BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 “Pastoral”
PANFILI Commissioned work to be determined. Premiere
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92
Premiered at the celebrated December 1808 concert in Vienna —together with the Fifth Symphony—, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral” is one of the composer’s few explicitly programmatic works. Conceived by Beethoven himself as “the expression of feeling rather than a depiction of sound”, the Sixth embodies the refuge and spiritual peace that the composer found in the countryside in the face of his advancing deafness. Structured in five movements, linked without interruption in their final section, the “Pastoral” unfolds a soundscape that ranges from the tranquillity of the brook to the thunderous force of the storm, culminating in a moving song of rural gratitude.
In contrast to the introspection of the Sixth, the Symphony No. 7 is a torrent of energy. Described by Wagner as the “apotheosis of dance”, the work dispenses with literary dramatic narratives, giving full prominence to rhythm, the element that shapes the architecture of each of its movements. Since its premiere in Vienna in 1813, the Seventh captivated audiences; particularly its celebrated Allegretto, whose melancholic development had to be repeated at the premiere itself and remains one of the most admired passages in Beethoven’s output.
