Friedrich Witt - Symphony in C-major "Jena"
51,939
Published 2013-11-08
Friedrich Jeremias Witt (November 8, 1770 -- January 3, 1836) was a German composer and cellist.
Work: Symphony in C-major "Jena" scored for flute, 2 oboes, 2 bassoons, 2 horns in C, 2 trumpets in C, timpani and strings.
Mov.I: Adagio - Allegro vivace 00:00
Mov.II: Adagio cantabile 08:17
Mov.III: Menuetto 16:05
Mov.IV: Finale: Allegro 19:37
Orchestra: Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä
Conductor: Patrick Gallois
The so-called "Jena Symphony" is a symphony that was at one time attributed to Ludwig van Beethoven. The symphony was discovered by Fritz Stein in 1909 in the archives of a concert society in Jena, from which it derived its name. Stein believed it to be the work of Beethoven and it was so published by Breitkopf und Härtel in 1911. It is now known that the piece was the work of Friedrich Witt.
Stein thought it was quite likely an early work by Beethoven and pointed out some stylistic similarities in the preface to the score. From each of the four movements he singled out a few passages he considered specially Beethoven-like. Stein's belief in Beethoven's authorship was strengthened by the fact that Beethoven's letters show that prior to writing his own Symphony No. 1 he tried to write a C major symphony with Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 97 as a model, and it is easy to find parallels between the Jena Symphony and Haydn's No. 97.
When H. C. Robbins Landon found another copy of the work at the archives of Göttweig Abbey with Witt's name on it, he convinced most other scholars that the work was in fact by Witt. Ralph Leavis, for example, condemned the work as "a piece of plagiarism, put together almost with scissors and paste from reminiscences of Haydn."
All Comments (21)
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This symphony and symphony # 6 are Wits's best compositions , he was a very gifted musician
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If I had discovered this symphony, the fact that it contains no 'Allegro con brio' would've been a warning sign that it wasn't Beethoven
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I can recall hearing this symphony some sixty years ago in New York City where it was often played over WQXR and attributed to Beethoven. Thanks for bringing back many fond memories from my teen-aged years - and the excellent notes which talk so thoroughly about the attribution.
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About fifty years ago, a friend gave me a recording of a symphony attributed to Beethoven. Listening to the music it didn't take long for me to realize that this was not a Beethoven symphony. Nevertheless, I liked this work very much and played it often. Unfortunately my LP of this "Beethoven's First Symphony" disappeared when my house was robbed. I wonder if the thief enjoyed my collection of classics.
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Absolutely FANTASTIC !!!! Wonderful !!!!
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God! It’s just representation of a brilliant and epic piece of music. The dialogue here is as if we were talking about the correct interpretation of “Scripture”. We have here is a flamboyant performance, well executed, well thought out emotionally sensitive
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Love the F minor section in the second movement! The finale reminds me of Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 48 in C Major. Great quality. Thanks for the upload! :)
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Прекрасная музыка!Как жаль что эти симфонии никогда не исполняются в нашей стране! и даже имя композитора ни кто у нас не знает!!!
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Discovered another wonderful composer! Thanks for sharing.
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Manche Teile ähneln dem Stil Beethoven`s, andere wieder dem Haydn`s, was macht, es ist F. Witt und, sehr sehr schön. Man sollte nicht vergleichen sondern nur genießen, denn Einer komponierte schöner als der Andere. Many thanks for loading.
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Hermosa Sinfonia
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Excellent ! It rimembers so Much Hydne!
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Hay maestros de la música a quienes la historia les debe una reivindicación. Es el caso de Witt.
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It's pretty clear why for so long this symphony was attributed to Beethoven. It sounds a lot like early Beethoven, and if it seems derivative of Haydn a lot of the time, so did Beethoven's own early works, including his first symphony.
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Very much like F J Haydn's later symphonies. Very well-composed.
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Yes, for a long time the Schwann catalog carried the "Jena" with a "WoO" designation . It sounds like Haydn to these 81 year old ears
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For many years, it was thought that this symhpony is Beethoven's.
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IT SURE SOUNDS LIKE BEETHOVEN, DOESN'T IT!
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Might be better off calling it Haydn Symphony no 105. Lovely piece and should be better known
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Sí, es el estilo de Ludwig. Muy bueno, por cierto.
