After releasing the Op. 10 piano ballades in 1856, the young composer went four years without any publications.  It was during that time that he started to explore composition for orchestra, with the burden of expectation that Schumann’s pronouncements and prophecies had placed upon him.  The work that would become the First Piano Concerto was conceived first, but during its protracted development, another very different piece was also taking shape starting around 1857.  At about this time, Brahms had accepted a position at the court of Detmold, where he had access to a small orchestra.  The original conception of what became this serenade was a nonet for wind instruments and solo strings, a spiritual successor to Beethoven’s Septet and Schubert’s Octet.  Like those works, it was large in scope, with six movements.  Brahms saw that the ideas warranted orchestral treatment, and the scoring expanded from a version for small orchestra to the one for full symphony orchestra that finally emerged.  The instrumentation consists of double woodwind, four horns, two trumpets, timpani, and strings, but no trombones.  In this form, it was more of a successor to Mozart’s large orchestral serenades such as the “Haffner” or “Posthorn,” but filtered through a 19th-century lens.  He completed it before finishing the concerto, and it was published in 1860 as his first orchestral work and the return from his four-year publishing hiatus.  By that time, he had also written the Second Serenade, a shorter and more modest piece for a small orchestra without violins.  This D-major serenade takes between 45 and 50 minutes to perform, and its first three movements are themselves of considerable size.  The criticism that is often leveled against the work is that its symphonic scale clashes with the relative simplicity of its musical material.  There may be an element of truth to this.  Brahms’s friends sometimes referred to it as the “symphony-serenade.”  If those first three movements do stretch the limits of the bucolic melodies that are their building blocks, they also reveal his early assuredness with the craft of orchestration.  The wind instruments are prominent, and the opening themes of both the first and fifth movements are given to a solo horn.  The writing for strings is equally adept, with techniques such as pizzicato and tremolo in abundance.  The first movement is in a sonata form complete with exposition repeat.  Its full-hearted themes convey a sense of rustic exuberance.  The extended coda tapers from a thrilling climax to a quiet conclusion with only flutes, clarinets, and violas.  The second movement is the first and by far the longer of the two scherzos.  Its trill-like opening sounds like a quieter presentiment of the scherzo-like movement he would insert into the Second Piano Concerto more than twenty years later, in the same key of D minor.  The main scherzo itself is highly developmental like those he would write for the Second Piano Quartet and the Piano Quintet, and even the spirited trio section in B-flat is unusually extensive.  The slow movement, also in B-flat, is cast in another complete sonata form, resulting in a more extended structure than the ternary forms Brahms would come to favor for Adagio-type movements.  The last three movements, however, are notably brief.  The pair of minuets in G major and G minor are lightly scored, almost certainly reflecting the original chamber instrumentation.  The second scherzo, in D major like the outer movements, swings out powerfully with its opening horn call, but it lasts less than three minutes and has a very terse, Haydn-like trio section.  The closing rondo, which like the first and fifth movements evokes a “hunting” topic, only has one episodic theme, but it is not quite a “sonata-rondo” like the finale of the Second Serenade.  Unlike that piece, it has an extensive coda that takes up one of the movement’s five minutes.  This bold and tuneful work may not be as profound as the symphonies or even the contemporary piano concerto, but it is immensely satisfying, and the joyous closing chords of the final rondo point directly to the blazing conclusion of the Second Symphony in the same key.

IMSLP WORK PAGE
ONLINE SCORE FROM IMSLP (First Edition from Brahms-Institut Lübeck)
ONLINE SCORE FROM IMSLP (from Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke)

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1^st Movement: Allegro molto (Sonata-Allegro form).  D MAJOR, Cut time [2/2].
EXPOSITION
0:00 [m. 1]--Theme 1.  The violas and cellos begin with a drone, reiterating the fifth D-A over four full measures.  At that point a single horn enters quietly but confidently for the first presentation of the fresh, bouncy hunt-like theme.  After the first downward sweep, the horn leaps up and down between D and A with some embellishment.  The drone then abruptly shifts to A-E, with the horn also moving there with one of its companions.  A clarinet enters with a quick A-major scale, then presents the theme in that key, adding an upward-sliding decoration before the leaps up and down.  A second slide even adds a short triplet.  The clarinet presentation in A is extended with more downward leaps and upward turns, beginning to build.
0:24 [m. 23]--The drone shifts down to G at the end of the clarinet line, and is joined by second violins and basses.  An oboe joins there to briefly echo the clarinet’s last figures, the clarinet itself adding short upward figures as counterpoint.  Then the drone and harmony shift yet again to F-sharp major.  There, the first violins finally enter, still with the last figures, decorated by oboe, clarinet, and (making its first entrance) bassoon.  The crescendo intensifies, building up to forte.  The first violins stall and are supported by the wind quartet, the flute making its first entry.  Also entering are horns on slower leaps and, with quiet punctuation, trumpets.
0:36 [m. 35]--All the strings except for basses, along with flutes and oboes, come together in a downward arpeggio on “diminished seventh” chord.  The clarinets, bassoons, horns, and trumpets sustain longer notes.  This arpeggio continues for four measures before all instruments come together on a held unison F-sharp.  The winds and brass hold it while all strings descend together in a slower (half-speed), mostly stepwise line strongly suggesting the key of B minor (“relative” to the home key of D major).  This slower descent continues over eight measures and two octaves.
0:48 [m. 47]--The violins and brass drop out, and the lower strings, still in unison, play an upward, somewhat agitated figure in B minor, supported by interjections from clarinets and bassoons.  The violins then join as the agitated figures shift up and finally return to D major.  The full woodwind group with horns plays short interjections as the unison strings build in intensity and volume, now arriving at the “dominant” A and breaking from the unison.  A rising string line is now broken by wind chords off the beat, then all instruments come to a brief general pause.  The rising line with off-beat winds continues upward, the timpani entering for the first time.  There is another break between the last two full-volume chords.
1:02 [m. 63]--Over a persistent “dominant” A from basses and timpani, reinforced by high winds and brass fifths, three rapid A-major scales are played, first from violas and cellos with bassoon, then second violins, bassoon, oboes, and clarinets, then all violins and bassoon.  A fourth scale with full instrumentation shifts strongly to D major, with contrary bass motion and leaping first violins.  It merges into a very grand statement of the theme led by horns and trumpets with oboes and bassoons, supported by violin trills and timpani with the original bass drone.  It culminates in an even faster A-major scale from the violins.
1:12 [m. 73]--As at the opening, an A-major statement follows the one in D major, now with soaring woodwinds led by the flutes, joined by second violins and violas.  It is underpinned by rapid timpani beats on A, a high trill in first violins, and the continuing bass drone.  The horns and trumpets are still prominent, but not melodic.  As before, there are decorative upward slides, but the original extension is omitted, and this deviation begins the short transition.
1:17 [m. 79]--Transition.  The key makes a “relative” shift to F-sharp minor, and the upper woodwinds with the violins and pulsing violas spin out a development of the theme.  After two gestures of the opening idea, an extension follows with rising lines and confirming cadences in F-sharp minor.  There is then another shift, supported strongly by the bass drone, up the “circle of fifths” to C-sharp minor with the same material.  This merges into a hammering figure that slides back to A as the “dominant” in the home key.  The volume of the hammering figures builds to fortissimo with pounding timpani.  The harmony of G minor is then emphasized.
1:35 [m. 98]--The orchestra emerges into a plunging “diminished seventh” arpeggio like that at 0:36 [m. 35].  As at that point, the instruments come together on a held note.  That note is now the keynote D, but the following two-octave string descent suggests A major, though the drum roll on D continues.  The volume diminishes rapidly with the second octave.  The unison strings then emerge into descending figures on upbeats and downbeats alternating E-D and E-C-sharp.  This leads to the second theme in A major.
1:49 [m. 113]--Theme 2 (A major).  It is characterized by rising lines beginning with syncopated notes held over bar lines.  These begin with bassoon and first violins over the continuing alternating descents from the other strings and a held horn octave.  The violins continue with an arching line in slow full-measure half-note triplet rhythm.  The descending low string figures expand, and the basses begin to pluck downbeat notes.  Clarinets, bassoon, and horn sustain notes, including over bar lines.  The violin melody, in octaves, spins out after the triplet arch, gradually working down with notes held over bar lines, eventually reaching an arrival on what is now the “dominant” E.  This arrival is echoed by a solo horn over low violin motion.
2:08 [m. 131]--As the lower strings continue their descending figures, the bassoons, in thirds, play a transition in long notes, rising to the next statement.  It comes from the cellos, who play the two rising lines beginning with syncopation, supported by the horn.  The descending figures continue in basses and violas.  The violas take over for the arching line but deviate from the previous statement at the top of the arch, reaching lower for the high note.  The cellos move back to the descents but lengthen the notes.  The arching line is not spun out, but passed to the oboe, who turns it toward D as the bass line descends by half-step and horn support continues.  The violas take it again, then pass it back to the oboe, the key shifting toward C.
2:24 [m. 147]--The viola/oboe exchanges are now reduced to a rising arpeggio.  This happens twice as the bass line continues to descend by half-step, the harmony moving from C major to C minor.  The clarinet joins the oboe from the second exchange.  The opening upbeat is also removed.  After this second shorter exchange, the violas change the pattern again, holding their note against the oboe and clarinet, then turning down and up.  This is also exchanged twice with the oboe/clarinet pair.  The bass descent breaks.  The key moves back toward A major.  The violas continue down with turn figures held over bar lines as the clarinet and oboe descend by half-step.  That unison pair then leads an A-major cadence harmonized by the violas.
2:40 [m. 162]--The long half-note full-measure triplets now break off.  The violins in octaves take over with three rising thirds, gradually moving down, the last one continuing up to lead into another A-major cadence.  This line is accompanied by a bassoon descending in half-steps.  The low strings have moved to quick exchanges of plucked two-note descents.  The oboe and horn now join in unison to play the descending half-step line in doubled note lengths.  The violins play the first rising third, and the flutes enter in octaves to repeat it.  They expand the next one to a fourth, with flutes following.  The violins then lead the winds and horn to a high, joyous cadence, building strongly and culminating with a trill.
2:55 [m. 177]--Closing material.  The violins break off at the cadence, and the woodwinds join on a powerful sequence of rising figures in fast triplets, all harmonized in thirds or sixths.  The horns provide strong support, as do the plucked low strings, which have now expanded to leaping octaves.  The rising figures then become continuous.  One horn joins them as they build, and the violins in octaves enter on a powerful upward surge, splitting the wind notes into repeated faster notes.
2:59 [m. 182]--The violas join the rising triplet figures.  With the violins and all woodwinds, they begin again at the powerful arrival.  Leaping octaves in bassoons and low strings go against the triplets.  The horns again provide powerful support.  When the figures become continuous, they are now further developed and expanded with another large buildup.  The trumpets join the horns on their long supporting notes.  At the top of the climax, the timpanist enters in support with pounded A’s, and the triplets turn to jubilant turning patterns.  These are then exchanged between violins/violas and woodwinds/horns.  Finally, the strings, horns, and trumpets pound out three A’s leading into the first ending.
3:16 [m. 199a]--First ending.  A fourth A is held a full bar and doubles as the first measure of the repeat, substituting for the drone.  The next two bars are the low string drones heard at the beginning.  The trumpets have already dropped out for the first one and the horns fade out before the second.  In a third drone, functioning as the fourth, the clarinet enters off the beat for a fast scale to lead into the main theme, cutting off as the horn begins it.  The first measure of the horn entry is the fifth of the first ending, and the repeat goes back to the sixth measure.
