Symphony No. 49 in F Minor

Haydn composed his vividly original Symphony No. 49 in F minor in 1768 for his patron Prince Nikolaus Esterházy. Its nickname “La Passione”—“The Passion”—is not authentic but was probably suggested by the seriousness of the music (presumed to refer to Good Friday). The symphony was better known in the 18th century as “The Good-Humoured Quaker”—possibly the title of a play, for which some of the movements may originally have provided incidental music. It’s one of a remarkable series of symphonies from the late 1760s and early 1770s which used a highly emotional style—a foretaste of Romanticism—known as “Sturm und Drang” (Storm and Stress). Haydn’s music is thrillingly expressive—full of dramatic gestures, jagged melodies and propulsive rhythms—but above all it is deliberately disruptive. Nevertheless, while we are constantly being surprised and bombarded with short, disjointed ideas, Haydn still makes sure that, overall, he joins everything up and imposes order, even keeping all four movements in the same mournful key of F minor.