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- Mendelssohn, Felix
Duration: 29 minutes
Description: Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) composed Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 11 between March 3 and 31, 1824, an astonishing achievement for a composer who had only recently turned fifteen. Following the twelve string symphonies of his youth, Mendelssohn initially labeled the manuscript “Sinfonia XIII,” but the C-minor Symphony marked an important transition as his first symphony for full orchestra and was ultimately recognized as his official First Symphony. Its four movements (1. Allegro di molto; 2. Andante; 3. Menuetto: Allegro molto; 4. Allegro con fuoco) remain grounded in the Classical symphonic tradition of Mozart and Beethoven while already revealing Mendelssohn’s characteristic fleetness, transparent orchestration, lyrical grace, and command of counterpoint. The work was first heard privately on November 14, 1824, in celebration of the nineteenth birthday of Mendelssohn’s sister Fanny and received its first public performance on February 1, 1827, at the Leipzig Gewandhaus under Johann Philipp Christian Schulz. An important chapter in its history came with Mendelssohn’s London debut on May 25, 1829, when he conducted the Symphony for the Philharmonic Society, substituting his newly orchestrated version of the Scherzo from the String Octet, Op. 20, for the original Menuetto; the enthusiastic reception helped launch the composer’s lifelong popularity in Britain, and he subsequently dedicated the Symphony to the Philharmonic Society. Today, Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 11 is performed less frequently than Mendelssohn’s mature Italian and Scottish symphonies but retains an important place in the orchestral repertoire as both a remarkably assured work of youthful genius and a fascinating bridge between the Classical symphony and the distinctive Romantic voice that Mendelssohn would soon reveal in the Octet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture. Instrumentation: 2.2.2.2: 2.2.0.0: Timp: Str (9.8.7.6.5 in set). Reprint edition.