6th Symphony (Pastoral) in F, Opus 68.
Dedicated to Prince von Lobkovitz and Count von Rasumovsky.
Pastoral Symphony, or a recollection of country life.
More an expression of feeling than a painting.
Allegro ma non troppo—Andante molto moto—Allegro—Allegretto.
This Symphony, often slighted on account of its so-called realisms and its classification amongst "programme music," is, nevertheless, one of the finest pieces in the whole range of absolute music. The labelling of the various movements by Beethoven—"Joyous sensations roused by arrival in the country," "Scene by the brook," "Merry gathering of country peasants," "Thunderstorm," "Glad and grateful feeling after the storm"—is quite superfluous. How artistically Beethoven has introduced the bird calls—the quail, the nightingale, and the cuckoo—into just the right place—the coda of the Andante. And the thunder-storm. What a magnificent introduction to the Finale it makes! Beethoven has never once transgressed the great principles of form and balance in this Symphony.
The opening movement is a true country picture, full of the tonics and dominants of summer happiness.
Bird-like twitterings and horn calls come from all directions, yet how perfectly balanced it all is and what a marvel of development! The scene by the brook with its drowsy re-iterated figure on the under-current of divided strings is the very Bourdon ever sounding in Nature herself.
Wagner has not forgotten this in his Woodland Murmurs. The dance of the villagers, founded on the old country dances, is full of humorous touches, the drowsy bassoon notes, the romp round, and into this almost without warning, breaks the storm. A remarkably controlled storm it is, too, free from any vulgarity. A lovely bit of blue sky showing at the end, leads straight into the shepherd's song of thankfulness, which although containing several interesting points, the triple pedal at the opening with its horn yodel, etc., is somewhat lengthy and not very interesting. Beethoven had once intended to introduce words and chorus here, "Lord, we thank Thee," and it seems a pity that this idea was not carried out.