Perspectives on the reception of Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C, with particular reference to musicological writings in English on Haydn’s Concertos and the classical Concerto

Abstract

This thesis illustrates the extraordinary quality of Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C, Hob. VIIb: 1, and addresses the musicological literature in English that relates to it. Chapter 1 introduces the concerto and reveals its relatively straightforward tonal design, before describing the subtle touches that enliven this simple structure. These include Haydn’s sophisticated orchestration, carefully-crafted thematic relations and well-integrated instrumental writing. Haydn is shown to be manipulating generic expectations throughout the work. Chapter 2 illustrates the scarcity of literature in English pertaining to Haydn’s concertos and the problems posed by the twentieth-century re-emergence of a number of these works. It reveals the disjunction between praise for the Cello Concerto in C and the perpetuation of negative perspectives on Haydn’s early-Esterházy concertos, referring specifically to charges relating to conventionality, maturity, form, and virtuosity. Chapter 3 widens its scope to include literature on the Classical concerto, in order to show that the emphasis upon Mozart’s later concertos has distorted perspectives on concertos from the third quarter of the eighteenth century. Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C is presented as an aesthetic alternative to Mozart’s later and more complex works. This chapter also touches upon the Classical-concerto literature’s unhelpful emphasis upon first movements.