the music blusters forward into the massive coda, where the brightness of the piccolo gives a special edge to the huge splashes of sound. This coda is a “tail” which all but wags the entire symphony, bringing it to a resounding finish.

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