I. Allegro molto
II. Andante
III. Minuetto; trio
IV. Finale: allegro assai
It seems as if Mozart lost his classic serenity whenever he chose the
key of G minor. In the immortal symphony there is, except in the
beautiful, characteristically Mozartian _andante_, a feverishness, an
intensity not to be found in his other symphonies; and so in the perfect
flower of his chamber music there is a direct, passionate appeal of one
theme (G minor again) that reminds one of the terribly earnest Verdi of
the ’fifties.
Some years ago, a prominent writer about music, a wild-eyed worshiper of
Liszt and Wagner, published the statement that this symphony is
interesting only in a historical sense. His idols would have been the
first to laugh at him. There are few things in art that are perfect. The
G minor symphony is one of them. Its apparent simplicity is an adorable
triumph of supreme art.