8th Symphony, in F Major, Opus 93
Allegro vivace e con brio—Allegretto—Presto—Allegro vivace.
“The little one,” as Beethoven affectionately called this symphony, was written during four months of the summer and early autumn of 1812. It is smaller in scale, slighter in texture, than the other symphonies. Erroneously regarded as a return to an earlier style, and labouring for some time under the absurd title of “Ballet-Symphony,” it has been somewhat neglected in the past. Without the grandeur of the Fifth or the romance of the Seventh, it contains a lasting, if less easy, charm, perfect finish, and a rich fund of good humour. Only a small orchestra is used, but it is handled in a masterly way, as the octave drums in the masterly finale, the charming staccato chords for wood-wind with boisterous interjections from the full orchestra, the running conversations between the violins and the basses, fully testify.
The first movement is in the usual development form.
A sprightly Allegretto takes the place of the slow movement. The third movement goes back to the early minuet, instead of the Scherzo.
The final movement is a masterpiece of construction and development which its astounding interruptions so amply justifies finally.