Symphony No. 6, subtitled "Pastoral Symphony, or Recollections of Country Life,"
is Beethoven's homage to nature. Beethoven had been enthralled by nature since child-
hood, and left Vienna almost every summer for rural towns outside of the city. He shared
the Romantic's reverence of nature, and while some Romantics were atheists, Beethoven
saw nature as evidence of God's perfect creative goodness.
Symphony No. 6 has been called the "anti-5th" because it eschews the heroic nature
Symphony No. 6 has been called the "anti-5th" because it eschews the heroic nature
of Symphony No. 5 with its "darkness to light," Kampf and Seig theme and the dark sub-
jective emotions of the first movement. Four of the five movements (Symphony No. 6 is
the first symphony to have more than four movements) are in bright major keys and there
is no drama, or fate, in them. Each is about positive emotional experiences. Beethoven
makes use of folk song melodies and folk dance rhythms to portray country life.
Only the fourth movement, the thunderstorm, is in a minor key and has some drama.
Only the fourth movement, the thunderstorm, is in a minor key and has some drama.
While it is "dark," it is only nature doing its thing. There is nothing for the human spirit to
overcome. Once the storm passes, the fifth movement has the rural folk giving thanks not
only for the storm passing, but also for the rain it provided.
Symphony No. 6 is program music, that is, it is instrumental music about a subject.
Symphony No. 6 is program music, that is, it is instrumental music about a subject.
For instance, Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons (1725) which was also about nature.
But while Vivaldi attempted to replicate the sounds of nature, Beethoven wants to give
you the feeling of nature (i.e. the feeling of being in a thunderstorm, rather than repro-
ducing what a thunderstorm actually sounds like). Beethoven does, however, replicate
some sounds of nature, particularly bird calls, but he keeps it to a minimum.
Feelings of beauty, rapture, trance-like ecstasy, timelessness, holiness, joy and gratitude
are the sixth symphony's primary goals.
Program music makes up only a small part of Beethoven's output, the majority of it
Program music makes up only a small part of Beethoven's output, the majority of it
is about no specific subject, it is just an expression of subjective emotions (Beethoven said
that he was providing emotions for the listener to create their own stories that fit the music).
German title | Translation | Tempo marking | Key | |
---|---|---|---|---|
I. | Erwachen heiterer Empfindungen bei der Ankunft auf dem Lande | Awakening of cheerful feelings on arrival in the countryside | Allegro ma non troppo | F major |
II. | Szene am Bach | Scene by the brook | Andante molto mosso | B♭ major |
III. | Lustiges Zusammensein der Landleute | Merry gathering of country folk | Allegro | F major |
IV. | Gewitter, Sturm | Thunder, Storm | Allegro | F minor |
V. | Hirtengesang. Frohe und dankbare Gefühle nach dem Sturm | Shepherd's song. Cheerful and thankful feelings after the storm | Allegretto | F major |
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