EXPOSITION REPEATED
3:21 [m. 6]--Theme 1.  Initial horn and clarinet presentations with clarinet extension.
3:37 [m. 23]--Oboe entry, then violin entry and buildup to forte in F-sharp, as at 0:24.
3:49 [m. 35]--Downward “diminished seventh” arpeggio, then slow descent from held F-sharp, as at 0:36.
4:01 [m. 47]--Buildup from agitated string figures to off-beat wind chords and timpani entry, as at 0:48.
4:16 [m. 63]--Scales leading to grand statement of Theme 1 in D major, as at 1:02.
4:25 [m. 73]--A-major statement with timpani and trills, as at 1:12.
4:32 [m. 79]--Transition.  Motion to F-sharp minor and C-sharp minor, then buildup with hammering figures, as at 1:17.
4:49 [m. 98]--Plunging “diminished seventh,” then slow descent from held D, as at 1:35.
5:05 [m. 113]--Theme 2.  Initial presentation from strings and bassoon, leading to slow triplet arch and then cadence in E with horn echo, as at 1:49.
5:21 [m. 131]--Bassoon transition, cello statement of theme, and viola/oboe exchanges, as at 2:08.
5:38 [m. 147]--New exchanges between violas and oboe/clarinet leading to A-major cadence, as at 2:24.
5:53 [m. 162]--Rising thirds in violins against plucked low strings with descending half-step lines, then more rising figures exchanged with flutes, moving toward strong buildup culminating in a trill, as at 2:40.
6:08 [m. 177]--Closing material.  Rising triplet figures building toward powerful upward surge, as at 2:55.
6:13 [m. 182]--Strong buildup on triplet figures culminating in climax with trumpets and horns, then three pounded A’s leading into the second ending.
DEVELOPMENT
6:29 [m. 199b]--In the second ending, the unison strings move from the held A into three more rising stepwise triplet figures after another held A and a held G.  This leads to a loud suspended “dominant” chord in the key of B minor, joined by horns and bassoons.  The clarinets, in thirds, then develop this pattern, continuing in B minor against plucked second violins and violas.  After the clarinets become continuous, they are joined by a flute in an arching scale suggesting E minor as the basses join the plucked strings.
6:41 [m. 211]--The bassoon takes the arching triplet line while the upper winds play interjections on downbeats and upbeats.  The first violins join the plucked strings.  These leaping plucked figures are passed between instruments.  The upper winds and bassoons exchange parts, and the higher winds play another arching triplet line that suggests F-sharp and C-sharp minor.  After another exchange, during which the basses join the bassoons on the arching triplet line, there is a sudden forte eruption during which the upper strings quickly exchange rising triplet figures with the bassoons and lower strings, the upper winds moving to sustained chords.  These move down, leading to a powerful arrival on the “dominant” in C-sharp minor.
6:51 [m. 221]--The violins establish a triplet pulsation on the “dominant” note G-sharp in the key of C-sharp minor.  Entries that recall the opening of the main theme are exchanged between a bassoon/horn pair and the cellos.  After two exchanges, the bassoon and horn extend their line, supported by the cellos and basses on held notes.  Under the second exchange, the violas join the violins, with expansion of the pulsations to include more notes.  These remain centered on the “dominant” G-sharp, even as the first violins develop arching octaves into a more varied up-down motion.
7:00 [m. 231]--The pulsing begins anew, and now there are new exchanges of the Theme 1 gesture from a flute/clarinet pair and a descent from the lower strings.  After a second exchange, the flute and clarinet are joined by a bassoon, and the extension of the line moves further afield.  The oboe also joins the unison wind group on the swaying line, and there is now a full motion to G-sharp major, coinciding with a strong buildup.  G-sharp is re-interpreted as A-flat as the cellos, then the violas, play a powerful rising line against the pulsing violins and held horns.  The first violins then take the powerful rising line, and A-flat becomes the “dominant” harmony in a new key, D-flat major, indicated with a change of key signature.
7:16 [m. 247]--The violins and violas emerge into a new trill-like figure, played with exuberance in D-flat major against counterpoint like Theme 1 from the full wind group, supported by horns and lower strings.  This only lasts three measures before the trill figure moves to strong detached notes that shift the key back to A-flat minor/major.  The trill figures are heard again in A-flat major, and then the detached notes make the same type of motion up the circle of fifths to E-flat minor, this time with no inflection to major.
7:24 [m. 255]--The oboe enters on a new expressive solo line as the music suddenly quiets down.  It is based on the opening of Theme 1 and is played against triplet arpeggios from the cellos, supported with longer notes in the basses.  As the oboe develops its line, the second and first violins seem to imitate it, then rise.  The harmony moves from A-flat to B-flat, then to C, the bass moving up by half-step.  After the third sequence, under which clarinets and bassoons enter in support, the harmony moves back to A-flat, but the oboe line slides up to A-natural, leading to another key signature change for an arrival on B-flat major.  Against this, the first violins reach up, leading to leaping figures supporting a buildup of the oboe line.
7:32 [m. 263]--A parallel passage to 7:16 [m. 247] begins in B-flat with the instrumentation reversed.  The winds have the new trill-like figure and the upper strings the counterpoint derived from Theme 1.  The detached notes make the expected motion from B-flat to F minor/major, and then there is a second sequence moving to C minor.
7:40 [m. 271]--The oboe line from 7:24 [m. 255] is transferred to the first violins, beginning on F, then moving to G and A.  The triplet arpeggios come from second violins and violas, but the apparent imitations are changed to rising motion passed between low strings and clarinet, now more closely resembling the rising figures from Theme 2.  The bassoon has its own line supporting the clarinet.  On the third sequence, the oboe (the original instrument) joins the first violins before they reach up to their leaping figures.  The harmony moves back to F, and there is the same half-step slide to F-sharp before an arrival on G.
7:48 [m. 279]--In G major (but with a key signature of two sharps), the flutes, oboes, and violins grandly emerge into a full statement of Theme 1.  It is played against the trill-like figure played in static alternation by cellos and violas, supported by the pairs of bassoons and clarinets, the members of each pair also playing in alternation.  The horns and trumpets have long repetitions of D while the basses maintain the G.  After the first six measures of the theme, the violins, flutes, and oboes stretch it out with a powerful elaboration of the sixth measure.  Each detached note is stated twice, with a pattern that extends upward from a lower G.  The trill figures, horns, and trumpets slowly move down, but the basses hold firm to G.
8:00 [m. 292]--The strings break into a forceful transitional passage in unison, initially without winds.  It develops out of the previous pattern, but now has repeated notes leading to upward reaches.  The implied key shifts rapidly to E minor, then F-sharp minor.  The upward reach is then isolated and expanded until the winds and brass enter at another quick harmonic shift to C-sharp.  The strings (without basses) and horns repeat the note G-sharp in a powerful long-short-short pattern as the woodwinds strongly descend with an arpeggio on the “dominant” chord.
8:17 [m. 308]--After an arrival point, the strings are again isolated on the unison passage, now moving to B-flat and C.  The upward reach is again isolated and expanded even more.  The oboes, bassoons, and horns enter to support the C-minor harmony with the lower strings against the violins.  Everything is strongly accented, fortissimo.  The upward reach in the violins shifts to C-sharp minor and then, as the trumpets and timpani enter, to A major, functioning as a “dominant” in D minor.
8:31 [m. 321]--A harmonized statement of Theme 1 appears to begin in D minor from winds and strings with interjections from brass and timpani, but its initial downward sweep is reiterated a third lower.  The faster notes are then spun out even more.  The second violins and violas quickly repeat each note, creating a tremolo effect.  The interjections from horns and trumpets become continuous at another upward shift that leads back to A major, where hammering gestures with timpani lead to repetitions of A like those at the end of the exposition from flutes, oboes, trumpets, timpani, and strings.  Four reiterations of the A are echoed, suddenly quietly, by three more from clarinets, bassoons, and horns.
8:47 [m. 337]--Re-transition.  A statement of Theme 1 like the one just heard in D minor now begins in A minor, but much more quietly and even dolce.  The strings omit the first downward sweep and spin out the faster notes over a held “pedal point” A from the basses, supported by clarinets, bassoons, and horns.  The harmony in the cellos is an inversion of the line, and the second violins with violas even briefly enter with an imitation.  Four very quiet interjections on A are heard from horns, trumpets, and timpani.  The strings slow down with rests as they descend toward A against pulsing clarinets and bassoons.  The same pattern is then heard a step lower, but still against the “pedal point” A.
9:00 [m. 349]--The strings begin another apparent statement a fourth lower than the last one, complete with the imitation, but there is now a strong implication of a “diminished seventh” harmony, which is confirmed when the statement breaks into an upward arpeggio from the first violins.  The “pedal point” on A persists.  The “diminished seventh” arpeggio leads to two gentle statements of the theme’s opening gesture from the first violins, imitated by the violas, as the “pedal point” A is again warmly reiterated by brass and timpani
9:08 [m. 357]--The “pedal point” finally appears to resolve onto D, and the horn, supported by soft string chords and quiet strokes on D from the timpani, plays Theme 1.  The harmony on D, however, is really a “dominant” in G and this is a false reprise, not the moment of recapitulation.  The full thematic statement from the horn is extended with upward leaps in the long-short-short rhythm.  These are supported by motion in the strings, including upward turns from the violas, along with leaping interjections from A to D from the second horn.  As the horn concludes its extension, the timpani strokes on D speed up to triplets, then a full roll.  The clarinet enters with an upward scale that shifts the harmony and key to G.
9:23 [m. 371]--The clarinet plays a statement in G major like its original A-major statement from the very beginning, supported only by a drone from the lower strings.  The timpani strokes are replaced by plucked basses.  The conclusion of the clarinet melody leads to a “plagal” arrival on D major, heralding the much-delayed recapitulation.
RECAPITULATION
9:29 [m. 377]--Theme 1.  It is finally stated by the oboe in D major with D-major harmony, against gently leaping counterpoint from the horn and strokes on D from the timpani over a string drone.  At the end of the melodic statement, there is an unexpected upward turn like the one that signaled the “deviation” before 1:17 and 4:32 [m. 79], and this already leads to the transition.  This extremely abbreviated recapitulatory statement of Theme 1 is thus analogous to the A-major statement at 1:12 and 4:25 [m. 73].  The horn statement at 9:08 [m. 357] would be interpreted as the reprise were it not for the “dominant” harmony with the note C-natural.  The music from this point is analogous to the exposition, transposed a fourth higher.
9:35 [m. 383]--Transition, analogous to 1:17 and 4:32 [m. 79].  The key shifts to B minor here, and the main difference is in instrumentation.  The oboes and clarinets have the primary presentation, with the flutes entering only for the confirming cadences in the extension.  The violins, meanwhile, pulse on an F-sharp, creating a drone with the violas also on F-sharp and the lower strings on B.  The violin pulsation breaks with the shift, which is now to F-sharp minor.  The hammering figures follow the expected pattern, but the volume builds more slowly than before, and the timpani enter later.  The presentation is largely left to the violins, with the winds playing chords.  The harmony at the top of the buildup is now C minor.
