Sinfonia 'Il combattimento delle passioni umani'

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. Among Dittersdorf’s most original works are his programmatic symphonies and although Il Combattimento delle passioni umani (‘The Battle of the Human Passions’), is based on a traditional conceit it is treated nonetheless with great flair and psychological insight by the composer.