A L Recas

Haydn Symphonie n Degrees 92 "Oxford" (piano transcription by Angel Recas) A L Recas

Joseph Haydn completed his Symphony No. 92 in G major, Hoboken I/92, popularly known as the Oxford Symphony, in 1789 as one of a set of three symphonies that Haydn had been commissioned by the French Count d'Ogny to compose. The symphony is called the "Oxford" because Haydn reportedly conducted it at a ceremony in 1791 in which he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Oxford University. The name is something of a misnomer, because the symphony was actually written earlier for performance in Paris. Haydn was awarded his degree fairly soon after his first arrival in England, and as he had not yet finished composing any of the twelve "London" symphonies he ultimately wrote for England, he brought to the ceremony the most recent of his completed symphonies. Haydn's appearance at Oxford was symbolic of the international success he attained beginning in his late fifties. To honor the memory of Charles Valentin Alkan, in whom this piano solo transcription by Angel Recas is inspired, and former the first number of a Symphonic piano Serie Collection which with this ítem beginning.