9:54 [m. 402]--Analogous to 1:35 and 4:49 [m. 98].  There is a register shift down, such that the plunging “diminished seventh” is lower, not higher, than before.  In the exposition, this was the second appearance of the arpeggio, held note (now G), and two-octave descent, but here it is the first and only one.  The instrumentation is greatly thinned from the analogous passage, with no drum roll, no trumpets, and only one horn.  Even that horn drops out during the second octave of the descent.  The violins are absent from the following unison upbeats and downbeats, now A-G and A-F-sharp.
10:09 [m. 417]--Theme 2 (D major), analogous to 1:49 and 5:05 [m. 113].  The instrumentation remains lighter than in the exposition.  The bassoon does not participate in the initial rising lines, and the clarinets are absent from the supporting sustained notes during the continuation, leaving them to horn and bassoons.  The echo of the motion to the “dominant” harmony is now played by unison flute and oboe instead of horn.
10:27 [m. 435]--Analogous to 2:08 and 5:21 [m. 131].  The transition in thirds is played by clarinets and violins.  Instead of playing this transition, the bassoons, absent from the first statement, join the cellos here on the rising lines.  The first violins join the violas on the arching line.  It is exchanged with the flute and clarinet instead of the oboe.  Thus, the instrumentation here is now fuller than in the exposition, a reversal of the pattern to this point.  The key shifts of the flute/clarinet lines are to G and F.
10:44 [m. 451]--Analogous to 2:24 and 5:38 [m. 147].  The first violins continue to join the violas on the arpeggios and turn figures, shifting from F major to F minor.  The wind responses are from flute and clarinet (from the outset, including the first exchange) instead of oboe and clarinet.  The approach is now to a full D-major cadence.
11:00 [m. 466]--Analogous to 2:40 and 5:53 [m. 162].  The rising thirds are played by violas instead of violins.  The descending half-step line from the bassoons is now doubled by horn.  When that line is doubled in note lengths, it is played by the horn with violas.  At that point, the rising third and fourth are exchanged between the first violins and the flute/clarinet pair.  The violas are replaced by second violins in the plucked exchanges with the lower strings., and the cellos are more continuous.  The high, joyous cadence is strengthened from the exposition by the entry of the timpani and by the flute and clarinet doubling the first violins on the approach to the trill.  The flute joins the trill itself.
11:15 [m. 481]--Closing material, analogous to 2:55 and 6:08 [m. 177].  The only change in scoring here is some slight adjustment to the horns, whose participation is reduced, although one horn is more prominent on an initial leaping octave.  Trumpets and timpani make an entry on a triplet to support the powerful upward violin surge.
11:20 [m. 486]--Analogous to 2:59 and 6:13 [m. 182].  The horns are more powerful at the beginning of the buildup here, but the major difference is the much earlier and more prominent entry of the timpani, which now comes with the trumpet entry.  The drumbeats are now in the prevailing triplet rhythm from that point, pounding on the “dominant” note A and the keynote D.  The three A’s that led into the first and second endings are omitted, and the climactic exchange between strings and winds on the jubilant triplet rhythm merges directly into the coda, which begins with the opening gesture from Theme 1.
CODA
11:34 [m. 501]--The opening of Theme 1 is blasted out by the woodwinds and first violins, supported by the continuing exuberant triplets from horns, timpani, and the other strings (except basses, who reiterate a D).  Trumpets also add punctuating notes.  The main Theme 1 gesture is given twice before the main idea from Theme 2, including its opening note held over a bar line, unexpectedly appears.  The rising arpeggio is heard three times in a rising sequence outlining D minor, then a “diminished seventh” and a “diminished” leading-tone chord.  The first violins are doubled first by clarinets/bassoons/horns, then with added oboe and subtracted horns, and finally by flutes with the other woodwinds turning down.
11:42 [m. 509]--The climax settles down over a descending series of four sighing gestures in the violins and woodwinds.  The thumping D continues from the timpani, as do the leaping triplets in the lower strings, but the volume diminishes.  The sighing gestures merge into a slow syncopated descending arpeggio in the violins, violas, clarinets, and bassoons on a “diminished seventh” chord, the timpani and cellos continuing the triplets.  Horns and basses reiterate a low D.  The bottom of the arpeggio is sustained two bars before bassoons and violas, harmonized in thirds, resolve it in a three-bar descent.  The timpani, then the cellos slow to straight rhythm.  The endpoint is a pianissimo chord, which is repeated after a general pause.
11:58 [m. 524]--A solo flute emerges in a rising triplet scale and begins a statement of Theme 1 with soft string accompaniment.  It seems to be in G major, played over a cello drone, but the harmony is really a “dominant” in C major.  Fittingly for this deceptive harmony, it is played in the version from the “false return” at 9:08 [m. 357], with upward leaps in the long-short-short rhythm.  The horn enters with a gentle counterpoint, and the first violins join the drone.  Bassoon and oboes come in at the end, the latter joining the flutes on a sighing descent on a full-measure triplet in half notes.  The “dominant” chord is sustained, with the violas breaking into a tremolo oscillation before a quiet resolution onto C and full measure pause.
12:21 [m. 543]--A clarinet enters on G, holding it for a bar before being joined by the other clarinet, bassoons, and flutes over another tremolo oscillation from all violins and violas.  The harmony here, based on C, is a “dominant” in F major.  The clarinet has the “resolving” motion on the same notes just heard from flutes and oboes before the pause.  The harmony does not move fully to F and breaks off before another pause.  The same pattern is now given by the horn, which holds the same G for a bar.  The strings enter, with a tremolo oscillation from violins/violas and pulsing drone triplets from cellos/basses.  There is also a soft roll from timpani on A.  The harmony is the “dominant” in the home key of D, which breaks off.
12:31 [m. 550]--The last 25 measures are scored only for solo flute, clarinets, and low strings.  The flute begins halfway through the measure after the last cut off with a rising line sliding up to repeated notes, a figure derived from the main theme.  This is accompanied by the clarinets in thirds, which hold one harmony over a bar line, and is punctuated at the end by plucked violas, who drop an octave.  This pattern, beginning with the flute slide, is given three more times in a descending sequence, and the last of these, which ends with a rising third instead of a step, is repeated for a fifth overall statement.
12:41 [m. 560]--The octave drop of the plucked violas is interrupted by the flute, whose entries are now reduced to pairs of repeated notes.  These steadily descend four times by step before dipping down for a momentary emphasis on the “dominant” A.  They are played against the continuing clarinets in thirds, who steadily descend, still holding notes over bar lines.  The plucked violas alternate with the flute, their octave drop now broken by the flute interjections.  After one such drop, these plucked notes are passed to the cellos, whose plucked pairs move from G to octave leaps on A.  The flute and clarinets touch on “diminished” harmonies.
12:47 [m. 566]--The basses briefly join the plucked cellos.  The pairs of repeated flute notes descend again, quickly turning the harmony back to D, then leap up to confirm an arrival on D.  The thirds in the clarinets also reach a low point and begin to rise, still holding over bar lines.  The cellos and basses confirm the arrival on D before the basses drop out and the cellos do so alone.  The flute and clarinets rise an octave to reiterate the cadential motion to D, and the cellos pass the plucked cadence notes back to the violas.  After the last plucked viola notes on A, the flute and clarinets hold a “leading tone” harmony over a bar line, and the violas, now bowed, enter with the final high D before the flute and clarinets rise to the quiet resolution.
13:04--END OF MOVEMENT [574 mm.]

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2^nd Movement: Scherzo - Allegro non troppo; Trio - Poco più moto (Scherzo and Trio).  D MINOR, 3/4 time.
SCHERZO
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1 (a).  The unison strings (except basses) and bassoon present the main idea, sempre piano e dolce.  It begins with a trill-like two-beat pickup, leading to a mildly chromatic winding line that continually reaches up.  After three full bars, the upper strings and bassoon reach to a held A over a bar line while the cellos break away to provide a bass line.  A descent leads to a leap, now to a held G.  The pattern follows once again, moving down another sequence with the leap to a held F.
0:08 [m. 9]--The clarinets enter here, as do the basses.  The clarinets join the violins, which are harmonized in thirds.  They begin to develop a rocking figure with faster notes leading to notes held over bar lines.  The violas join the lower strings and bassoon in a swaying, arching bass line.  The key shifts to C major here.  After the figure is given twice, the key shifts to A minor, where it is also given twice.  The rocking figure then moves steadily down toward a cadence in A minor.  The cadence has a prominent B-flat and B-natural in proximity, a so-called “cross relation.”  The second violins then use the trill-like pickup to reiterate the cadence.  The violas use the pickup to change the A to a “dominant” in D minor, also reiterated.
0:25 [m. 1]--Part 1 repeated.  Unison presentation of the main idea with upward reaches to held notes, as at the beginning.
0:33 [m. 9]--Entry of clarinets, development of rocking figure, and cadences, as at 0:08.
0:49 [m. 29]--Part 2 (b).  The violas, doubled by a flute, begin the main idea with the trill-like upbeat beginning in G minor but quickly turning back to D minor.  They twice reach up to an E held over a bar line as the cellos enter with a sort of echo, holding an A over a bar line.  Clarinets, bassoons, and horns punctuate the downbeat on the held notes from flute and violas.    The upward reaches from flute and violas are then shifted down a half-step, implying the key of E minor.  The “echo” from the cellos still holds the A over a bar line.  The pattern implying E minor is played three times instead of twice.
1:01 [m. 41]--As the clarinets, bassoons, and horns hold a “dominant” harmony, the flutes, violas, and cellos begin to rock back and forth in fresh harmonies that change E minor to bright E major.  The flutes, now with clarinets, then gently work down to a new development of the rocking figure in E major against the continuing motion in the strings, now with second violins.  The rocking figure is played three times in E major, the third time reaching higher, but then a fourth statement is diverted to A minor.
1:13 [m. 55]--The first violins enter with a new expressive idea in A minor.  It is based on the main idea but incorporates a distinctive descent with a long-short rhythm.  The pervasive swaying character becomes more prominent.  The first violin melody is accompanied by more detached rocking motion in the other strings and punctuated by rising figures in the woodwinds, first clarinets and bassoons, then oboes and bassoons.  The horns also add punctuating notes.  After building up and touching on the “relative” C major, the A-minor melody reaches high, then works down to a cadence in A minor, harmonized and doubled by oboes, bassoons, and the other strings.  The approach to the cadence heavily emphasizes the note B-flat.
1:23 [m. 67]--The cellos now take the A-minor idea.  The rising woodwind figures are now played by flutes and clarinets.  After the upward reach, the descent that had led to the cadence follows, but the full arrival is diverted.  B-flat was already prominent in the violin statement here, and now the cello line, doubled by flute and clarinet, emerges into a series of three-note descents that point toward the key of B-flat major.  The basses are now plucked, and they also emphasize “leading-tone” motion in B-flat.  After a buildup, with rising pitch and volume, the bassoons, then oboe join the descents.  At a climax, as the second violins enter, alterations in pitches point the music back toward the realm of A minor with a longer descent.
1:42 [m. 89]--With the prominent marking “Un poco ritenuto,” implying a restraint of the swinging momentum, the opening figure from the melodic idea is isolated and passed between the first violins and violas over a background of clarinet harmonies, slowly descending cellos, and plucked basses.  The figure is exchanged three times, each time with a slight alteration, the volume steadily diminishing.  The emerging key, also emphasized by the descending cello line, is F-sharp minor.  Arriving there, the first violins wind their way down using the melodic figure over a bass descent supported by wind harmonies.  As they do, the key shifts to C-sharp minor and then veers toward A and finally D major.
