Want to know where to start with the great Classical composer, Joseph Haydn? His music is graceful, uplifting, and often carries a spark of humour. As such, he’s one of the most beguiling and often life-affirming composers you will want to get to know. Here are five great ways into Haydn.
Best of Haydn: orchestral, chamber and concerto
Symphony No. 103, ‘Drumroll’
Haydn is a master of the symphony, and composed more than 100 works in this form. The amazing thing here is his consistency - none of these 100+ works are anything less than very good.
The best, though - such as the later 'Paris' and 'London' symphonies, and the middle-period 'Sturm und Drang' symphonies - are wonderful: hugely satisfying exercises in symphonic form, bursting with verve, humour, and high spirits or, in the case of the 'Sturm und Drang' set, a proto-Romantic drama and tension.
Of his last dozen symphonies written for London visits, the 'Drumroll' is an excellent introduction to Haydn’s playful style – from portentous to ebullient in a heartbeat.
Recommended recording: Concertgebouw Orchestra/Colin Davis Philips 442 6112
String Quartets, Op. 33
Another form in which Haydn achieved imperious mastery was the string quartet. He composed a scarcely less awe-inspiring total of string quartets: 68, to be precise.
The Opus 33 quartets join the Opus 76 set and a few others as those recognised as Haydn’s finest set of string quartets. The Op. 33 include one nicknamed ‘The Bird’ for its birdsong-like first violin part and another, ‘The Joke’, so-named for reasons evident in the finale. Have a listen below.
Recommended recording: Festetics Quartet Arcana A 414
Trumpet Concerto
Haydn’s genius transformed this martial instrument into an eloquent and charming soloist, both in the inspired slow movement and in the sparkling finale. We named this sunny, exuberant work as one of the best trumpet music pieces in the classical repertoire.
Recommended recording: Alison Balsom; German Chamber Philharmonic, Bremen EMI 216 2130
Best of Haydn: sacred and choral music
The Creation
Haydn’s vivid musical portrait of the Biblical creation story up to the creation of Adam and Eve is direct yet charmingly apt.
Recommended recording: Gabrieli Consort & Players/Paul McCreesh DG Archiv 477 736
Nelson Mass
The dramatic military-style rhythms which open this Mass reflect the Napoleonic War raging while Haydn composed. Otherwise, it’s charming and upbeat, even if the baleful opening returns in the ‘Benedictus’.
Recommended recording:Collegium Musicum 90/Richard HickoxChandos CHAN 0640
We named Haydn one of the best Austrian composers of all time. And, indeed, one of the very greatest composers of all time.