Symphony No. 96 in D Major, “Miracle”

Composer: HAYDN, Joseph
  • Symphony No. 96 in D Major is one of Haydn’s “London Symphonies” (Nos. 93-104), composed for the 1791 concert season in London.1
  • The symphony got its nickname, “Miracle,” a few years after the piece was written. When Haydn conducted a performance of the work from the keyboard, several audience members rushed to the front of the stage to get a better look at the composer because of his celebrity. Meanwhile, a chandelier hanging above the newly vacated audience seats fell and shattered. What could have caused multiple casualties left only a few bruises. Consequently, listeners cried “Miracle!”
    • Oddly, historians have found that this incident likely took place during the performance of another symphony (No. 102) rather than No. 96, but the nickname stuck regardless!2

Sources

  1. Georg Feder and James Webster, “Haydn, (Franz) Joseph,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed September 29, 2026, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000044593.
  2. Georg Predota, “The Haydn ‘Miracle’ Symphony,” Interlude (2018), accessed September 29, 2026, https://interlude.hk/haydn-miracle-symphony/.

Cut IDs

40685 45140 13125 11846 21508