Symphony in E-flat (J. Reicha)

ReiR 1.02

composed in Oettingen-Wallerstein, c. 1784

Instrumentation: two oboes, two horns in Eb, and strings

Matej Josef Reicha is known to have composed three symphonies during his years as cellist and Kapellmeister at the princely court of Oettingen-Wallerstein (1774–1785), a court which was renowned for its instrumental music. After being called to Bonn in 1785 by Elector Maximilian Franz (who had most likely met Reicha in Vienna in 1778 on his tour with the violinist Anton Janitsch) to lead the orchestra, Reicha largely seems to have stopped composing after the move. But a considerable number of his works were published posthumously by Nikolaus Simrock in Bonn, which strongly indicates that his Wallerstein compositions were also known in Bonn. The Symphony in E-Flat Major is, like those of other composers associated with this court, cast in four movements, generously proportioned for its time. Particularly striking are the Maestoso introduction (which Ludwig Schiedermair believed influenced the young Beethoven) and the C-minor Andante, written in a double-variation form most commonly associated with Haydn. Another local particularity is the rustic Menuetto, written in a style known contemporaneously as “Menuetto fresco.” The gifted virtuoso cellist writes for the strings with particular nuance and sensitivity throughout, as well as a keen musical intelligence that must have been inspiring to the young musicians – including Beethoven and Anton Reicha – who performed under him.

Sources

1. Harburg, Oettingen-Wallersteiner Bibliothek, HR.III.4.1/2.4° 501
   • Autograph Score and Copyist Parts (RISM entries 450025438and 450025439)
2. Simrock Print, Op. 5/2 (no known exemplars)
   • A later MS copy made by the Erholungsgesellschaft in Eisleben mentions the Simrock edition on the title page.