Haydn's Symphony #94 - Analysis

Some Possible Prescribed Work Questions for Haydn's Symphony 94

Design possible strategies to approaching these questions:

• Discuss Haydn’s use of form and tonality in the 1st Movement of the Surprise symphony.
• Hadyn was well known for his love of musical jokes and surprises. What musical evidence is there in the surprise symphony to support this statement.
• Discuss Hadyn’s approach to melody in the surprise symphony. Refer in detail to specific passages of music.
• Explain how Haydn’s work is a typical work from the Classical period, illustrating your arguments with precisely located examples.
• Discuss how Haydn uses classical forms in his Surprise symphony. Refer to specifically located examples in the score.
• How does Haydn use variation techniques in the 2nd Movement of the symphony. Refer in detail to specific passages of music.
• How does Haydn develop and manipulate his subjects in the first movement of the Surprise symphony. Illustrate your points with precisely located examples.
• The first movement of the Surprise symphony is in Sonata Form. Explain how Haydn follows or subverts the conventions of Sonata form with reference to evidence from the score.
• How does Haydn vary the tonality and texture in his Surprise symphony. Refer to examples from movements 1 and 2.
• Composers of the Classical Period became more aware importance of tone colour. Illustrate, with reference to the score, illustrate how Haydn uses tone colour in the Surprise Symphony.