DESCRIPTION:
Symphony No. 2 "The Four Temperaments", Op. 16 is the second symphony composed by Carl Nielsen; it was written between 1901-1902 and dedicated to the italian composer Ferruccio Busoni.
It was first performed in 1 December 1902 for the Danish Concert Association, with Nielsen himself conducting. As indicated in the subtitle, each of its four movements is a musical sketch of a humor of the four temperaments: choleric, phlegmatic, melancholic, and sanguine. Despite its apparent concept of program music, the work is a fully integrated symphony in traditional symphonic structure.
The composer's inspiration for the symphony came from a four-part comical picture of the temperaments in a village pub in Zealand during a visit with his wife and friends.
Progressive tonality is demonstrated in the symphony; the first three movements are in descending thirds: B minor, G major, and E flat minor, and the final movement springs out the D major chord. The second symphony, as in the first, still belongs to the tradition of Brahms and Dvořák, but more compact and concentrated with simple but powerful finishing by an A major march.
The pieces is divided into four movements:
1. Allegro collerico;
2. Allegro comodo e flemmatico;
3. Andante malincolico;
4. Allegro sanguineo - Marziale.