The symphony, in broadest generalization of the classical conception, contained four movements. The first and the last were sonata – allegro, the second was a variations movement and the third was a dance movement. However, many symphonies universally heralded as illustrious examples of the genre defy this convention, such as the romantic symphonies of Ludwig Beethoven. Many composers in the romantic period compose works called symphony after the example of Beethoven, include the chorus, vocal soloist and other instruments not included in the classical conception of the symphonic orchestra. Some symphonic works, such as the symphonies of Hector Berlioz, have been scored entirely for wind and brass instruments and some, such as the two symphonies of Franz Liszt, the neoclassic/baroque symphonies of Johannes Brahms and the symphonic poems of Richard Strauss, have offered a dramatically different interpretation of the symphony in harmonic structure, thematic construction and instrumentation. While attention to the classical model of the symphony has persisted, one can view a divergent school of symphonic composition appearing in the nineteenth century, which has continued into the twentieth.
The sonata-allegro form is an abstract idea created by nineteenth century music theorists such as Adolf Bernhard Marx, Antoine Reicha, and Heinrich Birnbach to explain eighteenth century musical form, though their system of symphonic analysis persists today. The concept of the sonata-allegro form focuses on harmonic movement. To generalize, the first and second sections contain a modulation from the tonic to the dominant key. Normally, two themes of contrasting character are stated in these harmonic sections. The themes are then 'developed" by breaking their 'thematically stronger" form into 'weaker" motivic ideas and using these motivic ideas in a rapidly changing harmonic environment.
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