Sinfonia in C

Dittersdorf (1739-1799) was one of the most prolific and versatile of Haydn’s and Mozart’s Viennese contemporaries. He wrote fluently and attractively in all genres and his symphonies, of which there are over a hundred, reveal a wealth of novel solutions to the problems of form and a subversive wit that bears comparison only with Haydn’s. Although his programmatic symphonies are rightly lauded for their great originality, Dittersdorf’s more orthodox works are also remarkable for their exuberant musical invention and impressive command of the orchestra. On the basis of an entry in the Sigmaringen Catalogue the present work was composed not later than 1766. The original scoring of the work was probably as it stands here although two sources include clarini and timpani as did the lost Sigmaringen copy. The work was evidently popular and was issued on at least two occasions by publishers in London and Liège.