Sinfonia in D 'Diana'

In his lifetime Wenzel Pichl (1741-1805) was esteemed as one of the foremost European composers of the time. A friend of Dittersdorf, whose works exerted a strong influence on his development, Pichl wrote symphonies that rank among the most interesting of the period. They are the work of a composer blessed with both excellent technique and considerable dramatic flair. The outer movements of the symphonies are thematically enterprising, bristle with purposeful energy and make very effective use of their orchestral forces. Like Dittersdorf, Pichl had an interest in writing symphonies with extra-musical themes drawn from classical mythology. Diana, curiously, is not at all pictorial in conception. Far from employing such crudely obvious devices as prominent horn calls and hunting movements to depict the virgin goddess of the hunt, Pichl seems to have taken great care that the symphony remain as abstract as possible.