The Characteristic Symphony in the Age of Haydn and Beethoven

af Richard (University of Washington) Will

'Characteristic' symphonies have texts associating them with literature, politics, religion, and other aspects of eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century European culture. This first full-length study of the genre illuminates the relationship between symphonies and their aesthetic and social context and discusses examples of works by composers including Beethoven, Haydn and Dittersdorf.