Symphony No. 5 (Beethoven) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Symphony in C minor
No. 5
by Ludwig van Beethoven
Cover of the symphony, with the dedication to Prince J. F. M. Lobkowitz and Count Rasumovsky
Key	C minor
Opus	67
Form	Symphony
Composed	1804 (1804)–1808
Dedication	J. F. M. Lobkowitz Andreas Razumovsky
Duration	About 30–40 minutes
Movements	Four
Scoring	Symphony orchestra
Premiere
Date	22 December 1808
Location	Theater an der Wien, Vienna
Conductor	Ludwig van Beethoven

The Symphony No. 5 in C minor, also known as the Fate Symphony, is a famous piece of music by Ludwig van Beethoven. He wrote it between 1804 and 1808. It is one of the most well-known and often played pieces in classical music. Many people see it as a very important work in Western music.

It was first played in Vienna in 1808. Soon after, it became very famous. Another composer, E. T. A. Hoffmann, called it "one of the most important works of the time." Like most symphonies from the Classical era, Beethoven's Fifth Symphony has four main parts, called movements.

The symphony starts with a very famous four-note sound pattern, or motif. It sounds like "short-short-short-long." People often say it sounds like "fate knocking at the door." This is called the Schicksals-Motiv (fate motif).

<score>{\clef treble \key c \minor \tempo "Allegro con brio" 2=108 \time 2/4 {r8 g'\ff[ g' g'] | ees'2\fermata | r8 f'[ f' f'] | d'2~ | d'\fermata | } }</score>
Image:Beet5mov1bars1to5.ogg

This symphony, especially its opening motif, is known all over the world. You can hear this motif in many places, from disco songs to rock and roll covers. It has also been used in movies and TV shows.

Beethoven's Fifth Symphony was given a special name, "Fate Symphony." This is like his Eroica (heroic) and Pastorale (rural) symphonies. However, Beethoven himself did not give it this name.

History

How the Symphony Was Created

Beethoven in 1804, the year he started working on the Fifth Symphony. This is a part of a portrait by W. J. Mähler.

The Fifth Symphony took a long time to create. Beethoven worked on its musical ideas for several years. The first rough ideas, called "sketches," were made in 1804. This was after he finished his Third Symphony.

Beethoven often stopped working on the Fifth Symphony to write other pieces. These included his opera Fidelio and the Appassionata piano sonata. He also wrote three Razumovsky string quartets and the Violin Concerto. Other works were the Fourth Piano Concerto, the Fourth Symphony, and the Mass in C.

He finished the Fifth Symphony in 1807–1808. He worked on it at the same time as his Sixth Symphony. Both symphonies were first played at the same concert.

Beethoven was in his mid-thirties during this time. His personal life was hard because he was becoming deaf. In the world, the Napoleonic Wars were happening. There was also political trouble in Austria. Napoleon's soldiers even took over Vienna in 1805. Beethoven wrote the symphony at his home in the Pasqualati House in Vienna.

First Performance

The Fifth Symphony was first played on December 22, 1808. It was part of a very long concert in Vienna. The concert was held at the Theater an der Wien. All the music played that night was new, written by Beethoven. He even conducted the orchestra himself.

The concert lasted more than four hours. The two symphonies were played in a different order. The Sixth Symphony was played first. The Fifth Symphony was played in the second half. The program for the concert was:

• The Sixth Symphony
• An aria: Ah! perfido, Op. 65
• The Gloria part of the Mass in C major
• The Fourth Piano Concerto (Beethoven played the piano himself)
• (Short break)
• The Fifth Symphony
• The Sanctus and Benedictus parts of the C major Mass
• A piano solo played by Beethoven
• The Choral Fantasy

The Theater an der Wien in the early 1800s.

Beethoven dedicated the Fifth Symphony to two people who supported him. They were Prince Joseph Franz von Lobkowitz and Count Razumovsky. The dedication appeared when the music was first printed in April 1809.

Instruments Used

The symphony is played by a full Symphony orchestra. Here are the instruments used:

Structure of the Symphony

A typical performance of the symphony lasts about 30 to 40 minutes. The work has four movements:

I. Allegro con brio

The first movement starts with the famous four-note motif. This is one of the most well-known musical patterns ever. Conductors sometimes play these first four notes differently. Some play them at a fast tempo, while others play them slower and more grandly.

This movement follows the traditional sonata form. Beethoven learned this form from composers like Haydn and Mozart. In sonata form, main musical ideas are introduced. Then they are developed and changed through many different keys. Finally, the opening section returns dramatically.

The movement begins with two loud, powerful phrases of the famous motif. After these first four bars, Beethoven builds on the theme. He uses musical "imitations" that tumble over each other. This creates a flowing melody. A short, loud bridge played by horns leads to a second theme. This second theme is in E♭ major. It is more gentle and quiet. The four-note motif can still be heard in the string instruments playing along. The movement ends with a large coda, which is like a closing section.