1:56 [m. 103]--With the arrival on D major, the winds drop out, and the violin figure is held over a bar line.  It is then discreetly passed to the violas as the bass line slides down from F-sharp to F-natural, shifting D major to D minor.  The viola line is marked perdendosi, the volume receding even more.  The violas also hold notes over bar lines as they wind down, imitating the half-steps G-sharp-A and C-sharp-D just heard from the violins.  They reiterate the latter as the cellos and basses drop out, leaving the violas alone.  This prepares for the two-beat pickup leading into Part 3 (a’), now reduced to two notes, C-sharp-D, replacing the faster trill-like motion on D and E.
2:02 [m. 109]--Part 3 (a’).  After the pickup, the violins and violas have the original line from the main idea.  The bassoon and cellos begin to imitate them in canon a bar later.  The canon is almost two octaves below, essentially a canon at the ninth below (the imitating pitches would be a step above the leading voice without the octave displacement).  The imitation after the first held note is less exact, with a sliding motion down a half step where the imitated held note would be.  The canon continues through the statement, and the violins extend the sequence one more level, adding a held E-flat.  At that point, the canon breaks.
2:12 [m. 119]--Most of this passage is a transposition down a step from 0:08 [m. 9], with the initial motion to B-flat major instead of C major for the rocking motion and notes held over bar lines.  The pattern is followed with a shift in key to G minor, but the clarinets and violins are harmonized in sixths here instead of thirds.  The downward motion toward the cadence follows as expected, but at the end, it is shortened by a measure and the cadence is not in G minor, but it is diverted to D minor.
2:23 [m. 131]--The cadence leads into the expressive idea from Part 2 at 1:13 [m. 55].  It is played by the second violins and violas in D minor, with detached accompaniment in the first violins and lower strings.  The rising woodwind figures are from flutes and clarinets throughout.  Horns and trumpets add punctuation.  The melody follows the expected pattern, touching on F major.  At the stressed upward reach, the first violins take over the melodic line and the winds drop out, the harmonies now left to the strings.  The cadence in D minor is slightly different from the initial A-minor cadence used for this idea, adding a note held over a bar line and more continuous downward motion.
2:34 [m. 143]--The cadence is diverted at the last moment with large stressed upward leap, a full expanded fifth (twelfth) in the first violins.  The woodwinds rejoin, and there is a winding descent to a more emphatic, but still quiet D-minor cadence, including a long-short rhythm at the end.  The note E-flat is prominent, as was the B-flat in the earlier A-minor statement of this material.  Horns and trumpets punctuate the cadence, and the lower strings hold the D after all the other instruments drop out.
2:38 [m. 148]--The lower strings drop an octave, leading into a short codetta based on the opening trill-like two-beat pickup.  It is initially played by the violas, twice leading to a sighing descent of a fifth, punctuated by horns and trumpets and another downward octave leap in the cellos.  The second of these sighing descents overlaps with the entry of the first violins on the trill figure.  They work upward in a two-beat cross-meter, expanding to a third before reaching a high D.  This arrival is punctuated by another octave descent, supported by wind harmonies, ending the main Scherzo section with a strong but quiet confirmation of D minor.
TRIO (B-flat major)
2:46 [m. 155]--Part 1.  The bassoons and horns strongly reiterate the quiet octave D that had ended the main Scherzo.  After two downward octaves from these instruments, the strings enter in rich harmony with the Trio theme in B-flat.  The octave D from the bassoons and horns becomes the third of the chord.  The theme itself is swaying and ebullient, relying heavily on syncopated notes held over bar lines.  The horns and bassoons continue to accompany the theme with full-measure harmonies, supported by leaping basses.  After two phrases in a rising sequence, the melody reaches higher in two gestures and builds.  F-major and D-minor harmony are emphasized, but there is a disruptive B-natural in both the bass and the melody.
3:01 [m. 175]--The woodwinds and horns emerge into four surging syncopated figures.  The strings play on downbeats, alternating loud and soft.  There are “diminished” harmonies, and the key moves toward D minor after the first two surges.  The strings then move to chromatic harmonies, the first violins and cellos playing in contrary motion against a held B in second violins and a held D in violas.  Against this, the flute plays two fleeting high upward arpeggios with horn and trumpet punctuation.  There is a strong buildup as the oboe joins the flute for two more arpeggios, with clarinets and bassoons joining the harmony before a powerful arrival on D minor and a descending octave.  This octave is echoed by the lower strings.
3:16 [m. 195]--Part 1, varied repeat, analogous to 2:46 after the octave D [m. 159].  The Trio theme is now played by the winds instead of the strings, led by the oboes.  The lower strings have the accompanying harmonies, including leaping octaves on B-flat.  After the first two sequential phrases, the violins enter to play the higher reaching gestures with the buildup.  The first violins are doubled by the oboe for the first upward reach, with the flutes entering in support with the stronger buildup on the second upward reach.
3:28 [m. 211]--Analogous to 3:01 [m. 175].  The surging syncopated figures are now taken by the strings, and the woodwinds (without oboes) are on the downbeat harmonies.  After the first three of the following chromatic string harmonies, there is a deviation, as the harmonic goal is now F major instead of D minor.  The fleeting arpeggios are played by both flute and clarinet throughout, and the string harmonies are supported by bassoon, horn, and second clarinet.  The second violins and violas move from their notes after three bars instead of six.  There is no buildup, and volume remains pianissimo through the bright arrival on F major with leaping violins.  The descending octave and low string echo are retained.
3:42 [m. 231]--Part 2.  The oboe and first violins play the main Trio theme in the new and striking key of D-flat major.  They are supported by bassoons, horns, and lower strings on long harmonies with a leaping D-flat octave.  After the first two sequential phrases, the flute joins for the upward reach.  This differs from the previous statements in that it ends with a held note (a high A-flat).  The second upward reach is played by clarinet and bassoon, turns toward minor, and there is no buildup.
3:54 [m. 247]--The clarinet and bassoon resolve up a half-step to A, and in the key of A major, the violas and cellos (the cellos on top), doubled by bassoons, begin a warm statement of the Trio theme, punctuated by a plucked violin chord.  The leaping octave on A is played by horns, trumpets, and plucked basses.  The violins join after two measures of the second sequential phrase.  The first upward reach is like that in the D-flat statement, ending with a high held E, except now there is a very strong buildup, and an overlapping upward reach in minor from clarinet and bassoon against the held note.
4:03 [m. 259]--The second (now third) upward reach overlaps with the clarinet and bassoon and shifts to a “dominant” harmony on F, beginning an octave higher.  There is a dramatic timpani entrance here on F, along with whooping horn octaves supporting the powerful buildup.  The timpani strokes become a roll against a held chord, and the strings then emerge into a strong upward arpeggio, moving the “dominant” harmony toward a powerful arrival back at home on B-flat.
4:09 [m. 267]--Part 3.  It is another complete and varied statement of Part 1, more powerful than the others.  The opening upbeat, which is held over a bar line in the melody, is punctuated by timpani, horns, and trumpets.  The melody itself is again in the winds, as in the varied repeat of Part 1.  The accompaniment now includes powerful upbeat-downbeat punctuation in plucked violins and violas, along with the usual leaping octaves in the lower strings.  The brass and timpani interject between the sequential phrases.  The two upward reaches are now played by the woodwinds in unison, with quickly alternating punctuation between the plucked upper strings and the brass/timpani group.
4:20 [m. 283]--Analogous to 3:01 [m. 175] and 3:28 [m. 211].  As in the first statement, the winds carry the surging syncopated figures and the strings the downbeat chords alternating loud and soft, but the upper strings are now plucked.  This continues with the chromatic harmonies, with the plucked upper strings on upbeats following longer downbeats in the cellos, still with contrary motion.  The fleeting arpeggios are played by flute and clarinet, with other winds supporting the harmony.  The harmonic pattern seems to follow the second statement, but there is a deviation after the fifth chord, moving the arrival to B-flat instead of F.  The upper strings take their bows at the descending octave, and the low strings quietly echo it.
4:34 [m. 303]--A codetta to this large trio section begins with the two sequential phrases of the main theme, now gently played by oboe and clarinet, with leaping octaves from bassoons and plucked basses.  The violas and cellos play longer harmonies, adding new chromatic motion in the cellos, and there are gentle punctuations from the timpani.  The upward reaches resemble those from Part 2, ending with a held note, but they are altered to end on the keynote B-flat, and include the colorful chromatic note A-flat.  The oboe/clarinet pair continues for the first one, but the flute replaces the oboe on the second, with diminishing volume.  The new chromatic motion moves to the violas and becomes prominent.
4:46 [m. 319]--The harmonies in the violas and cellos, with the violas continuing the same prominent chromatic motion, are now the leading voice.  The basses and bassoons continue the leaping B-flat octaves.  The flute and clarinet play on upbeats held over the bar line, at first reversing the motion in the violas and then reiterating B-flat.  There are gentle timpani strokes on the held downbeats.  After two statements of the chromatic viola line diminish to triple piano, the motion slows, with a pause in the strings and bassoons against one last flute/clarinet B-flat.  The strings and bassoons reiterate the B-flat harmony with timpani before another pause, now from the full group.  It is given without timpani before a two-bar general pause
SCHERZO REPRISE
4:58 [m. 1]--Part 1 (a).  A single rest is added to the two-bar general pause at the end of the Trio section, and it serves as the downbeat to the two-note upbeat that begins the main Scherzo.  This is counted as m. 334 since the downbeat after the two-note upbeat has been counted as m. 1.  Winding string line and leaps to held notes, as at the beginning and 0:25.
5:06 [m. 9]-- Rocking figures with notes held over bar lines, then cadence in A minor, as at 0:08 and 0:33.  Part 1 is not repeated in the reprise.
5:24 [m. 29]--Part 2 (b).  Main idea from violas and flutes leading toward E minor, as at 0:49.
5:36 [m. 41]--Rocking figures in E major, as at 1:01.
5:47 [m. 55]--New expressive idea in A minor from violins, as at 1:13.
5:58 [m. 67]--New expressive idea from cellos with digression to B-flat, as at 1:23.
6:17 [m. 89]--Restrained statements of opening figure leading to F-sharp minor, then winding figures leading to D major, as at 1:42.
6:31 [m. 103]--Fading violin and viola lines shifting to D minor and leading to Part 3 (a’), as at 1:56.
6:38 [m. 109]--Part 3 (a’).  Extended statement of original main idea with imitation in canon, as at 2:02.
6:46 [m. 119]--Rocking motion shifted down a step, then arrival back on D minor, as at 2:12.
6:57 [m. 131]--Expressive idea from Part 2 in D minor, as at 2:23.
7:07 [m. 143]--Stressed upward leap and winding descent to D-minor cadence, as at 2:34.
7:12 [m. 148]--Codetta based on trill-like two-beat pickup, as at 2:38.
7:24--END OF MOVEMENT [334 (+154) mm.]

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3^rd Movement: Adagio non troppo (Sonata form).  B-FLAT MAJOR, 2/4 time with one measure of 3/4.
EXPOSITION
0:00 [m. 1]--Theme 1.  The “double-dotted” rhythm, best characterized as “long-very short,” is pervasive throughout the movement.  The opening passage is based on that rhythm, with gently sighing gestures presented by the lower strings (no violins) and bassoons in pleasing, largely third-based harmony.  The initial gesture is two bars, followed by a brief pause and then a one-bar figure.  After another pause, a second one-bar figure turns the first around, and finally, another two-bar figure reaches down with the double-dotted rhythm before a drawn-out cadence on the “dominant” harmony of F.
