(both switch to piccolo during the central Adagio) 2 oboes 2 clarinets in B♭ 2 bassoons 4 horns in F 3 trumpets in B♭ 3 trombones Timpani Strings Description Adagio (bars 1–92) The symphony begins with a soft roll on the timpani followed by a slow ascending syncopated C major scale (starting on the timpani's G) in the strings which leads to an unexpected chord in the remote key of A-flat minor. The interval of a minor sixth between the initial note of G and the final note of E♭ has been interpreted as a reference to the beginning of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde: the passage is followed by chords taken from that work. A few bars later, in bar 11, a key motif is announced quietly on the flute and repeated on the clarinet: Soon a passage is arrived at which sounds rather like a chorale, with the violas and cellos softly singing a hymnlike tune that will gradually build up to the first climax of the symphony. As the climax approaches, the orchestra adds volume and intensity. At the climax, the first trombone announces the main tune of the symphony (bars 60–64), labelled "Aino" in sketches, after the composer's wife. This theme reappears at key moments of the symphony, each time reaffirming C as the tonality. Un pochett. meno adagio – poco affrett. – Poco a poco affrettando il Tempo al ... Vivacissimo – rallentando al ... (bars 93–221) At bar 93 the tempo is marked Un pochett[ino] meno adagio (a little bit less slowly). A new theme in the Dorian mode, based on the ascending scale in the opening bars, soon appears on the oboe (bars 94 and 95): The tempo gradually increases (affrettando) in a long sequential passage exploring several tonalities. At bar 134 the time signature slips from into notching up the tension. The key signature switches to C minor: Soon the tempo is ratcheted up to Vivacissimo (very lively), with fast staccato chords traded between the strings and woodwind. The music turns stormy in mood with ominous ascending and descending scales on the strings, while the "Aino" theme is heard again in the brass: Largamente molto – Affettuoso (bars 496–521) This section ends with a chord progression from A♭ back to the symphony's main key of C major taken directly from Sibelius's earlier work Valse triste from Kuolema. Tempo I (bars 522–525) The last