This movement usually lasts about 7 to 8 minutes.

II. Andante con moto

The second movement is in A♭ major. It is a gentle and flowing piece. It uses a "double variation" form. This means two main themes are presented and then changed in turns. After these variations, there is a long closing section.

The movement starts with the first theme played by violas and cellos. Double basses play along. A second theme soon follows. Clarinets, bassoons, and violins add harmony. Violas play a fast, broken chord pattern.

The first theme then comes back in a new way. This is followed by a third theme. Fast notes are played by violas and cellos. Flutes, oboes, and bassoons play a different melody on top. After a short break, the whole orchestra plays loudly. This leads to a series of growing sounds and a final closing section.

This movement usually lasts about 8 to 11 minutes.

III. Scherzo: Allegro

The third movement has three parts, known as ternary form. It includes a scherzo and a trio. Beethoven started using a scherzo as the third movement in his Third Symphony. This was a change from the older tradition of using a minuet. From the Fifth Symphony onwards, he used the scherzo often.

This movement returns to the key of C minor. It begins with a theme played by cellos and double basses:

<score>\relative c{ \clef bass \key c \minor \time 3/4 \tempo "Allegro" \partial 4 g(\pp | c ees g | c2 ees4 | d2 fis,4) | g2.~ | g2.}</score>

A different theme played by wind instruments answers the opening theme. This pattern repeats. Then, the horns loudly play the main theme of the movement. The music continues from there. The trio section is in C major. It has a complex, layered sound. When the scherzo returns, the strings play it very quietly and by plucking their strings (called pizzicato).

This movement is also famous for how it leads into the fourth movement. Many people think it is one of the greatest musical transitions ever.

This movement usually lasts about 4 to 8 minutes.

IV. Allegro

The fourth movement begins right after the third movement, without a break. The music is in C major. This was an unusual choice for Beethoven. Usually, a symphony that starts in C minor would end in the same key. Beethoven once said: "Many assert that every minor piece must end in the minor. Nego! ...Joy follows sorrow, sunshine—rain."

This exciting and powerful ending is a special kind of sonata form. Near the end of the middle section, the music stops loudly. Then, after a pause, the quiet "horn theme" from the scherzo movement returns. The main part of the movement then comes back. This idea of bringing back music from an earlier movement was also used by Haydn in his Symphony No. 46. We don't know if Beethoven knew about Haydn's work.

The finale of the Fifth Symphony has a very long ending section, or coda. The main themes are played quickly. Towards the very end, the music gets much faster. The symphony finishes with 29 bars of loud C major chords. The writer Charles Rosen said this long ending shows Beethoven's sense of balance. He felt such a long, strong ending was needed to finish such a powerful work.

This movement usually lasts about 8 to 11 minutes.

Influences

The music expert Gustav Nottebohm noticed something interesting in the 1800s. He pointed out that the third movement's theme is similar to the opening theme of the last movement of Mozart's famous Symphony No. 40. Here are the first eight notes of Mozart's theme:

<score>\relative c' { \key g \minor \time 2/2 \tempo "Allegro assai" \partial 4 d4\p(g) bes-. d-. g-. bes2(a4) cis,8\f }</score>

Sometimes, musical similarities happen by chance. But this might not be the case here. Nottebohm found that Beethoven had copied 29 bars of Mozart's finale into one of his sketchbooks. This suggests Beethoven was familiar with it.

Interesting Facts

Many books and articles have been written about the Fifth Symphony. This section shares some common ideas and stories about it.

The "Fate" Motif

The famous opening four-note motif has often been seen as a symbol. People say it means "Fate knocking at the door." This idea came from Anton Schindler, who was Beethoven's secretary. Many years after Beethoven died, Schindler wrote:

"The composer himself gave the meaning to these deep sounds. One day, when I was with him, he pointed to the start of the first movement and said: 'Thus Fate knocks at the door!'"

However, many experts don't fully trust Schindler's stories about Beethoven. Some believe Schindler made up parts of Beethoven's "conversation books." These were books where deaf Beethoven's friends wrote down their side of conversations. Schindler is also thought to have made Beethoven seem more romantic than he was.

There is another story about the same motif. This one comes from Antony Hopkins's book about the symphony. Carl Czerny, who was Beethoven's student, said something different. He claimed that Beethoven got the idea from a yellow-hammer bird's song. Beethoven heard it while walking in the Prater-park in Vienna. Hopkins notes that people usually prefer the more dramatic "Fate" story. But Czerny's story is probably more likely to be true.

In a TV show in 1954, Leonard Bernstein compared the Fate Motif to a common four-note ending in symphonies. He said that for Beethoven, these notes became a repeating motif throughout the work. This created a very different and dramatic effect.