0:21 [m. 7]--The clarinets now begin a new melody that also relies on the double-dotted rhythm.  The expressive rising figure from the first clarinet is gently echoed by a horn.  The second clarinet then joins the first in a partly imitative counterpoint, and there is another horn echo.  The strings provide quiet, static punctuation.  After the first clarinet reaches up and descends with a single triplet rhythm, a bassoon joins the counterpoint.  The clarinets come together, harmonized in sixths, and make a darker turn toward D minor.  The first clarinet has an ornamental turn figure before a full D-minor cadence punctuated by plucked string chords.  The string basses then descend toward a reprise of the opening music.
0:50 [m. 17]--The opening music is heard again, now with violins and without bassoons.  The first two-bar gesture and the next one-bar gesture are as before, but the next one bar figure continues to move up instead of turning down.  Another upward gesture expands into a four-bar closing and descent, extending the original phrase by two measures.  This extension shifts the cadence from the “dominant” to a full arrival on B-flat.
1:16 [m. 25]--The melody from 0:21 [m. 7] is now given by the flute, with the horn echo, beginning in B-flat instead of F.  The other horns, bassoons, and plucked strings provide the accompaniment.  The first clarinet, not the second flute, provides the partly imitative counterpoint.  The flute decorates its second gesture.  When the flute and clarinet come together, they do not make the darker turn.  Instead, they extend the phrase, and the other woodwinds join along with horns and (now bowed) strings.  There are mild chromatic inflections.  The cadence on B-flat is extended as well, with murmuring half-steps in the low strings and a pair of diminishing echoes, the second held over a bar line by clarinets and bassoons.
1:57 [m. 39]--Transition.  The strings begin a new flowing theme with a murmuring accompaniment.  The melody is given by first violins and violas, shadowed by a tremolo murmur in thirds from second violins and cellos (the second violins in eight-note groups, the cellos in six-note groups).  There is a sustained horn note against the string activity.  After four measures, the flutes, oboes, and clarinets join and harmonize the melody in thirds.  The first violins move to the tremolo, but the violas continue the undecorated melody with the woodwinds.  The end of this four-bar unit makes a new upward turn and begins to build.
2:16 [m. 47]--At the top of the upward turn, the winds briefly become syncopated.  They break from the violas, who continue the more flowing motion, shadowed by the murmur.  After sustaining the harmony G-B-flat, the woodwinds reach up again and turn toward F major, breaking with the horns, who sustain notes.  More wind syncopation in the F-major area continues to go against the flowing string line.  Then, breaking out forte, the woodwinds and violas rise in a more dramatic way.  The violin tremolo widens, breaks from the violas, and slows to six-note groups, while the basses break from the murmur and the cellos gradually do so.  A continuing upward direction leads strongly to D major, which is reiterated as the volume recedes.
2:47 [m. 59]--The horns become prominent as the forceful D-major music outburst recedes even more.  The horns then begin another harmonic motion back toward F major, supported by the violins.  The murmuring motion moves up through the string group.  The clarinet takes over with a soaring upward leap, the harmony in strings and horns turning fully back to F major for Theme 2.
3:01 [m. 64]--Theme 2 (F major).  A warm-hearted dolce melody with prominent upward turns in syncopation is presented by a solo horn.  It is played against wide murmuring arpeggios in six-note groups from the first violins and is given a gentle bassoon counterpoint.  The basses sustain a low F.  As the horn melody moves to wide upward reaching lines, the harmony shifts back toward B-flat major.
3:17 [m. 70]--The Theme 2 melody is now taken by the clarinet in B-flat, harmonizing with the horn.  The first and second violins exchange downward-arching triplet figures.  The violas have an intriguing new figure in halting “straight” rhythm.  The clarinet is joined by its partner in G minor as the horn moves to longer supporting notes.  The melody makes a new upward turn, surging to forte and reaching high as the oboes and flutes join the clarinets.  The high woodwind group turns to E-flat against the murmuring violins, the bass, and other contrapuntal lines.  Still at a high level, the winds recede in volume and turn back to F major to complete a cadence and conclude the initial presentation of Theme 2.
3:41 [m. 79]--Closing material.  A rocking figure in clarinets and bassoons grows out of the cadence.  Flutes soon join this rocking motion.  Finally, the strings join and the volume builds.  The harmony is very unstable, but soon re-establishes F major as the horns enter in syncopation.  The strings and winds, in harmony, now have two chromatic descents (by half-step), diminishing in volume before turning to another gentle cadence in F.  This is punctuated by a plunging horn arpeggio that incorporates a triplet rhythm.
4:06 [m. 88]--The low strings now begin the rocking motion, and the harmony turns briefly to B-flat.  The violas, entering on an upbeat, play halting upward gestures that are related to the halting figures they played against Theme 2, the low strings becoming chromatic.  These viola figures soon become off-beat punctuation.  The first violins enter with a more continuous upward line.  They pause on a slower, mildly syncopated long-short rhythm (against a rising line in second violins and violas) that is echoed by the oboe, supported by clarinet and bassoon.  This syncopated gesture is passed back to the violins a step lower.  Finally, the flute and horn enter to lead back to the same F-major cadence with the plunging arpeggio.
4:28 [m. 96]--As the cellos and basses move again to rocking motion, the oboe descends in a scale beginning off the beat in two-note slurs, ending with a brief chromatic inflection.  The pattern is then passed to the second clarinet as the violas join the rocking.  The violins sustain long notes, and the horns enter on the downbeat.  The clarinet line is mildly chromatic and includes thirds.  The original oboe scale line an octave lower is then played by the first clarinet, and the response by the bassoon.  The backing instruments drop out.  The violas take the original scale but add thirds at the end.  The cellos trail down after the violas.  All strings, with clarinets and horns, play a soft, extended F-major cadence.
DEVELOPMENT
4:57 [m. 104]--Emerging from the cadence, the second violins and violas begin a pianissimo pulsation, abruptly shifting the key to D-flat major.  As the first violins join the pulsation, the clarinet enters, holding a note over a bar line, and then descends in a dolce winding line, ending with a leap to D-flat.  The lower strings enter with the familiar rocking motion.  The pulsation begins again in second violins and violas, now in B-flat minor (“relative” to D-flat), and the bassoon now plays the winding descent.  Again, the first violins join the pulsation, and the lower strings play the rocking motion.
5:22 [m. 112]--The bassoons and clarinets now have the pulsation, beginning in E-flat minor, and the violas enter with the winding descent.  The lower strings again play the rocking motion.  The second violins imitate the violas a bar later, and the first violins a measure after that, creating a rich counterpoint in the upper three string parts.  The harmony shifts strongly back to D-flat major.  The clarinets and bassoons break their pulsation with pauses, the clarinets adding short descents harmonized in thirds.  The oboe enters to support a cadence in D-flat from the flowing upper string lines.  The first violins add a mild syncopation. 
5:42 [m. 119]--The violas and cellos emerge into broadly leaping arpeggio figures in six-note triplet groups.  At the same time, the clarinets emerge magically into the Theme 2 melody in D-flat, harmonized in sixths.  Flutes and bassoons play long supporting notes.  The clarinets spin out the Theme 2 melody, leading to another cadence in D-flat.  This cadence overlaps with a new statement of the Theme 2 melody in violas and cellos in B-flat minor.  The first violins and bassoon add short leaping figures in triplet rhythm.  The violas and cellos spin out the melody in their minor-key version as the clarinets did and reach a similar cadence in B-flat minor.  The clarinets enter against the cadence with a hint of Theme 2 in gentle thirds.
6:08 [m. 128]--The clarinets and bassoon now have an exposed dialogue with no other instruments present.  The bassoon enters with the Theme 2 figure.  The clarinets then intertwine with each other as all three instruments build up to forte.  The bassoon plays the Theme 2 figure three times total, first shifting down from B-flat minor to B minor, then moving through the circle of fifths to F-sharp minor and C-sharp minor.  The intertwining clarinet lines follow the bassoon.  The bassoon itself now has two leaping octaves with a leaping third between them.  The clarinet lines also have faster leaping gestures.  The key moves back to B with a rising bassoon line, and the arrival point is not B minor, but B major.
6:33 [m. 135]--The key signature in the strings changes to five sharps for B major.  Overlapping with the arrival of the clarinets and bassoons, the strings very gently play the opening of Theme 1 in B major, pianissimo.  The cellos and basses have syncopated downward half-step motion, making the harmony unstable.  The first arrival of the melodic gesture is inflected from B to B-sharp.  The bassoons continue the theme with a rising gesture as the low strings continue to slide down.  The violins and violas respond with the next descending gesture, now landing on B.
6:49 [m. 139]--The next bassoon response suggests G-sharp minor.  The upper strings then leap down, leading to a suspended arrival on the “dominant” in F-sharp major.  The low strings straighten out their syncopation, which has maintained the half-step descent, and the bassoon response is delayed, creating the movement’s only 3/4 measure (m. 140).
7:00 [m. 141]--The first violins play the expressive melody from Theme 1 originally heard at 0:21 [m. 7].  They play it in F-sharp major, and there is imitation from the cellos.  The bassoons, horns, violas, and basses enter with punctuating chords.  As the first violins continue the theme, there are two more imitations of the opening gesture from the second violins and the cellos.  The first violins play the triplet descent, and then the imitations from second violins become more chromatic.  The violins come together, turning up and back down, and then they slow down greatly.  The low strings play plucked chords on the upbeats, and the violas join the violins.  The final harmony is on F-sharp, but it is a “dominant” suggesting an arrival on B.
RECAPITULATION
7:36 [m. 151]--Theme 1.  The expected arrival on B is thwarted by half-step motion in the low strings and the note A-sharp changing its identity to B-flat.  This striking progression leads directly back home to B-flat major.  The opening of Theme 1 is now played by clarinets, bassoons, and horns.  The violas and cellos accompany the theme with plucked rising arpeggios.  The violins join these plucked arpeggios from the third measure.  The phrase is played in the extended version from 0:50 [m. 17], leading to a full arrival on B-flat.  The oboes join the thematic presentation halfway through the phrase, at the last upward motion.
8:07 [m. 159]--The expressive melody from 0:21 [m. 7] and 1:16 [m. 25] is transformed into an entirely new version with three-note upbeats replacing the double-dotted leaps.  These are continually passed between the violins and the cellos, all now bowed.  The familiar punctuating chords typically heard with the melody are played by the woodwinds and horns.  The melodic outline clearly resembles the original tune.  After four measures of violin/cello exchanges that gently swell in volume, the violas enter to join the cellos in shorter exchanges.  These become more chromatic and diminish in volume over four measures.  The strings come together in a rising line leading into the next phrase.
8:33 [m. 167]--A bassoon with the string basses plays a rising line as the rest of the strings hold a note.  The strings then rise and emerge into a soaring gesture in a long-short rhythm.  The basses and bassoons undulate beneath the longer notes.   The upper woodwinds (flutes, oboes, and clarinets) enter with another rising line from the low bass (now with the chromatic note G-flat), and with the strings, they play a harmonized figure from the shorter exchanges.  After yet another bass line, this figure is echoed by the oboes, clarinets, and bassoons.  The bass line is heard once more, and the violins emerge into gently leaping long-short figures.  These slide to a held “dominant” chord suggesting the remote C-flat major.
