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The word symphony is derived from the Greek syn (together) and phone (sounding), by way of the latin symphonia. The term was used by the Greeks, firstly to denote the general conception of concord, both between successive sounds and in the unison of simultaneous sounds; secondly, in the special sense of concordant pairs of successive sounds (i.e. the "perfect intervals" of modern music; the 4th, 5th and octave); and thirdly as dealing with the concord of the octave, thus meaning the art of singing in octaves, as opposed to singing and playing in unison. In Roman times the word appears in the general sense which still survives in poetry, that is, as harmonious concourse of voices and instruments. It also appears to mean a concert. In the Gospel of Luke, chapter xv verse 25, it is distinguished from χορῶν, and the passage is appropriately translated in the English Bible as "music and dancing." Polybius and others seem to use it as the name of a musical instrument.
In the sense of "sounding together", the word appears in the titles of works by Giovanni Gabrieli (the Sacrae symphoniae) and Heinrich Schütz (the Symphoniae sacre) among others. Through the 17th century, the Italian word sinfonia was applied to a number of works, including overtures, instrumental ritornello sections of arias and concertos, and works which would later by classified as concertos or sonatas.
The form that we now recognise as the symphony took shape in the early 18th century. It is commonly regarded to have grown from the Italian overtureThe Italian overture is a piece of orchestral music which was used to open operas, oratorios and other large-scale works in the late 17th and early 18th century. The structure was particularly popular among Italian composers such as Alessandro Scarlatti,, a three-movement piece used to open operaCharles Garnier's Opera, Paris, opened 1875 Opera is an art form consisting of a dramatic stage performance set to music. The drama is presented using the typical elements of theater such as scenery, costumes, and acting. However, the words of the opera,s, often used by Alessandro ScarlattiAlessandro Scarlatti ( May 2, 1660 October 24, 1725) was a Baroque music composer especially famous for his operas and chamber cantatas. He is considered the founder of the Neapolitan school of opera. He was the father of Domenico Scarlatti He was born in among others. Another important progenitor of the symphony was the ripieno concerto - a relatively little explored form resembling a concerto for stringsA string instrument (also "stringed instrument") is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones. Sound produc and continuo, but with no solo instruments. The earliest known ripieno concerti are by Giuseppe TorelliGiuseppe Torelli (Verona April 22, 1658 Bologna February 8, 1709) was an Italian composer and violinist, most remembered for his concerti grossi Op. 8) and other music for strings and continuo, and his trumpet music. Regarded by some as one of the greates (his set of six, opus five, 1698). Antonio Vivaldi also wrote works of this type. Perhaps the best known ripieno concerto is Johann Sebastian Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3.
Early symphonies, in common with both Italian overtures and concertos, have three movements in the tempi quick-slow-quick. However, unlike the ripieno concerto, which uses the usual ritornello form of the concerto, at least the first movement of these symphonies is in some sort of binary form. They are distinguished from Italian overtures in that they were written for concert performance, rather than to introduce a stage work, although for much of the 18th century, the terms overture and symphony were used interchangeably, and a piece originally written as one was sometimes later used as the other. The vast majority of these early symphonies are in a major key.
Symphonies at this time, whether for concert, opera or church use were not considered the major work on a program, often, as with Concerti, they were divided up between other works, or drawn from suites or overtures. Vocal music was considered the heart of the musical experience, and symphonies were supposed to provide preludes, interludes and postludes to this. At the time most symphonies were relatively short - running between 10 and 20 minutes at the most.
The "Italian" style of symphony, often used as overture and entr'acte in opera houses, became a standard three movement for of a fast movement, the "allegro", a slow movement, and then a fast movement. Mozart's early symphonies are in this lay out. The early three-movement form was eventually replaced by a four-movement layout which was dominant in the latter part of the 18th century and throughout most of the 19th century. This symphonic form was influenced by Germanic practice, and would come to be associated with the "classical style" of Haydn and Mozart. The important changes were the addition of a "dance" movement was the important change, and the change in character of the first movement to becoming "first among equals".
The normal four movement form became, then:
It should be noted, however, that even in the mid-18th century, variations on this layout were not uncommon - in particular, the middle two movements sometimes switched places, or a slow introduction was added to the beginning, sometimes resulting in a four-movement slow-quick-slow-quick form.
The first symphony to introduce the minuet as the third movement appears to be a 1740 work in D major by Georg Matthias Monn . This is an isolated example, however: the first composer to consistently use the minuet as part of a four-movement form was Johann Stamitz.
Two major centres for early symphony writing were Vienna, where early exponents of the form included Georg Christoph Wagenseil, Wenzel Raimund Birck and Georg Matthias Monn ; and Mannheim, home of the so-called Mannheim School. Symphonies were written throughout Europe, however, with Giovanni Battista Sammartini and Antonio Brioschi active in Italy, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach in northern Germany, Leopold Mozart in Salzburg, François-Joseph Gossec in Paris, and Johann Christian Bach and Carl Friedrich Abel in London.
Later significant Viennese composers of symphonies include Johann Baptist Vanhal , Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf and Leopold Hoffmann . The most important symphonists of the latter part of the 18th century, however, are considered to be Joseph Haydn, who wrote 106 symphonies over the course of 40 years, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Their large number of widely performed and emmulated works are commonly considered the apotheosis of the Classical style.