symphony
formSIM-fuh-nee
A large-scale orchestral composition, usually in four movements.
A symphony is the most prestigious and ambitious form in orchestral music, typically lasting 30–90 minutes across four movements. The standard structure established by Haydn features a fast opening movement (usually in sonata form), a slow movement for lyrical expression, a dance movement (minuet or scherzo), and a fast, energetic finale. The full orchestra — strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion — is deployed across all four movements.
Haydn wrote 104 symphonies and established the template. Mozart refined it with elegance and emotional depth. Beethoven transformed it into a vehicle for profound personal expression — his Ninth Symphony added choir and soloists, breaking every convention. The Romantic symphony expanded in scale: Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvořák, and Bruckner pushed the orchestra to new limits, while Mahler's symphonies require over 100 performers and last up to 90 minutes. Sibelius and Shostakovich carried the tradition into the 20th century.
Haydn wrote 104 symphonies in his career. Beethoven wrote only 9 — but each one changed the course of music history.