8:59 [m. 174]--This inserted passage has no clear analog in the exposition.  The figures from the shorter exchanges are now doubled in length in a spectral transformation.  Instead of the expected C-flat major, the strings play this slower figure in E-flat minor, and it is echoed by the winds.  Another figure in G-flat major is played in a similar exchange.  There are two more exchanges between strings and winds, but they are shortened to three-note groups and gradually move back toward B-flat via A-flat.  After two of these, a third seems to begin, but the woodwinds suddenly enter forte in a high register and descend.  The strings join after one measure, and two soaring bars later, a long-short rhythm leads into the familiar transition.
9:30 [m. 184]--Transition, analogous to 1:57 [m. 39].  The pattern from the exposition is followed, but in the first four measures, the second violins play the undecorated melody with the violas, and the first violins play the tremolo.  When the winds take over in the next four measures, the horns join the harmonized melody in thirds, and the cellos join the violas a third below.  The six-note tremolo that had been played by the cellos is now taken by the second violins, and the first violins widen theirs to sixths.  In the last two bars, the chromatic note A-flat is introduced in a new deviation, and there is a stronger buildup in volume.
9:54 [m. 192]--The passages from 2:16 [m. 47] and 2:47 [m. 59] are replaced by a new climax that is half as long.  After the rogue A-flat seems to point toward E-flat major, B-flat is immediately reaffirmed.  Led by the woodwinds, and still shadowed by the violin tremolo, the harmonized melody pauses, then soars up and descends.  The lower strings support the woodwind motion.  The soaring leap to the descent is given a second time in a downward sequence.  The clarinets drop out, and the flutes and oboes continue with the soaring line, including two downward leaps of a fourth that alternate with bassoons and low strings.  The melody then winds up and down, leading into Theme 2 with a strong rising entry from clarinets and horn.
10:18 [m. 200]--Theme 2 (B-flat major), analogous to 3:01 [m. 64].  Now in the home key, it is presented more strongly than in the exposition, espressivo and forte, with the solo horn doubled by both clarinets in octaves.  The original bassoon counterpoint is strengthened by the low strings.  The violins and violas have a new accompaniment, replacing the wide murmuring arpeggios with detached ascending ones beginning off the beat.  The first violins play their arpeggios in triplet groups, bowed, while the second violins and violas are in “straight” rhythm and plucked.  The harmonic turn at the end is now toward E-flat major.
10:36 [m. 206]--Analogous to 3:17 [m. 70].  The major difference is that the volume is already at forte.  The clarinets and horn present the melody here, as before, beginning in E-flat, but they are in unison, and harmony is provided by the bassoon.  The string accompaniment with rising arpeggios continues from the previous passage.  After two measures, the oboe enters to take over the melody with the first clarinet in C minor, the second clarinet and horn now providing harmony.  At the upward turn, where there had previously been a surge in volume, the scoring resembles the exposition but now turns to A-flat.  The volume then recedes and turns toward a cadence in B-flat.
11:01 [m. 215]--Closing material, analogous to 3:41 [m. 79].  The scoring is much the same as in the exposition.  The clarinets and bassoons begin their rocking figure a fourth higher than they were, but when the flute and then the violins join, they are a fifth lower.  The oboes enter with the violins here and take over for both the flute and clarinet, who briefly drop out.  When the flutes enter again at the chromatic descents, they are higher than before while everyone else is lower.  The cadence in B-flat again incorporates the horn arpeggio with the triplet rhythm (in a slightly different orientation).
11:28 [m. 224]--Analogous to 4:06 [m. 88].  The scoring is nearly identical to the exposition.  The harmony turns briefly to E-flat.  Initially, the violas are higher on their halting figures, while the violins are lower on their entry.  The woodwinds are higher on their echo.  At the reiteration of the B-flat cadence with the horn arpeggio, the level is generally higher except for the horn itself.
CODA
11:51 [m. 232]--The passage from 4:29 [m. 96] is omitted here, and at the cadence, the clarinets, in sixths, play the version of Theme 2 heard in the development section at 5:42 [m. 119], spun out and leading to a cadence, now of course in B-flat.  Gentle leaping figures in triplet rhythm are heard from violas, then first violins, then cellos, then first violins again.  The bases sustain a low B-flat.
12:03 [m. 236]--Overlapping with the clarinet cadence, the flute enters and lingers on the opening Theme 2 gesture, steadily moving down over three measures before emerging into an upward-turning long-short rhythm.  The clarinets provide flowing, but halting accompaniment, still harmonized in sixths.  The cellos and basses sustain the low B-flat.  The flute figures work down and become chromatic, prominently including the note D-flat, and the clarinet harmonies also move down with chromatic notes.  The flute works back up by half-step, landing back on B-flat harmony.
12:21 [m. 242]--The flute is now isolated on rising arpeggios supported by clarinet harmonies.  These arpeggios lead into gentle upward half-step slides.  The sustained low B-flat moves to the horns.  A B-flat arpeggio in the flute is followed by two that outline “diminished seventh” chords (also supported in the clarinet harmonies).  Finally, the flute emerges into an ornamental turn before a sighing cadence on B-flat, with the clarinets falling against it.
12:40 [m. 246]--The strings enter with the familiar double-dotted opening figures from Theme 1.  The first measure of these is colored by the chromatic note G-flat, just heard in the flute arpeggios.  The figures then settle down to a full arrival on B-flat, with the short B-flats held twice held into longer ones.  The woodwinds and horns sustain long notes.  The cadence is followed by a sliding triplet in thirds from violas and cellos, the first notes of which in both instruments are chromatic decorations (C-sharp and E-natural).  This sliding triplet leads into the upper two notes of the B-flat chord in those instruments (D and F).  All the other instruments have the note B-flat in this serene held final chord.
13:13--END OF MOVEMENT [250 mm.]

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4^th Movement: Menuetto I and II (with reprise of Menuetto I).  G MAJOR/MINOR, 3/4 time.
NB: The measure numbering here follows the Breitkopf & Härtel “Sämtliche Werke,” with the reprise of Menuetto I written out before the coda.
MENUETTO I in G major, scored for two clarinets and bassoon, joined in Part 2 by cellos and flute
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  The clarinets, in sixths, play an undulating figure with a long note, three short notes, and a chromatic half-step.  The bassoon plays detached leaping notes above a “pedal point” G, first a fifth, then a sixth.  The clarinet figure is given a step higher, and the bassoon leaps expand to a seventh.  The clarinet figure begins up another step, hinting at C major, but turns down in the second bar, and the leaping bassoon expands to an octave.  The top clarinet leaps down, then rises and falls against a half-step from the second clarinet and contracting bassoon leaps.  This gesture is repeated a fourth lower, adding a downward leap.  The bassoon “pedal point” breaks, trailing down to the “dominant” D below the second clarinet.
0:17 [m. 1]--Part 1 repeated.
0:34 [m. 11]--Part 2.  The bassoon drops out, and plucked cellos enter to take over the leaping figures, starting with octaves.  The clarinets now play three of the figures with a long note and three short ones, without the following half-step.  The first two are harmonized to suggest D minor while the third shifts toward B-flat, and this is reflected in the leaping cellos.  The clarinets descend, still suggesting B-flat, with shorter contracting leaps in the cello line, and then the top clarinet undulates with a note held over a bar line.  The sliding lower cello notes begin a shift back to G, and the flute enters, suddenly forte, harmonizing a descent that confirms the arrival back on G.
0:45 [m. 18]--The bassoon takes over from the cellos, and the first two clarinet gestures from Part 1 are given, now with an added flute counterpoint that enters on the last beat of the bar, holds a note over a bar line, and descends.  After the second gesture, the flute tumbles down in a triplet rhythm and then takes over the melodic line.  The leaping bassoon moves more freely above the “pedal point” G, and the flute, harmonized by the clarinets, gently leads to a full cadence in G with falling figures.  The clarinets add a suspended resolution.  The bassoon moves away from the “pedal point” to confirm the cadence in leaping octaves.  In the first ending (m. 25a), two bassoon fifths, G-D are followed by an octave G on the upbeat.
0:58 [m. 11]--Part 2 repeated.  First phrase with plucked cellos, as at 0:34.
1:10 [m. 18]--Closing phrase, as at 0:45.  In the second ending, the bassoon moves to the octave on the second beat, and the third beat is replaced by the upbeat of Menuetto II.
MENUETTO II in G minor, scored for strings without basses, joined in Part 2 by two clarinets
1:23 [m. 26]--Part 1.  Starting on the upbeat, the first violins (second violins are not indicated) play an expressive, swaying minor-key melody, accompanied by winding, detached arpeggios from the violas and downbeat punctuation from the cellos.  After four measures with a rising two-bar sequence, the second half of the phrase develops into a descending chromatic scale harmonized by the cellos, who become more active.  The phrase remains in G minor but ends on the “dominant” harmony.  The first ending leads back to the initial falling upbeat against the continuing viola line.
1:37 [m. 26]--Part 1 repeated.  The second ending has a new rising upbeat to lead into Part 2.
1:50 [m. 34]--Part 2.  The two clarinets join here to add harmonic support.  The contrasting phrase begins with a variant of the main melodic figure in an inverted direction.  The violas continue their accompaniment in three-note rising arpeggios, and the cellos punctuate on downbeats and upbeats.  The phrase initially turns toward C minor, then B-flat minor in a descending sequence.  The clarinets then harmonize the violins on a syncopated ascent that shifts to B-flat major.  The violas shift back to their winding lines.  A longer syncopation with a note held over a bar line leads back to G minor and an extended two-beat version of the initial upbeat, decorated by a clarinet descent and rising cellos.
2:05 [m. 42]--The melody from Part 1 returns, but it is immediately given chromatic alterations, and the upward sequence in the third and fourth measures is a third higher.  The continuation reaches still higher and builds to forte, but it retains the basic rhythmic shape with a long note followed by three shorter ones.  This continuation settles down to a full cadence in G minor.  The first ending includes the upbeat leading into the repetition of Part 2.
2:17 [m. 34]--Part 2 repeated.  Contrasting phrase, as at 1:50.
2:32 [m. 42]--Closing phrase with higher upward reach and cadence in G minor, as at 2:05.  The second ending (m. 49b) leads into the short codetta with a rising octave G on the upbeat from the violas, who break off their winding accompaniment.  The cellos begin a persistent leaping octave G.
2:45 [m. 50]--A short codetta is added, during which the clarinets drop out.  The violins sustain their G from the end of the cadence, and the cellos continue the persistent leaping octave G like the bass figuration from Menuetto 1.  The melodic interest is in the violas, who are divided, harmonized in thirds, and descend.  A rising tenth, C-E-flat, leads to two more descents in thirds over two measures.  These descents remain minor, but lead directly into the reprise of Menuetto I.
REPRISE OF MENUETTO I
2:52 [m. 54]--Part 1, as at the beginning and 0:17 [m. 1].
3:09 [m. 64]--Part 2.  First phrase with plucked cellos, as at 0:34 and 0:58 [m. 11].
3:21 [m. 71]--Closing phrase, as at 0:45 and 1:10 [m. 18].  The second ending version is used, leading into the upbeat to the coda, which is the same as that for the codetta to Menuetto II, a rising octave G in the violas and cellos.