Many people are doubtful about these interpretations. Some say that Beethoven's student, Ferdinand Ries, first suggested the "Fate knocking" idea. They say Beethoven reacted to it sarcastically. Elizabeth Schwarm Glesner adds that "Beethoven had been known to say nearly anything to relieve himself of questioning pests." This might mean both stories are not entirely true.

Beethoven's Choice of Key

The key of the Fifth Symphony is C minor. This key is often seen as very special for Beethoven. It is thought to be a "stormy, heroic" key. Beethoven wrote several other works in C minor that have a similar strong character.

Pianist and writer Charles Rosen said: "Beethoven in C minor has come to symbolize his artistic character. In every case, it reveals Beethoven as Hero." He added that C minor shows Beethoven at his most direct and powerful.

Repeating the Opening Motif

It is often said that the famous four-note rhythm (short-short-short-long) is repeated throughout the entire symphony. This is believed to connect all the movements. Some say it is "a single motif that unifies the entire work." The New Grove encyclopedia agrees, saying the motif is heard in almost every part of the first movement. It also appears in other movements, with some changes.

There are parts in the symphony that support this idea. For example, in the third movement, the horns play a solo where the short-short-short-long pattern appears many times:

<score sound="1"> \relative c { \set Staff.midiInstrument = #"french horn" \key c \minor \time 3/4 \set Score.currentBarNumber = #19 \bar "" \[ g4\ff^"a 2" g g | g2. | \] g4 g g | g2. | g4 g g | <es g>2. | <g bes>4(<f as>) <es g>^^ | <bes f'>2. | } </score>

In the second movement, a background part plays a similar rhythm:

<score override_ogg="BeethovenSymphony5Mvt2Bar76.ogg"> \new StaffGroup << \new Staff \relative c { \time 3/8 \key aes \major \set Score.barNumberVisibility = #all-bar-numbers-visible \set Score.currentBarNumber = #75 \bar "" \override TextScript #'X-offset = #-3 \partial 8 es16.(\pp^"Violin I" f32) | \repeat unfold 2 { ges4 es16.(f32) | } } \new Staff \relative c { \key aes \major \override TextScript #'X-offset = #-3 r8^"Violin II, Viola" | r32 \[ a[\pp a a] a16[ \] a] a r | r32 a[ a a] a16[ a] a r | } >> </score>

In the finale, the piccolo part might also have the motif:

<score override_ogg="BeethovenSymphony5Mvt4Bar244.ogg">\new StaffGroup << \new Staff \relative c { \time 4/4 \key c \major \set Score.currentBarNumber = #244 \bar "" r8^"Piccolo" \[ fis g g g2~ \] | \repeat unfold 2 { g8 fis g g g2~ | } g8 fis g g g2 | } \new Staff \relative c { \clef "bass" b2.^"Viola, Cello, Bass" g4(| b4 g d' c8. b16) | c2. g4(| c4 g e' d8. c16) | } >></score>

Later in the finale's coda, the bass instruments play it repeatedly:

<score override_ogg="BeethovenSymphony5Mvt4Bar362.ogg">\new StaffGroup << \new Staff \relative c' { \time 2/2 \key c \major \set Score.currentBarNumber = #362 \bar "" \tempo "Presto" \override TextScript #'X-offset = #-5 c2.\fp^"Violins" b4 | a(g) g-. g-. | c2. b4 | a(g) g-. g-. | \repeat unfold 2 { <c e>2. 4 | <a c>(<g b>) q-. q-. | } } \new Staff \relative c { \time 2/2 \key c \major \clef "bass" \override TextScript #'X-offset = #-5 c4\fp^"Bass instruments" r r2 | r4 \[ g g g | c4\fp \] r r2 | r4 g g g | \repeat unfold 2 { c4\fp r r2 | r4 g g g | } } >></score>

However, some experts don't think these similarities are important. They believe they are just by chance. Antony Hopkins says that "no musician with an ounce of feeling could confuse [the two rhythms]." He explains that the scherzo rhythm starts on a strong beat, but the first movement's theme starts on a weak one.

Donald Tovey also disagreed with the idea that one rhythm connects the whole symphony. He said if you look closely, this motif appears in many other works by Beethoven. For example, it's in the "Appassionata" piano sonata and the Fourth Piano Concerto. Tovey concluded that Beethoven simply used such rhythmic patterns often in his music.

Also, the "short-short-short-long" rhythm was common in music before Beethoven. Composers like Haydn and Mozart used it. For example, it's in Haydn's "Miracle" Symphony and Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 25, K. 503. These examples show that this rhythm was a regular part of music at that time.

So, whether Beethoven purposely wove a single rhythmic motif through the Fifth Symphony "will remain eternally open to debate."

New Instruments

The last movement of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony was special. It was the first time the piccolo and contrabassoon were used in a symphony. While this was Beethoven's first time using the trombone in a symphony, another composer, Joachim Nicolas Eggert, had used trombones in his Symphony No. 3 in 1807.

See also

In Spanish: Sinfonía n.º 5 (Beethoven) para niños