How is Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 (the Italian) built, and what makes it an early-Romantic set work?
Mendelssohn Symphony No. 4 in A major (the Italian) as a set work: the four movements and their structures, the key scheme (including the minor-key finale), the themes, the orchestral colour and the early-Romantic features (lyricism, a sense of place, a cyclic touch and the saltarello finale) to locate on the skeleton score.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer to Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 in A major (the Italian) as a set work for Area of Study A. Covers the four movements and their structures, the key scheme including the minor-key saltarello finale, the themes, the orchestral colour and the early-Romantic features to locate on the skeleton score in Component 3.
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What this dot point is asking
Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 in A major, the Italian, is a set work for Area of Study A and the other detailed-analysis option in Component 3 (answered on a skeleton score). You must know the four movements and their structures, the key scheme (including the striking minor-key finale in an otherwise major-key symphony), the themes, the orchestral colour, and the early-Romantic features, lyricism, a sense of place, a cyclic touch and the saltarello finale, so you can describe and locate them. This dot point is the close knowledge the score-based questions reward, and the evidence for the comparison and development essays.
The work and its context
Movement 1: Allegro vivace
Movement 2: Andante con moto
Movement 3: Con moto moderato
Movement 4: Saltarello (Presto)
How Eduqas examines this
Mendelssohn 4 is examined through the detailed set-work analysis in the Western Classical Tradition section of Component 3, answered on a skeleton score, and as evidence in the development-of-the-symphony and comparison essays. You study one set symphony in detail (Haydn 104 or Mendelssohn 4) and the other for general study, answering the set-work question that matches your detailed work. Fix each movement's structure, key, themes, orchestral colour and signature moments (the repeated-chord opening, the pilgrims' march, the horn trio, the minor-key saltarello) so you can hear them and locate them on the score.
Try this
Q1. What is unusual about the key of the finale of Mendelssohn 4? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. Although the symphony is in A major, the saltarello finale stays in A minor to the end, an unusual and dramatic choice.
Q2. Describe two early-Romantic features of Mendelssohn 4. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Any two of: a vivid sense of place (Italy); lyrical, singing melody; descriptive movements (the pilgrims' march, the saltarello dance); a cyclic recall of material; rich orchestral colour from a modest orchestra.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas C3 2021 (set-work, style)10 marksWith reference to the printed score, describe the themes and the orchestral writing in the first movement of Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4. [10]Show worked answer →
A detailed set-work analysis question (AO3) answered with the skeleton score. The marker rewards specific, score-located observation of melody and scoring.
Method. Establish the Allegro vivace first movement in A major, in sonata form. Describe the bright, leaping first subject in the strings over rapid, repeated wind chords that give buoyant momentum, then the lyrical second subject in the dominant.
Develop. Note the orchestral writing: the dancing repeated woodwind quavers, the singing string melodies, the energetic tuttis, and a famous fugato in the development (a new theme worked imitatively). Quote bar locations and name devices (the repeated-chord accompaniment, the fugato, the doublings). Markers reward genuine score-based detail; they penalise a generic sonata-form account with no Mendelssohn-specific observation.
Eduqas C3 2022 (set-work, style)8 marksDescribe the structure and character of the finale (Saltarello) of Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4. [8]Show worked answer →
A structured set-work question (AO3). The marker rewards the correct form and key plus real features.
Method. Name the finale as a Saltarello, a fast Italian dance, in A minor (unusually for a major-key symphony, the finale stays in the minor), in sonata form. Describe the relentless triplet and dotted dance rhythms and the two Italian dance types (saltarello and tarantella) driving it.
Develop. Add features: the minor-key colour against the bright A major of the rest of the work; the cyclic touch (material recalling the first movement); the perpetual-motion energy; and the orchestral writing (whirling strings, sharp wind accents). Markers reward the structure, the minor tonality and the dance character with specific evidence, not a vague "fast finale".
Related dot points
- The Romantic symphony and the growth of the orchestra: the expansion in scale, length, harmony and orchestral colour after Beethoven, cyclic and programmatic design, nationalism, and the larger Romantic orchestra, as the context for the set work Mendelssohn 4.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer to the Romantic symphony and the growth of the orchestra (Area of Study A). Covers the expansion in scale, length, chromatic harmony and orchestral colour after Beethoven, cyclic and programmatic design, nationalism, and the larger Romantic orchestra, the context for the set work Mendelssohn 4.
- The elements of music applied to the symphony: melody, harmony, tonality, texture, rhythm, metre, tempo, dynamics, articulation, structure and sonority, and how to describe each precisely when analysing the set works and unprepared extracts.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer to the elements of music applied to the symphony (Area of Study A). Defines melody, harmony, tonality, texture, rhythm, metre, tempo, dynamics, articulation, structure and sonority, and shows how to describe each precisely when analysing the set symphonies and unprepared extracts.
- The orchestra and sonority in the symphony: the Classical orchestra and its sections, the growth into the Romantic orchestra, the roles of strings, woodwind, brass and percussion, and the vocabulary for describing orchestration (doubling, tutti, solos, pizzicato) in the set works.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer to the orchestra and sonority in the symphony (Area of Study A). Covers the Classical orchestra and its sections, the growth into the Romantic orchestra, the roles of strings, woodwind, brass and percussion, and the vocabulary for describing orchestration in the set symphonies and unprepared extracts.
- Haydn Symphony No. 104 in D major (the London) as a set work: the four movements and their structures, the key scheme, the themes and their development, the texture, sonority and rhythm, and the signature moments you must be able to locate on the skeleton score.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer to Haydn's Symphony No. 104 in D major (the London) as a set work for Area of Study A. Covers the four movements and their structures, the key scheme, the themes and their development, texture, sonority and rhythm, and the signature moments to locate on the skeleton score in Component 3.
- Comparing the set symphonies (Haydn 104 and Mendelssohn 4): their shared four-movement frame and their differences in style, harmony, orchestral colour, form and expression, and how to deploy both as evidence in the development-of-the-symphony and comparison essays.
An Eduqas A-Level Music answer comparing the two set symphonies, Haydn 104 and Mendelssohn 4, for Area of Study A. Covers their shared four-movement frame and their differences in style, harmony, orchestral colour, form and expression, and how to use both as evidence in the development-of-the-symphony and comparison essays of Component 3.
Sources & how we know this
- Eduqas A Level Music (A660) specification — Eduqas (WJEC) (2016)
- Eduqas A Level Music: set works and skeleton scores — Eduqas (WJEC) (2023)