3:33 [m. 79]--Coda.  It is a major-key version of the codetta to Menuetto II from 2:45 [m. 50].  The sustained G that had been played by the violins is played and reiterated by the flute.  Other than that, the only change is the transformation from minor to major.  After the original four measures, three closing measures are added during which the divided violas confirm the G-major harmony, holding a harmonized sixth (D-B) over a bar line.  The flute reiterates the G, and the cello octaves come to a rest in the held final measure.
3:55--END OF MOVEMENT [85 mm.]

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5^th Movement: Scherzo - Allegro (Scherzo and Trio).  D MAJOR, 3/4 time.
SCHERZO
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  A solo horn immediately swings out with the rustic main theme, one particularly suited for that instrument.  It is eight measures long, six of which are full-measure notes, and the other two (the third and seventh) are three quarter notes.  It is in two complementary four-bar units.  The accompaniment is provided by the cellos in continuous quarter notes, who start with descending lines, then move to wide upward leaps.  The melody ends with a “dominant” A in the cellos and an E in the horn.  The melody is then repeated by the violins in octaves, and the cellos are joined in unison by the violas.  The only change is in the last two bars, which make a full closure on D with the violas and cellos briefly harmonizing.
0:11 [m. 17]--Part 2.  The violins, in harmony, play two trill-like measures with a long note and three short ones.  The cellos, now with basses, leap in octaves on A.  The trill-like motion then becomes more continuous, and the violas with three wind instruments, oboe, clarinet, and horn, play a rising unison line that culminates with two brief descents.  The cellos and basses maintain their leaping A through all six measures.
0:16 [m. 23]--The violins, doubled by entering flutes, exuberantly play the first six measures of the main theme as the trumpets and timpani also enter.  A trumpet doubles the first four measures.  The other winds, now including bassoon, play the swinging accompaniment with the violas and lower strings, the latter remaining on the leaping A for four measures before moving.  After six bars, the brass and timpani drop out, and the violins and flutes, now with oboe and clarinet, deviate from the melody with upward motion, holding each third note over a bar line to create strong syncopation.  After three measures, the ascent pauses on a high G for three more before rising to A in a cadence punctuated by trumpets and timpani.
0:24 [m. 35]--Horns, now doubled by bassoons, blast out the initial opening leap from the theme.  The other woodwinds, trumpets, timpani, and strings, respond, the higher instruments leaping up another fourth from the horns.  The lower strings play descending lines from the original accompaniment.  The whole sequence is then given a step higher.  The horns and bassoons start a third sequence, but the other instruments deviate, the violins and other high instruments moving their leap a third higher than expected while the timpani beats are more active.  All instruments come to a pause for four beats before a powerful cadence.
0:36 [m. 51]--Suddenly quiet, the strings and timpani start a churning motion with a bass D and repeated higher response.  Beginning off the beat, a solo horn rises in an arpeggio, holding a top note over a bar line.  It is imitated after two bars by a solo oboe.  Both instruments round off their lines with descents.  Before the oboe finishes, the horn enters again, this time doubled by the first violins.  The horn whoops in octaves while the violins descend.  The imitation is now from flute, clarinet, and bassoon.  The horn and first violins have a fifth and final imitative entry, and there is a powerful buildup.  The full orchestra comes together for three swinging descents with whooping horn, the bass descending before an emphatic cadence.
0:46 [m. 17]--Part 2 repeated.  Trill-like violin motion, as at 0:11.
0:50 [m. 23]--Fully-scored statement of theme culminating in syncopation, as at 0:16.
0:58 [m. 35]--Sequence of rising leaps of a fourth, pause, and cadence, as at 0:24.
1:10 [m. 51]--Sequence of overlapping imitation beginning quietly, then buildup and cadence, as at 0:36.
TRIO
1:19 [m. 65]--Part 1.  The solo horn takes the lead again, this time with a new, quieter melody beginning with a long-short melody and leaping down in a D-major arpeggio.  An ornamented turn completes the four-bar unit, which is repeated in full.  The violas, cellos, and basses have a continuously rushing accompaniment to this, the violas in harmony with the cellos and basses.  This string accompaniment is mostly rising figures of three notes except in the fourth and eighth measures, which are arpeggiated.  In the last measure, the string arpeggio makes a striking shift to the “dominant” chord in the “relative” B minor.
1:25 [m. 65]--Part 1 repeated.
1:31 [m. 73]--Part 2.  Another solo horn (this one tuned in E instead of D), plays the first four bars of the new melody not in B minor, but B major.  The rushing accompaniment is now in the violins.  The violas and basses pluck on the first and third beats while the cello play wide arpeggios.  The horn is then joined by the clarinet and bassoon for another statement, and this one is in B minor.
1:36 [m. 81]--Moving back to D major and a forte volume, the oboes play the first four measures with the horn in D, the timpani entering to take over the punctuation with the basses on the first and third beats while the violas and cellos play leaping quarter notes.  The rest of the instruments, including trumpets, join for the second half of the melody and add harmony, building up to fortissimo.  Instead of moving to the ornamented turn, the first two measures of downward leaps are repeated, extending the phrase to ten measures.  The turn then follows, and the theme reaches a full cadence for the first time.  Approaching the cadence, the timpani beats are continuous, and the violins play a rushing upward scale.
1:43 [m. 73]--Part 2 repeated.  Statements in B major and B minor, as at 1:31.
1:49 [m. 81]--Return to D major for extended phrase, buildup, and cadence with full orchestra, as at 1:36.
SCHERZO REPRISE
1:55 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Horn and violin statements of main melody, as at the beginning.
2:06 [m. 17]--Part 2.  Trill-like violin motion, as at 0:11 and 0:46.
2:11 [m. 23]--Fully-scored statement of theme culminating in syncopation, as at 0:16 and 0:50.
2:19 [m. 35]--Sequence of rising leaps of a fourth, pause, and cadence, as at 0:24 and 0:58.
2:31 [m. 51]--Sequence of overlapping imitation beginning quietly, then buildup and cadence, as at 0:36 and 1:10.
2:43--END OF MOVEMENT [90 (+64) mm.]

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6^th Movement: Rondo - Allegro (Rondo form).  D MAJOR, 2/4 time.
0:00 [m. 1]--First statement of RONDO THEME in D major.  Beginning with a quick upbeat, it is presented by violas and cellos with clarinets and bassoons.  Entirely based on a long-short (dotted) rhythm, it leaps and circles around like a country dance, reaching a half-close after eight measures.  The basses provide support for upbeats and downbeats.  The cellos are melodic and play above the violas.  The whole phrase is then repeated by the strings, with the violins taking the lead.  The woodwinds, with oboes followed by the group of flutes, clarinets, and bassoons, add quick interjections along with the basses.
0:12 [m. 17]--A contrasting phrase, with straight downward motion, is played by the violins against a held horn E.  After a loud upbeat and downbeat, the continuation is quiet and detached.  The violas play twice as fast, with a reiterated E above their active line.  The harmony emphasizes the “dominant” A.  After the first statement, the loud upbeat is played again, and supported by a blast from the woodwinds.  The phrase is played again a step lower, now emphasizing the “subdominant” G.  Rapidly falling notes from all woodwinds except flutes lead to a forceful upward motion in the violins using the theme’s dotted rhythm.
0:21 [m. 29]--Having moved back to D, the strings lead another statement of the main theme, joined by clarinets and punctuated by horns, then the group of flutes, oboes, and bassoons.  Halfway through (at m. 33), the phrase is changed with upward motion leading to a full cadence instead of a half-close.  At that point, the trumpets and timpani enter and there is a strong buildup.  After the fortissimo cadence, the dotted rhythm continues under longer downbeats from the higher instruments.  The horns and bassoons take the lead with a downward-arching figure doubled by violas and cellos.  The violins and flutes rush up and down as horns, bassoons, and low strings play two fanfare-like ascents supported by trumpets and timpani.
0:34 [m. 45]--The forceful downward-arching figure is now taken by the violins, violas, and high woodwinds, still supported by horns, trumpets, and drums.  The lower woodwinds and strings still have the longer downbeats.  The arching figure moves up, leading toward the “dominant” key of A major.  After six measures, the arching figure stops, and the longer downbeats become prominent in all woodwinds and strings with punctuating figures from horn, basson, and violas.  Another upward motion in long-short rhythm against a bass descent leads to a half-close in A major, strongly punctuated by brass and timpani.
0:42 [m. 57]--Transition.  Suddenly quiet and beginning on an upbeat, the strings begin a rushing motion in arching figures with the notes repeated in the manner of a tremolo.  These string figures are punctuated by the flutes, clarinets, and bassoons before the oboes play a rounding figure.  The pattern is played three times in a rising sequence leading toward F-sharp and G-sharp and becoming highly chromatic.  The third sequence stalls, omits the rounding oboe figure, and gently descends back to A major, the strings maintaining the tremolo.  All woodwinds and horns support the arrival at A major for the episodic theme.
0:54 [m. 71]--First statement of EPISODIC THEME in A major.  The violas establish a winding line in fast triplet motion while the horns sustain an E.  The first violins then begin the jubilant theme on an upbeat.  It is highly expressive and full-hearted, sweeping down and back up in a long-short-short rhythm.  The cellos enter on a bass A.  Halfway through the phrase the violins also introduce a descending triplet, after which the melody swings up toward a half-close, the clarinets entering to join the horns and cellos in support.  The violins then have a brief extension of the phrase with sighing downward motion touching on E minor before a gentle slide to another half-close with the viola triplets trailing after it.
1:07 [m. 87]--A new statement of the theme begins, this time with flute and bassoon joining the first violins, still against the sustained horn and cello notes and the winding viola triplets.  The melodic triplet is shifted upward before it is repeated at almost its original level.  The melody is then extended with straight patterns that surge up and down, building in volume.  The horns introduce a syncopated rhythm that will soon become important.  The violas pass the winding triplets down to the cellos at the second surging pattern.  A third such pattern is extended with a longer downward motion, with all woodwinds and upper strings joining, leading down to yet another half-close.
1:18 [m. 101]--The violins, in harmony, take up the syncopated rhythm heard from the horn in the background, leading into two descents bridged by a short figure from violas and cellos.  After the second one, the winds, brass, and timpani join in a strong upward surge using the syncopated rhythm.  At the top of this surge, the key shifts abruptly back toward D major.  The violins, horns, trumpets, and low strings hold the note A while the upper woodwinds descend, and the violas and bassoons ascend, extending the phrase by a bar.  This leads back to the rondo theme, its arrival supported by strong chords from the violins, brass, and timpani.
1:26 [m. 110]--Second statement of RONDO THEME.  The first statement is from violas, cellos, clarinets, and bassoons, as at the beginning, but now the basses are joined by the horns and timpani on the supporting interjections at the beginning and end of the phrase.  The second statement is again led by the violins.  The brass and timpani add two new interjections at the beginning and join the woodwinds on their previous ones.  The timpani are offset at the end of the phrase.
1:39 [m. 126]--The two statements of the contrasting theme from 0:12 [m. 17] are given, now from the woodwinds led by the flute.  There is a horn pulsation on E, and the strings also provide harmony.  The violins are plucked while the violas and lower strings play rapid repeated notes in the manner of a tremolo.  After the second statement, the falling woodwind notes are replaced by two reiterations of the loud upbeat and downbeat, each played in alternation with the bowed strings.  This motion is sped up over two move measures, and then there is a third, more forceful statement of the contrasting phrase that turns strongly toward C major.  The violins and violas now play in the tremolo style and the lower strings do not.
