Beethoven’s eighth symphony stands in contrast to the previous and subsequent symphonies no. seven and nine. It sounds as if the composer briefly returned to using musical jokes, just as his teacher Joseph Haydn had taught him. In his short eighth symphony Beethoven makes use of style elements he had already abandoned. Nevertheless, true to his reputation as trailblazer, Beethoven questions these old style elements and shows once more: He is a creative spirit without limits, even though at that point he had already lost his hearing.