Babbling Brooks and Beethoven's Symphony No 6
II. Andante molto moto
Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 ("Pastoral")
I'm Ludwig van Beethoven, and I'm about to explain the second movement of my Symphony No 6, the Andante molto moto. You'll sit beside a brook where the cellos ripple like flowing water, and at the very end a flute, an oboe and clarinets sing out as a nightingale, a quail and a cuckoo. If you'd like to learn to recognize our pieces when they begin, my fellow composers and I teach exactly that on this site, so come and test yourself .
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Listen to the Water, Not the Clock
If I were sitting next to you, I'd tell you to start with the lowest voices in the orchestra, because that's where the brook lives. I split the cellos into groups: some play a soft, rocking figure with mutes on, and the others pluck their strings here and there. Above them the violins and woodwinds pass a calm, singing melody from one group to the next, so you can simply follow it around the orchestra without knowing a single instrument's name. Keep a little attention in reserve for the very end, because a handful of woodwind players get a moment of their own there.A Title That Points, Not Paints
I called this movement "Scene by the brook", and I'll admit the title is more of a hint than a map. I always said this symphony expresses the feelings nature stirs in me rather than painting pictures, so the brook is a mood more than a drawing. I marked the music Andante molto moto, a walking pace with plenty of motion, because a brook that stands still is just a puddle. It's in B flat major and sways along in 12/8, which gives it a gentle, rocking feel that hardly ever stops.Choosing a Shape for a River
Choosing the form was an adventure, because a river doesn't come with a blueprint and I could have let the music wander wherever it pleased. In the end I chose sonata form, which is simply a way of introducing musical ideas, taking them somewhere new, and then bringing them home again. So you'll hear a first stretch where the ideas are introduced, a middle where they travel and change, a return of the familiar material, and a closing stretch with a surprise. I'll take these four sections one at a time, so you'll always know where you are on the path.Section 1: Introductions, Please
The movement opens in B flat major at that unhurried, flowing pace, with the cellos already rocking and the main melody settling in on top. Nothing here is in a hurry, and the mood is warm and content, like a bench in the sun. After a while the music moves to a new key, a slightly brighter place, and it does so so smoothly that you may not notice the moment you cross over. The tempo stays steady the whole time, so the only thing that changes is the color of the landscape.Section 2: The Brook Takes a Detour
In the middle section I take the little ideas from the first part and break them into smaller pieces. Those pieces get tossed between the instruments, and the music passes through several keys, as if the brook were trying out different paths through the meadow. The mood becomes a little more searching and thoughtful, but it never turns stormy, and the gentle motion underneath keeps going. If you listen closely, you'll recognize the tunes you've just heard, only dressed a bit differently each time.Section 3: Back at the Favorite Spot
Now the opening melody returns, and the music feels at home in B flat major again. The flowing cellos are back where you first met them, and the whole orchestra sounds relaxed, as if it had wandered off and then remembered the way. I let the ideas from the first section come back in a familiar order, so your ear can enjoy that quiet feeling of recognition. The pace is the same as before, but after the detour it feels more settled and a little more at peace.Section 4: Three Feathered Guests Arrive
Near the end the orchestra slows its flow and holds still, and a flute, an oboe and two clarinets step forward in a cadenza. They imitate a nightingale, a quail and a cuckoo, and I named all three birds right there in the score so nobody could miss them. The story goes that I called these bird calls nothing but a joke, but only one program note says so, so nobody can say for sure. Then the brook murmurs back in, and the movement drifts away and goes straight into the third movement, the merry gathering of country folk.Your Turn to Sit by the Water
Now it's your turn to hear "II. Andante molto moto" for yourself. Press play, settle in, and let the music carry you along without trying to catch every detail. As you listen, you might remember the rocking cellos, the melody that travels around the orchestra, and the three birds waiting near the end. I hope you enjoy walking along this brook as much as I enjoyed writing it.---
I hope the brook is still murmuring somewhere in your mind as you finish reading. When the cadenza fades, the music doesn't stop to take a bow, because I send it straight on into the third movement. It seems right to me that a quiet stream never really announces where it ends. Did you enjoy learning about the listen guide of Symphony No 6's II. Andante molto moto? I'd love to think that the next time you hear the cellos rocking beneath the melody, you'll feel like you're sitting on the bank beside me. There's still a lot more to discover in this symphony. The other four movements each have their own title and their own feeling, and the way they follow one another says a good deal about what I wanted to share. If you're curious, please click on the links provided to keep exploring Symphony No 6. Take your time with them, the way you would on a walk with nowhere in particular to be.