1:51 [m. 142]--Second (developmental) statement of EPISODIC THEME in C major.  In a prelude, the violins begin the winding triplet line, with off-beat plucked chords from the other strings.  The oboes, then the clarinets and bassoons, then the flute and oboes, and finally the horn with clarinets all play the opening upward leap of the theme.  The bassoon and violas then play a new version of the theme in C major that does not include the triplet.  The oboe adds a counterpoint with rising lines while the flute, horns, and violins hold a G.  After four bars, the cellos join the melody, the clarinet the counterpoint, and the held note moves to C.  Finally, the flute joins the counterpoint, and the held note moves back to G.
2:02 [m. 156]--The melody pauses on an accented G.  The violins now emerge with the theme, supported by the low strings, flutes, and horns, but they pass it to the oboe after four measures.  After two measures from the oboe, the horn takes the pattern for one more before passing it back to the oboe.  The harmony moves to the “subdominant” chord of F, which is then transformed into the “dominant” in B-flat.  A rapid five-note scale figure in the flute leads into the following transitional passage.
2:09 [m. 164]--Transition.  The contrasting theme from the main rondo theme complex is now heard in B-flat major from the woodwinds, and it is immediately followed by the rapidly falling notes that had originally been played by the woodwinds, here given by plucked violins in harmony, joined after three measures by violas.  They outline a “diminished seventh” chord.  A solo bassoon then plays the winding triplet line that typically accompanies the episodic theme, also in B-flat, supported plucked B-flats off the beat from the strings.  It is soon harmonized by its partner.  The plucked violins also follow this with the rapidly falling notes, again outlining a “diminished seventh.”
2:20 [m. 178]--The key shifts from B-flat major to D minor, and the plucked off-beat strings move to the “dominant” A.  The winding triplet line is now given by clarinet and first horn, and the trumpets and timpani join the plucked offbeat strings on the A.  In the fourth measure, flute and oboe interrupt the triplet line with the distinctive upbeat half-step from the main theme’s contrasting phrase.  The triplets then resume in clarinet, horn, and bassoon for a measure, but the upbeat half-step interrupts again, now including the clarinet, is reiterated, and then played four times in succession without a pause.  All instruments cut off except a held clarinet on D, and a solo flute speeds the half-step up to a trill-like motion.
2:29 [m. 189]--Third statement of EPISODIC THEME in the home key of D major.  The trill-like flute winds down and shifts from D minor to D major.  A solo horn now presents the theme in the home key, in its original form including the triplet.  The violas and cellos sustain a drone on D-A, and the flute continues its rapid motion, now with decorative arpeggios whose sixteenth notes replace the previous viola triplets.  After the statement, the flute shoots up to an actual trill on A, the rapid motion being passed to the violas.
2:37 [m. 198]--The theme is presented by the first violins, doubled by oboe, against the drone, a held horn A, and the continuing flute trill, along with the rapid viola motion in sixteenth notes.  The horn and the flute cut off at the melodic triplet.  The drone ends two bars later.  The theme is now given as it was on its first hearing at 0:54 [m. 71], including the extension with downward sighing motion, now touching on A minor.  The rapid motion passes from the violas to the cellos, and the second violins join the first violins an octave lower.  Clarinet, bassoon, and horn provide support.  The rapid motion passes back to the violas before the slide to the half-close, and they trail after it, now for four measures instead of two.
2:52 [m. 216]--This next presentation of the theme is analogous to 1:07 [m. 87].  It is given by first violins, bassoon, and flute with a brief imitation from the second violins and horn.  The violas continue their rapid motion, and there are upbeat-downbeat interjections from clarinets and oboes.  The lower strings again play a drone.  The straight surging patterns are given as before from woodwinds and violins, but a long-short rhythm is now heard from second violins, second flute, and second oboe.  The horn syncopation is heard, and the cellos harmonize the violas on the rapid motion, which now oscillates. The third surging pattern leads to a downward motion and half-close, as expected.
3:03 [m. 230]--Analogous to 1:18 [m. 101]--The violins play the syncopated rhythm, as expected, but the bridging descent from violas and cellos is now more of an imitation and also includes the syncopation.  The strings also change from D major to D minor.  The violins join the woodwinds on the strong upward surge, which is punctuated by brass and timpani.  The notes of the surge are shifted, and while they have chromatic motion, they do not change key, but remain in D (minor).  There is now a roll on an A from timpani, supported by horns and trumpets.  The woodwinds and strings in harmony play arching figures instead of the previous ascents against descents.  They begin sooner, reducing the phrase length by a bar.
3:10 [m. 238]--Third statement of RONDO THEME.  It is played by its usual instruments, bassoons, clarinets, violas, and cellos, but begins in D minor.  The typical punctuation is provided by horns and basses.  After four measures, two are inserted to extend the usual eight bar phrase to ten.  These two inserted bars are a steady ascent, during which the key shifts from D minor back to D major and the volume builds.  From that point, the phrase is completed in the usual way.  The second statement of the phrase is from the full orchestra, including trumpets and timpani, led by the violins and higher woodwinds and forte.  The trumpets and timpani play continuously in the dotted rhythm for the first four measures.
3:24 [m. 256]--The contrasting phrase is given, analogous to 0:12 [m. 17] and 1:39 [m. 126].  Both phrases are played by the violins and all woodwinds in harmony.  The violas have their original active line with the reiterated E, but it is now harmonized directly by the cellos, also in the faster motion.  Trumpets and timpani blast out the upbeat-downbeat figure to bridge the two phrases.  Instead of the rapidly falling notes or the reiterations of the upbeat and downbeat, what follows is a shorter, suddenly quiet bridge using the winding triplet line from the episodic theme.  The violins play the triplets in a sequence like the rondo theme.  The lower strings are plucked, and the woodwinds, brass, and timpani have the usual punctuation.
3:33 [m. 268]--Suddenly forte, the full orchestra unexpectedly skips to the upward motion heard halfway through the passage at 0:21 [m. 29], beginning from m. 33.  It is nearly identical to the earlier passage, with the arching horn/bassoon lines doubled by violas and cellos, the longer downbeats, and the fanfare-like ascents.  The only real difference is that during the upward motion, the trumpets are more active, and against the arching lines and fanfare ascents, the timpani are more active.  The flutes do not join the violins on the rushing lines at the end.
3:43 [m. 280]--This is analogous to 0:34 [m. 45], but the forceful arching figure is expanded from six measures to eight.  The notes are altered, so that as before, the arrival point is the “dominant” note A after a strong ascent, but there is not a full motion there.  Initially, the scoring is lighter, but after four measures, the thundering timpani beats add to the powerful buildup.  The music that had followed, with the longer downbeats, is omitted, and the powerful arching figures lead into the extended coda.
3:50 [m. 288]--CODA.  It begins with the contrasting phrase originally heard at 0:12 [m. 17], now in an exuberant three-bar version with tremolo violins, violas, cellos, and horns.  The trumpets and timpani punctuate the two phrases, but now those two phrases are identical, without the motion down a step for the second one.
3:54 [m. 294]--The strings are left alone, and the violins reach up to a high D and give a version of the phrase with a mild chromatic inflection.  In the third bar of this, the winds enter in overlap and give their version, down a third from the strings.  Adding to the complexity, two horns imitate the woodwinds and the other horns at the distance of a single beat, and a fourth higher.  The strings cut off after their third bar.  The winds reach their third bar and there is another overlapping sequence, strings, then winds, each a third lower, each entry overlapping with the third and last bar of the previous one.  As in the first wind statement, one horn pair imitates a beat later and a fourth higher.
4:01 [m. 302]--In the third bar of the last wind statement, the horn imitation is cut off, and the strings enter halfway through the bar with leaping figures.  The key has moved to G major, confirmed by a descent in the basses.  The winds and brass enter in overlap after two bars, the horns leaping in the opposite direction, still in G major.  The whole pattern is given a second time, after which the strings and winds come together, without oboes and trumpets, all leaping in the same direction and diminishing rapidly in volume over a held bass G.  After two more bars, most instruments play back and forth off the beat, with only a horn and bassoon on the beats.  This continues for three and a half bars, the timpani entering halfway through on D.
4:11 [m. 316]--The volume is now very quiet.  A soft timpani roll begins on D.  The bassoons, horns, trumpets, and lower strings play a fifth, G-D on the downbeat, and the other instruments respond with a harmony right off the beat, held through the next measure.  The chords gradually rise, and the opening notes shift to A and D after the second sequence.  The third sequence has moved from G major back to D major, and all instruments come together as the melodic line rises to A, at which point the drum roll also moves to that note.  Horns, trumpets, and bassoons slide down as the top A is held for three measures.  It then dips to the “leading note” C-sharp in a motion to a very warm D-major cadence.
4:22 [m. 328]--After the cadence, the horns and basses hold a third, D-F-sharp, and the cellos play a rapid winding line that is vaguely reminiscent of the episodic theme.  The flute and oboe respond with a rising octave A.  The winding cello line is then heard a fourth lower, and the response, now a rising fourth, A-D, is from clarinets.  The horns also move down, to an A-E fifth, then an F-sharp-D sixth.  The cello line is heard a third time a fifth lower (an octave lower than the first statement), and the bassoons play the rising octave A.  The horns again move to A-E.  Finally, the cello line is heard a fourth time, an octave lower than the second statement.
4:28 [m. 336]--The second violins and violas now respond with a rising third, A-C-natural.  A bassoon joins the horns, and now the cello line moves back up a fourth.  The responses now gradually expand in width, harmony, and instrumentation, and the cello line rises by step twice.  That line is joined by the violas.  First violins and the other bassoon join the response, then clarinets, and finally flutes on the fifth D-A (above harmony).  At this point, another timpani roll begins on D.  The viola/cello line leaps a sixth and the response is a third, G-B (also harmonized).  The volume builds very rapidly from piano to fortissimo.  The viola/cello line drops a third.  At the climax, the harmony lands on a “dominant” chord over a low D.
4:38 [m. 346]--After the climactic chord, which is held, a horn and trumpet blast out a leaping fanfare-like figure down from E to A and up to D.   The violas and cellos continue with the ubiquitous winding figure beginning a step up from where they were, and there is now a response from the violins.  After this exchange, the leaping horn/trumpet figure is heard again, as is the exchange between the violas/cellos and the violins.  There follow three faster and shorter exchanges along with three of the horn/trumpet leaps in quick succession.  The violins pass the shorter figure (the last part of the original winding figure) back to the violas and cellos one last time as the wind chord moves and then breaks off with the drum roll.
4:43 [m. 354]--All winds, brass, timpani, cellos, and basses come together on a series of cadence figures that resemble the punctuation heard throughout the movement.  The violins and violas now play the shorter winding figure in rapid succession, moving with the cadential figures.  After four measures containing a repeated sequence of fanfare-like cadence figures (which do not include the keynote D on top), there are another four figures, three of which do include a melodic high D (the second reaches above it to F-sharp).  The first violins (which move to a tremolo matching the first two cadence figures) and then the second violins with violas break from the winding figures and join the last two cadence figures.
4:51 [m. 363]--After the last cadence figure, there is a break before the next downbeat.  The last two measures contain a short “dominant” chord followed by a held D-major chord with a drum roll, bringing Brahms’s first published orchestral work to a triumphant close.
5:00--END OF MOVEMENT [364 mm.]
END OF SERENADE


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