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1 | The Movements of the Symphony

As with Baroque genres, works in the Classical period consist of several movements, which contrast in tempo and are composed in different musical forms. Compare the following brief description of the four movements of a typical symphony with the description given on page 115 for the Baroque concerto:

The first movement of a symphony is a substantial piece in fast or moderate tempo, written in the most important new form, of the time, sonata form, which we will study in the next section. Sometimes this fast music is preceded by a short but solemn introduction in a slower tempo.
The second movement strikes an obvious contrast with the first by its slow tempo and its quiet mood. It can assume a variety of forms.
The third movement contrasts in another way, by its persistent dance rhythms: It is always a minuet and trio. A minuet is a moderately paced dance in triple meter, inherited from the Baroque period. See page 132.
The fourth, closing movement is fast again — if anything, faster than the first. It may be in sonata form, like the first movement, though rondo is also a common choice.

If we compare the symphony table with a parallel table for the Baroque concerto, both below, we see many differences, but also certain similarities. The forms used for the movements are entirely different, and there is the extra minuet. However, in the broadest terms, the sequence from fast/complex to slow/quiet to fast/brilliant is the same.

	MOVEMENTS OF THE SYMPHONY
	OPENING MOVEMENT	SLOW MOVEMENT	MINUET (WITH TRIO)	CLOSING MOVEMENT
Tempo	Fast/Moderate	Slow/very slow	Moderate	Fast/very fast
Form	Sonata form (sometimes preceded by a slow introduction)	Sonata form, variations, rondo form, or other	Minuet form	Sonata form or rondo form

	MOVEMENTS OF THE BAROQUE CONCERTO
	OPENING MOVEMENT	SLOW MOVEMENT	CLOSING MOVEMENT
Tempo	Fast/Moderate	Slow/very slow	Fast/very fast
Form	Ritornello form	No standard form	Ritornello form

A word of caution: This symphony table represents the norm, but there are always exceptions. Some famous ones are Mozart’s Prague Symphony, lacking a minuet, and Haydn’s Farewell Symphony, with an extra slow movement — five movements in all. (There were exceptions also to the Baroque scheme: Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 has two dance movements added to the usual three for the concerto.)