Symphony No. 5





Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C Minor was written in 1807-1808.
It is Beethoven's Opus 67 and was dedicated to F. J. von Lobkowitz and Graf
(Count) A. von Rasumovsky.

The work was performed for the first time in Vienna on 22 December 1808.
Though it received little notice during its premiere, another performance a
year and a half later was well-reviewed by E.T.A. Hoffman, and its
reputation has grown since.

The work is in four movements:

     I. Allegro con brio
     II. Andante con moto
     III. Allegro
     IV. Allegro

This opening statement has been described by others as "Fate knocking at the
door", which serves to give imagery to the dark, tense, and energetic mood
of the movement. The four-note motif is repeated in various forms throughout
the symphony and serves to unite it thematically.

The second movement is a lyrical movement which follows a theme and
variations form. This relatively relaxed movement is a respite from the
darkness of the first movement.

The third movement is a scherzo, which returns to the dark mood of the first
movement. A transitional passage takes the music from C minor to the C major
of the finale, which proceeds without a pause (Beethoven had tried a similar
key change from B flat minor to B flat major at the opening of his Symphony
No. 4). The allegro finale is interrupted by a brief, haunting reprise of
the scherzo theme before the symphony ends triumphantly in C major.