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Which instruments did Ludwig van Beethoven add to the finale of the Fifth Symphony?
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Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven, lithograph after an 1819 portrait by Ferdinand Schimon, c. 1870.
In the finale of his Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Ludwig van Beethoven expanded the orchestra by adding three trombones, a piccolo, and a contrabassoon. This addition of trombones is considered by many to be their first use in a symphony. These instruments contribute to the "explosion of C major" that characterizes the triumphant final movement of the work.1